Page 79 of Lifebound

“Butwhy?”

“Because I am not one of them.”

I thought about it for a moment, and the way he sounded just now…

“But you’re fae.”

“I’m a Midnight fae in the Seelie Court.”

My mind went back to the vampire, the maze market, and to Tuck and Tucker.What was your sin?the vampire had asked him. And the Twinborn had told me that tattoo on his skin on which my head was pressed now was the mark of a traitor.

“But you’re still fae,” I ended up whispering.

“It doesn’t matter,” Rune said.

It did, though. It mattered a lot to me because I knew what it was like to be the same as everyone else but to never actually fit in, to be treated like a stranger, like an abomination, like someone whodidn’t belongwith them. And, fuck, the thought that it happenedhere,too, and to someone like Rune, made me want to set something on fire.

Instead, I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath because I knew better than anyone what it was like to be forced to talk—orthinkabout things like this. So, despite my burning curiosity, I wasn’t going to ask him about it. If he wanted to, he could tell me himself.

“Are you close to him?” I whispered eventually because my legs might have been resting, but my mind was still buzzing with so many thoughts. So many questions, and so many doubts. So muchpleasureand calm that being close to this stranger somehow brought me.

I didn’t understand it, and the more I thought about it, the more senseless it became, this fact. The more I thought about it, the more it infuriated me to realize that he didn’t normallytalkto people.

I mean, I had Betty and my family, and that still wasn’t enough sometimes. So damn painful.

“Lyall?” Rune asked.

Just the way he said his name. “Yes—the prince.”

“I was.” But the next moment he thought better of it. “Iam. He’s a friend.”

“I see,” I said, though I didn’t really see much, but I didn’t want to pester him about it.

Rune continued anyway.

“He’s a prince. He has duties and responsibilities. Things to learn. He’s always needed for something, so we haven’t really seen each other much in the past few years.” He spoke slowly in that perfect whisper-tone. “Lately, he’s been…different. Changed.”

“Changed how?” I asked.

“I’m not sure.” Rune paused for a moment. “I guess he’s just becoming ready to be the king.”

The king.Even though I had no idea if the fae courts were monarchies or how much power a king really had, just the title made my stomach twist uncomfortably. To think that that boy from the meadow would wear a crown and rule over an entire court here in this wonderful, terrifying place…

“I was playing in the forest behind my house, the same one where the Aetherway to Verenthia is, apparently. I was five years old, and my parents told me not to go wandering so far, but I had just buried a snail I stepped on by accident, and I was in need of a distraction. So, I saw a squirrel and chased it, and it led me to this beautiful meadow where I could sing and dance in peace, far away from everyone. I went back a few times, and nothing ever really happened—until that day,” I said.

Rune must have been surprised because I could have sworn he pulled on the reins a little bit, and the horse slowed his pace.

I continued. “A snake got me right on the ankle. I didn’t even see it, but it must have been a venomous one because the effect was immediate. My leg was numb and my muscles weak, my entire body felt paralyzed.”

“Rattlesnake. I felt them in Nerith. Powerful venom, especially in a small body,” Rune said.

“Whatever it was, it got me good, and I couldn’t even scream. Whether it was panic or just the venom, I have no idea. That’s where the prince found me lying there in the grass. Came closer and asked me why I wasn’t healing myself, and I said I couldn’t. He asked me if I wantedhimto heal me instead, and I nodded.” The memory was right there behind my closed lids. I tightened my grip around Rune’s arm. “He did. Just like that, he put his hand over my ankle and there was warmth, and then I was okay. He healed me, just like that. Without hesitation.”

Silence for a moment. “That sounds exactly like him.”

“Then Helid came looking for him, and he panicked. He told me not to move, and he did something with his hands that glowed just like yours do. He hid me, so when Helid came out of the trees, he looked right at me and he didn’t see me. They both walked way, and I never saw either again,” I finished. “Until a few days ago, that is.”

“I remember when he was on that expedition in Nerith,” Rune said after a moment. “When he came back, he told me that his magic finally worked, and he showed me an illusion that was only halfway complete. But he never once mentioned having healed a mortal.”

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