25. Lira

25

LIRA

I clutched the hilt of the sword and flew over the downed man, who groaned and lifted his head. His thin lips pressed together as he wrinkled his nose.

Sprite, what's going on? Tavish asked, but I didn't have time to answer.

The knob turned, and the door began opening. There was no telling how many were coming for me. All I knew was that I had to fight.

Someone's in my room. Landing next to Nightbane, I shook his body. I'd never seen him sleep this hard, but he'd have to catch up on his rest later. We needed to leave to survive—but even shaking him didn't make him stir.

A lump formed in my throat. And something's wrong with Nightbane.

I lifted my head as Sorcha darted into the room, her sword raised.

Of course, she'd be the one behind the attempt on my life. It was probably why she'd wanted to enter first.

Are you in danger? Tavish's fear strangled our bond. I knew I shouldn't have left you!

Sorcha stopped directly over my attacker with her sword at the back of his neck. "Why are you here, Greason? You know you've been banished from the castle."

Exhaling, I leaned over Nightbane, checking his breathing. I tried to slow my racing heart, but I struggled. The last time I'd seen Greason, I'd given him sunberry tarts, distracting him so I could steal the key that would allow me to free Tavish and Finnian from their chains. My actions had cost this man his job, so there was clearly resentment. I'm not in danger anymore. An ally guard is here, but Tavish, the man who attacked me, is the guard who must have been blamed for your escape.

At least I know what he looks like so I can kill him upon my return. His hatred pulsed through our bond. What did he do to you?

Nothing. I didn't want to answer that for so many reasons. I stopped him before he could even get his hands on me. He's laid out on the floor.

I rubbed Nightbane's fur, and my hand hit some sort of narrow object. I yanked it from his skin and saw that it was a dart. He must have been drugged with something similar to what the Seelie guards had used on me when they'd taken me back to Gleann Solas right after Tavish and I had completed our fated-mate bond.

Sorcha moved the edge of her blade under Greason's chin, forcing him to lift his head.

He wore a tattered dark tunic and holey pants, a sharp contrast to the golden armor he'd donned as a guard.

"Answer me," she growled. "How did you even know she was here?"

That was the real question, but I suspected the answer to that was clear. "Gaelle was in my room when Nightbane and I first arrived. She could have informed others." It wasn't that we were purposely trying to keep my presence here a secret, but the fewer people who were aware, the less hysteria it would cause while Tavish and the others were away. Even though I hoped no one here would betray us, some Seelie might feel loyalty to the dragons since the details of what had truly happened hadn't been circulated yet. We had to be careful and hide our plans until Eiric got back here safely.

She glanced over her shoulder at me before refocusing on the enemy. She lifted the sword higher, and I noted honey-colored blood welling from where his skin must have gotten cut.

"You're already in enough trouble; don't make it worse. What were you doing here?"

"Getting vengeance for what the princess did to me," he answered and sneered at me like I didn't deserve to breathe the same air as him. "If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have been shamed and forced to work the fields."

"Nightbane hadn't done anything to you, yet you hurt him." I lifted the dart so both he and Sorcha could see. "And Tavish and Finnian being imprisoned was foolish. They deserved to be free, and we didn't harm you when we could have."

"You didn't harm me?" He scoffed and stumbled to his feet. "I got demoted from high fae. Generations of my heritage and loyalty to the king gone because of your blazing loyalty to the worst of the nightfiends. Seeing how easily he managed to manipulate you, it's best if we rid the realm of your existence. You're a threat to my king and queen. Eliminating you will prove my worth to them once more."

My head jerked back, and I swallowed a laugh. He believed every word he spoke and didn't realize that none of it made sense.

Sorcha shook her head and yelled, "Someone call the king and queen and bring them to the princess's room. Quickly!"

Even though most of the fae would be retiring for the night, guards were positioned throughout the castle, and someone would hear Sorcha's message.

Greason shook his head. "Sorcha, don't do this. Just let me go. You must agree that she's a threat to our kingdom and survival. If she continues to choose the Unseelie nightfiend over her own people, the dragons will attack us, and we could lose our magic!"

That made more sense. Losing one's magic was essentially the same as losing one's wings. Both of those things defined who we were, how strong we were, and what our position among our people would be. "You aren't at risk of losing your magic." I understood that I couldn't tell him how or why, but he did deserve that. After all, I had tricked him in order to free the two prisoners under his watch.

His brows furrowed. "So you're marrying the dragon prince?" His red eyes lightened, reminding me of flames. He doubtless had fire magic.

"He's not a guard or part of the royals' inner circle," Sorcha warned, placing the heel of her boot against his chest and shoving. "He's not allowed to know anything."

Greason slammed against the wall. The back of his head hit the stone surface, and blood rolled down his neck into the collar of his tunic.

Several sets of wings flapped from the direction of my parents' room. Their chambers weren't far from mine, and as expected, a guard had managed to reach them quickly.

Nightbane whimpered, and I turned my attention back to him. My knees weakened in relief. If I hadn't already been touching Nightbane, I would've fallen over, but instead, I gripped him tighter.

My healing magic pulsed faintly, but it was mainly in vain. Nightbane hadn't been wounded but rather medicated, which meant my magic didn't have anything to latch on to and heal.

Father barreled into the room, his gaze landing on me first. When he realized I wasn't injured, his head snapped in Greason's direction. He spat, "What are you doing here?"

Not wanting to have the conversation multiple times, I repeated the information when Mother joined us. The guard who'd retrieved them remained in the hallway, keeping watch, and the sound of more guards fluttering sounded outside my gigantic, glassless window.

"You came here to kill our daughter?" Mother's hand shook as she placed it on her chest. "And believed we would appreciate it. Is that what our people think of us?"

"We don't have to explain ourselves to a thornling." Father rocked back on his heels while spreading out his wings, quite an intimidating sight. "He entered not only our castle but our daughter's room without permission, which is unforgivable. I shudder to even consider what he'd planned to do with her if Sorcha hadn't intervened."

My mouth dropped open. He hadn't even considered the possibility that I'd manage to protect myself. However, before I was able to correct him, Sorcha cleared her throat.

"Your Majesty, it wasn't I who protected her." She folded her wings behind her back. "When I entered, Greason had already been handled."

Father's brows furrowed while Mother grinned.

"I guess what Hestia, Brenin, and Tavish mentioned earlier is true." Mother smiled and dropped her hand back to her side. "You seem to be a worthy warrior yourself."

"Tavish?" Greason spat out. "You've been spending time with the nightfiend as well? There have been whispers, but none of us in Gleann Solas believed it."

That sparked anger deep within me. It was one thing to question my loyalties—Tavish was my fated mate, so I could understand the concern—but to question my parents, who'd sacrificed so much for their people, was insulting. "Speak like that to them again, and you won't be able to so much as whisper once I remove your tongue. We may have had a misunderstanding upon my return, but know that they are my family, and I won't tolerate them being disrespected."

Nightbane rumbled pitifully, lifting his head and trying to face the threat. His head bobbed around like he was dizzy, which only fueled my rage even more.

Lira, I'm heading back. I can't handle feeling all your emotions without knowing what's going on. I—

We're fine. I promise. Stay so we can handle the dragon threat and start our new life free and together tomorrow night. My parents are here, and the problem has been dealt with. He's just accusing my parents of potential treason.

"Lira, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but I can handle punishment on my own." Father smirked, pride gleaming in his eyes despite his words. He turned back to Greason. "But before anything else happens, I want to know who alerted you to Lira's presence here so you knew to hide in her room for her return."

"And how you knew that Nightbane was with me." I pointed at the beast, who flopped back on the mattress, whimpering.

Even though I knew the answer, I kept my mouth shut, knowing that Father would want to hear the answer from him alone.

Greason stayed silent.

Holding out his hand, Father said, "Sorcha, take him to the holding cell so we can prepare him for torture. I want to know who informed him, who's been whispering about us, and anything else that might be beneficial."

Greason's face flushed, and the trickle of blood down his neck congealed as the wound clotted. "I won't inform you of anything. I dedicated my life to you, and all of you have abandoned me."

"You were stationed at the cell to ensure no prisoners escaped. Not only did Lira steal a key from you, but she managed to free two Unseelie fae in the process. You were trained to evaluate threats, and you were aware of the connection my daughter had to the Unseelie king. You failed at your job, and I won't risk anything like that happening again, not even if my own daughter is involved."

Those few words were the equivalent of a punch in the gut, but I understood why he had to say them. I needed to remove my emotions from the equation and think like a royal. If his people were concerned, he needed to make it clear to everyone, including Sorcha, that our magic came first. And the truth was, I agreed it should come before me. But that didn't make hearing it any easier.

"That's good to hear, Your Majesty." Sorcha bowed her head. "And, of course, I'd be honored to take him to the holding cell. Is there anything I should prepare?"

Father nodded. "The thorn whips, the short swords that won't go too deep, and don't forget the mistveil blossoms because he will tell us everything he knows before his death."

Even though it wasn't the norm in Gleann Solas, unlike what Tavish had made the standard in Cuil Dorcha, an attack on the royal family meant death.

Sorcha grabbed Greason's arm and yanked him upright. The male guard standing in the hallway hurried into the room and took the other side.

Father handed back her sword and stood tall and regal despite wearing his thin night tunic and lounge pants. "I'll be there momentarily."

"No," Greason shouted, trying to dig his feet into the floor to stop the forward movement.

Still, the guards flew, the sound of them carrying him off heavy on my heart. I knew asking Father to spare him would be foolish. These were the rules, and most importantly, if he began making exceptions, more people would ask for them.

With the guards and my attacker gone, I hugged Nightbane, hating that he'd been caught in the cross fire.

"Are you okay, sprout?" Mother asked quietly, as if she were afraid that I'd be scared away like a mouse.

Well, if mice lived in Ardanos.

"I'm fine." I straightened, begrudgingly letting go of Nightbane. "It just caught me off guard."

"Do you have any speculation about who might have informed people?" Father pursed his lips. "I hate to think we have the same sort of traitors here that Tavish has to contend with in Cuil Dorcha."

His calling Tavish by name instead of an Unseelie slur had me fighting a smile. I didn't want Father to notice and become uncomfortable. I wanted everyone to get along because I had no intention of ever giving Tavish up.

"I have an idea." I hadn't yet checked to see if Gaelle had returned my clothes.

As I leapt across my bed and into my closet, both Father's and Mother's eyebrows rose comically. But there was nothing funny about this moment.

None of my clothes had been returned as instructed. Gaelle had thought I would die tonight.

Mother's light footsteps entered the closet behind me as she said, "Honey, what's—" Her voice cut off before she exclaimed, "Where are all your clothes?"

"Gaelle took them. I caught her taking more when I arrived here earlier. I told her to bring them back by tonight, and as you can see, she didn't bother to do so."

Folding her wings tightly behind her, she frowned. "Greason lives next door to her in the high fae village. They sometimes traveled to work together, and I suspect that they're lovers, so it makes sense she'd be involved."

"What has come over our people?" Father stepped through the doorway with his wings hanging at his sides.

That one was easy. "Fear and self-interest. Twelve years ago, because of the actions of Tavish's father, you created a veil so the Unseelie couldn't enter. Then, I was betrothed to the dragon prince. My being fated to Tavish made things worse upon my return. They're scared they'll lose their magic and wings. Greason pretty much told me that before you arrived."

"The fear needs to be contained." Father rolled his shoulders. "When we're free of the dragons and have Eiric back, we'll need to reunite the land and inform everyone what has transpired. The lack of understanding as to why the Unseelie are back must have affected our people more than I realized. I'd hoped they would trust your mother and me as their rulers, but maybe we've been unfair to them by keeping the knowledge from them."

"Don't be too hard on yourself, love." Mother patted his arm. "We haven't even had time to sleep well since we returned a day ago. This is a trying time, but I assure you we and our people will overcome it."

I smiled, seeing the type of leader I wanted to become. I knew Tavish wouldn't be as understanding as Father. He'd led a different life than he should have for the past twelve years. But that didn't mean that we couldn't figure out how to be more like my parents and not lose a piece of ourselves in the process.

"Either way, Gaelle and Greason will be punished for acting against a royal." Father closed his eyes like he was preparing for what would come next. "Four guards are stationed outside your door now, and I'll assign another two outside your window. They're aware that if anything happens to you under their watch, their fates will be the same as the attackers. Get some rest; you're going to need it for tomorrow." He took Mother's hand and then kissed the top of my head. "Your mother and I need to get to the holding cell."

"Let me know if you need anything." I wanted to go with them, but I couldn't leave Nightbane like this.

Mother patted my cheek, and then they left. When my door shut, I hurried back to Nightbane, whose dark-green eyes were open and focused on me.

Like earlier, I crawled into bed and turned so I could hold him. "I'm sorry, Nightbane. That should've never happened."

He sighed, his misty breath hitting my face, but then his eyes closed as he fell back asleep.

Knowing I needed to tell Tavish what had happened, I reached for our connection. But before I could yank at it, his magic swirled deep inside me like it did when we were under attack and he needed the full strength of both our powers.

My heart screamed with fear.