“I’ll be fine. I’ll always be fucking fine.”
Just about the only thing I missed about The Golden City were its showers. And it was hard not to fantasize about them now. It had been ages since I’d taken a hot, luxurious shower in the privacy of my own damn home.
But that was a small price to pay to escape the prison of that place. I hadn’t been back to The Golden City since the war two years ago. Since everything I knew to be true had been ripped away from me.
I’d grown up in The Golden City. It wasn’t until I left, until I truly experienced life outside of those enchanted walls, that I realized how flawed it was.
In theory, it was a haven for angels and gifted fae—an elite society safe from vampyres.
As if vampyres were so damn filthy they needed to be kept out like stray coyotes.
In reality, it was all a fucking lie.
My chest tightened just thinking about it. My father and I, and thousands of others, isolated ourselves within the walls ofthe city, ignorant and led to believe that the vampyres were diseased. We believed the entire race was cursed to rot and perish unless feasting on the blood of living souls.
It was all a lie, and now that the curse was broken, the hungry ones, those who were cursed, were no longer a threat, and vampyres no longer caved to their blood lusts.
White wings spread, I soared higher and faster than any fae could, my feathered wings gliding effortlessly through the air. Circling back, I ensured Xavier was still close enough to follow me before I scaled higher and higher into the sky. He was a powerful vampyre, and his magic was strong enough that a flight like this was nearly as easy to him as it was for me. It was a rare gift for vampyres to summon wings—even more rare to keep them summoned for the duration of this journey.
We’d been up here for more than an hour without even the slightest fatigue. I could have flown all damn day. The peacefulness of the sky was almost potent enough to crack through the thick blanket of anger tightening around my heart.
Almost.
I had been fighting the urge to visit The Golden City for months now. Wolf left a trusted advisor to look over the place when we left. Since then, the city really became a safe haven, a place for those with magic to stay and live freely, out in the open. But in my mind, it was nothing but a reminder of the past.
As I got closer, my father’s deceptions pummeled me, stealing the ounce of calm I’d found in the sky. Memories of every terrible thing I’d done for him within those walls surfaced, bringing with them visions of all the people I’d betrayed while I tried so desperately to please him…
No, I would never be that man again. I would never again allow myself to remain ignorant regarding the politics of other kingdoms.
I needed this trip. To remind myself of what was at stake.
“Where are you taking us?” Xavier asked, finally catching up to me.
“You know exactly where we’re going. There’s someone here who might be able to help us.”
As the massive, stone walls of The Golden City came into view, a riot of emotions consumed me. For decades, they were enchanted with the goddess’s magic. Nobody could enter the city without the permission of the goddess herself.
But those days were gone, along with any shield used to keep people out.
I pumped my wings again, Xavier silent behind me as we flew over the wall. The first thing I noticed was how damn bright it all was. During my time here, the sky had been dark, the streets dirty and crumbling and damn near cursed.
Now? This was no abandoned kingdom. This was no dark, nightmarish prison, either.
This was a home. Fae from all over the kingdom moved their families here for refuge. They no longer lived in magicless, dead lands. Magic thrived here.Faethrived here.
I never thought The Golden City could feel so alive.
I lowered myself onto the ground just inside the wall. Anyone paying attention to the morning sky would have seen me fly over those damn walls. I didn’t bother to hide it. My presence here was no secret.
“So, this is it? The infamous Golden City?” Xavier straightened his leather jacket over his shoulders beside me. “I was expecting a guarded gate. Spikes on the walls. Piles of bones and ash.”
Yeah. So was I.“I guess things have changed since the war.”
“You really think it’s a good idea coming here?”
I shrugged. “I don’t see why not. The Golden City is technically under Scarlata’s rule now. The vampyres are contentin Scarlata, but that doesn’t mean we can’t come back to this place. It isn’t forbidden.”
“Right,” Xavier said. “That’s why we left in secret and didn’t tell anyone where we were heading.”
