With a laugh, I took his outstretched palm into mine and curtsied back. He pulled me to his chest and wrapped his arms around my waist, swaying to the beat of the music. Delight and surprise made my stomach begin to flutter. This was unexpected. Of all the fae to ask me to dance, I wouldn’t have guessed it would be Kael. Finn, most likely. Liam, if he was in the mood. Rourke and Kael?Never.
And yet here we were, the only two fae on the dancefloor.
The upbeat song whirled around us, and I lost myself to the strange, delightful music of the fae. We spun and spun, our arms wrapped tight around each other. Light and sound all mixed together as one, and soon, the world felt as though it dropped away. The music was everything, along with the dance. It was loud and big and wild, and I’d never before felt soalive.
Kael’s eyes were alight. Somehow, the deep darkness of them seemed as if they were filled with a thousand stars, and I knew, right then and there, that I could spend the rest of my life counting each and everyone.
And then the song stopped. Kael’s feet slowed, and I followed his lead. The world jerked back in around us. My breath was ragged, and my cheeks were warm. Kael’s face had filled with color, too, and his eyes still shone with that strange cosmic light. All around us, others had begun to join us on the floor. And then the music started upagain.
Our bodies took over as soon as the notes filled our ears. We spun and whirled and laughed, our limbs twisting and curling around each other. The hall transformed into a kaleidoscope of shifting colors. There were no solid walls. No tables. No one else but us. It was magic. Pure delicious magic. A kind of magic that filled every part of my soul. It had been hidden deep within me all these years, and now it was flowing out of me in a way that made me wonder how I’d never known it wasthere.
All because of Kael. And Finn, Rourke, and Liam. I’d spent my entire life asleep, and they’d woken me from a deep slumber I never again wished tohave.
The music slowed. Usually, this would be my cue to take a break. I liked to spin and whirl and stomp rather than sway side to side, but this song...I couldn’t walk away. My arms tightened around Kael’s neck, and I pressed my face to his chest. His heartbeat matched the rhythm of oursteps.
His hand began to caress my back. So gentle. So soft. He was nothing like the monster he claimed to be. I pulled back and tipped back my head to look up into his star-studded eyes. A light smile lifted his lips, and I reached up to trace my finger along the curve ofthem.
A part of me expected him to stiffen and pull away. Despite our connection, despite our moment together in the cave, I knew he was still wary of getting close to me. He still didn’t trust that I could see past the monster that hid within. But he didn’t tense, he didn’t flinch, and he didn’t pull away. Instead, his grip around my waist tightened, and a shuddering breath escaped from hislips.
“Thank you for the dress,” I whispered to him. “I don’t feel as though I deserve something so beautiful, but thankyou.”
“Don’t talk like that,” he murmured, dropping his forehead to mine. “You deserve something this beautiful and more. And the truth is, Norah, the dress is not what makes you beautiful. It’s everything else. Your eyes. Your heart. Your fire. I’ve never met anyone else like you before, and I doubt I everwill.”
He dropped his lips to mine, and my entire bodysighed.
“Alright, you two. Break it up,” a sharp voice cut through the moment, and two strong arms yanked me back. Blinking, I turned with a frown to find Redmond dragging me away from Kael, whose tortured expression made my heartbreak.
“Let go of her, Redmond,” Kael said as his cold, steely mask fell over his face. “You can’t manhandle the changelings likethis.”
Redmond’s grip only tightened on my arms. “Oh, but I can. I have direct orders to do whatever is necessary here. That includes taking this miscreant to be questioned about heractions.”
Kael’s face clouded over. “What are you talking about? She’s not amiscreant.”
“I have it on good authority that she’s been harboring a murderous Redcap.” Redmond’s gold eyes glittered as he pointed across the room to where Sophia stood staring at me with a mixture of horror and guilt. “Her roommate informed me that she had one in her room and that she’s been sneaking out to meet it wherever it’s beenhiding.”
“What?” I felt as if I’d been punched in the gut. “Sophia? Is thistrue?”
She clenched her jaw and glanced away as if she couldn’t stand the sight of me, but her voice trembled when she spoke. “I’m sorry, Norah. I covered for you as long as I could. But you saw what happened last night. Samdied. You can’t keep protecting your friend. Not when she’s capable of killing usall.”
* * *
Redmond draggedme down a flight of curving stone stairs I’d never seen before. When we reached the bottom, I quickly understood why. Cells lined both walls. Thin, tiny rooms that held nothing but a single hard mattress each. He yanked opened the nearest one, threw me inside, and slammed the gate in myface.
Shivering, I crossed my arms over my chest and stared at the Autumn fae. “This isn’t fair. You can’t just put me in a dungeon because you think I’m trying to help myfriend.”
He raised his eyebrows, and his golden eyes practically glowed against the light of the torches. “But aren’t you helping your friend? I realize that much of Otherworld is new to you, but you must realize that it’s a crime to harbor a murderer, just as it is in your precious humanrealm.”
“For one, I’m notharboringher. And two, she’s not a murderer. Stop saying that.” I strode forward and gripped the iron bars. Pain immediately shot through my gut, and I stumbledback.
The fae let out a low chuckle and shook his head. “Silly girl. You cannot touch iron, not evenhere.”
“This is ridiculous. Let me out of here. Bree’s not a murderer. Yes, she got infected with the Redcap disease, but she’s fighting against it.” Taking a deep breath, I stepped up to the bars again. This time, I was careful not to touch them. “You have to believe me. She’s not a threat to anyone. I’ve been trying to help her, by undoing the whole thing. I wanted to give her WinterStarlight.”
He barked out a harsh laugh. “You actually believe that you can save a beast. Be careful. The last fae who spouted that kind of nonsense got herselfkilled.”
At the question-mark in my eyes, he continued. “Queen Marin, the ruler who was assassinated by our Court eighteen years ago. Good riddance, I say. She too believed that Redcaps were intelligent beings who could be reasoned with, but you saw the destruction they can cause. They’re monsters and nothing more. And every single one of them should be kept under tightcontrol.”
I fisted my hands by my sides and glared at Redmond. “Did you ever stop to think that maybe this is allyourfault? The Redcaps don’t just come from nowhere. You create them. And then it spreads and spreads and spreads. Because maybe, just maybe, what you’re doing iswrong.”
