“You want me to undo the exile so that Reyna can waltz into a cursed fae’s throne room and give herself up to him?” Thane’s tense laugh sent chills down her spine. “Are you fucking around? You can’t be serious, right? That or I’m dreaming. Someone smack me and wake me up. I don’t like this nightmare.”
“Well.” Reyna grimaced. “That wasn’t the reaction we were hoping for.”
“Reynas,” Thane said, glancing between them. “This isn’t safe. For either of you. The plan was for you to sneak in and get some of his blood while he was sleeping. It’s the best way to avoid a fight that could get you killed. Did you tell this bloody Urisk that?”
“I would appreciate not being cursed at,” the Urisk said tersely.
“We have a plan. Or, we did have one until you captured us,” Thane said, glaring up at him. “We’re trying to stop these cursed fae ourselves. Isn’t that what you want? Peace and safety for your people?”
“The problem is that I have heard your plan, and I don’t think it’s a very good one,” the Urisk said frankly. “Tell me, how do you plan to get his blood without waking him up? If he’s cursed, as you say, and reliant on blood, then his senses will have sharpened. Even just stepping into his room is likely to wake him.”
Reyna pursed her lips. She hated that he had a point.
“There’s always drugs,” Nollaig said, shrugging. “We could slip some herbs into his wine and wait until it knocks him out.”
“And how do you propose we get the herbs into his wine?” Thane wrinkled his nose. “It wouldn’t even be wine. It’d be blood.”
“I know!” Glencora sat up a little straighter. “One of us,the Reynaof us, eats the herbs and then we tempt Lorcan to drink from us. When he drinksthe Reynablood, it will knock him out, too!”
“NO!” Everyone shouted in unison, even the Urisk king.
She frowned and slumped back down. “It was just an idea.”
“No one is drugging themselves,” Reyna said. “The original idea is perfectly fine.The Reynasneaks into his room at night after he has gone asleep and stabs him. Only a little bit, of course.”
Nollaig snickered.
Reyna narrowed her eyes. “What’s so funny?”
“I’m sorry.” She gestured at the two ice fae sisters, and the chains jangled ominously. “Go ahead.”
Frowning, Reyna turned to back to the Urisk. “If you try to make a deal with him, it’s not going to go the way you want. And it changes nothing.The Reynawill still have to spill his blood.”
Nollaig snickered again.
Reyna whipped toward her. “What?”
“The Reyna.” She dropped back her head and laughed. “Honestly, my old friend, this is one of the most ridiculous conversations I’ve ever had the pleasure of being part of. But keep going. I want to hear more about whatThe Reynais going to do.”
Her laughter echoed through the cavern, full and deep. Reyna’s lips twitched. She struggled not to laugh. “Alright, get it out of your system.”
Urisk glanced between them, his eyes narrowed. “You two seem very familiar. I heard Reyna Darragh has spent quite a long of time with the shadow fae.”
“Listen, Urisk.” Reyna yanked her chains apart. The metal bent beneath the force, clattering to the stone floor as she stood. The Urisk king stumbled back with his heart on his chest. “We can’t do this anymore. I’m willing to help you, but you’re going to have to let us go. The Reyna has a fucking world to save.”
He swallowed hard. “My name is Tunkin. Not Urisk. You know I can call my guards over here, and they will poison you with their darts. The walls are lined with iron, so no magic can work down here.”
“That’s why we’re going to come to an agreement,” Reyna said, crossing her arms over her chest. “We’ll do something for you. You’ll do something for us. Hell, we’ll even promise to undo the exile.”
“Reyna, I don’t think I can do that here,” Thane muttered. “It needs to wait until I’m back home.”
“TheReyna,” Nollaig said with a laugh.
“I’m not calling her that.”
“But it won’t work,” Tunkin said in exasperation. “If I thought it would, I’d let you try it. But he’ll hear you. You’ll wake him. He’ll know you’re coming before you even step foot through the door.”
“Well, if you have a better idea, I’m all ears.”
