“Likely her new, shiny fae henchmen,” I mutter, and North makes a face.
“Fucking fae,” he hisses, slamming back the rest of the drink.
“Funny how things turn,” I say, recalling how we were once the ones holding daggers against any fae traitor’s throat.
“I miss it some days,” North says, clearly annoyed. “At least we didn’t have to attend Council bullshit back then.”
“No, we just mindlessly followed orders,” I grunt sarcastically.
“Until you became Mister Powerful.”
“Until I becameaware,” I say, grimacing at the memory. “What she was doing… What she hadusdoing and using the Codex as a scapegoat, and then with Adeline, I…”
It’s the first time I’ve said her name since I was imprisoned. Flashes of fighting, of fire and ice entwining… It invades my mind. I’ve suppressed it all for so long that it sends a chill down my spine.
North claps me on the shoulder and squeezes my arm. It helps me exhale, helps the visions subside.
“You’re safe. I have you, brother,” he reminds me. “And I’m sure she’ll have you, too.”
I look up as the kitchen door swings wide and Juniper comes through it. I hear North blow out a breath, feel him straighten and sink back onto the stool.
“I think we need to tell her,” North says.
“Already?” I ask, peering his way.
“You have the first letter. What, Mother will give us two more days? One letter a morning? We’ll wake up the day after the Solstice with fae spears pointed at our faces or ropes around our wrists. We need to tell her before that happens.”
“We have toshieldher before that happens,” I counter.
“We have to have her consent, and we can’t do that until?—”
“Until she knows,” I finish. My chin hits my shoulder as I look his way. “Tomorrow. After the festival.”
“What’s tomorrow after the festival?” Juniper asks as she reaches us behind the bar.
I’m obsessed with the smile she looks between us with.
“You two look like you’re hiding something,” she says, taking two glasses out and sitting them on the bar top.
“Just figuring out festival plans. What time do you work?” I ask.
“Early shift again. We’ll have more of the family crowd, so… Plus the only thing I really like is watching the night parade,” she explains. “I didn’t realize you two were so…merry,” she adds, pouring us drinks.
“I love the festival,” North says. “The art show is always a favorite.”
“Why? Are you an artist, too?” she asks.
North adjusts his glasses. “On occasion.”
“I don’t have to be here until eleven tomorrow. Gallery opens at nine. Maybe we can explore before I have to be here,” she suggests.
“When do you get off tonight?” I ask.
“Midnight. Why? What did you have in mind?” she asks.
I chuckle softly at the glint in her eyes. “A few things. They were putting the decorations up in the trees downtown. Thought that would be nice to see at night.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever purposefully gone down there at night,” she replies.
