* * *
They were taking her outside. She noticed it was quite dark already, almost a full day must have passed. Her hands were bound in front of her. Lora had considered throwing the stone at the nearest fae, but she knew the air magic wielder could use her own move against her. So she waited for her opening, going through different scenarios in her mind.
Lora could see the carriage through the open door in front of them. It was small. Another fae was sitting atop the bench, holding the reins, not even glancing their way. As they walked through the door, the fae who had attacked her guided her forward while the other fae stayed behind. She assumed the other one must be the air magic wielder. He looked familiar even though Lora hadn’t been able to get a good look at him during the attack. She saw him gathering things in the adjoining room.
The fae who had a hold on her pushed her forward more sternly, almost making her trip. Her eyes scanned her surroundings in the moonlight. All Lora could make out in the dim light of the street lamp was the carriage, the shapes of a few buildings, and a narrow street leading into the woods.
She still had her phone. With her map, she could find a way back to Eyden’s flat—assuming she didn’t run into any more trouble. But the farther away the fae moved her, the harder it would be to get back on her own. She needed to get awaynow.
The carriage door was already open and Lora turned around, attempting to see where she could run to, but as she moved, the fae shoved her into the small space. Her back hit the floor hard and her head must have barely missed the bench. The fae lifted one foot to the carriage floor and leaned forward.
Lora kicked out with all her strength and anger. The fae gasped as he stumbled back and put a hand to his stomach. Lora didn’t waste a second. She turned and scrambled forward, trying to reach the other side of the carriage. The other door.
She had grabbed the handle with her bound hands when the fae grabbed her foot and pulled. Her chin hit the wooden floor and she gritted her teeth against a new wave of pain. The fae yanked on her foot, pulling her back to his side. Lora instinctively grabbed the first thing in her reach, the bench, and struggled against the fae’s superior strength. Her eyes travelled over the goods stored beneath the bench. Bottles filled with shiny liquids and pills. Bags of blood sat on top of buckets filled with ice. Recoiling, she lost her hold. Lora quickly turned on her back just as the fae hauled her to him. She tried to kick again but he held both her feet, making her immobile.
“Bitch. I’ll break your legs if I have to. You ensured yourself a very unpleasant journey,” the fae snarled as he started twisting one of her ankles. A scream of pain escaped Lora’s lips and her eyes squeezed shut.
“Fuck!” her captor shouted. The grip on her ankle loosened unexpectedly.
Lora opened her eyes in confusion. She didn’t understand why he stopped until she followed his gaze to his shoulder, where a throwing star was now firmly embedded. The fae reached for the weapon, one hand leaving Lora’s ankle. “Is that—”
“Almandine?” a female voice behind him said. He whirled around and Lora caught a flash of red curls. “It sure is.”
Then a fist, knuckles clad in silvery red, hit the fae square in the face.
Chapter33
Amira
Amira couldn’t believe what she was reading. Blood rushed to her cheeks as she turned the pages. Rhay wasn’t lying when he said that this human book was scandalous. Amira was glad Nalani wasn’t around this evening to ask about her reading material.
Suddenly, she heard someone walking up to the door of her antechamber. She waited, expecting a knock, a sense of dread slowly coating her heart.
Instead, a piece of paper slid under her door. Surprised, she put her book aside and went to pick up the note. Inside, a delicate and familiar handwriting read, “Want to have an exclusive party?”
Intrigued by the offer, Amira scurried around the antechamber to hide her book before she opened the door to her rooms and faced Rhay.
“I’ve brought the ingredients to make my signature cocktail,” Rhay said gleefully as he showed her the multitude of bottles in his hand. “I thought we could have a small party in the drawing room at the end of the hallway,” he added, cautiously looking around.
Amira hesitated. “I’m not sure that’s wise.” She was all too aware Karwyn would disapprove. “I’m quite tired. I’m not going to be good company.”
“Nonsense, you’re always good company, princess. Join me. Or I’ll have to drink all of this by myself—and you know how much I hate hangovers,” he said with a knowing smile.
“I’ll have to think about it,” Amira replied.
“Come on, princess. The drawing room will be empty. No one will look for us there.” Rhay glanced at the bottles in his hands. “On the contrary, someone might see me standing in front of your door, so you better stop arguing.” His smile slipped. “Unless you really want me to leave?”
Did she? It had been an intense day and she craved a distraction. She knew she was playing with fire, but Karwyn seemed to have lost his suspicion and Rhay insisted no one would know. Her heart answered for her.
Amira sighed. “Fine.” Rhay’s answering smirk clouded her worries.
“Follow me,” he said. Amira closed her door and looked around the hallway before following Rhay. She crossed the hallway like she was swimming in an unrelenting ocean.
“Let’s see those drinks you promised me,” Amira said to Rhay as he closed the door to the cosy, unoccupied drawing room. She hoped once she had alcohol in her veins, the anxious feeling in her chest would disappear.
“Oh, I never forget promises involving alcohol.” He winked.
They spent the next half hour mixing different types of alcohol, spices, and fruit juices. Rhay’s recipe seemed to involve a lot of guessing and randomness. At the end, they had made eight rainbow drinks and Amira was pretty sure that each one was different.
