“Are Nullens and the fae allowed to marry?” I’d never thought about it or cared until now.
“They are.” He lifted the tail of my new braid and glided it across his lips.
I wasn’t going to ask ifwe’dever marry. If we survived, we could discuss it then.
“Some fae are fated to love each other for eternity,” he said, his gaze trained on mine. Tiny stars flickered in his.
“I’ve heard of fated mates.”
“Marks on their wrists prove the fates paired them.”
We had no marks, and I wasn’t fae.
Brenna had a new mark . . .
Maybe it meant nothing.
“I should leave.” I stepped backward. Drask still hadn’t returned, but he’d meet up with me as I walked across the bridge, something I’d do instead of flitting to give him that chance.
And my thigh needed stretching after the exercise I’d gotten in bed.
“I’ll lay out a gown for you to wear to dinner.” Vexxion’s fingertips slid down my cheek, generating delicious shivers.
“Black or green this time?” I tossed out with a laugh.
“Perhaps tonight, I’ll dress you in a new color, one you adore.”
“I look forward to seeing what you leave behind.”
After he flitted to the throne room, I took the servant staircase and exited out the back of the castle, making my way on the little-used path around the side of the building. When I heard voices in the thick gardens on the left side of the path, I paused before moving forward at a more cautious pace.
Through the network of bushes, I saw the fae woman I’d run into at the main entrance standing in the shadows beneath a tree, speaking with two men. Their backs faced me, and I couldn’t tell who they were, though I knew almost no one here. Not wanting to be seen by her, though I was some distance away, I scooted over to hide in the castle’s shadow. If only I could hear what they said.
The faint shimmer around them suggested a protective spell of some sort. Would I ever have the skill to generate something like that?
Finally, they left, the men melting into the shrubbery beyond the tree. When the woman strode toward me, I hurried to the outer edge of the platform and leaped off, ducking behind a bush. Stooped, I waited until she’d passed, only rising after I’d counted to one hundred.
Scurrying to the front of the building, I turned and jogged up the bridge.
When Drask landed on my shoulder, I jumped, then sagged against the railing spanning the plunging gap between the castle and the aerie.
“Where have you been?” I asked, though I wasn’t chiding him. Shakes kept scooting through my body. I was worried the woman would come after me, though I had no reason to suspect anything like that.
I could hold my own with some of the fae, but I wasn’t up for a confrontation with anyone else today. Whatever was brewing here at the castle would soon boil over, and the longer I delayed the inevitable, the more prepared I’d be to handle whatever a fae lord or lady threw my way.
I stroked Drask’s back and sucked in a few deep breaths, releasing them while studying the broad valley stretching forever in front of me. So pretty considering the blight tainting this place.
Light footsteps came up fast on my right, and I turned, nearly unsettling Drask from his perch. Two fae men approached at a brisk pace, their gazes locked on me.
My lips curling up slyly, I pulled on my power to flit and cast the spell.
They grabbed me.
I yelped, unsure why my flit didn’t work. With a bellow, I yanked away from them. My heel caught on the uneven stone, and my arms spiraled as I struggled to maintain my balance. My left leg gave way, and I toppled sideways, smacking into the railing.
“Quickly,” one of the fae said. His weathered face was twisted in a sneer that made my skin crawl. Dressed in a light blue tunic with gold braid around the color, he had silver hair that cascaded over his thin shoulders, draping partway down his spine. His blue eyes gleamed maliciously, piercing mine,and I could feel his magic scrape across my skin as he tried to lull me. Break me. “Grab her. Throw her off the bridge.”
Fuck, no.
