26. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

The gates to the Keep of Earth have been locked and barred. No one in and no one out. What will happen when I must give up the Crown to him? Roderic is losing it, too. Maybe Gethin is right. Maybe a cleansing is necessary. But the losses…

~King Casimir, personal journals

"Well, you two look… not very betrothed." Lee is grinning as she sits on a tree branch overlooking our camp. Cole and I both sit up almost at the same time. From opposite sides of the camp.

"It's a farce," Cole grumbles as he runs his hand through his thick, black hair. All of us have been on the road for too long for us to look pretty, but Cole has managed to do it. Even after sleeping on the ground, his backpack as his pillow with the leaves and sticks as his bed, his hair looks as soft and regal as ever. His eyes, on the other hand, are bloodshot, and he's slumped like the weight on his shoulders is already overwhelming.

Darian tosses Cole a hunk of the dried boar and then one to me. Our breakfast. "I don't know if it's truly a farce," he says. "You did the ritual. There's no doubt about that. Maeve stinks almost as bad as you do." The grin on his face tells me he's only partly serious about the way I smell. I know that it's not an actual scent as much as a magical one.

"Why can't I smell it?" I ask.

Darian's eyebrow arches as his lip curls up. "Because no one can smell themselves. Just like you didn't know that you smelled like a goat when you showed up at Aerwyn. At least you smelled better than Cole."

Cole rolls his eyes and stands up. "I have to go water a bush," he says, a look of annoyance that rivals his most intense from the past, and I wonder if he had as much trouble sleeping as I did.

Last night was confusing and intense. Between the way I'd felt for Cole in those few moments during the ritual and the mix of terror and lust I'd felt for the Shade almost immediately afterward, my mind was racing late into the night.

Lee jumps out of the tree, a set of eagle wings sprouting from her back mid-way through the fall, and she pulls up right before she hits the ground. What would have been a nosedive into rocks leaves her landing lightly on her feet with a grin on her face. "How do you feel?" she asks.

I shrug. How do you explain the complicated emotions inside me? There's no trust between Cole and me. I can't even talk to Darian and Lee about the way I'm feeling about the Shade. "I'll be glad to sleep in a bed tonight."

Lee's grin is wide, but not as wide as Darian's. "I'm ready for some proper food. I can't wait to ask Katja for a bowl of fish stew. Steaming hot over dumplings."

Lee just rolls her eyes. "You'll have to excuse my brother. His love affair with food is as legendary as the Shade. Katja is our family's cook, and I think Darian's had a crush on her since he could walk. Or at least on her food."

"I like good food, and Katja makes the best," he says as he picks up his pack.

Cole walks back into the camp then and rubs his cheek. "We need to pretend like the betrothal is real now. There's no telling who'll be watching as we get closer to Draenyth, and I'm sure that my father will know long before we reach the city gate that I'm betrothed."

The seriousness of the statement ends any silliness. "You said that it was going to annoy your father that you're betrothed…?"

He gives me a grim look, nothing like the carefree smile he'd given me before. "He's going to be furious. There will be… consequences, but you don't have to worry about them. He wouldn't dare hurt my betrothed."

The rest of the thought isn't said. He would hurt his son. The question eats at me, and I can't just brush it off as I have before. Then I remember the burn scars on his back. "Cole, why are you doing this? You seemed almost excited to frustrate your father before, but now…"

He smiles, showing his teeth, and I can't help but compare the look to a wild animal. "If you think I'm afraid of my father, you'd be wrong. I'm not a child anymore, and unless he's going to challenge me to a formal combat, the most he can do is cause me pain. He won't fight me to the death. I'm his only legacy, and I'm the only protection that he has from the House of Steel when they wear the Painted Crown."

Darian and Lee glance at each other, not needing words to communicate. Then Darian says, "We could have covered up her scent in other ways. It's not too late to break the betrothal."

Cole shakes his head. He had made his decision back in Aerwyn. "No, this is the right answer, Darian. Whatever the consequences." He says it to Darian, but he's really talking to me.

Then he changes the subject. "I'll need to deal with my father as soon as we get to the gates, and I'll need you and Lee to take care of Maeve until I meet up with you at our normal spot."

He glances at Lee, who nods to him, and Darian hesitates for a moment before nodding his head as well.

"Good," he says, and then he reaches for me. "Maeve, we're going to need to be… close when we're together. We need to make this seem very real. Assume that we're being watched from now on unless you're in my quarters." He's deathly serious as he continues, "Everything you do in Draenyth is going to be watched."

There goes any chance of practicing my magic. I rub my mother's ring and feel very nervous about my ability to keep from letting any shadows crop up. Especially if Cole wants me to pretend to be his loving fiancée.

I nod to him. "I'll do my best."

Cole tries to smile at us all, but it's more cracked than ever before. "I guess there's no putting it off. Let's pack up camp and we'll start walking to Draenyth."

He raises his hand, and the coals of last night's fire are extinguished in an instant. I take a deep breath and let it out. Yes, I guess it's time for us to get going. Calyr is somewhere in the city, and there's no reason to sit in the woods when we're this close.

Except that Draenyth is a city of nightmares, and it terrifies me. I just hope I survive long enough to save Hazel.

Cole's standing so close to me I can barely focus on the massive steel topped stone walls that loom in front of us. The heat of his body is like a furnace next to mine, and it washes over me in waves, reminding me far too much of last night. With how close we're standing, we keep brushing against each other, and each time we do, there are flashes of our betrothal ritual.

Flashes of being one with him. Of feeling the world through his body. Of seeing with his eyes. Of wanting so much more than I ever have.

And that strange obsidian tower.

The world around the city of Draenyth is different from the rest of the walk. It's… civilized. There's an obvious effort to keep almost a thousand yards clear of any kind of brush or debris. Even the grass has been cut down so low that no one could sneak up to the walls at night.

The road to the city gates is busier than any place I've ever been in my life. It's overwhelming to me after having lived n a place where we'd never had more than fifty people in one place. The amount of movement has my hunter's brain having trouble keeping track. All those details and all that movement have me seeing a blur. The sounds of wagons and people and animals are like thunder that won't ever end.

And the smells… I can't make out any of them. There's so many. Even sitting around a fire with almost forty people, I could make out nearly every distinct scent. But this? This is like walking into a spice trader's tent and trying to describe it.

Cole is silent as we walk, even though Darian and Lee keep up a steady conversation. They just pretend like he's not there. I try to chat with them, to take my mind off the fact that I feel like I should run away and hide in a hole until I can concentrate on anything, but I can't focus enough. Underneath everything, that magical drumbeat inside me is pounding heavily. My breath comes out even only because I force it. Just being this close to Cole is making things difficult for me.

I never would have believed that leashing my desire for a man I don't particularly enjoy would be a life or death issue. More than that, I never would have believed that I'd have such a hard time doing it.

The gate to the city is open wide, and travelers, merchants, and every type of Fae walk through it without questions or hesitations. None of them are humans, though. So many different creatures. Wings, tails, fur, and claws are the image that I see as we walk toward the crowd at the gate. I'm so thankful that I spent that time in Aerwyn. It's almost like Cole knew what he was doing or had a plan.

It's something from a nightmare. Everything that has terrified me of the Fae is standing in front of me. If I hadn't been to Aerwyn and gotten used to the idea that not every Fae wants to eat me, I would have run as fast as I could.

"There really aren't any humans?" I ask.

Finally, Cole turns to me. "There are some humans in Draenyth, but almost none that you'd want to trade places with. Remember this, Maeve. You are not a human. You are a Wyrdling, and that's a far cry from a human. Even if your powers are minimal, you have rights here. Humans do not."

Darian turns to me, just as seriously as Cole, "But that doesn't mean you're safe. Don't go running around without one of us. You may smell like Cole, but there are many people who absolutely hate Cole and his father, and they'd do anything they could to hurt his betrothed. Laws here are… complicated. It's better to trust one of us to keep you safe than it is to trust the law to do so."

I nod again.

Just like so many times before, I have to trust Cole and his friends even though they have so many secrets. But I'm standing within sight of Skycrest, the home of Calyr. I'm so close to the place I need to get to. The mountain rises so high that it's almost hard to believe it's real.

Cole has his reasons for protecting me, and while I'm not entirely sure I believe him, I know I wouldn't have gotten this far without him. The only genuine option I have is to continue to keep my own secrets, just like him, and use them if he ever tries to force me into anything.

Which only makes it more important for me to keep the shadows hidden in my fingertips under control. He may know that I have some shadow magic, but he doesn't know that I've learned to use it.

Then Cole stops, and his hands go to my waist. Immediately, I want to pull away, but I don't. He holds me so lightly that it's hard for my mind to believe that those are the same hands that did their best to crush me while he trained me with sticks.

"Kiss me," he mouths, and that drum inside me rivals a thunderstorm. He leans down, and I stand on my toes, moving toward the kiss that he demands.

Just as our lips touch, I hear, "Cole Cyrus," from a voice coming from behind Cole. "It's been, what? Fifteen years?" Cole's lips brush against mine for just a moment. It's so brief I barely feel them, but it's enough that darkness leaks from my fingers.

Cole whirls around, pushing me behind him and hiding whoever is addressing him from my view. "Rhion." The word comes out almost like a slur, but not even one of anger. Just one of such insignificance that he's bored.

The name of the little boy from the story. The Prince of Steel.

I hide my hands in my pockets, hoping the thin trickles of shadows can't be seen by anyone. "Who do you have there?" Rhion's voice asks, and I can feel Cole's body stiffen in front of me.

"Why don't you stop looking for gossip, Rhion," Lee says from beside Cole.

"You look beautiful as always, Ainslee. Maybe when my father receives the Painted Crown, I can request you as my personal slave. I'm sure he'd give you to me. They say that the House of Light Immortals are the best slaves. You'd look gorgeous with a steel collar around your neck. And nothing else on."

Darian snarls from the other side of Cole. "Try it. I would love to see your body shredded and hanging from your father's ramparts."

Rhion pauses for a moment, and I can hear him sniffing the air, completely ignoring Darian's comment. "Oh… OH! Cole Cyrus, you're betrothed? Or are you already wed? To… I can't quite make out a scent. Is that a human? Did Cole Cyrus, Prince of Flames, marry a human? Your father's going to burn you alive. Again." He cackles.

I peek my head out from behind Cole, standing between him and Lee, and see Rhion. A blonde Fae who's wearing a brocade tunic and fluffy pants. I'm almost certain that his clothes are made of literal gold, and there's a dark steel sword at his hip, but it's encrusted with jewels where Cole, Darian, and Lee's weapons are all extremely functional.

He's enormous. A mountain of a Fae that towers over Cole by at least a foot. Not slender at all, he's covered in muscles and probably weighs nearly as much as all four of us put together. The thought of physically fighting someone like that is terrifying.

He's a handsome male with deep gray eyes that shine with laughter. If I hadn't heard that comment about Lee becoming his slave, I'd almost think he was someone I'd want to get to know. Then the advice I'd heard in Blackgrove resonates in my mind. Don't let their prettiness get to you. They're cold-hearted bastards, and they'll watch an entire village burn if it helps them get whatever they're looking for.

He is the Prince of Steel. His father wants me dead as much as Cole's, and it doesn't seem like Cole and he are friends. No matter how interesting or happy he seems, he's the enemy.

Cole reaches out so fast I can barely see him move. One moment, he was standing at ease. The next, his hand is wrapped around Rhion's throat. Flames lick the edges of his fingers, and Rhion doesn't move.

There's not a single ounce of fear in his eyes as he says, "It won't be long until the Painted Crown passes to my father, Cole. Maybe it'd be best if you burned me right now. Then again, we all know that the House of Steel would destroy the House of Flame in a war, and my father wouldn't hesitate if you killed me. Unlike you, the rest of your House is useless against us. That's the only reason we didn't destroy the House of Flames along with the House of Earth."

All those hundreds of noises around us are silent as two of the most powerful people in the world look like they're about to murder each other. The sights and sounds mean nothing as I watch Cole consider starting a literal war.

Cole growls, a wildness to him I've never seen before. "The reason you didn't fight us was because you'd never have been able to beat the House of Shadows. You needed us."

Rhion smiles. "And now we don't."

The veins of Cole's arms throb in time to his heartbeat as Lee and Darian look on silently, rage in both of their eyes. Then Cole shoves Rhion. "Enjoy your gossip. It's all you were ever good for, anyway. Come on," he says to Darian and Lee.

When Cole walks, I follow him, and Darian and Lee move in step behind me. Through the steel rimmed gates made of unmarred stone, and into the city that is home to the most terrifying and powerful beings in the world.

I can feel Rhion's gaze on our backs. Every other person has treated Cole with the utmost respect. Not because he demands it, but because he deserves it. The people in Aerwyn worship him because of what he's done for them.

Rhion doesn't. At all. I may be constantly on the verge of annoyance at Cole and his grumpiness, but the anger that builds inside me is all directed at Rhion. It only takes a few moments before I have to stop myself.

Why am I trying to protect Cole? He's one of the most powerful beings in the world and certainly needs no help from me. But the very idea of someone laughing at him has my hackles raised, and I'm itching to take off my ring.

Then it occurs to me. I will help you carry the weight. A vow. Not a debt, but a promise to him. Something about Rhion weighs on him. Something that my magic knows and I don't.

I turn to glance behind us. Rhion is still standing there, his eyes burning into Cole's back. I know that this isn't the last time I see that male.