* * *
At some point in the middle of all the waiting, I drifted off to sleep. When I awoke, I found myself in the master bed—alone. Glancing around, I spotted Liam stationed by the door while Rourke had decided to take a nap in the other room.
A part of me yearned to toss away my worries and beckon them into the master bed with me…
Focus, Norah.
Quietly, I slid out from under the covers. One of them must have carried me here and tucked me up into bed. The thought of it, such a sweet and tender move, made my heart throb. One moment, they could be the tough and violent fae males that they all could be. The next, they were making sure I was covered by fluffy blankets.
I tiptoed over to Liam’s side and eased onto the chair next to his. Through the boarded-up windows, it was impossible to tell what time it was, but it must have been hours later. Almost time.
Liam jerked his head toward where Rourke was sleeping. “I never pegged an Autumn as a gentleman, but he refused to get into your bed without you knowing.”
I blushed. “That’s sweet.”
He needn’t have worried. I would have welcomed him right in beside me.
“Not as sweet as the way you look when you’re blushing.” Liam reached out a finger and traced it along my skin. I shivered. “Before we do this, there’s something I’ve been meaning to talk to you about.”
My heart thumped. “What is it?”
“I think we need to determine who your parents are,” he said quietly. “Your powers are…impressive, to say the least. I think the realm needs you, Norah. They’ll especially need you if there’s another battle between Courts. Knowing who your parents are could go a long way toward getting the realm to accept you, particularly if they’re well-respected fae.”
“I…” I didn’t know what to say. “I’m just a changeling. This realm wouldn’t stand behind me, no matter who my parents are. Rourke said none of the couples that year had any ties to Marin. In fact, he saidno onehas ties to her. Not anymore. All her family is dead.”
Liam frowned and shook his head. “Yes, but there must be more to the—”
The murmur of voices drifted through the door, and Liam suddenly fell silent. He caught my eyes and nodded, jumping up from his chair to wake Rourke. With a deep breath, I edged closer to the window. It was boarded-up and blocked off, but it would normally have a view of the courtyard. The courtyard where the horses were kept.
I had no idea if my plan would work. Still, it was worth a shot.
“Fly free,” I whispered at the window.
In the distance, the whining and neighing of horses cut through the night. Hooves pounded on the ground, louder and louder until it sounded like the thunder of those terrible storms. Shouts of alarm echoed down the hallway outside our quarters, and footsteps thudded on the floor. Rourke and Liam listened at the door for the sounds to grow distant.
The Summer fae would try to stop the horses from escaping. I hoped they would fail.
Rourke and Liam pounded at the door, shoving their massive bodies against the wood. The noise was drowned out by the chaos outside, and the repeated thumps did little to draw any guards back to our hall. In moments, we’d escaped our room. We rushed down the hallway in the opposite direction of the charging horses. Soon, we were out in the night, running as fast as our feet could take us.
Three large forms thundered in front of us, blocking our way. We came to a sudden stop, our breaths heavy, our hearts racing. My gaze locked on the deep brown eyes of the horse I’d saved from the Wilde Fae. It bent its head and shifted to the side, as if in invitation for me to climb on.
I gaped at the horse. I hadn’t asked for it to come to me, and I certainly hadn’t commanded it to do a thing.
“Come on, Norah,” Liam said hurriedly as he glanced over his shoulder. “I think the Hunters have spotted what we’ve done. If we don’t go now, we might never get out of here.”
Chapter Fourteen
We outran the Summer fae and charged across the free territory as fast as our horses would take us. When I finally saw the familiar, moss-covered Academy, I wanted to cry. We’d been gone less than a week, but it almost felt as though years had passed us by. It was strange how quickly this place had begun to feel like home. It was like a lighthouse, soothing and warm, after being tossed in a turbulent sea.
Liam and Rourke nodded at the guards patrolling the edges of the grounds, and we deposited our horses in the stables. They looked as happy to be home as we were. When we entered the Academy’s front doors, we were immediately surrounded. Questions were shouted, heads were craned, and elbows jostled elbows. It wasn’t until Head Instructor Alwyn skated across the marble floor that the crowd began to calm.
“I need to see the three of you in my office,” she said by way of greeting before turning on her heels and tossing the last word over her dainty shoulder. “Now.”
It turned out that Shea had filled Alwyn in on everything that had happened, up until a point. She’d returned to the Academy after Rourke and I had set off on our mission, both to resume her work as an instructor for the changelings and to keep Alwyn appraised on what was happening.
“Now that I have the three of you in front of me, I think it’s imperative that I emphasize the importance of following the rules here. Both for the Academy’s sake and the realm at large. Liam, I warned you what would happen if you went against my orders.”
“You did warn me.” He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair. “Loudly and repeatedly.”
