“That’s Kit, my nephew.” I nod, still trying to retrieve my breath.
“Explains the eyes,” I sputter out.
“What about my eyes?” Rivern remarks as he traces the double-circle symbol over my knee again and again.
“You know.” I wave a hand through the air.
“No, I do not know. Enlighten me, Dove.” Rivern grins.
I puff the hair out of my face and gesture towards his eyes. “You both have sparkling violet eyes.”
“You think my eyes sparkle?” His question is teasing, and I knit my arms together over my chest.
“If you want to know what I think, just feel the bond.” And I send fire burning through my chest.
Gripping my waist with his arms, he lifts me off Mage and whisks me into his arms.
“Hey, let me down,” I complain.
Snuggling into my hair, Rivern takes a big breath and nudges close to my ear. “I like it when you get all hot for me.”
“Argh.” I stretch and try to wiggle out of his hold, but it’s no use. I am no match for a muscular fae prince.
Rivern grasps me tight as he strides towards the opening, a barrage of noise greeting us before we make our way over the threshold.
It seems a little like someone—or a little fae child—let the critter out of the bag.
“Please let me down, Rivern,” I plead with him, not wanting these people to think I’m some human weakling.
Stepping through the doorway, he sets me on my feet.
As soon as my feet meet unyielding rock, I gape at the display before me.
The expanse in front of me is vast. We stand high on a walkway, overlooking a large, open area.
Standing up to an ornately covered railing decorated in more vines similar in style to the archway, I peer downwards. A large tree reminiscent of the one entombing the crystal Goddess in Haven sits wide and proud below, a centrepiece.
The soft trickle of water skipping through stone and opal carvings weaves through the ground and fae walk in and out of sight, some taking a moment to stop and look above atme.
Stepping back from the railing, I look up. Light spills from above through tiny holes dotting the curved apex of the mountaintop. From this vantage point, I notice the walkway spiralling up and around the curved inner walls of the mountain we are currently within.
“Come.” Rivern takes my hand, saying his goodbye to the two fae guards I’d barely noticed when faced with the impossibility of such a creation inside this majestic mountain.
I follow him down the winding walkway. The closer we get to the ground, the more faces I see observing us. Curiosity etched on unknown expressions. Features that remind me of Rivern with tall, lithe bodies, pointed ears, high cheekbones and large eyes.
The more I look, the more details I take comfort in. These are Rivern’s people. We will be safe here. A niggling feeling pulls at the back of my mind, but I squash it down. We don’t have any other option. I must make this work for the villagers who are probably still behind us, considering they lack a stallion who requires little rest and an obstinate fae male.
As we discover ourselves at the bottom of the curved passageway, I find it hard to put the sight into words. Beauty. Softness. Heaven. The water trickles underfoot through deep grooves, fed by a waterfall acting as a curtain of sorts behind which a walkway leads. The centrepiece is, of course, a tree coloured with red and pink flowers, giving off the most alluring flowery scent.
And inside the tree lies an opening, big enough for the form of a crystalised figure to be seen within.
I gasp audibly at the sight.
Rivern lays a hand on the small of my back, and the fae nearest to us part as the prince guides me towards a sight I thought I’d never see again.
“The Goddess Oona. Mother of the fae. Look familiar?” Rivern asks.
“Yes,” I choke out. My breaths shallow out, and suddenly, everything is too much.The strange people. The soft mutterings. The weirdly charming smells. The familiar sights.“I… I don’t feel—”
