Page 59 of This Is Not True Love’s Kiss

“I missed you too. I’ve missed all of you, worried about you, wondered how you would fare without me, and it looks like you’re thriving. You’ve done so much for the rebels.”

She gave a half shrug. “I only continued upon what you already built. Give yourself some credit, Butcher.”

My gaze swept the surrounding forest as I counted all the brotherhood members creeping around us, everyone so casual, talking, laughing. This was not the same rebel group I’d been in charge of. Not the same rebel group Arthon had led. Not at all. And I wasn’t sure how I felt about that, about any of it.

We walked through the forest, arriving in an area filled with thick, tall trees, their canopies so high it felt like they might actually touch the sun. I arched my neck, looking around at the reddish brown tree bark, taking in all the tents and the central open fire, where a boiling pot of some kind of stew cooked, the scent of onion and garlic wafting through the air.

Aoife stumbled slightly, and I quickly caught her elbow and steadied her. Our gazes locked for the briefest second, and I couldn’t help but remember how close our lips had been to touching before we’d been interrupted. Aoife looked away and wrenched her arm from my grasp, the moment between us broken.

Leena faced me and gestured toward the biggest tent, tall enough that I wouldn’t have to bend to enter. “Can we talk?” she asked. “In private?”

I nodded. “Of course.”

I looked at Aoife. “Get yourself something to eat and drink, and I’ll be back shortly. Are you going to be okay?”

“I’ll be fine,” she said, not meeting my gaze.

“Arcan,” Leena said, and one of the rebel members stepped up. “Show our guest to her tent and make sure she gets something to eat.”

Leena nodded at Aoife, then turned toward her tent, but I lingered and grabbed Aoife’s arm once again.

She stiffened and turned to me, and it seemed like she was already irritated by something I’d done. I had no idea what. Probably a million things. “Are you okay?” I asked in a low voice.

“Of course I am. I’m just in the enemy camp, surrounded by brotherhood members who are all supposedly spies that I’m to trust.”

“I wouldn’t put you in danger,” I said. “Not ever, Aoife.”

Something in her gaze softened, and I had the urge to sweep her up in my arms and kiss away every argument and worry she had.

“Lor,” Leena called.

Aoife stepped back. “Go,” she said. “I’m sure you two have a lot of catching up to do.”

Thick rugs lay on the ground inside Leena’s tent, and a small table was pushed against the back flap, covered in maps, and I was taken back to my time in the brotherhood, when I had the biggest tent that often was set up exactly like this.

Leena’s back was to me. “I think about that day all the time, you know.”

She didn’t have to say what day she was talking about. It was the day I decided to stay in Fairwitch Isle, to accept the crown hovering over my head and become king.

“I’m sorry, Leena,” I said, and she turned, tears in her eyes, arms crossed. “I never wanted things to end that way.”

I shoved a hand through my hair. “That day was so . . .”

So confusing, so overwhelming. I still remember our mission. Remember how we’d been sent to find out if Fairwitch Isle was hiding on Kiln Mountain. Leena and I had resolved to make sure we didn’t find it, resolved to lead Ronan astray.

Then we’d stumbled across the hidden kingdom, and I’d felt that pull to it. That inexplicable tug that made me walk toward it and right into the city.

“That day still feels like a dream.” She stepped toward me. “You just wouldn’t stop walking toward Fairwitch Isle, and I had no choice but to follow. I had no idea what was going on. No idea why when we stepped inside that crown appeared over your head.” She huffed. “Why didn’t you ever tell me? We spent a decade fighting together as rebels, and you never told me you were from the same mythical city the brotherhood was so desperately trying to conquer.”

I swallowed, throat thick. Arthon had instilled in me that I could never trust anyone. To keep my secrets close, to never disclose them for fear of someone using them against me.

I ran a hand over one of the maps on the table. “Everything feels so different now,” I said. “With the rebels.”

Laughter rang in the air outside the tent. I tipped my head in the direction of the sound. “Do they not have to train before dinner?”

Leena gave a slight shrug. “I’m not you, Lor. I wasn’t prepared to take over the rebels. And when I did, I realized I had to do things my way.”

I squinted at the map, black dots on nearly fifty different spots. “Are these all the brotherhood missions you’ve foiled?”