19. Another Deal

Chapter 19

Another Deal

LORI

A fluffy white robe hugs my curves, and the pleasant sting of the warm water still tingles on my skin. Sarafina lent me underwear and socks, too, and everything fits just right. I slip them on before joining her in the bedroom, making sure my silver key is safely tucked inside the pocket.

Her private space is not big, but it has a bathroom, a bed, and a large fireplace. Loud music and laughter rise between the floorboards from the first floor of the inn, and the windows offer a frosted view of the empty street below.

"Thank you."

"You're welcome. Tea?" She hands me a mug of contraceptive tea, and the familiar, purple-colored liquid flips my stomach.

A languid ache takes hold of my body. I can't believe the last few hours really happened, and now that I've washed Elio's scent off me, I can't wrap my mind around any of it. All the adrenaline fizzles out, leaving me exhausted and famished—and deliciously sore, though I'm doing my best not to think about it.

Sarafina watches me with her arms crossed as I down the entire mug. When I'm done, I set it on the dresser and move to walk past her, but she puts herself in my way. "Before you go, I need to check you for active enchantments."

A wry grin curls my lips. "Your king has already inspected me."

"I'd rather make sure. He seemed awfully distracted."

Sarafina hikes the sleeve of the robe up my arm, and she's a champion of modesty compared to Elio. She inspects me section by section and avoids my private parts, probably confident that her boss paid enough attention to them. I come out of the second search feeling slightly more like myself, but the woman in front of me looks rattled to say the least.

She fetches a sewing pin and holds it out to me. "Prick your finger."

My jaw clenches. "I'm not a fan of blood magic?—"

"Neither am I. Just do it."

I coax a drop of blood from my fingertip and Sarafina guides my hand to the hollow of my neck and draws the Fae rune for "heart" in blood over my skin. She punctuates the drawing with the rune for "Truth", and air rushes out of my lungs.

Magic envelops me from all sides, but it quickly draws back, and Sarafina gives a big sigh. "Alright. You're a true doppelganger." She crosses her arms around her small frame and taps her foot to the ground. "Why do you look like Iris?"

"I have no idea," I answer truthfully, acting a little more aloof than strictly necessary.

She clicks her tongue. "Don't play with him. He deserves more than that."

The way Elio looked at her earlier—with so much tenderness—haunts me. That combined with the obvious love in Sarafina's voice just now… I'm almost sure they're together. I roll my shoulders back, trying to summon some much needed anger.

If I'm right, Elio cheated on his girlfriend and enrolled her to take care of me, but the possibility only fills me with misery.

I clear my throat. "You seem to be quite taken by him. If you like him so much, why hold a pageant to find him a wife? Why not just marry him yourself and spare us all this charade?"

She laughs at that, all smiles, and her reaction throws me for a loop. "You're jealous?"

"No," I huff.

"You should have seen your eyes just now. Don't worry, Sixteen. I'd be more inclined to fall for you rather than Elio." She presses her lips together to stifle another giggle, and her eyes flick to the sash of my robe suggestively.

"Oh! When I came out of the wagon, you were crying, and he was whispering in your ear, so I thought—" I blurt out.

She lets out a cheerful snort and shakes her head again. "I was crying because I thought he'd killed you, and that would have wrecked him for months . Come on now," she motions for me to follow her into the next room. "You deserve some food for making me laugh."

Bread, charcuteries, and cheese have been laid out in a buffet fashion next to a big table, but the dining room is empty and quiet.

Sarafina tiptoes over to the doors on the other side of the room and twists the locks. "Here. Paul won't disturb us, now. We wouldn't want him to think that the two of us are sneaking around."

My stomach rumbles, and I bee-line for the buffet. Feeling foolish for my earlier fumble, I snatch humongous pieces of bread and cheese from the plate and smash them together. A low hum escapes my throat as I take a bite out of the divine, sweet and salty makeshift sandwich.

"Easy there, ogre. I'm hungry, too." Sarafina breaks a piece off of the loaf and dumps it onto a plate. She looks pensive as she sits in the seat across from me and munches on the bread. "Why are you here, really? To kill him? Steal from him?"

I swallow down another bite before I answer, "Not at all. I'm no assassin or thief. I'm a true Shadow huntress."

"Let's say you're telling the truth, and that you work for the Shadow King. Why did he send you here? And if you're truly one of his, why weren't you part of his court on Morheim? It's not like he's got hunters to spare."

"I was too hurt to come along on Morheim."

Sara's eyes fall to my ribs. "That I believe."

My mouth still full, I follow her gaze to my covered ribs and growl. Can every single Fae in existence sense the damn venom embedded in my bones?

"I'm here to pick up the trail of a woman called Morrigan. She's been through here recently," I sum up, leaving out a few important details, but with enough truth to test my interrogator. "And the Shadow King wants her alive."

Sarafina pushes her plate aside. "What did you truly see in the maze, when your Spring friend died?"

"I saw Aster speaking with someone—she'd said earlier that a woman needed help by the maze, but all I could make out in the storm was a dark silhouette. I thought it might be Morrigan and followed."

Sarafina sits back in her chair. "Alright. I don't know anyone by that name, but I'll verify your story at the Yule brunch tomorrow. If the Shadow King vies for you, I'm tempted to keep you around. Us darklings need to stick together in these uncertain times."

I'm grateful for her use of the word us . Fae seldom consider mortals their equals, but I shake my head. Her plan clearly ignores the most obvious hurdle. "Ugh-ugh. Elio told me in no uncertain terms that he never wanted to lay eyes on me again."

Sarafina flattens both palms to the table, and a flurry of snowflakes scatter in the air above her knuckles. Magic creeps through the room, frosting the windows through and through, along with the doorknobs and the gaps between the solid wooden doors and the floorboards. An eerie silence takes over, the bustle of the tavern below us vanishing in a flash.

"What—"

Sarafina holds up one finger for me to wait and nods after a few seconds. "No one could possibly hear us now." She straightens her spine and links her fingers over the table. "I won't waste your time, Lori, and take a leap of faith. As a spider, you're not loyal to the first kingdoms, which allows me to be candid.

"Something is very wrong with the magic of this realm. Unpredictable ice storms have disrupted the activities in the mines, and snow is melting in places it shouldn't. I've only picked up a few pieces of the puzzle so far, but I think something big is going to happen before the pageant is over.

"If someone wants to move against the Winter King, it'll happen before the solstice. I know your kingdom has faced similar challenges, so it wouldn't hurt to keep you around—as long as you didn't press your advantage with Elio."

"And what would I have to do?"

"Just keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. It would give you an opportunity to hunt for your mark in the next two provinces, and I would have eyes and ears on the ground, along with a competent fighter to protect the brides if something happens. Whoever killed your friend Aster is still on the loose, and I'm sure Seth told you what happened in the maze was not an isolated incident. Things of the sort happen every year during the pageant, and I'm sick of it."

My mind flashes to the gorgeous, ethereal warrior accompanying the Red brides. "Why don't you ask the Reds for help? They look deadly as fuck."

"Reds don't fight for anyone but themselves," she says with a decisive slice of the head. "The next challenge will be a survivor-type situation. Are you up for it, Sixteen?"

"Call me Lori."

The corners of her mouth quirk. "Very well. But only if you call me Sara."

I chew on my bottom lip.

I don't know if I can trust any of these Fae, but Sara's concerns sound valid and genuine. If some scourge or curse is spreading across the Fae Continent, I'm all for stopping it before it reaches the Shadowlands.

"Can I tell Seth?" I ask.

I can't jeopardize my chances to save Ayaan, but what Sarafina is offering would allow me to stay in the pageant and fulfill my duty to the prince as well.

She wraps her arms around her body at that. "Are you sleeping with him, too?"

"No, but I trust him. You don't think he's involved in whatever's coming, do you?"

She rakes a black nail across a knot in the wood table. "Seth isn't cut out for the Winter crown, and he knows that. I don't see what other angle he could have to conspire against us." Her lips are still pursed, but she finally leans forward with a quick nod. "Very well, then. But if we are to trade information, I'm going to need some transparency from you both. Byron will have a long chat with Seth in the morning to lay out strict ground rules, and if everything works out, I will smooth things over with the king."

She appears confident in her ability to sway Elio into letting me stay, and my stomach flip-flops. A part of me was relieved to be out of the pageant and free to leave Wintermere. If I stay, what happened earlier will happen again… but I swat the intrusive thought away and vanquish the little voice in my head that pleads for me to run.

The ice cutting Sara and I off from the rest of the world melts a little, the windows returning to their original tint.

I almost mention the hooded woman I saw meeting with Elio in the gardens, but if the Winter King is in leagues with Morrigan without Sara's knowledge, she won't believe me. Worse, she might ask him about it. Until I know more, I need to keep this close to the vest.

"Alright, I'm in." I move to stand. "Where is Seth?"

Sara escorts me to the exit. "In one of the rooms below, but he's not alone." She swings open the door. "The brides are expected to sleep in the big tent outside. Tell them that you've been interrogated by me because of your resemblance to Iris, and make no mention of Elio. I'll be your alibi."

The Inn's tavern is still loud and cheerful as I wrap myself in shadows, and I make my way down the hallway, pressing my ear to each of the doors to find Seth's bedroom. Heated moans blaring from behind the first door around the corner clue me in that Seth is indeed not alone, and I knock on the wood with a wry grin.

The moans stop abruptly, and a storm of curses echoes inside the prince's bedroom.

"Are you really going to open the door?" a familiar voice asks, and I arch a brow.

Poppy? Really?

She probably figured she'd be out of the competition because of Elio's attempt to disqualify all the Spring seeds, and I don't blame her for making the most of the experience.

"It could be important," Seth answers, not sounding half as sorry as he should. "Just be patient."

If I was the woman in bed with him, I'd be tempted to slap his princely face.

The Fae cracks open the door, naked, and I catch a glimpse of Poppy holding the covers to her chest on the bed. The brunette looks absolutely scandalized, but I don't allow her to see me and engulf Seth in my shadows instead.

"Hey, partner," I press my lips together to hide my big, goofy smile.

I can't believe his lure affected me so much when we first met. He's just a man, and his lust magic pales in comparison to Elio's life-shattering thrall. Still, the naked storm prince is easy on the eyes.

"I need a moment, and it can't wait," I say in my best, all-business, corporate voice.

He rakes his hand through his dark hair and groans. "Give me a minute."

"Just one? I thought better of you."

He cracks a smile and doubles-back to wrap a silk black robe around his body before joining me outside his door. "Where were you? I was worried."

"Not so worried that you came looking for me." I raise a brow that commands him to cut the bullshit.

A sheepish pout twists his lips. "I'm sorry. Guards corralled me in here right after you ran off. There was nothing I could do without raising some serious hell and blowing your cover."

"Well… Consider my cover blown where Elio and Sara are concerned."

Seth's gaze falls to the sash of my robe. "What are you wearing?"

I cross my arms over my chest and fight off the urge to roll my eyes. "You first. How is your brother mixed up in this?"

He rubs the arch of his brow. "I wasn't supposed to tell anyone, but my youngest half-brother, Luther, is missing. He's the most powerful and versatile storm Fae in centuries. He has both storm and shadow magic in spades, so my father didn't want to introduce him to the other courts until it was time to enroll him in the Royal Academy. But somehow, our enemies found out, and Morrigan kidnapped him."

My mind spins at the possible implications. "Morrigan weaved hundreds of Dreamcatcher spiders to attack the Shadow Court. Obviously, she couldn't have done this using her magic alone. Do you think she could have used your brother's magic?"

The hard line of his jaw spells volumes. "Maybe. Luther's powers are immense, and I think Morrigan is working with dangerous rebels to try and steal them. I've heard rumblings about revolutionists—Fae and mortal alike—using illegal technology to boost their power. That's how I ended up chatting with your brother in the first place. A mortal that confessed to carving a forbidden arrow on his own... I had to verify the story myself."

My pulse swirls at that new tidbit of information. "He confessed ?"

"I'm afraid so. When I read his file, it said that his sister was training as a Shadow huntress, so I connected the dots."

"Do you trust Sarafina?" I ask point-blank, stowing all my doubts about Ayaan for later. Whatever Seth believes, I know my little fox of a brother isn't dumb enough to admit to a crime punishable by death…

Seth frowns at that, my swift change of subject probably making me appear as unstable as I feel. "As much as I can trust a snowflake, why?"

"Put on your listening ears. I've got a ton to tell you."

I cradle us in shadows to prevent anyone from overhearing and catch Seth up on the situation. But I leave out the part where I had sex with the Winter King. Seems hardly relevant, now.

I get to the tent half an hour later and leave my shadow cloak at the door.

A loud, disappointed groan rises from the cots near the entrance where the reds huddle together. The Red from the carnival alerts her friends of my arrival, the women apparently taking shifts to guard the entrance of the tent.

I search the space for the Spring seeds and find them huddled in the back with the Summer fireflies while the Winter brides claimed the rest of the tent for themselves. They make about half our numbers by now.

Wendy Frost, the Winter bride who rescued me from the pool—or maybe entombed me in there in the first place—greets me with both hands on her hips and puts herself in my way. "We thought you were out, Sixteen. What happened to you?" She eyes the robe wrapped around my body with her top lip curled in disgust.

"Let her through. It's none of your business," Daisy shouts at her back, leaving her section of the tent to join us.

Wendy flashes me her straight, white teeth. "Weeds stick together, I see."

Daisy balls her fists at the jab, the blonde more feisty than I've ever seen her. "Who are you calling a weed, pointy ears?"

Wendy offers a dismissive wave in response. "All Spring seeds are weeds to me."

"And all snowflakes melt in spring, dear," Daisy shoots back.

I slip toward the cots, Daisy quick on my heels, and observe Wendy from the corner of my eyes. The Winter Fae is whispering with the Reds by the entrance of the tent.

I grin. "You really pissed her off."

Daisy's eyes shine in the dark. "That Fae bugs me more than you do, which is saying something."

She's by far my favorite. The enemy of my enemy makes a great shield, and the thorniest flower in the garden is the perfect spot for a spider to hide.