Page 2 of Destined for the Fae King

We feltspecial then.Ifelt it. And ever since then, I yearned to come back and finally step into that world I’d merely glimpsed.

The car ride passes far too quickly, special thanks to my uncle’s lead foot, and suddenly we’re pulling down the drive toward an old manor house whose elaborate iron gate sits open wide. Several other cars are already parked in a grassy section of the yard. A couple lingers on the white-railed front porch, probably waiting to greet coven members as they arrive.

To say we’re witches, as coven implies, wouldn’t quite be accurate. Not anymore. No true magic runs in our veins except the ability to see fae, and even that is sparsely doled out amongst the bloodline. A few of the oldest members can do little things—minor charms and such—but even that seems to have vanished with my generation. In fact, no one in my direct bloodline has had any real magic for generations, not since one of my ancestors cursed a fae King of the Forest for sleeping with someone else. The act was frowned upon and still taught as something not to do, not that we can, but I can’t help but think the bastard deserved it.

My cousin packs her laptop away. We park. Everyone is unbuckling and getting out, but I’m frozen in the seat. I’ve been excited for weeks, ever since I knew I’d have this opportunity, but now that it’s here, it feels all too real and overwhelming. It doesn’t help that Mom’s been a tearful mess for days and that I practically had to peel her off me when I left yesterday. She fully believes that I'm destined for the crown and will never come back once I step foot in Faery. A tragedy in her mind. I spent the night at Uncle Matias and Aunt Dalia’s house before our short trip today—I needed that break from Mom,that space, to get my head on straight. Or at least I thought I did, but now I’m more of a mess than ever.

My uncle opens the door for me, but it’s Selena’s cheerful smile that finally pulls me from the seat and out of the car. I’ve barely stepped onto the grass when she wraps me in a tight hug.

“Have I mentioned how glad I am that you’re here?” I ask.

“Only about fifty times.”

By the time she releases me, her parents are already walking toward the house, their overstuffed suitcase and my smaller one in tow. Ironic, considering I’m the one staying. All they really need is an overnight bag, if they choose to stay. We’re all already dressed for the opening ball of The Choosing, the competition to select the king’s bride, though it might do me good to make sure the car ride didn’t damage the waves I’d added to my hair. At least my crimson dress seems unwrinkled.

Selena loops her arm through mine and just about drags me toward the manor. The door to Faery, to the Court of Fire, that our coven uses sits in a clearing behind the house, which has existed since the early days of the country—refurbished and added onto over the years of course. Even so, it’s still way newer than the door itself, which has stood open longer than any of our records can say.

To an outsider, it looks like a historical home, meticulously maintained and used only for special events. Which is true actually, though coven families take turns having a caretaker in residence, a job my uncle scoffed at when I once asked about it.

It seemed like a better opportunity than waiting tables. Plus, it put me one step outside Faery. Who would notice if I just wandered in from time to time? That was three years ago. I didn’t realize then that he already had a plan for me, that he intended to offer me up as a potential bride for the King of Fire as a sort ofpayment for taking care of my mom, brothers, and me since my father died unexpectedly when I was just thirteen.

I should hate it, being his pawn, his sacrificial lamb, but the truth is, I would have run headlong into Faery years earlier if he’d have let me, and if Mom hadn’t been so opposed to me leaving. She’s convinced I’ll never come back, says she knows without a doubt that I’ll be stuck there if I step foot through the door, and her tears guilted me into staying far longer than I ever planned. By eighteen, I was mature enough to enter Faery without risk. I’d always planned on that. And yet, five years later and I’ve still never stepped foot in that world.

Probably why I got stuck in the same routine for so long. Wait tables. Cheer on my non-gifted little brothers. Help Mom around the house. And basically, just wait for my life to begin, like Rapunzel in her tower. Why bother with college when we can’t afford it and I wouldn’t be around to use the degree anyway? Why try to find a steady boyfriend when that would just be one more thing holding me back from my dreams?

“I know you’ve been excited about Faery,” Selena says as we walk. “But I was still so worried you were gonna bail.” She’s dressed in black today, her usual color of choice an odd one for the occasion, but has toned down her signature dark eyeliner and even skipped the black nail polish for once. She almost looks like a proper bridesmaid. Rather fitting, given the circumstances. “Did you know that my mom hinted at trying to force me to enter that damned contest if you didn’t show. Me. I’d be theworstpossible bride candidate for anyone.” She hurries on before I can even respond. “But marriedandstuck in Faery? No thank you.”

A world without the technology she loves? No, that certainly wouldn’t work for her. To say nothing of the fact that she loathes the idea of an arranged marriage. Or marriage in general really.

“Way to be encouraging.” I nudge her side.

She winces. “I meant to say, bad for me, good for you. Come on.” She bumps her shoulder into mine. “I love you, but you know we’re not the same.” She pats my arm. “You’re going to do great. I know it.”

We enter the manor through the front door and walk right down the main hall and out into the backyard. It might as well have been a garden gate for how little time we spent within in, though it’d be a lie to say the impressive spread of food and drinks set just off the main hall didn’t snare my attention and make my mouth water.

As we exited the back door out onto the stone pathway through the manicured yard, I bit my lip and cast a longing glance back over my shoulder. There’s no time for that though. Uncle Matias is determined for us to be early, though from the number of cars out front, others had the same idea and have beaten us to it. Already, he’s impatiently waving Selena and me toward the circle of trees lingering just ahead.

A breeze tugged at the styled dark brown waves of my hair, bringing with it the crispness of autumn. Only a few golden leaves spot the trees, but that will change soon enough. Too bad I’ll miss it this year, but maybe next year—

A pang of homesickness makes me skip a step. If I win, there won’t be a next year, at least not here on Earth, not for me. A fae king won’t want his little human bride leaving Faery.

“Mira?” Selena stares at me, her brows pinched, but I have no words, no way to describe the sudden terror that’s stuck my feet to the ground and won’t let me take another step.

I want this, don’t I?

I feel like the kid at the theme park who has been waiting all day to ride the biggest and baddest rollercoaster but has finally made it to the front of the line and is now too scared to get on.

If I run now, I might never get to Faery, and I’ve waited so long. I suck in a deep breath and do everything I can to force the feeling deep down and far away.

“It’s okay,” I say. “I’ve got this.”

The circle of trees ahead is odd. Anyone, gifted or not, wouldn’t be able to look at it and say it’s natural. But with the way the gardens are designed behind the manor, with their careful designs and lush vegetation, someone might just think the tree circle was part of the carefully curated space. A clever disguise, like much of our lives.

To anyone else, we’re normal families. Albeit most are well-off from years of fae gifts we’ve leveraged over generations into a financial legacy of wise investments. It’s the reason Uncle Matias and Aunt Dalia are rich and the reason my mother has been able to not work these past years since Dad died. She never did before he passed, and after… Well, she was a mess for a while. And then there was my uncle generously taking care of us—generous in that we had a roof over our head and food on the table, if not a life near as nice as theirs.

I might not agree with him often, but I know better than to bite the hand that feeds. After all, my waitressing tips only go so far. And I know him getting me into this contest isn’t only out of the goodness of his heart, but it’s still his reputation and connections that have carried me here. After today, I’ll be on my own though. In this contest, it’ll be each woman for herself to try to win the hand of the king and secure a place in history. After all, fae live longer than us, so this chance probably won’t come again in any of our lifetimes, at least not with the Court of Fire, which our coven pledged its supportto ages ago.

A few older coven members linger around the circle of trees, probably there to make sure everything goes smoothly. If any of the other women have arrived, they must already be in Faery.

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