I winced. “But what will the kingsfae or Imperial Council do after you’ve turned? And who’s to say the kingsfae won’t destroy that temple once they’re finished.”
Kole’s lips thinned, and he didn’t reply, probably because he knew I was right. It was unlikely the kingsfae would allow thattemple to remain. It would be destroyed, probably with dragon fire if needed, because there was no way the authorities would allow such a thing to exist, not after knowing what my uncle had accomplished with it. And as for Kole...
If Kole turned fully vamfeer, the authorities would kill him. They couldn’t allow him to live if he turned into a raving beast who murdered fae or sought to turn others into vamfeers.
No, wedidhave a time limit. Even if Diredan hadn’t given us one, Kole’s infection did. His end would come unless we went into hiding and I found a way to keep him safe from the kingsfae and Council. If that was even possible.
“We’ll find another way,” Kole said at last.
My brow furrowed, but I nodded. He was right. We would have to find another way. There was no way I was resting in this lifetime until I found a way to contact Nuleef. It was either keep trying or accept that Kole either died or be changed into a vamfeer who I forced into hiding.
And neither of us deserved that.
Nighttime had fully setin by the time we returned to the palace. In my chambers, Kole fell asleep almost immediately. He’d taken another potion to curb his fever, and my entire body seized at how quickly his infection was setting in.
But even though I wanted to spend every second with him, I didn’t bother trying to sleep, and I knew staying awake at his side would accomplish nothing. It was pointless to waste time in here, even if it was beside my mate, when I could be actively hunting for a way to contact Nuleef.
I left him to slumber and ventured silently into the hall. Answers had to lie somewhere. I just had to find them.
Without a nighttime guard standing at my door, it was easy to maneuver through the palace undetected, and once I reached the library and crept inside, I wasn’t surprised by the breadth and scope of the royal collection.
Thousands of texts, scrolls, and tomes waited for me to study them. I didn’t bother to ignite any of the fairy lights. My vampire and elemental eyesight made seeing easy.
Determination burst through me, and I began to peruse the collection, searching for any reference to the gods, goddesses, and how fae had contacted them in the past.
I was so lost in thought and flying through book after book so quickly that I didn’t hear the door open.
“Primelle?”
My sister’s voice startled me so much that I dropped the tome I was reading. I spun around to face her. “Lillith? What are you doing up?”
She closed the door behind her and went to the nearest table to ignite the fairy light. Bright light flooded the space, and I took in her wrinkled dress and unkempt hair.
A blush stained her cheeks. “I was out. With...Lordling Ary. But don’t tell Mother or Father. They don’t know about him.”
I smirked. “My lips are sealed.”
Her forehead furrowed as she studied the mess I’d made. “I heard you when I was walking by on the way to our wing. It looks like you’ve been busy.” She canted her head. “So, what are you doing?” She waved toward the numerous books scattered along the floor and open scrolls draped over the furniture.
“I’m looking for something.”
She came closer to me, her eyebrows furrowing. “In the middle of the night?”
Tears began to fill my eyes, and all I could do was nod.
She rushed to me, her brown curls bouncing on her shoulders in a messy disarray. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
Something about her expression and compassionate tone broke through the determined resolve that had been filling me since learning of my mate’s fate. “It’s Kole,” I rasped.
She clasped my hands and guided me to the nearest couch, not once commenting on my skin temperature or the fact that I’d been reading in the dark. “Tell me.”
So I did. I told her all of it. How Kole and I had fallen in love while I’d been hunting the Stone, his betrayal when he had to follow the Council’s orders to take the Stone from me—which were really our parents’ orders—how I’d forgiven him when I realized it was not something he ever would have chosen to do, how our love bloomed in secret while he’d been guarding me, how the night of Koraline’s ball I finally realized he was my fated mate, and then how due to recent events, Kole had become infected by a vamfeer. I left that last part vague, lest my uncle’s permanent command be triggered.
When I finished, Lillith gasped. “Kole’s going to become one of those creatures that infiltrated the maze?”
Numb, all I could do was nod, and I realized if she didn’t know, it was likely the Imperial Council and our parents weren’t sharing that news freely.
She balled a hand to her mouth. “Does anyone know? Is it safe to be around him?”
