“You’re still very young—we both are. Us fae are gifted with a longer lifespan than most creatures. You’ll figure it out, don’t worry. And if you stick with me, I’ll promise you’ll have fun here.”
She wanted to believe him but she was not able to imagine such things in her freedom-less life. If she was not going to get stuck as Karwyn’s wife, she would end up as someone else’s betrothed—or worse, she’d spend the rest of her fae life under the heel of her half-brother. As her older sibling and the King of Allamyst, Wryen had full control of her life until she was married. Amira had often dreamt of running away, fleeing to the neighbouring kingdom of Sapharos or Turosian. But she knew that even if she escaped, she had no means to support herself. And Wryen wasn’t above punishing anyone who might have helped her. Her mother would certainly pay the price.
“Don’t get stuck in your thoughts. It doesn’t help,” Rhay said before lowering his voice, “and it makes Karwyn’s power easier for him to use.”
As he spoke, Amira saw something move out of the corner of her eye. Just before it left her field of vision, she caught a glimpse of a shadowy figure that looked strangely familiar. Yet she wasn’t able to remember when she had seen the dark-haired man who vanished into the darkness. Was it one of Karwyn’s spies? Or worse, someone her brother had sent to watch her?
“You should get some sleep now,” said Rhay as he opened her door.
Amira smiled at him even as fear took over her emotions. She quickly entered her room, trying to convince herself that she wasn’t being watched.
A wave of tiredness hit her and she let herself fall on the bed. She closed her eyes, letting sleep gently coat her thoughts. The night had been eventful and her mind was trying to process all of it. Her heartbeat slowed down and her breathing evened out, but rest was still escaping her.
Behind closed eyes, she saw Rhay’s face. But his eyes were different. Instead of his deep ocean eyes, his irises were as black as burned wood. Amira wanted to call out to him, but her voice stayed stuck in her throat. Slowly, everything turned to ashes.
Chapter17
Lora
When Lora woke up the next day, she found Eyden’s bed empty. She sat up quickly on the sofa, her head turning every direction in the dimly lit room, the curtains blocking the morning sun, until she spied the open closet door. Fighting sleep, Lora got up, smoothing down her plain white shirt and messy hair before looking for Eyden.
As suspected, she found him in the closet. Lora stood in the doorframe, taking him in as he sat next to his open secret shelf, writing in one of his many notebooks, still with the silver flower pen. The image made Lora smile.
Without looking up he said, “Sleep well?” The question was so normal and friendly that it actually took her by surprise.
“Or were you too scandalised by last night’s events?” And there was the teasing that was missing before. Many things could fall under that question, though. He could even mean the fae getting taken, but judging from his voice, he didn’t mean the tragic part of last night. He meant the strip club itself…or possibly their moment of close contact—which was merely pretend, of course.
She felt compelled to avoid his gaze. “I slept just fine.”
And she realised it was true. Since getting here, this was the most she had slept. Before, it had been difficult for her to let herself be vulnerable and close her eyes, letting her guard down. But after last night, she realised Eyden could’ve hurt her multiple times or left her stranded somewhere, but he never did. And she had seen that there was some good in him, deep down.
It didn’t mean that she had any illusions that he truly cared about her well-being. She wasn’t really part of the fae world, part of the world he wished was different. When it came to Lora, it was all about the reward, getting her secret. Everything was always about money and power. But it didn’t matter what Eyden’s motivations were as long as it worked to Lora’s advantage. She had her own people to save. She and Eyden might be on different sides, but they had similar goals for now.
When she looked back at him, Eyden had returned to moving his pen across the paper. “What are you doing?” she asked.
He didn’t lift his head. “Finishing up some work.”
Lora recalled last night, going through everything he’d said. She had gotten answers but she suspected there was much more. “You never told me why you’re doing this. You promised me something real.”
Eyden paused, his pen stilling on the paper. “I did. I told you all about why I followed that guard.”
“Yes, but you never said what your motivations are.Whyare you really doing this?” She wanted to understand what drove Eyden to almost confront the guards. She saw the determined anger in him when she’d held him back. He had known very well the young fae was doomed but something in him still wanted to try and save him.
He focused on his notebook again as he said, “I told you more than enough. And since our trip was cut short, the bargain wasn’t fulfilled anyway.”
“We never said we’d have to be in the club for a specific time. I didn’t ask to leave, so I won.”
He was quiet as the minutes passed. “I don’t want to talk about the why of things. It is what it is.” Eyden lifted his gaze, catching her eagerness for answers. “If I tell you what’s in my notebooks, will you stop being insufferable?”
She wouldn’t let it go forever, but for now she’d take any information. The fae world was a bigger mystery than she had imagined. Humans didn’t know everything. The history books were lacking and she wanted to fill those gaps. Lora had always insisted that knowing about fae was important. Studying the fae and human history was like knowing your enemy. They might have an agreement now and a magical border keeping them apart, but you never knew what the future could hold. She was here now, after all, against all odds.
“Fine. Show me.” She would have to add everything she learned to her notes in her phone later.
Eyden stood up and removed a notebook from a messy pile. “This one is filled with the names of fae who work at the palace. Each one has a number and an entry in another notebook with whatever we could find out about them.”
Lora took the book and opened it at a random page. The names had a brief description next to them with their job title. Some had an “X” written to their left, others were marked with an “A” but there were few of those.
“‘A’ for ‘ally’?” Lora asked.
