I caught Doya giving a sheepish look. Apparently, so did Baine. His face fell as he said, “You…didwrite downeverythingI said, didn’t you, Eleanor?”
“You have a tendency to ramble on, Elliot,” Doya replied, in an almost apologetic way. “I more or less… wrote my own observations.”
Baine’s color blanched, and he began rifling through the journal pages. He let out a yelp as he came to the middle of the journal, and cried out with angst, “Eleanor, these aren’t the notes I asked you to take!”
“Oh, you know everything about them already, Elliot, what does it matter?” Madame Doya said with a dismissive wave of her hand.
“There’s onlyone line!” Baine whimpered.
“Let me see,” Delmare asked, extending her hand. I too was curious to see what had been written about us.
Baine handed the book to Delmare, and she read aloud, “All these worthless fae know how to do is party, lie, and have sex.”
“A fair analysis, then,” Stefan said, while Emma and I laughed.
Baine’s mood had soured. He stuck out his lip and said, “Very well. I suppose we’ll have to extend our trip.”
“I wouldn’t suggest that,” I said. “Malovia is a very dangerous place right now, even for the fae. If you have any sense, I would advise you to leave the country as soon as possible.”
“It’s the best choice, Elliot,” Doya said. “Unless you want to end up as another sacrifice.”
“We’ll get you out of the woods and into Dolinska,” I offered. “But I ask that you leave in the morning. The fae world isn’t a place for elementals, at least not now.”
“I suppose we have no choice.” Baine sighed. “Onto the next place, I suppose.”
We remained on high alert as we escorted Baine and Doya back to the city. I didn’t see any more cultists lingering in the trees, but I could smell them in the distance, and I was all but certain they were watching us as we reached Dolinska’s perimeter.
“Thank you for everything you’ve done,” Baine said, shaking my hand in a flimsy way. “I hope your king hears about you. You’re quite the brave lad.”
“The king definitely knows all about him,” Emma said with a sneaky grin.
“Oh,really?” Baine asked. “Could you possibly introduce us— I have many questions about how the monarchy works, and—”
“Elliot,” Doya hissed hastily. Baine gave us a hasty farewell and hurried after his wife into the nearest hotel.
“What a strange couple,” Arthur noted as we returned to the forest— in a hurry, I might add. It’d be no good to be spotted walking amongst the city streets this late.
“Yeah, I’ve always thought Elementai were weird,” Stefan commented. “Nice people, but weird.”
“We’ve already lost a lot of time,” Emma said. “We need to pick up the pace if we want to go to the Willow Maiden tonight.”
“We can’t go to the Willow Maiden now. Cultists are running thick in these trees. It isn’t safe,” I stated. “We’ll try again another night.”
Emma’s tone was disappointed. “But—”
“No, Emma. We will return to the palace. It’s not worth the risk.”
She scowled, but said nothing more. I too was frustrated we hadn’t accomplished what we’d set out to do, but we’d saved the lives of two people tonight, and what was more, we’d learned that the Black Claw hadn’t been vanquished as we’d hoped. Their darkest and deadliest members still roamed free, and even worse, they were minions of Gabby’s. I was sure she was posing to strike them against us at any moment.
The worries didn’t stop there. With soldiers of the Black Claw alive and well, Emma’s prophecy put her in danger. It had warned us the cult would try to take her blood at the end of this year. We still had time to prepare, but not as much time as I wished.
The sacrifice we’d seen tonight was confirmation. With every day that passed, the Black Claw was planning to take my mate’s life. But if they wanted Emma, one thing was certain.
They’d have to get through me first.
Chapter Eight
Emma
