Twenty-Eight

EVE

Ellis and the rest of the prisoners returned, though there was an odd heaviness to the air that made it clear something had happened. I didn't get time to ask, because Shyllon and a female fae, who I assumed was the infamous Fallon (judging by how she was smirking at Ellis) appeared minutes after the other prisoners were squirreled away in their own cells.

I eyed the new female warily. This was the one who had hurt Ellis; who'd taken from him and tricked him.

Raped him, technically. It didn't matter if the other times had been consensual. From what Ellis had told me, that first time hadn't been.

My cell felt like a fucking roadside inn. At least they ushered Ellis into my cell instead of making him go back to the one next to me as we all gathered.

I glared at Fallon.

"How is my favorite princess doing?" Shyllon asked airily, a smile on his face even though his eyes shimmered with distress as they raked up and down my form. He saw me staring at the female to his side.

"Oh, my apologies. You haven't been properly introduced. This is my first sister, Fallon."

Fallon scowled as she cast a glance around my cell with judging eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. A smirk graced the corner of her mouth as she stared for just a moment too long at a spot on my dress. In horror, I looked down and saw a wet patch from my earlier release.

Oh. My. Gods.

"Have you come to take her away from here?" Ellis interrupted, his own gaze sharp on Fallon.

"You know the king is in charge of that," Fallon shot back, slinking around Ellis and leaning against him. He jerked away, and I frowned.

"Qa? Ta na vu pa ava mo?" Fallon said coyly to Shyllon, speaking in fae on purpose.

The urge to commit violence was growing by the second.

"What? What does she want?" I bit out impatiently.

Fallon and Shyllon's heads whipped around in unison, and it would have been amusing if I hadn't been so unnerved by their shock.

"You … you can't understand her?" Shyllon asked incredulously, his voice raising to a pitch I'd never heard before. His eyes shot to Alihandro, who blushed but kept a stoic look.

"Ia baiss, na ?" Fallon asked him sharply.

Ellis growled and raised his hand, but Fallon caught it sharply, one eyebrow raised in amusement.

Shyllon rolled his eyes at both of them. "Yes, he fucked her. I smelled it on them when she came back." Shyllon's nose wrinkled at the memory, and my urge to throw hands at someone increased.

"The rumors are true—" Fallon gasped.

"You don't know that," Shyllon argued back.

"There's no other explanation—"

"You know copulation isn't the only way, just the easiest. You can give the gift through ingesting blood, as well."

Ellis went rigid as Fallon furrowed her brow. Both she and Shyllon had forgotten about Ellis and me. Alihandro tensed as they argued.

"You lied to me!" Ellis burst out, getting in Fallon's face. The fae female rolled her eyes and pushed him away as easily as an errant toddler.

"Grow up," she sneered. "You were stupid and paid the price. Not like you were even a good fuck, with your pinched expression and your near inability to get hard. I had to work so hard to get you to get it up."

SMACK.

I'd moved before I'd realized what was happening, pain exploding in my hand as a loud crack split the air. The fae guards outside shouted and moved toward us, their staffs glowing purple.

"Ah!" I collapsed to ground. It would have hurt less to punch a stone.

Fallon hissed but barely reared back, nary a mark appearing on my flesh.

Stupid fae.

Shyllon yelled back to the guards, attempting to convince them he had the situation under control. The guards settled on the other side of the bars, but glared at me.

Nothing new, then.

Silence reigned supreme in the tiny cell as a blossoming red mark swelled on Fallon's cheek, a testament to how unexpected my attack had been that the faster fae female hadn't avoided it entirely. I was so fucking proud of that mark.

I hid my injured hand behind my back, desperately trying to ignore its throbbing and swelling.

Fallon put a hand to the growing mark, fury building in her eyes. Shyllon grabbed her shoulder.

"Don't bother. You deserved it. We don't have time for this." He sighed and glared at me.

"I was going to get you out of here and take you back to my palace, convincing my father that separating you and your prince was a greater punishment, but I can't now. Not after you attacked a member of the royal family and the guards saw it. I'm sorry. I tried, but you ruined it. I can ensure medical attention for your hand after we leave. We can try again in a few months, maybe. Can you survive until then?"

My jaw dropped. Shyllon had been going to take me back? But ... what? Had he given up on me so easily? What an asshole!

Before I could respond, an explosion sounded far in the distance. Shyllon and Fallon twitched, both wincing and clutching their temples.

The sky outside my cell glowed purple, and half of the guards immediately left to investigate.

"We have to leave now. Father is calling everyone back to him." Shyllon dismissed Ellis and me as he turned to Fallon. I viciously hoped my backhand left a permanent mark on her perfect skin.

"What if he's part of it? You know I've always suspected. And now that he's a filthy half-breed—"

Shyllon shushed Fallon, glaring at Alihandro.

Alihandro stared back, fists clenched at his side, daring his siblings to act.

He just told you he was a rebel. Do you say something, or keep quiet?

"Staying here is the best for you, I think," Shyllon began slowly, brow furrowed. "The rebels are attacking again."

Fallon glared at Alihandro, who smirked. "I always wanted my own war."

"Fennis promised she'd be safe," Ellis replied. "How is staying here safe?"

Fallon snorted. "My father doesn't have the control he thinks he does."

Ellis looked ready to smack her. I hoped he did. Instead, a tic in his jaw flexed. "Please take Eve back to the palace with you. Hide her for me."

Fallon laughed in his face. "Harbor a symbol for the rebels while they're actively attacking my home? Why the fuck would I do that?"

Ellis's expression tightened. "Because you'd get me. In whatever way you want, for as long as you want. Willingly, and with a smile on my face."

My lips parted in shock as I whirled around to him. Hot tears gathered at the corners of my eyes. Fuck hitting Fallon. I'd pound him. "Don't you fucking dare. I'll off myself the first chance I get, then you're stuck looking at her ugly mug for the rest of your life."

Fallon's face twisted with anger, but Shyllon stepped in front of her while Alihandro barked back an inappropriate laugh.

"No one is going anywhere. We can't harbor the rebels' princess. It was one thing to have her under lock and key in my manor as a plaything. It's an entirely different matter to have her in the palace itself. Why the fuck do you think Father put her here? And now I learn I might have been harboring two rebels this entire time?"

Silence stretched between us as Alihandro stayed as still as a statue. But he didn't deny it.

Shyllon ran a hand across his beard, frustrated as Fallon growled. "Let me lock you in your cell, at least. You will be safest there. When the riots calm down, I will check on you."

Ellis glared.

Shyllon glared back. "It's the best I can offer," he insisted.

I scowled at both of them. "I swear to the gods, if anyone locks me anywhere, I will dig my way out with my own fingernails, then use whatever's left to claw out your eyes."

The males stared at me in shock, but Fallon snorted.

Shyllon broke first, distress crumpling his brow. "You don't understand. It isn't even you or me. It's about everyone's safety!"

My head tilted to the side. "What do you mean?"

Shyllon shot a desperate look at Fallon, who threw her hands in the air.

"You know what? I don't care anymore," she insisted. "Do whatever you have to do. I'm going back. Father needs to hear about … all of this bullshit." Without another glance at us, she walked out of the cell.

Alihandro didn't stop her. Shouldn't he? Shouldn't he be concerned his cover was blown?

Shyllon took a deep breath. "Surely, we can agree on a few things, like the importance of having a barrier between our worlds, and that a war is bad for both sides."

He was addressing Alihandro, but a sound of disbelief escaped from my throat. "You're kidding, right? Why on earth would I want the fae to have access to my home? So you can steal more slaves? So you can terrorize more people with your ‘games' and slaughter more helpless little children?"

Shyllon balked. "What do you mean, children? We don't kill children! Why would you say such a thing?"

I barked out a laugh that held no humor. "And Cassus's family did themselves in?"

His brows furrowed like he was tremendously confused.

"Shyllon, don't be as stupid as you look. There is no way Cassus was getting away from that catastrophe of the Royal Hunt without consequences." She folded her arms across her chest, glancing at her nails as though we were discussing the weather and not assassination.

Frustration welled in my veins. Shyllon probably had no idea what Fallon or I were talking about. Would he believe me if I told him? I opened my mouth, ready to argue with him, but stopped short because in the end, it didn't matter. The fae weren't the only ones who were killed. Ellis's little brother and sister had also been victims, and the fae hadn't killed them.

No, that had been the work of humans alone: desperate and hungry humans who would likely welcome the fae with open arms and fight each other for a chance to live in this realm with its bountiful food, riches, and enough for everyone.

What exactly was I fighting for again? How could I argue against the barrier when everyone in the kingdom would likely be better off here even if they were technically slaves?

What if it having the fae take over was actually what was in the best of everyone's interests long term? My heart hurt. I didn't know what was right or wrong anymore.

"No more death games," I finally said. "No more manipulating humans into killing each other. Just ask if anyone wants to come to this realm. Offer food, clothing, shelter, and you'll get swarmed with volunteers."

Fallon laughed, but it died quickly when Ellis and I stayed serious. Shyllon shot her a glare.

This was a backdoor negotiation between two rulers, and Fallon wasn't one of them.

Her blush continued down her ears to her cheeks as if she just realized this.

"Just … ask? And we will have volunteers?" Shyllon said again, voice rising incredulously.

"We disagree with the basic concept of slavery," Ellis jumped in, "but we cannot fault your overall treatment. Everyone here has enough and has their basic needs taken care of. We cannot compete." His head hung down, cheeks reddened with embarrassment. "I think you will easily find volunteers to come here."

Yeah, if they don't mind being human footstools or being denigrated at every turn.

Then again, people had done worse for food, hadn't they?

"Fennis wanted Ellis to work with him to subdue the rebels," I started quickly, an idea quickly coming to mind. "What if we work with you instead? What if we help you quiet things down and take control away from Fennis, and in return, we end the death and violence and open a friendship between our realms?"

I glanced desperately between Alihandro and Shyllon. Surely, they could see this was the best way.

Shyllon's eyes bugged out, and Fallon's jaw dropped. "You cannot be serious," Shyllon managed weakly. "I never wanted the throne. I'm not even ten miles from the throne in my mind. My father could rule for centuries more. I …" He shook his head. "You would betray your own people? For what?"

I ran a hand through my scraggly braid, frustrated. "We would do this because we care about the people! My people are starved! They are cold! They fight and plot and overthrow because it distracts them from their misery, and …" Parallels came together and connected pieces, events and people knitting together until they formed one clear, cohesive picture. "That's it. That's the point of the games. It isn't to entertain your people or even to get new slaves, because we all know you could just fucking ask for new slaves and get them if you showed them a slice of what life is like there. It's deeper than that. Gods, I hate Fennis. I hate Hayida. I hate all of you."

Ellis put a hand on my shoulder. "What is it?"

"We should have listened to Peri," I whispered, my voice shaking. "Don't you remember? She said she got imprisoned for being too kind to a slave."

I whirled around on Shyllon. "What does it take to be imprisoned here? What crimes are they guilty of?"

Shyllon blinked at me. "What do you mean? They're here for criminal activity."

"Such as?" I pressed.

Fallon tossed her hair over her shoulder. "Speaking out against my father's rule, trying to change laws governing slaves, you know, crimes."

Ellis made a grunt of surprise.

"Those aren't crimes!" I insisted. "Disagreeing with someone isn't worthy of imprisonment! What about stealing, killing, or rape? You know, actual violence?" Why was I surprised, though? Of course, a kingdom where slavery was normal would consider dissent just as heinous!

Shyllon's eyes widened. "Do people do that to each other in your realm? Kill, steal, rape …" He paused, considering. "No wonder they would volunteer to be slaves."

My head felt like it was going to explode. Ellis had been raped. I had nearly been raped at the pleasure house. Prisoners killed each other here daily, and murder was a national sport. Was Shyllon deliberately this obtuse, or was he just stupid? Or did he turn a blind eye on purpose, because it was easier than facing ugly reality? Was he simply so privileged that he didn't see it? I wanted to stab my finger into his eyes and claw out the wool covering them.

Shyllon was a fool. And it wasn't frustrating because he was also kind.

Being kind didn't mean you were good.

"At least they're free!" I yelled back.

"That's what Hayida meant," Ellis said quietly. "He didn't say it flat out, but the meaning was clear. It's quite clever on Fennis's part, really." Ellis barked out a laugh that didn't hold any traces of amusement.

"He puts his political rivals in prison, then distracts everyone with the Royal Hunt, including the prisoners. They become so focused on surviving that they forget who put them there together. Instead, they turn on each other. It's brilliant."

"I've been out in the city," I added. "It doesn't seem like the people who mingle and live together care about the distinction between fae and human." I began. "In fact, there are a lot of half-breeds like Ellis and you running around, aren't there?"

Alihandro's jaw twitched.

"The only people enforcing this are the royalty and nobles. Calten was right. We could easily take down Fennis and the people would support it, as long as we did away with the nobility and stupid caste system, and kept the deaths down."

Shyllon shook his head frantically, his hands held up in front of him as if he could physically shield himself from our treasonous plots.

Fallon's hands fisted at her sides, muscles tensed.

"No. NO. I will hear none of this. My father has given me everything. I would never betray him like this. It's wrong. I—"

"Slavery is wrong!" I burst out. I ignored Fallon in favor of Shyllon. "You are kind, Shyllon. How can you be OK with this?"

Shyllon wasn't listening anymore. He kept shaking his head and backing up out of my cell. "We need to go help our father. Stay here. Prison is where you belong with your ideas and talks of change."

And then he was gone, Fallon stomping behind him. Alihandro raised an eyebrow, and slinked off after them.

I turned to Ellis, shocked. "I don't understand. He's a good person. He was so kind to me, and saved me from terrible things."

Ellis reached out to me and pulled me to him in a hug, saying nothing. He didn't need to, because it was obvious, wasn't it?

Shyllon had been kind to me, but he wasn't a rebel. He was on the side of the slave king, and completely unapologetic about it.

Being kind didn't mean you were a good person.

Alihandro was rude, grumpy, and even though he was on the side fighting for human freedoms, he'd used me and my body to ensure he had a backup plan in case we tried to snitch on him.

Being awful didn't mean you were a bad person.

"Lockdown in place! Lockdown in place!"

We went to the bars and looked out. Guards ran up and down the corridor, but nobody spared a glance for the prisoners. Shyllon and his bitch sister were long gone, and apparently Alihandro as well.

"Shyllon said there was an attack on the palace. I bet that's it," I whispered.

WHAM.

The door to our cell burst outward, banging off the stone walls. One by one, all down the line, each cell door followed suit, until each prisoner tentatively stuck their heads out down the hallway, waiting for the guards to beat us back inside.

No one came.

"Finally!"

Whoops and hollers filled the corridor as the prisoners cheered and ran, darting out of their cells and flooding the hall.

I took a step forward, but Ellis pushed me back, wrapping his arm around my waist and pulling us into the front corner of the room behind the cell door. His hand slapped against my mouth, stopping me from demanding to know what he was doing. The only thing that kept me from fighting was how tense his body was against mine, and how his hand shook slightly against my lips.

"Where are they? They were just here, weren't they?"

I went still as Strumo stuck his head in our cell. I couldn't see him since we were behind the door, but I heard him.

"Probably ran out the moment they could. They know you'd come for ‘im," quipped one of his lackeys.

Strumo's breaths huffed less than a foot away from me. If he turned his head just a few inches to the left, he'd see us. The door wasn't solid; it was just iron bars crossed over each other! How could he not see us? All he had to do was turn around! What idiots!

I pushed down the hysterics, panicking now would help no one.

Ellis's grip against me relaxed, his head dropping to nuzzle into my neck. He said nothing, but I felt what he was trying to express.

Relax.

A few moments passed, and Strumo left the cell with his little posse. A long breath whooshed out of me, and Ellis nearly doubled over with relief.

"T-thanks," I managed, squeezing his hand. "That was quick thinking."

Ellis gave me a weak smile, his face still white. "How is your hand?"

Oh. I'd nearly forgotten about how I'd broken my hand on Fallon's face earlier. Glancing down, I winced. It had almost doubled in size, half of it turning black and blue. The pain came back and hit me full force, not that the imminent threat to my life in the form of Strumo had passed.

"Fuck Shyllon. He'd said he'd fix it," Ellis snarled, gently taking my fingers in his as he inspected it.

"Fuck Fallon," I fired back, just as vehemently. "She raped you. She's a fucking bitch."

Ellis glanced up at me, his eyes hooded. His lips peeled back slightly, revealing just a hint of fangs. They were smaller than a normal fae's, but they were still there.

"My warrior queen," he purred at me, leaning in and taking my lips in his.

I relaxed completely into his kiss. I forgot about the pain in my hand. I forgot where we were. For a brief, perfect moment, everything was as it should be. I had Ellis, and he had me.

Ellis backed away first, giving my bottom lip one last nip before cupping my face with one hand. "Do not hit a fae like that again. The injury is not worth it."

"You're worth it," I shot back.

Arousal flared through his eyes, his thumb stroking across my cheek. "When we get home, I'm going to leave an Eve-sized indentation permanently in our bed."

A laugh burst from my throat. "Promises, promises."

Ellis smirked, but a moment later his face turned serious. "This is likely a coordinated attack along with the palace: free the political prisoners while the guards and the nobles are distracted, and strengthen the rebel numbers at the same time."

It made perfect sense. "Right. What do we do?"

"Sadly, we need to find Hayida. We won't survive this without his help."

Oh, wonderful. Our only hope was the deposed king who thought torturing humans to death for sport was for the common good.

Fantastic.