The king raised his voice slightly. “Inara.”
There was a rustle from the trees above. Inara dropped to the ground and knelt; her head bowed.
“Where do I know her from?”
At any other time, I would have rolled my eyes at the absurdity of his expectation that someone else, an enemy no less, would be able to answer a question like that, but I was too afraid.
There was something about this Fae that petrified me on a level I had never experienced before. Everything about him felt wrong. Off in a way I couldn’t explain.
He set my senses to trembling and no pep talk or rationalization would get them to stop.
“Her features are common. It could be that something about them reminds you of someone you once punished,” Inara responded.
“No, that’s not it.”
There was a certainty in the Fae king’s voice that brought a chill to the back of my neck. My hindbrain screamed that I was in danger.
“I’ll figure it out.” The Fae, it was hard to think of him as Muiredach even in my head, had a self-satisfied smile on his face. The first trace of expression since he’d entered the clearing. “One way or another.”
Inara kept her head bowed, not reacting to his words.
The king addressed Vitus. “The challenge has been issued and accepted?”
Vitus startled, probably not expecting the quick change in subject. “It has. I’ve already made the arrangements. Thomas and I will battle it out in your arena. As requested.”
“You’ve done well.” The king clasped his hands at his waist, his gaze lifting from me to focus on the council member. “When you kill him, I will absorb his death. A vampire as strong as him will fuel me for decades. It’s simply a pity we couldn’t have the challenge here, where I’m at my strongest.”
He was assuming Vitus would come out the winner in that confrontation. An arrogant assumption unless they had something up their sleeve to ensure that outcome.
Vitus dipped his head slightly in a respectful nod. “Our chances of success would be greater if we got rid of his yearling first. It would strike a powerful blow to not only him but the enforcer and Ahrun as well.”
“You speak as if you expect to lose.” The king’s tone was wintry, his displeasure saturating the air. “When you approached me all those centuries ago, it was with the assurance that you could do this.”
“And I can,” Vitus was quick to protest.
“I hope so. My daughter was sacrificed for this plan. I would hate to see that death be in vain.”
Vitus bowed his head, deeper this time. “That was a regrettable oversight on my part.”
The king dismissed his apology with a wave of his hand. “She shared in the responsibility for her demise. I warned her of the perils of allowing a toy too much freedom. That her stag was complicit in her death is no surprise. His patience in planning her fall is commendable.”
He thought Connor was responsible for what happened to Naimh, I realized.
That was good news for me. Not so great news for my brother.
“He’ll still have to die the most agonizing death I can think of.” The king’s gaze drifted to the edge of the forest. “I plan to punish all those who had a hand in my daughter’s demise.”
I admired the way Arlan was able to remain passive in the face of the king’s proclamation. In his place, I would have fled in fear of my life.
“As for this woman, a slow death would serve your purposes better than a quick one. Her sire is sure to feel her pain as her life slips away one drop at a time.”
I dug my fingers into the dirt below me to keep my fear under control. These bastards weren’t going to get the satisfaction of seeing me panic.
Vitus’s head came up, an avid light in his eyes. “I was wrong to question you.”
He liked this idea. A lot.
“Yes, you were.” The king turned toward the forest. “Secure her and ensure she doesn’t die.”
