She clenches her jaw before grinding out, “So you were always planning to help?”
“Naturally.” He cups her cheek and draws his thumb over her bottom lip. “I just wanted to hear you sayplease.”
Alarm flits across her face, and she slaps his hand away. Grabbing him by the collar, she yanks his face down to hers and growls, “You son of a… If you ever pull a stunt like that again, I will strangle you.”
Instead of trying to push her away or remove her hand from his collar, he does the opposite. He leans down even closer and slants his lips over hers. “You’re so cute when you threaten me, little viper.”
She jerks back, immediately releasing his collar and retreating a couple of steps. Orion lets out a smug chuckle. Thenseriousness descends on his features again as he straightens and sweeps commanding eyes over the rest of us.
“But make no mistake,” he begins, his voice now hard and full of authority. “I am no longer bound by any bargain. I will help you only because it serves my own goals of protecting my court, and I can walk away at any time.”
For a few seconds, we all just look back at him.
Then Draven tilts his head in a half nod. “Understood.”
“Good. I’ll send for my spy in Frostfell. She might know what the Icehearts are up to.” He shifts his gaze to Galen and Lyra. “My people put your armor in your old rooms as well while Haldia was healing you. I trust you know the way.”
They incline their heads in thanks.
“Alright, we meet back in Orion’s throne room in ten minutes,” Draven says, his voice pulsing with command. “We’re already more than half a day behind. If Bane and Jessina have already left Frostfell, we’re screwed.”
Clothes rustle and feet thud as we all scramble out the door to grab armor and something quick to eat. Draven is right, it will be a race against time to catch up to the Icehearts before they can find the clan that might give us our one chance of winning this war.
My pulse thrums in my ears as I sprint down the corridor.
Please, Mabona, don’t let it be too late.
CHAPTER FOUR
Aportal rises from the pale stone floor in the middle of the high-ceilinged hall right as I jog into Orion’s throne room. My feet thud against the royal blue carpet that leads towards the imposing black throne ahead. All around me, light falls in through the tall windows that run the length of the room, illuminating the vibrant vines with flowers in shades of violet, dark blue, and silver that climb up the stone pillars. And above, the breathtaking night sky with glittering stars and northern lights in green and purple that has been painted across the entire ceiling watches me impassively as I run through the beautiful room.
The Unseelie King himself is already there, standing a few steps in front of the glittering blue portal. And so is Isera, Alistair, and Diana. I flick a quick glance at Grey, who is opening the portal, while I hurry over to join the others.
The moment the portal is fully open, a fae woman steps through. Nysara, Orion’s spy in Frostfell, is not wearing her dragon shifter glamour today. Instead, she looks like herself. A fae with long black hair and eyes that are a mix of yellow and violet. However, there is no cat-like smirk on her lips and nococky tilt of her chin as she enters the throne room. Quite the opposite.
As soon as Nysara sees Orion, she gets down on her knees before his feet and bows her head almost all the way to the floor. “My king.”
A short distance from them, Isera rolls her eyes.
Orion flashes her a smirk. “Just you wait, little viper. You will willingly kneel before me soon enough as well.”
She scoffs in reply.
Nysara, who is apparently pretending not to have heard their short exchange, simply continues by saying in a reverent voice, “It is an honor to be recalled to the Unseelie Court. It has been… long.”
“Continue to serve me as flawlessly as you have, and I might allow you to return permanently,” Orion replies.
She snaps her head up, shock and a fragile hint of hope pulsing on her beautiful features. However, before she can say anything, three people stride in through the open doorway.
Draven, Lyra, and Galen, now wearing their black dragon scale armor again, quickly close the distance to us. Drawing his eyebrows down in a slight frown, Draven flicks his gaze from the kneeling Nysara to the Unseelie King standing before her.
“Do we have a location?” Draven asks.
“I was just getting to that part,” Orion replies.
“He just had to finish satisfying his need for power plays first,” Isera adds while shooting him a knowing look from the corner of her eye.
His eyes glint as he narrows them at her. “Careful with that tongue, little viper.”
