Chapter 16

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

T he light pierced daggers in her eyes as Nimue was hauled from the oubliette. Her arms were shaking with the effort of holding the rope by the time Fintan's strong hands pulled her through the hatch. His eyes were cold as he glared down at her.

"Get up," he commanded. The guard who was with him dragged her up to her unsteady feet. She stared at the ground, her long hair hiding the joy on her face. Magic—sweet, heady, glorious magic—was pulsing in her veins like an extra heartbeat. After being in the magical deprivation pit for weeks, her own power almost overwhelmed her.

"Walk," the guard said, nudging her shoulder with the butt of his spear.

"Where are you taking me?" she asked, following the gleaming edge of Fintan's armor in front of her.

"You didn't think the queen would forget you forever, did you?" the guard behind her mocked. "There is a feeling of a public execution in the air. The queen is eager to try the metal of her new creature."

New creature? Did he mean her?

A rumble began in the ground under her, the sound of a roaring crowd growing as they walked through the twisted tunnels. Seelies started to appear, dressed in finery and dripping with jewels, loitering or hurrying to whatever entertainment the queen was hosting.

They stopped at a curtained doorway, guarded with two golden knights. Nimue was shoved hard, and she fell through the velvet and landed on the ground at the queen's feet.

"You are just in time to see a traitor's death," the Autumn Queen said, and Nimue risked looking up at her. As always, she was resplendent in red and vermillion silk and fur, her hair adorned with bronze and amethyst leaves.

The roar of a crowd went up, and Nimue risked looking over the small balcony to the arena beneath them. The stands surrounding the pit were full of soldiers and courtiers, all making bets and drinking too much. Nimue was repulsed by the sight of them, but the longer she stared, the more she felt something was off about the revels. They all wore big smiles and acted as they should, and there was a tense uneasiness about the room.

Magic was radiating from the queen, but the shine of the other Seelie had tarnished, and there was a taste of fear in the air. Nimue risked touching her own power, the noise in the arena from so many other bodies would hopefully drown out her magic.

Merlin … She sent the word down into the crowd, hiding the sound of her voice within so many other voices.

A soldier stripped of his armor was pushed into the ring. He fell on his knees in front of the queen's balcony.

"My queen! Please, have mercy! I have not betrayed you," he cried.

"You hid like a coward while my precious temple burned," the Autumn Queen replied. "You were frightened away by the Unseelie rabble, and now my temple is ashes."

"I only left the temple so that I could come and warn the army, my queen! I didn't know they were going to burn it!"

"Enough!" the queen commanded, but the man's sobs rose louder. "I will give you one more chance to fight for me. If you live, your position will be restored. Fintan, give the traitor his fighting chance."

The golden guard stepped forward and tossed a bronze dagger into the sand at the begging man's feet. The roar of the crowd became louder, and Nimue's stomach turned. The queen rose gracefully and held her hands for silence.

"My loyal court! For five hundred years, we've been hunted mercilessly by a killer with no soul or conscious. Tonight, I give you the dog of the Seren Du clan, Leiddiad, finally tamed!" she shouted, and the gates of the pit opened.

A nervous, terrified rush of emotion ran through the onlookers, all pressing to see. A growl reverberated from the pit, and a monster prowled out. A set of deformed antlers grew from a wolf the size of a bear. It had long black claws, and on its chest was a shining mass of magic and silver.

Tears slipped from Nimue's eyes. Oh, Bal, what has she done to you?

The faerie in the pit held his knife out helplessly in front of him as the creature circled.

"Kill him, my monster," the queen commanded, and he did. Ignoring the blade cutting at him, the creature tore the screaming faerie to bloody pieces.

The crowd wasn't cheering now. All sat in a terrified silence that was even more horrible.

"You see, Nimue, even the most stubborn of creatures will do my bidding in the end," the queen said, gripping the top of her arm tightly.

"You should've done it to me," Nimue said through numb lips. "They might have forgiven you if it was me."

"If I didn't need you whole, maybe I would have," the queen gripped her chin tightly. "Don't you understand? I'll never get Merlin or his magic if I harm you, but I want nothing from Rosa except her pain and suffering."

Nimue didn't hide her tears as she stared her dead in the eye. "Aeronwen, you have gone too far. It doesn't matter how much magic you steal, no matter how far you run, you won't survive what will come for you."

The queen backhanded her, knocking her down. Pretending to be stunned and bleeding on the floor, Nimue focused on the bloody scene beneath her.

Merlin…don't wait any longer .

"Remove this wretched girl from my sight," the queen demanded.

Nimue was hoisted up roughly and tossed over Fintan's armored shoulder.

"She has them all so terrified. They are too scared to move against her," Fintan whispered by her ear as they left the arena. "At least for now."

"How can you serve her like that? There was no way a dagger would harm Balthasar, even before he was made into that…thing."

"Do you think I would serve her if I had a choice? I would've left months ago, only Eirianwen asked me to stay. Don't worry; they are starting to move against the queen, and it won't be long now. Once the Unseelie arrive, I know most of the Seelie will help fight to bring the queen down," Fintan lowered her to her feet. "Be ready for a fight in a few days."

"I'm always ready for a fight," Nimue said. "You think I haven't tried to escape because I enjoy your company so much?"

Fintan's smile was bright and brief. "When the time comes, I'll get you out. I promise."

"When the time comes, Merlin will tear this place apart, and you won't have to." Nimue took the rope, making a loop around her thighs as a harness. "Stay out of his way if you value your life. He's not going to be in the right mind to recognize friend from foe, especially if it's a Seelie."

"How will I know it's him?"

Despite her heavy heart, Nimue couldn't hold in her small, mad laugh. "Sweet boy, you know a lightning storm when you see it, don't you? Trust me, you won't need an introduction."

Fintan gave her extra candles, and slowly she was lowered back into darkness.

Nimue lit a candle, wrapped herself in the woolen blanket, and placed her hand into the hole in the floor. She knew it was next to hopeless, but she reached out for Merlin, wanting to hear his voice just once. A long time passed before the faintest whisper returned to her. Safe. Love you.

Nimue laughed with relief before curling up on the floor and trying to sleep. Whatever magic had deformed Balthasar, Bleddyn and his brothers would be able to unravel it…and Merlin was coming.