Page 30 of A Legacy of Poison and Lies

Zylah, at last, looked up, but not at Mae. Holt’s gaze slid to her as he made his way over, eyes scanning her, and only when he seemed satisfied she was fine did he turn to Mae.

He flicked his wrist and the whip disappeared from Mae’s grasp, reappearing between his fingertips. Mae’s face paled as a thought seemed to linger there, faeries edging closer to watch whatever was unfurling between Holt and their High Lady. Holt glanced at the end of the whip, then let it fall to the ground where vines burst through the moss to encase it, pulling it under until it disappeared. His vines receded from Mae’s arms, just enough to release them. She smoothed a hand over her hair, then over the folds of her lilac gown, the jagged ends of her broken claws catching in the silk.

Holt walked around her, pausing at her side once he was again facing Zylah, only to murmur, “Spread lies about me again and I’ll have you removed from this court faster than you can fucking blink. Understood?”

The court watched in silence. None stepped in for their High Lady, no one spoke, and at last, Mae nodded almost imperceptibly.

“If I hear so much as a whisper of this kind of punishment from this court again, you will be stripped of your title, and I’ll appoint someone else to rule in your stead,” Holt said. He’d raised his voice again, loud enough for the entire court to hear him. Mae flinched beside him but held her head high. Vines still wrapped around her body, around her breasts, up to her neck, but to her credit, she stood there as if they were part of her gown.

Holt knelt beside the faerie Mae had beaten, hooked an arm around him and helped him to his feet. And only when he’d turned away, did he release his hold on Maelissa.

Zylah took one last look at the female, jewellery and hair all displaced from Holt’s vines, her dress torn where she’d attempted to smooth it, half her claws broken, and followed Holt through the court.

Faeries stepped aside for them as they made their way to one of the pools, watching silently, and all Zylah could think of was that she’d evanesced in front of them, all of them. Pain sang down her back from the strain of using her powers, but Raif’s words danced around her skull.Don’t let anyone see you do that. Ever.

Even when she’d tried to help, she’d got it wrong. Exposed herself to the whole court. Holt would do better to leave her behind, to continue what he’d started without her. He’d be faster without her, and she couldn’t help, only hinder. Only slow him down.

She slipped away between two rocks as Ellisar and Lana rushed to Holt’s side, helping the faerie to rest beside the pool. Her fingers grazed the vial of tonic she had in her apron, and she twisted the glass between her fingers. But she didn’t pull out the cork. She gritted her teeth against the pain and closed her eyes as the thought of Oz’s whip against her flesh shook through her. As the scars on her back seemed to burn with the memory of it.

If she hadn’t killed him, if she’d just let him keep lashing her, everything would be different. Raif wouldn’t be dead. Her father might still be alive, too. And no punishment, no amount of pain would ever be enough for her to atone for their deaths.

Chapter Ten

Holthadbeenquietsince they’d left Maelissa’s court. The air was crisp and still, as if the forest was waiting for winter’s icy grip. Zylah knew snow would come soon.

“Thank you for helping back there,” she said when she could no longer stand the silence that had stretched out between them.

Holt merely nodded.

Heat crept into Zylah’s cheeks, and she angled her horse away from him as they walked through the trees. “I evanesced in front of the whole court. Don’t you have anything to say about that?” It was a rare ability, she’d been told, one she should be careful about even amongst Fae.

“You’ve done enough hiding in your life already. I don’t ever want you to have to hide who you are again.”

Oh.That was not the answer she’d expected. But given what he’d been through, what he was fighting for, it made sense. And yet… “Then why do you sound angry? Because the magic can be traced? Because I’ve just sent the Fae equivalent of a beacon?” She twisted the reins in her fingers, studying the green embroidery at the edge of the gloves Lana had given her. Little leaves ran along the cuffs, curling into a circle along the back of her palm.

“The court is heavily warded. Your evanescing won’t be traceable beyond its perimeter.”

“Then what?”

“Mae could have ripped you to shreds,” Holt said quietly, anger still coating every word.

She studied his face, the way he pressed his lips together, the shades of the forest in his eyes. “But she didn’t.”

His eyes slid to hers. “I heard what Thallan said to you last night.”

“That I walk around like I’m broken?” She didn’t know what answer she wanted from him, whether he would agree or challenge her. It didn’t matter. Thallan was right.

“If you fought for yourself the way you fight for others—”

“What do you think I was doing in Kerthen, day after day, night after night?” She pushed herself up in her stirrups, fingers squeezing into the front of her saddle as her temper sparked. It was her turn to be angry. She’d almost died alone in that forest, on more than one occasion.

“It should have taken a month at most to get through Kerthen,” Holt said so quietly Zylah barely heard him.

She’d been waiting for him to mention it, had hoped he wouldn’t piece together how long she’d been lost in that dark forest. She slumped back down in her saddle.

Not lost, exactly.

Vapour clouded in front of Holt, as if he’d sighed heavily. As if she’d pissed him off, again. “You’ve been through a lot, Zylah. Your father. The bounty hunter. Raif. Kerthen alone. The last six months can’t have been easy. Don’t let this… this guilt over Raif’s death be the thing that breaks you.”

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