Chapter 20

CHAPTER TWENTY

B althasar dozed fitfully as the days wore on. Saul visited once a day to bring him blood and food, but he was the only visitor. Balthasar had stopped asking to talk to Eli. He knew his father would not budge on his position. Whatever had happened to him in his early life in the Seelie courts had scarred him. Eli was afraid of nothing in the whole world except being dragged back to that place of trauma.

"Wow, Balthasar, this is just like a dream I had once. You were chained up to a bed if I remember correctly." Balthasar opened his eyes to see Pearl standing on the other side of his cell. She was shimmering with new power.

"Find an unfortunate faerie to drink, did you?" he asked before looking back up at the ceiling.

"I found a few. I always fantasized about getting you in chains, Bal. This seems so much more delicious," she sighed dramatically. "Are you missing your chubby human? I can't believe you would seriously consider going into Faerie to try to get her back. If you needed some sex, all you had to do was ask."

"I would rather have my manhood eaten by a loup-garou ," Balthasar replied.

"Mm, I'll let Caruthers know you said so. Lord Riverclear didn't mind it when I offered a round in the sack," Pearl said, a touch of frustration eating into her words. "Bet you would never have thought it was me. You're so busy ignoring me that you never suspected I was the one that would bring about your downfall."

"So it was your idea for his men to have their tantrum at the ball? Oh, you're a veritable Moriarty, Pearl. You can hardly boast about the Seelie's betrayal. They would've acted the way they did even if your dubious charms hadn't worked on Riverclear." Balthasar sat up on his pallet and stared her down. "What I don't understand is why bother with it at all? No one pays attention to you or takes you seriously?"

"Of course not. I want you gone, Balthasar."

"And to think, not five minutes ago you were offering to fuck me."

"It is hardly the same thing. You see, I was the one that had to console my poor Lily when you returned. You went off to have your pity party on every battlefield you could find, leaving it up to her to pick up the slack. Eli was grooming her to take over. She was good at it. The lords respected her, and Eli relied on her. Then you decided to return on a whim, and she was cast aside. I wanted to see her as queen. I will see her as queen."

"So you can share in her power? That's ridiculous. Unlike Lily, you'll never be taken seriously. I don't even think Lily takes you seriously. That is the point. She has lived and suffered, and you bring her a shallow, easy, lightness when she needs to be removed from her melancholy."

Pearl shivered before reappearing in front of him, her hand raised to slap him. Balthasar caught her arm with such a force that it broke. "You know what is even more pathetic? You actually think that you're going to get away with this," he said as he flung her back towards the door. "I don't have to kill you, Pearl. You have signed your own death warrant, and not even Lily and all the guilt and affection Eli has towards her will be enough to stop him from tearing you apart."

"Enjoy your chains, Balthasar," Pearl hissed. "I'm sure the faerie are enjoying passing Rosa around." Then she was gone in a cloud of angry perfume and a slam of the door.

It was after midnight when Balthasar heard his door rattle again. It had been hours since Saul had visited him to give him an update on all that was happening in the Gwaed Gam world. The revolt was being investigated, and Eli had started to take out his frustrations out on the lords. Balthasar didn't bother telling him about Pearl. Eli would find out what she was and what she had done soon enough.

It wasn't Saul who was opening his door now. One whiff of the Chanel perfume and lavender soap, and he knew exactly who it was.

"Cecily? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I had to see you. Here drink this," she said and gave him a pilfered blood bag. He took it from her and drained it. Saul was giving him enough to stay alive but not enough to leave him strong. Even with the chains, Saul and Eli didn't trust him.

"Thank you," he whispered. "What's wrong?"

"Is it true what they are all saying?" she asked, her eyes big as she stared at him. "Is it true about you and my Rosa?"

"It all depends on what they are saying," he replied, feeling remarkably bashful. "If they are saying that I love her, then yes, it's true."

"Those bastards took her!" she whispered angrily. "She never hurt a fly, and they snatched her away."

"I know. I'm sorry that I couldn't protect her, Cecily. If I could get out of here, you know I would go after her."

"Is such a thing even possible? I haven't asked Eli to help. I was going to, but then I heard what had happened to you, and well, if you can't talk any sense into him, Mr. Balthasar, I know I have no chance."

"I tried, but he won't hear me out. I would find a way to get her back. I have some idea how I could if I could find a fae," he said thoughtfully. Cecily looked guilty as she pulled out a key from the pocket of her dress. "Cecily, where did you get that?"

"I stole it when I was delivering Mr. Eli his dinner," she admitted slowly. "You know I'm a good person, and I would never, ever go against your father. He's always been very good and very kind to me, but Rosa is my only daughter. I lost her for years because he told me it was the right thing to do. I had only gotten her back, so I can't lose her again. If I let you go, do you promise that you will find her?"

"I swear it, Cecily. I'll never stop trying to find her. Let me out of here, and I will fight my way through Hell to get Rosa back to us safely."

"The funny thing is that I thought she didn't like you. Goes to show what a mother knows," Cecily said with a shake of her head. She unlocked his manacles one at a time.

"I believe liking me was a surprise to her as well," Balthasar admitted as he rubbed his chafed wrists and ankles. "Now, you had best find a way to get that back to Eli without getting caught. Saving Rosa won't do me any good if she learns I got you into trouble with Eli for your efforts."

"I'll find a way," she promised. "I've hidden a bag of clothes and some food down at the cottage for you. Use the servant's passages and go now. Eli is going to be in a meeting with Lord Southgate for another few hours. Now is your chance while he is distracted."

Balthasar hugged her quickly. "Now I can see where Rosa gets her bravery. Thank you so much, Cecily. I won't fail you."

"See that you don't," she replied primly. "If you come back empty-handed, you will have to deal with two very annoyed and disappointed parents."

Balthasar ran through the passages, his feet barely touching the ground. He made it through the kitchen and out the back doors before the servants even felt a stir in the air. Outside, the wind was blowing up an icy storm as he hurried to Rosa's cottage.

Cecily was good to her word and had brought clothes and boots from his rooms, as well as more blood and a still warm meal from the kitchen. Balthasar had a hot shower to scrub the dry blood from his skin. He tried to ignore the scent of Rosa all around him, filling him with worry and longing for her.

Don't worry, Rosa. I am coming for you. Hold on. He sent his thoughts out like a prayer, hoping that somehow, they would find her. He dressed and ate before stepping back out into the night.

Celyn's totem still hung in the holly bush, taunting him with his failure to protect the woman he loved. Taking a handkerchief from his coat pocket, Balthasar carefully wrapped it around the infernal object and broke the thin branch that it had been hanging on.

Centuries beforehand, during a time when the Seelie had plagued them incessantly, Eli had taught magic to Balthasar to protect and assist him. Balthasar needed a fae to cross over to the Aos Si, and he knew the exact neck he wanted to wrap his hands around. With extra care, he put the wrapped totem into his pocket to keep it safe. He couldn't risk a stableman spotting his escape on Caesar, so he headed through the forest on foot.

The Winter Solstice would only last another week. He had been locked up for at least five days, which was far less than what Rosa would've been forced to endure.

Five days trapped as a despised prisoner in Faerie, my poor girl . He couldn't— wouldn't —imagine what they were doing to her. He ran for the stones, the fresh blood fueling his speed and restoring him.

The stones were humming with power as he approached them. He took Celyn's totem from out of his pocket. The spell that held it together sent pins and needles up his arm.

Balthasar had never tried to summon one of the fae from so far away. Eli had taught him that all he needed was something that was theirs—a button from a torn jacket, a drop of blood, an item left behind, saliva from a lover's lips.

He ignored the burning in his hands as he clasped the totem, whispering the Unseelie spell over and over. The part of him that was Unseelie, Bleddyn's son, vibrated and flowed through his body, growing stronger with each incantation. He whispered it more urgently, putting authority into his voice until he was shouting his commands across the lake, screaming it into the four winds.

All went still, as if he were caught in a pocket of silence, and then it popped, sending him flying backward. He managed to keep his feet, and directly where he had been standing was a confused Celyn, wearing formal attire and a mask, a drink still in his hand. He didn't have time to move before Balthasar was on him. He wrestled Celyn to the ground, resisting the urge to rip the Seelie's head off.

"You!" Celyn squirmed. "How is this possible?"

"I am Balthasar, son of Bleddyn, rightful king of the Unseelie." His hand gripped the fae's hair. "Do you really think that he wouldn't have taught us everything about your spiteful kind? If you want to live, you are going to do exactly as I tell you, Celyn, or I will rip you apart limb from limb. Understand?"

"I understand," Celyn spat. "I understand that as soon as you let your guard down, I will destroy you, you Unseelie piece of—" Balthasar punched him hard in the throat.

Celyn's threats turned to gargled chokes for air.

"Let's be very clear here. You stole the only thing I've given a damn about in over two hundred years. I don't need an excuse to kill you. You are going to help me get Rosa back."

Celyn made a noise like a gurgling laugh.

"She's already lost to you," he wheezed. "She drank the queen's wine. Even if you could get to her, she won't be your Rosa anymore. She's the queen's creature, her slave in all things."

"I don't care what you say," Balthasar said. "I'm still going to get her."

"You cannot get through the portal! The fae blood in you is too weak to be recognized."

Balthasar smiled at him unpleasantly. "Then it is a good thing that I have a fae with me."

Celyn screamed as Balthasar sank his fangs deep into his throat. Hot, Seelie blood flowed into him like caramel. He fought the temptation to lose himself in Celyn's long memories. Instead, he focused on the more recent ones—how to find his way to the Seelie Court and where they were holding Rosa.

He caught a brief glimpse of the queen kissing her, and he pulled back. Celyn was limp in his arms but still alive. With strength and magic surging through him, Balthasar slung Celyn over his shoulder and stepped into the ring of stones.

Gold and silver light rose up around them, and he was falling, drawn down into the earth and smothering darkness.

Balthasar was still gripping tightly to Celyn as he was thrown out of the ground and into a circle of monoliths. The air around him buzzed with magic, the forest glowing with an aura of power and light.

"This is incredible," Balthasar whispered as he took in all the beauty around him.

"This is the Aos Si. You made it, and now it's no longer safe from your pestilent kind," Celyn muttered.

"I have no interest in bringing the Gwaed Gam here. I'm only here for Rosa, and I will return home and never think of this place again."

"They will know that it's you straight away. Look at you! You won't get five feet into the court. I hope I am there to see them skin you alive."

"All I need is a good disguise," Balthasar said, looking at Celyn's fancy attire and the mask he clutched in this hand. Celyn's eyes widened before Balthasar hit him hard, knocking him unconscious. Balthasar dragged him behind the faerie ring. "There we are. You stay there until I need you on the way home."

Following the instructions from Celyn's mind, Balthasar ran along the white roads, the two moons and light from the trees enough for him to see clearly. He would have liked to explore all the wonders and terrors that the Aos Si offered, but being the only son of Bleddyn meant that he would be hunted wherever he went. He needed to find Rosa and get home before the magic in the air seduced him.

Time moved differently in the Aos Si, and when Balthasar looked at his watch, he discovered that it had stopped completely. He found the entrance to the tunnels behind a boulder. The shimmering glyphs etched into the stone stood out like a beacon, compliments of Celyn's blood that was burning through him. He was quiet as he crept through the darkened passageways, the sounds of a lively party calling out to him.

Two guards fell as Balthasar snapped the neck of one, relieved him of his sword, and took the head off the other. He drank them quickly, his vision blurring with the overdose. Celyn was right. They would know he wasn't a fae, but the extra fae blood would trick them even if it were only for a little while.

The tunnels came to an end at an elaborately carved door. Making sure that his mask was in place, he opened them. Eli had told him that the Seelie palace was built underground, but he wasn't ready for the lavishness that he encountered.

With Eli, he had frequented some of the wealthiest courts in the world, and Marie Antoinette's parties at Versailles couldn't come close to the decadence before him. Everywhere he walked, he found elaborate mirrors, gilded ornaments, murals that made his eyes burn with longing. Nature seemed to co-exist with the building. Fine lamps and crystal trinkets hung from exposed roots, and flowers grew unexpectedly from the floor and walls. He tried to close his emotions away so that the enchanting beauty wouldn't distract him from his true purpose.

The chattering of faerie women led him down a corridor and to the ballroom he had seen in Celyn's mind. This was the place where the Autumn Queen had forced Rosa to drink her poison.

Interweaving melodies filled the air as dancers moved about the room in waltzes. Hiding behind a pillar, he spied Ryn and the queen herself. She was as dangerously delightful as Eli had said—like a poisonous flower ready to eat any fly that landed too close.

He walked slowly around the room, avoiding the sight of Ryn, the only fae that could recognize him. Balthasar watched the dancers, and then by a miracle, he smelled her.

His head snapped up to spot Rosa dancing gracefully with a black haired fae that had a magnificent set of stag antlers. He was bare-chested, and if Balthasar's senses could be trusted, he was oozing pheromones. He watched as Rosa, dressed in an impossible dress of black feathers, was twirled about, the fae's hands stroking her arms with a possessive touch.

Calm down, Balthasar , he warned himself. He had expected to find Rosa in chains, not in the arms of another man. He bowed to a faerie lady with white hair and offered her his hand. She smiled, revealing sharply filed teeth and accepted. Balthasar led his partner out into the dance, watching as they broke off into groups of four, exchanging partners in a weaving pattern. He headed for Rosa, careful not to appear too eager but danced with the same tranced and languid attitude as the other dancers. Time seemed to go forever, but finally, he ducked, weaved, and held her in his arms.

"Rosa, my Rosa," he whispered.

"Hello, are you enjoying the ball?" she asked politely, her hazel eyes not recognizing him.

"It's me, Balthasar," he lifted his mask. "Don't you know who I am?"

"Not at all, but you have a very handsome face. Would you like to be my friend? I have made so many today." She smiled beautifully. Balthasar gripped her tightly and sped her off the main floor and to the back wall.

"Rosa, snap out of it. I'm here to rescue you," he said as he touched her face. She looked about her, surprised and shaken that they had stopped dancing.

"We have to get back out there. The queen commanded me to dance, so I must dance. I must ," she insisted.

Balthasar held her firmly. "You have to remember me. You fought with me when you were drunk. I painted you. We made love all night, and I kissed you over and over." She looked up at him, confusion clouding her face.

"I'm sorry, sir. I think you have me confused with someone else. Perhaps your lady is still a part of the dance."

"No, my lady is right here in front of me." He leaned down and whispered, "Remember me, my Rosa."

Before she could protest, he kissed her with all the emotion he was feeling. She struggled before her hands gripped his arms and deepened it. She touched her lips, and her eyes flickered open. She looked up at him, studying him longingly for a moment before she pushed him away.

"What the devil took you so long?"