But a small, petty part of me insisted that if he wanted to sulk in his room, then far be it from me to interfere.
And it was that voice I chose to listen to tonight.
As I exited the tower and made my way through the courtyard, two guards peeled off from their posts outside the north tower and fell into step a few feet behind me. Lady Mossi had insisted they were there for my protection, but I knew her intentions couldn’t be so magnanimous. We were strangers staying in her home, and she wanted to monitor us.
I would have done the same in her position, but it still chafed.
I followed the path to the atrium, heading straight for the double door entrance. Moonlight spilled across the windowpanes, making them glitter like sheets of ice. Two guards stood in front of the doors, and they closed ranks as I approached, blocking me from entering.
“Lady Mossi isn’t receiving visitors tonight.”
“Oh.” I came to a halt and tapped a finger against my lips. “That’s too bad. I’d hate to leave without saying goodbye.”
“Leave?” one of the soldiers guarding the atrium frowned, and I felt the other two guards that had followed me close ranks behind me, blocking my path from the other side. “I’m sorry, but Lady Mossi gave specific instructions that you remain here until further notice.”
I arched an eyebrow. “Am I a prisoner, then?” I asked them. A spark ignited at the tip of my forefinger, bursting into a tiny flame, and I drew lazy circles in the air, leaving streaks of fiery light in my wake as I spelled out the word. P-R-I-S-O-N-E-R.
The guards stiffened, and they glanced furtively at each other. “No, of course not,” the other one said. He cleared his throat, then stepped aside and opened one of the double doors. “Please, go on in.”
I hid a smile as I passed by him, leaving all four guards in the atrium. I had a feeling none of them wanted to face Lady Mossi’s ire, but neither were they prepared to fight a fae with fire magic.
The moment I stepped into the atrium, I felt a shift in the air. The atmosphere in here was hotter, more humid, and droplets of water clung to my skin as I made my way down the path that led to the throne. Hundreds of floral scents hung heavy in the air, sticky and cloying in a way they hadn’t been the first time I’d set foot in here.
It was as if there was a hunger lurking somewhere in these bushes, something dark and sinister just waiting to devour me.
A shiver crawled up my spine, but I set my shoulders and pressed on until I reached the clearing. I expected to find Lady Mossi sitting in her throne, or on one of the chaises, but instead she lay on her side in the grass, right at the edge of the pond. Her fingers skimmed the water, and a puckering koi swam up to kiss and nibble at them, clearly hoping for a morsel of food. The skirts of her rose-colored dress fanned out beneath her, spilling across the green like a giant petal.
“Adara,” she said, not looking up at me. She’d styled her sage green hair into a simple plait, and she toyed with the edge of it now as she continued to tease the koi. “It’s rude of you to barge into my gardens without an invitation.”
Her tone was mild, but I heard the threat beneath her words clear as day. “I didn’t mean to disturb you, Lady Mossi,” I said, trying to sound apologetic. “But it’s been days since I’ve arrived, and I still haven’t received any news regarding my mother. All this waiting has made me a little anxious.”
“Anxious?” Lady Mossi lifted her gaze from the pond, a challenge in her eyes. “Are you doubting me, youngling?”
“No, of course not,” I rushed out as she rose to her feet. Though she was shorter than me by a few inches, she somehow managed to tower over me, her presence large and imposing as she stood in the center of the atrium. I swallowed hard as a wave of pure power washed over me, and though her expression was placid, the hairs on my arms stood straight on end.
I might have powerful, rare magic, but we were in Lady Mossi’s domain, and everything in this room was a weapon at her disposal. I needed to proceed very carefully.
“I have every reason to think that you want to rescue my mother as much as I do,” I said, trying to assuage her. “And I know that as the ruler of this realm, you’re not used to being questioned, or answering to anyone other than the king. But you have to understand, it’s excruciating, being kept in the dark like this. Not knowing what happened to mother, where she’d being held, whether Slaugh is torturing her or not. I need to know where she is, what the plan is, and how I can help.”
Lady Mossi sighed, her gaze finally lifting from the pond to land on me. Her amber eyes filled with resignation, and her lips flattened as she looked me up and down. “If these were better circumstances, if you were not who you were, I would have been able to tell you the truth from the beginning. But things have been set into motion that cannot be undone, and the best thing you can do, theonlything you can do, is remain here and let it play out.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” I took a step back as a wave of apprehension rolled through me. Sparks of fire ignited at my fingertips, and I clenched my hand, trying to snuff them out.
Lady Mossi glanced toward my fist, which was now engulfed in flames. “We all know about the prophecy, the one that speaks about the girl of ice and fire.” Her face softened as she met my gaze again, something almost apologetic in her expression. “There is no point in fighting fate—you will end up in King Aolis’s hands no matter what you do. But there is no reason for Gelsyne to suffer. I’ve arranged for her to be returned to me, along with my other granddaughter, in exchange for you.”
Betrayal lanced through me, a flaming arrow of outrage and grief that pierced straight through my heart. “You didwhat?”
Lady Mossi raised an arm, and the grass beneath my boots suddenly parted. The soil beneath liquified to mud, and I gasped as my legs sank into the ground. I tried to yank my feet out, but the earth hardened before I could, trapping me in a vise grip.
“Let me go!” I struggled against the earthen bindings, my legs already going numb.
“I can’t.” Lady Mossi’s expression hardened. “Slaugh will be here in less than a day’s time with Gelsyne and Avani. I amthisclose to getting them back safely, and I won’t let you interfere.”
I gritted my teeth, fire igniting in my other fist in response to my fury. “Let me go,” I hissed, the flames racing up to engulf my arms. They licked against my skin eagerly, ready to turn their scorching power against an enemy. “Or I’ll reduce this entire atrium to ash.”
Lady Mossi laughed, then flicked her hand. The earth holding my feet liquified again, and it began swirling up my legs, trying to engulf my entire body. Flexing my legs, I gathered every bit of strength I had and leapt free, diving straight into the pond—the one place in the atrium Lady Mossi’s power couldn’t easily influence.
“Oh you think you’re clever, do you?” she taunted as my head broke the surface of the water. She stood at the edge, her entire body incandescent with a verdant glow. Vines snaked across the ground, drawn from the corners of the atrium to do her bidding, and the air seemed to thicken with all the clashing fragrances, making me feel light-headed. I was certain that some of these had narcoleptic and poisonous effects, and it was only because they were diluted, traveling over such a far distance and mingling with the healing effects of other blossoms, that I hadn’t already gone unconscious.
