SAMANTHA
It had been quiet in the garden since we entered, with only the very slight swish of plants moving against each other as a background noise. When Len reached out and wrapped his hands around Tabitha’s tiny waist, shifting her from my arms, everything just gotquieter.
Calm, even.
There was no explosion of energy or power as the two touched. Tabitha didn’t suddenly grow into a ten-year-old, or anything too extraordinary. There was just a moment where the world appeared to hold its breath as father and daughter stared into each other’s eyes.
A weird ache shot through my ovaries as my body went all goo-goo over this daddy and daughter moment. Their first real moment together. It held me mesmerized as I watched them, so eerily similar in their magic and beauty.
Len leaned in and whispered a stream of words that weren’t English before he switched back. “Little one,” he breathed, “you are a miracle.”
Tabby didn’t squirm, she just reached up and placed her hand on his face, and the pair remained locked together. Fuck, it was true that in a perfect moment, time stood still.
Should have known it was too good to last.
A crash echoed around us, repeating a beat later, like a near deafening siren. Len reacted immediately, handing Tabitha to me as he swung himself around, putting his body between us and the front gates. He was now clutching large grey crystals in both hands, and I had no idea where they’d come from.
He was large enough that I couldn’t see much around him, but whatever had caused the alarm had not ceased, as the sirens continued to sound. Inching forward, I attempted to ignore the buzz of Len’s energy against mine. “What’s happening?” I whispered. “Are we in danger? Should I shift?”
My beast was useful in many situations, including a resistance to magics.
“You don’t need to shift,” he replied shortly. “They shouldn’t be able to enter, and if they do manage to find a way inside, I will rip them to pieces before they get close to you or Tabitha.”
I trusted in what he was saying, but I also wasn’t interested in playing the damsel in distress, waiting for her knight to save her. It was my least favorite trope in the books I read, because I couldn’t relate. To me, the best couples fought side by side. Sure, most of the time they had differing strengths and weaknesses, but there was a balance.
The balance was important.
With that in mind, I called up the extra senses of my beast, which allowed me to see the fae waiting on the other side of the gates.
“Should we just ask what they want?” I said to Len, wondering if he was extra paranoid because of Tabitha and my presence.
He pulled his gaze from the gates, turning to me. “They’re guards from the Metallic Meadows. They’re summoning me for a reason, and I’m reminding them that I don’t bow to their command.”
Great. A fae power play.
This was one of those times where he had the strengths needed for the situation, since I had no clue of Faerie politics. Relaxing, I let them do their thing while I spent my time brushing Tabitha’s hair back, and occasionally tickling her little face.
When Len finally moved, he strode off toward the entrance, and I followed. As we reached the closed gates, I saw that the other fae—the guards—had backed away, their heads lowered in a respectful pose. Len had won the power play this time.
“Why are you here?” Thedon’t fuck with mein his tone was strong.
The closest guard spoke, without lifting his head. “King Fredrick needs all the leaders back at the Capital, so we can have the final vote on severing the line.”
I was standing close enough to Len that I felt him stiffen. It wasn’t obvious on his face or in his demeanor, but he was pissed about this command. “How long do we have to appear?”
“Three days,” the same guard said. “Attendance non-negotiable.”
“Noted.”
Len turned his back on them, and I watched as they straightened and left without another word. The moment they were out of sight, the alarm shut off, and I relaxed once more. “Is this meeting going to be an issue for us?” I asked.
“No issue,” he said, as he opened the gates, and we stepped outside of his garden. “It just means hurrying in our plan to lift the glamour impacting our memories. We have three days until the vote, and we need to make them count.”
Despite knowing the pain that awaited, I was more than ready to be free of this glamour.
As we moved farther from the garden, I blinked at what I was seeing. “Are we on a floating island?” I asked, tilting my head as I attempted to take the scenery in. I hadn’t noticed until now, since we’d all but landed at the front gate and went straight into the garden, but from this angle I could see a clear drop-off from the grass around us.
Len, who was relaxed once more, held his hands out for Tabitha again. I handed her across without hesitation.
