He grabbed my shoulders, clawed fingers scraping against the wounds he’d already made, looking as though he was a hairsbreadth away from shaking me like a rag doll. “You’re the only person in the entire world who can defeat Nox and purge the shadow magic from the realm! You can’t afford to risk yourself for anyone, even me!”
Furious, I shoved Einar away from me and surged to my feet, ignoring our rapt audience. “Well, if you don’t want me rescuing your sorry ass, maybe try not getting so distracted by petty arguments that you don’t notice when a giant sea creature rises out of the water and attacks you!”
I turned to Prentis, who was staring at us both, a dozen questions swirling in his crystalline gaze. “Thank you for fighting so valiantly for us today,” I said, giving him the sunniest smile I could muster even though I was fuming. “And for keeping me from suffocating myself.”
I planted a sound kiss on his cheek, just to piss Einar off, then spun on my heel and stomped toward the stairs, heading for my cabin belowdecks.
“Very impressive, the way you shoved your foot into your mouth like that,” I heard Prentis say smugly as I headed down the staircase. “I think you managed to insert it so far, I can see your toes wiggling out of your ass.”
“Shut up, before I shove my toes upyourass.”
I rolled my eyes, but as their voices faded away, the exhaustion rushed back into me, making my limbs so leaden I could barely lift one foot in front of the other. Somehow, I managed to make it to my cabin and drag off my wet clothes.
Questions crowded in my brain as I wondered how I’d transformed, what facet of my power I’d accessed, but the moment my back hit the mattress, darkness crashed in on me. I could ask my questions tomorrow, when I had the energy to deal with Prentis and Einar and their annoying rivalry.
But right now, all I wanted was sleep.
10
Lady Mossi
So it’s true.
Lady Mossi stared at Kaipei Castle as she clung to the back of her griffin, her neck pressed against its feathered neck to shield her from the worst of the cold. It had been years since she’d last come to the capital—in fact, she had not set foot in the place since King Aolis had the Edirian crown placed on his accursed head.
But she’d seen it plenty of times from afar, seen the noxious cloud of shadow magic that had hung over it. That cloud was a clear sign of the infestation that all had known about, but had desperately turned a blind eye to for years.
But now, just like that fateful day nearly two decades ago, that shadow was nowhere to be seen. The clouds that clustered over Kaipei now were fat, fluffy, and pearly-grey, heavy with the impending winter snowstorm.
The other house heads—Lord Oren and Lady Axlya—would have noticed as well. Oren would have heard whispers on the wind from his precious Oracle, and Axlya would have seen glimpses using that annoying water scrying ability of hers.
But it was Mossi who would see the truth of things with her own eyes.
Flanked by the remaining griffin riders in her cadre, Lady Mossi landed in the outer bailey of the castle. The courtyard and much of the walls were in ruins, badly damaged by what appeared to be lightning strikes, and many of the flagstones were now missing.
“Lady Mossi.” An earth fae dressed in a stable master’s uniform came rushing up to help her dismount. “May I take your griffins to the stables to be fed and watered?”
Mossi shook her head. “You may feed and water them, but they will remain here in the courtyard.” She gestured to one of her riders, who stepped forward. “Monty will remain with you and give you instructions for their care.”
Her lips thinned as she looked around at her cadre—only six griffins left, out of the fourteen she’d had but a few days ago. That bitch Adara and her bloodthirsty dragon had taken out nearly all of them when they’d fled. She should have pursued them herself, but she had forgotten exactly how devastating a single dragon could be.
That was one mistake she’d never make again.
The front doors of the castle open, and General Slaugh walked out. “My Lady Aunt,” he said, his mutilated face pulling into a grotesque smile. “Thank you for coming so quickly.”
Lady Mossi snorted. “I had my griffins saddled as soon as I received your message.” She rushed up the steps and took his hand in hers as she scanned his face. “So, it’s true then? King Aolis is dead? Killed by that upstart brat, Adara?”
“It is true,” a feminine voice said, stepping out from behind the doors. She smiled, and Lady Mossi’s jaw dropped. “Did you miss me, Grandmother?”
“Gelsyne!” Lady Mossi dropped Slaugh’s hand. “Is it really you?” She looked her granddaughter up and down, noting the paler skin, the dark hair and sinister black eyes, the hip-hugging dress that was very much not Gelsyne’s style. And yet the curve of her cheek, the shape of her mouth and nose, the willowy figure, were very much hers. “What happened to—”
Gelsyne stepped forward and flung her arms around Lady Mossi, enveloping her in a fierce hug. “It’s been so long,” she whispered, and her voice seemed toslitherinto Lady Mossi’s ear, dulling her thoughts. Her suspicions dwindled away, eclipsed by the relief and happiness she felt at seeing her long-lost granddaughter alive again. “I wish I could have visited you. Wish I could have sat in the atrium and tended the flowers with you like we always did.”
“I wish that too.” Anguish tightened Lady Mossi’s throat even as joy swelled in her chest. She pulled back so she could look at Gelsyne properly. “I still don’t understand why you didn’t.”
“I should have.” Guilt crossed Gelsyne’s face, and she looked away, as though ashamed. “There were so many times when I could have used your guidance. But Olette made me promise to keep Adara a secret from everyone, including you. It was her dying wish, and I swore to uphold it.”
“So Adara truly is Olette and Daryan’s daughter,” Lady Mossi said. She shook her head—it made sense, of course, but it was one thing to suspect, and another for it to be confirmed aloud. “She told me you raised her when she came to visit me.”
