36. The Longest Night

"Kitten, wake up." One's lips brush my ear as I stir awake. "I need to go."

I blink, not exactly sure when I dozed off. Adrenaline dispenses a healthy dose of fear in my veins as I search the room. "Where did the others go?"

"They got up at the crack of dawn." One traces my shoulder blade in a soothing manner. "Something's not right with the barrier that keeps nightmares and outsiders away. Something is weakening it from within."

The way his lips curl down at the end of the sentence sends my pulse flying despite the sweet caress. "You think someone inside the castle might be helping Morrigan? A hunter?"

"Or a weaver. One of them might be hiding in the castle. Stay here. I'll find the mole." He dives down for a slow kiss, and a line of goosebumps across my back chases the touch of his warm hand as he withdraws.

My heart pounds in my throat. It could be like this every day. Every morning and night.

"I can't stay in here like a coward. Let me help. Please."

He hesitates, pressing his mask in place. "I asked Lori to secure the bibliotheca. She's the only one I trust given how she didn't partake in the last disastrous hunt. But don't let anyone else come too close to you, okay? Like your pal, Joseph."

Jo?I think back on our conversations, trying to discern an ulterior motive to our friendship.

I slip my bra and t-shirt on. "I'll steer clear of him. Be careful out there."

One blinks a few times like he can't quite believe what I've just said. "It's so easy with you. I never thought I could feel like this."

A playful grin twists my lips. "If you hadn't fought me every step of the way, it could have been easy much sooner."

"Come here." He grips a fist of my shirt and draws me in for one last kiss before heading out through the free-standing mirror.

Baka flies into the room about ten seconds after he leaves and shows me a full row of her crooked, blue teeth. "That boy finally realized the truth, then?"

I secure my belt around my hips and raise a brow. "The truth?"

"He loves ye, thank the Seven. He might finally learn to love himself. From the moment he learned to walk, that boy never felt like he was enough."

"You knew him? When he was young?"

With a warm chuckle, Baka starts to change the sheets. "Aye. I was in charge of his father's estate and came to court with him. He had ambition, that's for sure. More than was good for him. He wanted to be the best at everything, but it led him on a path of self-destruction… Morrigan took advantage of that, and ever since she cursed him, he's believed himself incapable of love. Not only unworthy of it, but incapable. Hopeless. I'm glad ye came along to show him how wrong he was."

"You're really fond of him."

She nods, her smile showing a full row of crooked teeth. "His mother died when he was only a wee thing. I take credit for his manners."

"What about the other two?" I smile, picturing how the triplets were growing up. "With all the rumors I've heard about Three, it's hard to imagine him as a kid."

Baka pauses for a second before the corners of her pink eyes wrinkle, making her already creased face even more joyful. "Hard to imagine, indeed."

I feel lighterthan air as I make my way to the library.

The hole in the stained glass has been magically mended, and rain beats hard on the windows, a bolt of lightning streaking through the sky. The strong winds clearly managed to send half the books flying from the shelves before the sprites could fix the window, and puddles of water shine across the glossy floors.

Lori is sifting through a series of wet books on the third floor, sitting with her legs crossed in the middle of the puddle closest to the previously broken window.

She sighs as I draw near, pinching a spine between her index finger and thumb. Water drips to the ground as she lifts it up. "The damn spiders derailed the spell that protects the stacks. Some of these books have no known copies. They're invaluable."

She lays her palm flat against the cover of the leather-bound volume to dry it, but I can tell by the tired frown on her face that she's exhausted.

"Here. Let me help." I kneel beside her and pick up another damaged book. "Talk me through the process."

She slides the book she just dried into its rightful spot. "It's easier than healing flesh. You'll be fine."

I flatten my palm to the cover of a leather-bound volume about Demeter and push a hint of magic forward. The moisture dries up in an instant, the water sucked right from the pages, and my skin itches with heat. While drying books is easy, it does take quite a bit of energy to do it.

"How many of these have you done?" I ask.

"I don't know." She shrugs, her gray gaze empty as she prepares to fix yet another book. "A couple hundred so far?"

I rest both of my hands on her shoulders. "Alright. Time for a break." I lead her down the stairs to the librarian's desk, and the docile way she follows my instruction tells me exactly how tired she is.

"You're all wet and cold. You need a hot shower and some food. I'll take over for a while."

Shivers rock her slender body. "Thank you. I'll be quick, I promise."

I know better than to scold her for being so hard on herself. Two of her friends just died, and even if I didn't know Mitch or Fiona for a long time, I grieve their loss, too. "I'm so sorry about Mitchell and Fiona."

She screws her lids shut and shakes her head. "We trained together—I just… Sometimes, I feel like we're all going to die." She cries in my arms for about a minute before drying her tears with her hoodie's sleeve. "I'll take a quick shower and come straight back. If you hear anything—and I mean anything—hurry inside the tunnels, okay?"

"I will," I promise.

After she's gone, I take stock of the damage. If magic didn't exist, most of these incredible tomes would be ruined. I dry and inventory the books that fell from the top floors and line them neatly on the desk after I'm done.

I work in silence for about fifteen minutes until a freakishly warm breeze caresses my cheeks, and I turn back toward the main entrance. A minute ago, a wooden beam held the thick double doors shut, so the low creak of the hinges quickens my pulse.

"Who's there?" I call out, spooked.

An uneven wind blows forward, fanning the pages of the books laying on the table. Instead of a spider, a beautiful man appears, his bare feet not touching the ground. He looks lighter than air and ready to step off a cloud, but he finally lands and finds his footing on the checkered floors.

"Hey there." He buries his hands in his elegant jacket's pockets and stares up at the chandelier above Lori's desk. "Nice digs."

I hold my breath.

Heavy rain seeps through the cracks left over by the intruder. He's got short dark hair, and his light brown skin is perfectly smooth. A clear purple gaze meets mine and turns my brain to mush. An array of silver earrings shines along the curve of his pointy ears, and his embroidered black and gray ensemble makes him look fresh out of a fairytale.

I've never seen a high-born Fae without a mask—besides One. The way this man flaunts his hauntingly beautiful eyes for everyone to see feels scandalous.

"Who are you, darling?" He leers at my long blonde mane the way a wealthy lord examines the show horses at an auction, and my spine stiffens.

"I—I'm Nell." I want to walk away, but I offer him my hand to kiss instead, and I have to chew on my bottom lip hard not to blurt out my whole name.

"I'm looking for Damian, Nell. Can you help me?" He tilts his head to the side and ghosts his full, sensual lips over my knuckles, and a zap of electricity travels from my hand to my belly.

This creepily handsome Fae is lurking around the castle, looking for Damian like the Shadow King is as accessible as any man. What the crops?

"Hey!" Lori dashes over to us, no longer wearing her uniform, but her hoodie and jeans. "You're not allowed here." She shoots me an alarmed glance over her shoulder, keeping most of her focus on the stranger. "Put on your mask, Nell. Quickly."

She pries her own mask out of the big pouch at the front of her hoodie. I retrieve mine from my bag, and we both secure the accessory over our awestruck faces in unison. With the mask on, the stranger doesn't look quite as enticing as before. He's still gorgeous, but I no longer want to give away all my secrets and obey his every whim.

Lori stands tall, a set of shadow daggers flickering to life in her hands.

"You're trespassing on the Shadow King's lands. Identify yourself."

"I'm Seth. Who are you?" Even though he's asking her the same question he asked me, he no longer looks like a horse connoisseur looking for his next ride.

"Lori."

Purple thunderclouds thicken Seth's irises, and I grip Lori's arm out of instinct. Now that he's seen her, the Fae doesn't even spare me a full glance, looking her up and down like he's just won a terrible prize.

He licks his bottom lip, the sight of his tongue almost indecent. "Now that we've all been properly introduced… Where are you from, Lori?"

Lori grunts at the personal question, but before she can answer—or tell him off—One slithers in from the shadows. He comes running in like some magic warned him of the newcomer's arrival, and his presence causes the glow of the moon over the gardens to vanish.

"Seth. You know better than to come here unannounced." His body creates a barrier between Lori and me and the unexpected visitor.

Seth barely acknowledges the arrival of the Fae, his gaze still fixed on Lori. "I have urgent news to share."

"Leave us. Now." One dismisses us, and we obey at once, the urgency in his tone making my heart thud in my ribcage.

Seth buries his hands inside his pockets and flashes us a dashing smile. "Goodbye, ladies. I'll see you again soon, I hope."

We climb the stairs to the third floor and spy through the stacks. The wide gaps in the mezzanine's railings allow for a glimpse at the two men as they chat.

"Who is that?" I ask, the man's smile still imprinted in my retinas, my hand still pulsing where he touched it.

"Judging by the look on One's face and the man we saw… I'd say the prince of nowhere at all."

"Prince of what?"

"Oh, he's infamous. There's an entire chapter about him in A Taste for Crowns. He was born out of wedlock, and his birth created quite the stir, given that his royal parents were both married to other people at the time."

I rub down the warmth leftover by his lips on my knuckles. "That explains why I let him kiss my hand."

"Believe me, we both would have done worse without our masks on to protect us. He's a man whore, that one. A rake," she adds for my benefit, but I understood her meaning perfectly.

A sudden burning sensation pierces my leg. "Ow."

"Are you alright?"

"Just a cramp. Sorry."

My heart hammers, and I excuse myself to my room with a hint of sweat at my brow. The pain is almost numbing. Esme is tugging on the head of her matching pin in Demeter, and she's tugging hard.

One did mention that the king wanted me to hide in Demeter until Morheim, so I can probably afford a quick trip back home.