“Yes,” Oberon agreed, “for now, we will take him home with us.”
“Home…with us…” I muttered, his words not quite registering until I saw Devil, who was standing nearby, looking uneasy.
“Youarecoming home, are you not?” Oberon said pointedly. It did not seem like the best time for anyone to notice that things had changed, so I stood up and faced him.
“I can bring myself now.”
His dark eyes widened. “Can you?”
“I kept busy while you were ‘away from The Bower’,” I said, rather bitterly.
“Oh, I am certain you did,” Oberon replied without hesitation, his hard gaze also falling onto Devil. I clenched my fists and squared my shoulders, but he simply brushed past me and let his shadows wrap around Antenor’s body. Simeon, who was assisting Hippolyta in organizing a search for the attacker, gave him a small nod. Once Oberon had taken his patient and vanished, I slumped, and Devil was there, one hand pressing steadily against my back.
“I have to go home,” I murmured, leaning into his chest, “to make sure Antenor is taken care of. You ought to stay here and help.”
“Are you sure?”
“Would you have saved him?” I asked, pulling back to watch his face. “If I had not ordered you to, would you have even tried to save his life? Or would you have put him out of his misery, like you did to Angus Gower at the tournament?”
Devil hesitated before answering. “I am not a creature of mercy, Marina. He asked for death, and I would have obliged, to spare him the pain, if for no other reason.”
“This healing gift…” I said slowly, “is not without obligation, and if you do not understand that, then there is nothing you can do to help me while I care for him.” Devil began to speak, but I held my hand up. “I am not angry, but we are very different creatures, you and I. Let me focus on healing, while you put your talents to better use here.”
“I know the magyk takes its toll on you,” he sighed, “that is all. I do not want you to be alone in this.”
I attempted a soft smile. “Then give me enough of you to last a few days, and I will keep it in my pocket. Never too far away.”
“Your wish is my command, princess.” He held out his hand and released a stream of fireflies, which circled my body and settled around my waist like a belt. “If you need me, foranyreason, send one of these and I’ll come.”
“Stay out of trouble, please,” I whispered, going up on the balls of my feet to kiss his cheek. He put a hand on my hip and I could tell he wanted more, but I stepped away quickly. Titania was standing alone, staring at the Rot and I walked over to her, hands clasped anxiously behind my back.
“You saved us,” I said to her. “You didn’t have to.”
“I am not the monster you imagine me to be,” she replied.
“How did you know we were in trouble?”
She put a hand over her heart and simply said, “Iamthe Arden, and so is Oberon. When the forest hurts, we both feel it. When he hurts, I feel that too.”
“Then you must both be in constant agony.”
“Loveisagony, Marina. To love anything at all is to tear your own heart out and let it loose in the world, raw and vulnerable.”
“And you’ve not discovered any remedy for a raw and vulnerable heart?” I asked, somewhat sarcastically.
“I have not,” Titania whispered, her eyes drifting over to Hippolyta before she cleared her throat rather abruptly. “When you are ready, when you are strong enough to face the Rot, and not a moment before, I will help you.”
My heart leapt and I fought back a victorious smile. I wanted to put my arms around her, but she turned away without another word and began walking along the edge of the Rot infestation. A beautiful train of light fanned out behind her, brushing over the grass, but keeping itself well clear of the darkness.
Chapter thirty-six
Bandages & Blossoms
“Will his father really…killhim? If you send him home like this?” I asked Oberon, peeling back the bandages from Antenor’s wing stumps while he slept. The dressings were probably unnecessary, given how quickly I’d closed the wounds with magyk, but the Sisters had trained me too well and it was a habit at this point.
The entire morning after the attack, I’d wandered the forest with Sir Toby, looking for medicinal herbs and roots, accompanied by no less than half a dozen of Oberon’s guards. Then, I’d spent several hours in Antenor’s room, chopping or grinding or crushing the ingredients, filling up jars, and cutting linen bandages. It was dull, quiet work, but I needed something to keep my hands busy while my exhausted mind wandered. All night, Antenor’s screams had played in my ears, keeping me from sleep and shredding my already fragile heart.
Oberon just sighed. “My cousin Mariaat is terribly proud, and terribly unpredictable. He has many children, but sees them mostly as commodities—pieces on his own personal chess board of ambition and control.”
