Tatiana continued. “He offered me an alliance on the condition I track you down and deliver you to his rotten little bridge. Do you know what I said?” She leaned forward with a fierce little smile. “I said, ‘Fuck you, Oberon.’ And then I prayed to the stars in the sky that you might forever evade him just to make him sweat. In the end, it sounds like you killed him, so well done.”
From down the table, Caedmon folded his arms and let out a chuckle. “This is getting good.”
But all I could do was stare at the Queen of Storms. That had been the last thing I’d expected to hear her say.
“I don’t understand,” I said, my heart thudding angrily against my ribs. If Queen Tatiana had rejected Oberon’s offer, if she knew who I was and had wanted me to win, then why had she been so vicious to us since the moment we’d stepped through those castle doors?
As if reading my mind, she clucked her tongue. “After I turned his offer down, Oberon contacted my son. Owen was more than happy to ally with him. I believe he sent some elite fae to Itchen, where they tried to trap you with a storm. Didn’t work, though, if you’re here and they’re not.”
Owen. Again.
Kalen continued to eat with lethal calm, his eyes locked on Tatiana’s face. He didn’t say a word, but he didn’t need to. I could feel his anger, feel it seeping out of him.
“If all this is true,” I said, palming the table on either side of my plate, “then why the cold reception?”
“Cold?” She let out a tinkling laugh and motioned at the banquet spread before us. “I provided you with warm, cozy beds, pails of hot water for baths, and a delicious spread of breakfast foods to refresh yourselves after your long journey.”
At the far end of the table, Fenella scraped her fork against her empty plate and pounded her chest before letting out a burp. Then she shot the queen a glittering smile that could rival her own. “You wield your words as weapons. We know you aren’t happy to have us here, probably because we were forced to kill some of your son’s men. Men who were threatening our people, I might add. That, or you’re in league with the gods. Truth be told, I’m not sure which one it is. Shall I flip a coin?”
“In league with the gods?” Lord Byrne finally piped up, his voice rough with emotion. He turned to his queen. “Your Majesty, what is all this talk of the gods? They’ve been repeatedly mentioned this morning, and with the creatures stirring in the depths of the ocean…is there something we should know?”
Tatiana patted the lord’s hand. “No need to worry, Lord Byrne. If there is any threat—and I’m not convinced there is—I’m certain the Mist King here will take care of it.”
When Kalen stiffened—the only reaction he’d shown to her words so far—the queen cocked her head.
“It’s true, is it not? Your power can flatten entire armies. You really have no need for scores of warriors or elite fae who can call upon thunder and wind. You can easily deal with any threat we might face. Kalen Denare is the greatest weapon this world has ever seen.”
There was something in her voice, something in the flashing of her eyes, that sent another slice of unease down my spine. Did she know Kalen’s power was useless against me—and likely useless against Andromeda, too? But how?
My eyes dropped to her necklace. I focused on it, bracing myself for the feel of its power. When I’d gone into the cave beneath Itchen and when I’d been near Oberon’s gemstone necklace, I’d felt the magic of it. It had been unmistakable, thick and dark andeager. But there was nothing coming from that stone.
Kalen lifted his napkin from his lap and dropped it onto the table. “Thank you for your generous meal this morning, Queen Tatiana. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m eager to see the rest of the castle. It has such a unique style, so unlike the castles in the shadow fae realm.” He stood.
Queen Tatiana launched to her feet before he could move away from the table. Her cheeks tightened. “Of course. You must have a tour at once. I will have my personal guard escort you.”
“That’s hardly necessary,” he replied with a frank, knowing smile that was just as barbed as the queen’s words had been all morning. She clearly didn’t want us wandering around alone. Was she worried we might find something she was trying to hide? Or was it merely distrust of the enemy fae king who had killed so many of her son’s people?
“Nonsense.” She snapped her finger at an armed guard who stood along the wall nearest our table. “I can’t very well let my esteemed guests find themselves lost. These corridors are a maze, you see. My guard will make sure you see everything you need to see and then return you safely to your rooms.”
Esteemed guests?I couldn’t help but wonder.Or prisoners?
Twenty
Niamh
After trapping us in a cramped cabin for two weeks, the humans finally let us out onto the deck. The whole trip had been nightmarish. Alastairsnoredand took up too much space with his hulking shoulders and huge boots. The humans had been“kind” enough to give us access to a bathing chamber, where we were able to relieve ourselves and wash, but other than that, we had not left those four walls in thirteen days.
The only respite from it all had been Val.
Val and her smile. Val and her curvy hips. Val and her sparkling eyes I swore were five different shades of brown.
But damn Alastair had always been there, and he had a tendency to barrel his way into the conversation, completely unaware every time I tried to have a meaningful moment with her.
Still, it had been nice—as nice as it could have been, anyway. And now Alastair was finally off on his own, wandering around the opposite side of the deck.
Val gripped the side of the ship, tossed back her head, and breathed in the salt-scented air. Her wild ginger hair tumbled around her face, and something in my chest flipped over. It instantly made me forget just how pissed off I was about this whole thing.
Until the captain swaggered up to us, surrounded by his sailors, with his hand on the pommel of the sword strapped to his side. I narrowed my eyes and faced him, anger churning in my gut. The bastards had locked us up for two fucking weeks.
