His father was summoning him, already? Had he grown impatient looking for an excuse to do away with his own son? Maybe he would be willing to show some grace. Give him more time to catch her. The ceremony had been thwarted, and no more humans had been injured. This time he knew what Bella wanted, and he wouldn’t let her sway him.
“Go ahead then,” Ray gestured toward the gateway.
“We won’t be venturing to Faery. He’s asked me to bring you to him in the forest,” the owl replied.
Ray’s brows rose. His father had left Faery to come and see him? Suspicious. But he kept his lips sealed and followed after her. She flew ahead and led him to the edge of the forest. A little way beyond the looming visage of Thornwood Abbey, he found his father waiting for him in the shadows of the old ash and oak that made up the forest.
“You called for me, Father?” Ray asked by way of greeting. Better to get this over with quickly.
“I didn’t think you’d be able to do it,” his father replied coolly
Ray blinked and looked from his father to the white owl who sat upon the branch behind him preening her feathers as if she couldn’t be less interested in their conversation.
“Forgive me if I’m a bit confused. What did you think I’ve done?” Ray asked. His father couldn’t have discovered Catherine’s identity, could he? The very thought made his blood run cold. What would Father do if he had her?
“Don’t play games. I grow weary of them. Tabitha told me about how you found the killer and destroyed them. To think someone with the wolf curse had lived so long among the humans.”
Ray’s gaze flickered toward Tabitha once more. But she had turned around on the branch, her back to him. Why had she lied to Father? He thought she was his spy.
“It was a surprise to me too,” Ray said absently.
“I knew you could be trusted with such a delicate task.”
Ray snapped his attention back to his father. Delicate task? His father had threatened to punish him if he didn’t find the killer. What game was he playing? Now that was perhaps the most unexpected thing he thought he’d hear this evening.
“What, was this some sort of test?” Ray snapped back.
“Don’t be ridiculous. I asked you to take care of something, and you did. It’s as simple as that. It will look favorable upon you to the council.”
Ray bit back an angry retort. It would resolve nothing to challenge his father. All that mattered was his power and place on the council. He would only have come to the human realm if it were a threat to his ambition. At first, he had assumed it had something to do with the forbidden magics. But it was more than that; he could see it now. How much did he know, did he know Bella was behind it? Did he know about Lady Thornton?
“It’s not like you to come to the human realm; I should be honored,” Ray replied, trying to read his father’s expression.
Father wrinkled his nose and looked about him as if he were standing in a refuse heap. “I hope it will be my last time.”
A tense silence followed. Ray debated if he should tell Father about Bella’s plan to close the gateway. The comment might have been ill-timed. But what if it weren’t? Father was ambitious, and cold, but he wouldn’t try and close the gates. It would be a death sentence for both Faery and the human worlds surely...
Father cleared his throat. “Until I can convince the council to let you resume your position at court, I would have you do one more thing for me.”
And there it was, the point he had been circling until now.
“And what’s that?” Ray asked, trying to keep his tone light and indifferent.
“There are rumors of a girl with the power of the ancients, a connection to the Great Tree that hasn’t been seen in generations of the fae. If you see anything, I would have you report to me straight away.”
The message was clear. Find what I am looking for, and I will return you to court. A century of suffering, begging at low courts, and dancing to the whims of humans would be over. All he needed to do was hand over Lady Thornton to Father. The Twilight Queen had asked him the same, and at the time, he had hesitated, knowing she would use her like a puppet. Would his father be any better? He had scraped to gain power to rise to the role of regent. Knowing his father, he doubted he would want to give that power easily. Lady Thornton had saved his life twice. Could he hand her over to such an uncertain fate?
“If I see anything, you’ll be the first to know,” Ray said, keeping his expression blank.
Father narrowed his gaze at him and frowned. “Your cooperation is appreciated, son.” He emphasized the word. As if there were any love left between them. All that kept them linked together were the frayed threads of obligation.
“If there’s nothing else?” Ray prompted and turned, not waiting for a reply. He needed to get back to Lady Thornton. Now more than ever, he needed to protect her.
“Be careful, Raethorn. I would hate for you to end up on the wrong side of this,” Father’s words echoed after him.
He’d been wrong. This was only the beginning. And he was only seeing a few moves in a much larger game.
Ray reached the edge of the forest and waited. All the lights were on in the manor. Had Lady Thornton looked upon her husband’s body yet, or had she been lost in the whirlwind of grief and chaos. If he had stayed beside her, would he have helped or hurt her cause? The humans might assume she had killed her husband, but if there were another man present, they would definitely jump to conclusions, especially after she’d disappeared for days with the same man.
