Page 21 of What did you do?

Chef Samuel had taken my distraction as an opportunity to roll away from me, but he never stood. Instead, he kneeled, bowing.

A noise kind of like a forced cough came out of his throat, and I immediately felt a little bad for hurting Eli’s friend.

It was almost over. I was here. I looked to Eli, who was also making the same weird noise as his friend and was also in a deep bow.

Samuel’s side-eye caught my gaze as he nodded his head in short flicks, signaling for me to bow.

Realizing I was the only one not bowing, I immediately stumbled over myself and into a clumsy curtsey like I’d seen in the movies. I felt so stupid.

In the human world, I had never been told to bow to Queen Saracen. Nor had Aurelius bowed to his mother. I noticed several servants and guards had moved out into the hallway from the dozens of rooms all around to get a look at the queen. A quick glance up showed a few leaning over the intricate gold railing that seemed to climb never-ending heights.

“Calypso. My Unseelie destroyer, my favorite child!” She winked at Eli. “Come, Aurelius, bring Caly into the drawing room. There is much I wish to speak with you about. I have hardly slept a moment since sending you that last letter. Tell Tarani to join us for some tea.”

I breathed out, preparing to see the princess again. It was touching how much Eli doted on her.

It was a shame I had to kill her.

8

THE PAST

Queen Saracen

They were so happy.

Tarani and Aurelius gracefully chased after the small cluster of butterflies. Langmure sat by the fountain, reading whatever human tale his nurse had gifted him this week. From the library’s tall window above, I watched them dance and laugh in the sunlit garden.

They were too young to know it was actually the butterflies that chased them and their pureblood Seelie bodies. Thanks to the marriage arrangements, these children had been bred to be the purest of Seelie.

A heaviness in my body grew, knowing what was about to happen. Aurelius began picking poppies like he didn’t have a care in the world—the perfect example of a happy, lighthearted Seelie faerie.

He would never work. He was never going to be the leader necessary for the world Thanes and I were creating. I suppose very few true Seelie would.

Langmure might have worked, but he wouldn’t be here long. The child had been cursed by Khaos in a deal gone bad and was owed to the pits of Tartarus as soon as the king of the Nether decided to take him. He didn’t even know it.

I noted the position of the sun.

Any minute now.

I grabbed the leather-bound tome close to me and took one last glance at the lighthearted children playing below. Tonight, I would take Aurelius and Tarani to the human realm, where they would remain.

I would leave them.

It was weak, but I couldn’t bring myself to kill them. I really did love them—they just weren’t useful to me anymore. Thanes could never know I let them live. The Unseelie king would be killing off Mendax and Tenebris at this very moment.

Earlier today, he had told me several of his “Fallen fae” were immeasurably stronger than anything we could have hoped for and that he was going to test their powers by using them to kill the Smoke Slayers.

My eyes, heavy and tired, dropped closed while I took in a deep breath of leather-scented air. I could almostfeelthe world lightening with Tenebris and Mendax finally dead. If Thanes had been able to rearrange and infuse the human minds to be that powerful—powerful enough to kill two Smoke Slayers—then maybe we were aiming too small just working on the humans. As I began to turn away from the window, I stilled at the last moment, the unusually dark look on Tarani’s face while she glared at her brother catching my full attention.

Aurelius had begun to scream at her, his voice raw and shrill. He was close to a meltdown, throwing himself on the ground at her feet.

My lips started to curve into a smile as I watched.

Tarani larked about, grabbing ahold of the butterflies that fluttered near her. She giggled as her tiny fingers masterfully pulled their wings off before dropping them to the ground and grabbing another as her older brother wailed at her feet.

Pride swelled in my chest. She was different—I could see it now.

She would stay.

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