12. Lira

12

LIRA

T he world seemed to come into sharper focus as I flapped my wings, ignoring the ache that shot through them as I raced toward Father and Dad. I couldn't just sit here and let both of them get injured.

A strong gust of wind pushed past, helping me move faster, as Mother used her wind magic, tossing chunks of debris away from both men.

Dad dropped on top of Father, protecting the king, but his face twisted in agony.

Is someone using illusion magic on them? I linked with Tavish, remembering the way illusion magic had worked on me during the gauntlet. Illusions weren't just visual cues—Unseelie were able to manipulate others into feeling fear by making them hear the voices of people and see things that weren't there.

I landed beside them, my back spasming.

Tavish was beside me within a second, his own concern mounting within him.

No, I don't sense any Unseelie magic here, he replied and s canned the area.

I stared at the cave, waiting to see if anything else fell, but as the brown magic dissipated, nothing else seemed to be a threat.

Mom and Mother joined us as Dad straightened and helped Father to stand. Both men were drenched in sweat, and their chests heaved.

"I can't locate a threat," Mom gritted out as she searched the entire space for enemies.

"If you're looking for an Unseelie, they didn't do this," Tavish reiterated again. "There is no Unseelie magic out here."

"And besides, they don't have earth magic." There hadn't been anything that indicated frost, and if the falling rock had been an illusion, I doubted the wind would've made a difference.

"It wasn't magic attacking us." Father rubbed his temples like he had some sort of headache. "I was the one who made the cave fall, though I'm not sure how or why. It was like something hindered my magic."

Dad nodded. "Yes. It was like our magic couldn't penetrate the ground, no matter how hard we tried."

I pulled in a shaky breath as the realization of what that meant weighed on me. When Tavish's wings sagged and our bond constricted, I knew that he'd come to the same conclusion.

Since they weren't able to restore the mushrooms, more Unseelie would starve. How could we unify the Unseelie under Tavish after the division Eldrin had caused? They'd blame both Tavish and me for the Seelie being here in the first place, prompting the Unseelie attack that caused the cave-in.

Even though it wasn't our fault, a large portion of the population would see it that way. People always needed someone to blame.

However, we had to face one problem at a time. "Are you both injured?"

"I… I'm unsure." Father's forehead wrinkled. "I felt a sharp pain in my head, though it's fading now. For a moment, I was certain death was upon me."

Dad chuckled but then cleared his throat, trying to hide it. "It's called a headache, Your Majesty. I experienced it too—it's a physical ailment that happened from time to time when I lived on Earth. It's nothing dire; we just strained ourselves in a way that wasn't familiar."

In other words, they didn't have direct access to Seelie magic.

"It's horrid." Father tugged on his golden tunic. "I hope to never experience such a thing again."

"I'm just glad this isn't another attack on us." Mother sighed and lowered her hands.

Mom still had her hands raised, the tips of her fingers red with fire, ready to sprout at any sign of an attack on the Seelie royals.

"There will be more attacks once my people discover that our food supply is severely limited once again." Tavish paced in front of the cave. "Our resources will be strained, and we'll be weak when the dragons return to try to take Lira from me." His hands clenched.

A lump formed in my throat. I hated seeing him revert to the broody Tavish he'd been before we'd given in to our bond.

I couldn't allow responsibility to steal the lightness from him again.

"The Seelie are here, so—" I started.

He spun toward me, his eyes dark slate once more. "The Seelie being here will make things worse. With the strain on the food supply, all of us will weaken. The dragons won't need to fight us because we'll barely have the strength to stand."

A sour taste filled my mouth, and bile churned in my stomach.

"Then the answer is simple." Father stood tall, spreading his wings behind him. "Lira must return home with us so we can protect her from the dragons."

My head jerked in his direction. He'd lost his mind if he thought that I would go anywhere without Tavish. "Like hell I will. Neither Tavish nor I will stand for it."

"King Erdan, if you'd just—" Tavish rasped.

"Don't you dare. All I'm concerned about is the safety of my daughter." Father puffed out his chest. "I understand that part of this is my fault for promising her to Prince Pyralis, but that doesn't mean I don't care about keeping her safe for as long as I can."

Dad and Mom flanked the royals, keeping their gazes on Tavish like he was the threat. The thought of them trying to force me to leave had my blood boiling. I wouldn't be going anywhere without my fated mate. Never again.

"It's because of the fated-mate marks." Mother gestured to our hands. "It's made Pyralis obsessed with taking Lira, so she can't be near Tavish."

"Which was why I was going to say that I agree with King Erdan." Tavish's expression became strained. "Lira will be safer there than here with me."

My head swiveled in his direction, and I gritted my teeth. "You've got to be joking right now."

"Clearly, I'm not." Tavish ran a hand down his face. "Because there is nothing humorous about this. You don't deserve to starve. And I refuse to selfishly keep you here, knowing that I can't protect you. I'd rather you go back to Seelie where you can be happy and safe."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw shock on the faces of all four of my parents.

My own surprise changed into fierce determination. I wouldn't leave. "We are stronger together. You know this."

Tavish's sadness and regret panged through our bond. "Yes, you're right, but not when we're both starving and unable to fight. Sprite, this isn't something I want. The selfish part of me wants to tell your father he can go choke on dirt."

"Then that's what we do because I don't want to be anywhere you aren't." I pushed my heartbreak toward him. The fact that he could fathom me not remaining by his side shattered my heart into pieces.

He took my hands in his. The buzz of the connection sprang to life, but this time, it wasn't comforting. This time, it felt like a taunt.

"Ripping my heart from my chest would be less painful than even considering you leaving here." He cupped my face, his eyes turning a bright light gray. "But the only thing that hurts worse than that is imagining the dragons coming and taking you from me. I love you too much for you to suffer such a fate, so I'm willing to let you go temporarily while I force Eldrin to inform me how to get you out of the blasted vow with Pyralis."

My eyes burned as tears filled them, clouding my vision. I understood his point, but he'd failed to mention one thing. "Pyralis tried to take me from Gleann Solas already. And what if he comes here and is unable to locate me—who's to say the dragons won't harm you, especially if he's determined to keep our bond from interfering? I might as well stay here."

"Lira… Pyralis wasn't able to take you from our home. He managed to take Eiric from here." Mom moved beside me and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Besides, you being here could make things worse for King Tavish. If Pyralis sees the way you two fight for each other, he'll no doubt try to take him prisoner. If you two aren't together, he won't feel nearly as threatened by your mate."

Blighted abyss. Mom knew all too well how to reason with me. Still, it didn't feel natural to be away from Tavish.

Even though my pain didn't lessen, my determination did ease. If leaving Tavish would protect him from the cruelty of the dragons, who was I to be selfish and stay? Yet, my heart and soul screamed that separating from him was a bad idea. "It doesn't feel right, and the Unseelie will still starve. Tavish is my fated mate, and I don't want to leave him. Being away from him hurts, and it won't fix the real problem."

Mother and Father glanced at one another with unreadable expressions as Dad strolled closer to me.

"Neither will doing nothing to retrieve Eiric right this moment, but we're waiting so we have a better chance of being successful when the time comes," he argued.

Screams rose from the village, causing my heart to drop into my stomach. Seelie guards flew from the edge of the land in that direction in case of trouble.

Our group glanced at each other, and before I even registered what was happening, Tavish had me in his arms and was flying that way.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, holding tight to him, needing him more than ever. The threat of us separating, even if it was temporary, made panic claw deep into my chest. Still, I didn't want the little bit of time we had left to be full of dread. You didn't leave me behind this time.

I made a promise to you. He arched a brow. Taking you toward danger doesn't come naturally to me, but I knew you'd fly after me if I didn't take you.

I probably would've begged Dad to carry me instead. But the point was made. I would've refused to be left behind and would've flown if I had to.

More screams rose as we flew over the roofs of the village. A group of about a hundred Unseelie were on the castle steps, banging on the double doors.

It reminded me of riots I'd seen on TV back on Earth. The Seelie guards closed in on the crowd, ready to use their magic and weapons, but the people's focus wasn't on them.

The doors opened, revealing Caelan, Struan, and several other guards.

"What is the meaning of this?" Caelan demanded, a few pieces of his dark-blond hair falling from his bun.

A man with skin as pale as snow lifted a fist. "We want to know why the news of the food shortage is being kept from us. Where is King Tavish?"

Tavish tensed. How do they know already? I told both guards to keep this information quiet.

Do you think they're both trustworthy? I didn't know either guard well. One of them might have purposely let it slip or perhaps had been asked a direct question and hadn't been able to find a way to answer it without lying.

He sighed. I don't know. Eldrin has me doubting everything, which is what he wants—for me to become paranoid and distrustful.

I couldn't wait for the horrible man to die. I hoped I would be able to witness his demise, something I never would've thought two months ago, but now I wanted to see the bastard gasp for his last breath.

"Where the king is and what he decides is none of your concern." Caelan flapped his wings, rising over their heads. "All of you should turn around and focus on your jobs."

My parents flew next to us as more Unseelie poured from their homes, joining the protest.

"We deserve to know how he plans to provide for us and when these sunscorched will go home, seeing as they're eating our few remaining resources."

More people joined in, voicing their agreement.

Tavish turned toward Dad, and I knew immediately what his plan was.

If you're going down there, you better be taking me. I arched a brow, holding on to his shoulders tighter. If you want them to ever see me as their queen, I need to be right by your side.

The corner of his mouth tipped upward for a second, but then he nodded. Fine, but don't go rushing into the crowd to fight. Sometimes, you're unpredictable. He began the descent, heading straight toward Caelan and the guards at the open door.

I snorted. I've been told being impulsive isn't necessarily a good attribute, but I'm not sure I agree. I like keeping you with your wings prepared to fly.

"There he is," a woman shouted from below. "And he's with her."

People grumbled underneath us, and a few threw sneers my way.

Once Tavish landed between Struan and Caelan, he placed me next to the guard. He glared and said, " I will carry her if things go awry."

"Understood, Your Majesty." Struan swallowed and placed his hand on the pommel of his sword.

Standing tall, Tavish took a step forward, extending his wings as far as they could go.

My body warmed at the breadth, an indication of the size of another of his body parts that I loved. I tore my gaze away from him and looked toward my parents, who'd remained behind. Mother and Father engaged in conversation as if there weren't a threat right before us.

"I learned of the shortage not too long ago. Lira and I just came from the cave because we were assessing the damage. It is true that our food supply was impacted, and we'll be forced to make hard decisions to ensure our survival."

A man with yellow eyes wrinkled his nose. "It's because of the Seelie. They should've never been allowed to stay."

Of course the people wouldn't take responsibility.

Something inside me snapped. I stepped forward, leveling my gaze on the nightfiend. My body swayed a little as fatigue tried to hit, but I refused to show additional weakness in front of them. "The Seelie weren't the ones throwing the explosive rocks that caused the cave to crumble."

Tavish's wings stiffened. Don't make yourself a target.

I've never stopped being one, thorn. That's part of the problem. Ever since I came to the island, everyone had hated me. Their hatred had bred more hatred, but at some point, it had to end. They'd blame everything on the Seelie if we let this sort of malice consume our hearts. " Yes, the Seelie were wrong to banish you here, but this latest disaster was due to the actions of your own people. Don't let fear make you lose logic and cast blame where it isn't warranted. If you're to be mad at anyone, then it should be the ones who attacked the Seelie without regard for your safety."

"This is the issue," the pale man spat out. "The king is weak due to his connection with the Seelie princess. Eldrin was right. He'll allow us to starve as long as she's alive and messing with his mind. He doesn't care about us, and now more of us will die."

More people joined the chanting, adding to the mob mentality.

I was chilled to the bone, and it had nothing to do with the snow around us. We needed to kill Eldrin for the mere fact that he continued to divide the Unseelie by still breathing.

For every person out here, there was an Unseelie back in their house, watching from the windows with a frown on their face.

The crowd surged forward, mobbing the door, and Struan grabbed my hand and dragged me back into the castle.

"Get Lira out of here," Tavish shouted as he raised his father's sword. "They won't risk killing me, or they'll lose even more magic."

Blast that. I wasn't going anywhere.

I yanked my hand from Struan's and clutched my own sword. Maybe I'd be forced to leave Tavish soon, but right now, I was here, and I'd damn well fight by his side. I wouldn't run and leave him to face this alone.

A pale man flapped his cream wings, barreling right toward me. He soared past Tavish just as my mate swung his blade clean through the man's wings. Blood splashed all over me as the man continued his forward motion despite wailing in pain.

I jabbed my sword forward, the blade stabbing the man straight in the heart. His black eyes widened, and his body shook from the impact.

I lifted my foot and shoved his body off my blade, making a sickening sucking noise, and was prepared to strike once more when Father yelled, "Stop," and landed in front of me.

I glanced upward and saw Mom, Dad, and five other Seelie guards preparing to use magic on everyone.

No . What had I done?