Page 52 of Hidden Kingdoms

I waited, long enough that even though I couldn’t hear her footsteps, I was sure she would be gone and tried the handle. I didn’t give much thought to the guard who was stationed outside as I held my breath in anticipation, pressing down and leaning into the door.

It didn’t move.

Realistically, I hadn’t expected it to. Leaving the room unlocked was the opposite of how you kept someone prisoner. I didn’t know if it was their idea of mind games that the door unlocked for me to open when they knocked, but whatever the reason, it was fucking weird.

Kaius had only taken me outside after I’d lost control of my magik, he hadn’t come specifically to see me. Heart sinking, I slid down the door hugging my knees. There was no point trying the window again, and the door at my back was the only other exit.

I hadn’t been trying to escape anyway—not really.

I had no plan, no way home.

Not yet.

Theonlysaving grace I could see was that here I was safe from The Darkness. I couldn’t even claim that danger was because of them, it had found me before they had. The memory of—the phantom touch of its terror threatened to overwhelm me as thoughts began to link together.

Was it the same dark stain that had been pushing into my dreams for the last few months?

It was hard to comprehend that the man who helped me escape was the same asshole prince I had just gone head-to-head with. Those two versions of him jarred within me; they didn’t fit together. But it didn’t matter, I wasn’t here to figure out Bastian’s inner workings.

Kaius’ honesty earlier had only given me a taste of the information I needed. Gaining access to books from this placewas bound to offer me more, and since the tall lady was the only regular contact I had with another person, it made sense she was my best shot.

Though my mind already felt like it was bursting with the information I had squeezed from Kaius, it wasn’t enough.

I knew it was unlikely I would be given anything that would provide me with any real information, but it was worth a try, even if it only gave me something to do.

Doubting she would be back before dinner, I focused on what I knew already.

Taking a seat at the table, I pulled the food towards me—the same as yesterday—and ate slowly, trying to prolong the activity and fill the empty time that stretched ahead of me as I turned over everything that had happened today.

There were few things I knew for sure.

Number one, the prince was a dick.

Number two, he needed my help but wouldn’t tell me what or why.

Number three, they were Fae.

And if Kaius was to be believed, then I was, too. I laughed into the empty room as I reached for another piece of cheese.

I also knew I had power—a lot of power. Much more than I thought possible, and I could feel it now, humming through me, aching to be freed. I’d seen the look in their eyes as it formed a shield around me. I held my hand up and breathed deep as I tried to release a little, a dim glow of light covering my palm. I tried to get it to do something—anything—but I didn’t know how, and as it faded out, I gave up.

If I could use it, maybe I’d be able to get out of this room. If only I could get my hands on a book about magik, though I doubted they left them lying around. I was painfully aware they weren’t going to gift me with knowledge that could help meescape. But what help would I be to them if I couldn’t control my magik?

What if that’s not why they need my help?

Probably best not to go down that road.

With Kaius’ jacket still around me—unnecessary in the heat of the room—I washed lunch down with a cup of water that had long gone warm but was better than nothing. I didn’t need to check if the sun was still high in the sky to know it was likely midday, and that meant countless more hours in this room.

I wasn’t a people person, being around strangers or crowds was hard, but that was a choiceImade. A choice to surround myself with those who helped my mind, not those who crowded it.

There was a difference between being lonely and being alone.

Was Mrs. Piper getting her tea to help her bones? Had Polly moved on from wicker weaving? Was she worried that she hadn’t heard from me?

Needing a distraction, I dragged a chair to the window, the broken shards of the first one had been cleared in my absence. Using a pillow to boost myself higher, I sat watching as people wandered in and out of the flowers, pruning and trimming. Their footsteps stamping trails in the frost laden ground. The long stems filling large woven baskets that Polly would have been impressed by before they were handed off to another person.

It wasn’t long before my focus drifted to the vast stretch of forest that grew beyond the garden. The tangled canopy fused together into a sea of green, branches reaching towards the sky in competition on who would hold monopoly on the sun. A game they all won and lost as they continued their fight for the rays that gave them life.

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