Verdant finally let me go and took in a shivery breath. “T-thank you. I owe you a debt.” Her gaze was strong and resolute as she uttered perhaps the most dangerous lines for a fae.
No fae liked to be indebted to another. It was dangerously open-ended, and it gave another power over them.
Putting herself in debt tomeout of all the monarchs—and willingly—made me question everything I’d thought about her.
The air was filled with ghostly howls, and as I watched with a detached sort of feeling, Queen Rime of the Winter Court entered the base camp. She wasn’t riding a sun stallion, but an enormous gray wolf that was almost as big as Twilight.
Skye bowed to the Winter Queen. “As you can see, Queen Rime is mounted on a winter wolf—the royal treasure and animal of her Court’s crest.”
Faintly, I remembered learning as a kid the seasonal Courts’ crests and matching animals.
I had no idea…
“Verdant,” I asked in a voice that was pleasant and calm above the clamor of Queen Rime’s howling wolves. “Do youwillinglybring a spring stag to hunt every year?”
Verdant miserably shook her head. “No.” She hiccupped. “I’m less powerful than the previous Spring King. When I c-came to power King F-fell said I had to, to, to show my fealty to the stronger Courts.”
Chapter Seventeen
Leila
The last shred of control that was holding me together snapped.
“FELL!” I screamed.
I whirled around and stormed in the Autumn King’s direction.
“Filled with righteous indignation, are you?” Fell rolled his eyes as he dismounted his sun stallion. “Run along. I haven’t the patience to deal with you right now.”
“Do you force Spring to bring a stag for you to hunt every year?” I asked.
Fell scoffed. “Oh please, you’re going to fall for her sniveling about this? She could be manipulating you and playing her own game.”
“There’s one thing about fae—youalwayscare about your appearance and about how others see you.” I glanced back at Verdant, which made me angry all over again.
The Spring Queen had red splotches on her face, her eyes were puffy, her clothes wrinkled—she lookedmiserable. Her grief was raw and open, and she’d willingly put herself into debt to me because I’d rescued one of her treasures.
This was no act.
This was a victim being crushed by a bully.
“Answer the question, Fell. Do you force Queen Verdant of the Spring Court to provide a spring stag for your stupid hunt every year?” I was almost on the Autumn King by now.
He laid his glowering eyes on me, his handsome looks twisting. “I do.” He stepped into my space once I stopped so we were practically touching. “What of it? The Autumn Court is the second most powerful Court in the Midwest. You cannot possibly call rank to stop me, and you’re too weak to do anything about it.”
He was vile and awful, and I wanted to wipe that smirk off his face. “If you want a war, I’ll happily answer. I willcrushyour Night Court. I don’t fear you—rather, Leila, it is you who needs to fall in line and fear me.” His hair stirred in the faint wind as he took a step closer to me.
This is how he does it, I realized.This is how he keeps everyone in line. He frightens them with war, and no one is strong enough to stand against him.
Fell smiled. “Now, if you apologize for your behavior, I shall endeavor to overlook your gross misconduct—”
I activated my prism—which was still shoved in my glove—and made a barrier in front of me. Right where Fell was standing, to be precise.
Fell ricocheted off the magical wall and was flung backwards. He slammed into the ground with enough force to stir up a cloud of dust, and he choked on his own air.
“Let’s make something clear,” I said. “There will benohunt next year, or the year after, or the year after that. I’m permanently discontinuing it.”
The meadow we were in grew dark as something covered the sun, and I stalked toward Fell.
