I was not on my own. Nia was with me. I glance over my shoulder but can no longer see my Seelie fae. Unease settles in my stomach, next to the emptiness. As soon as these wounds are healed, I will return to her side, and all will be well once more.
Who knew there was an entire clan of Unseelie females right under our noses? Our chieftain will be most pleased to hear of this, as will the unmated males in our clan. They are sure to begin building a ladder to the bottom of the canyon as soon as I bring this news to them.
I take a step to my left, removing myself from Raven’s touch. “Where is your healer?”
If she is offended by my actions, her face does not show it. She has a fine face, but it is not as fine as Nia’s.
“This way.” She leads me from the riverbank into one of the many caverns lining the cliff. Whoever thought to build inside the walls was a true genius. Their shore is on a height, but with a heavy rain, the valley could still flood. These caverns are high enough that the Unseelie within should not have any trouble avoiding the rising waters.
I duck my head to keep from hitting it on the low stalactites clinging to the ceiling. The deeper we go, the wider the path grows. The air here is damp but not cold. Very different from where we spent last night.
Was it only last night that I held Nia in my arms, discovering her most intimate places? What joys will tonight bring? What new discoveries?
The cavern branches off into three different paths. Raven takes the one to the right that leads to a set of stairs carved into the stone. A warm fog clings to the air as we step into a large cavern with what looks like a boiling pond in the center.
Here, there are many females, all of them disrobed. Some are carrying younglings in their rounded stomachs while others are not.
Their curious gazes prickle against my skin.
I should be used to attention; the Seelie usually stare when I am in Rosehill. Except, there is a hunger in these eyes that makes me want to turn and run straight back out of the cavern.
A female whose hair is threaded with silver meets us at the edge of the pool, her pierced lips widening into a smile. “Raven, it is good to see you this day. Who is this stranger you have brought to us?”
Raven steps a little too close for my liking, her shoulder bumping mine. “Fawn, this is Mad-dox. He hails from above the cliffs.”
The silver-haired female’s brow furrows. “Above the cliffs? How can this be? You are not Seelie.”
“I am from a small clan on the eastern side of the canyon.”
“Are there more males like you?” one of the females in the pool asks, her shiny black hair piled on top of her head like one of the Seelie cinnamon buns I have seen in bakery windows.
Our own females wear their hair much shorter.
The silver-haired female, Fawn, scowls down at the one who spoke. “Hush, Laurel,” she snaps before offering me another kind smile. “How did you earn your wounds, Mad-dox?”
“He slayed a wolf using only a dagger,” Raven answers for me.
“On his own?” another asks, this one wearing polished green stones around her throat.
Raven nods. “Mad-dox is very brave.”
They would not think me brave if they knew how terrified I had been of facing that wolf. Not only for my own life but for Nia’s. We were lucky indeed that Raven found us. I dare not think about our fate had she not.
The other females swim closer to the pool’s edge, their smiles growing.
Is this how Ever felt when all the females in our clan had their sights set upon him? I do not like it one bit. “You have healing water?” I ask Fawn.
“His voice is so deep,” a female near the far wall says with a shiver, her chest bobbing above the waterline.
Raven tugs me toward the pool. “The water in these springs is that which heals.”
The females in the water swim back, giving me room to enter. Something in my gut tells me not to. “Is there any to drink?” I can drink the water, splash some on my shoulder and arm, and then be on my way.
“I could sew your wounds if you would prefer,” Laurel offers through a coy smile. “My cave is nearby, and I am skilled with a needle.”
“The pool would be best,” I say quickly so they do not let these ideas take root.
My arm throbs as I remove my boots. Fresh blood trickles down my bicep, catching in the crook of my elbow as I step down into the water.
