Page 41 of Golden Queen
She was gorgeous as well, of course. All fae were said to be beautiful, but then the word barely didthiswoman justice.
She had deep brown skin and hair, and a perfect heart-shaped face. Her wide, full lips were set into a frown of displeasure, and her eyes, striking red irises and thick dark lashes, were shooting daggers at Io.
"Sera," Io said, glancing at me. "Let me start by apologizing for their behavior, and then allow me to introduce Aben and Britaxia."
Aben stepped forward and took my hand. He brought my palm to his lips as he said, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Sera." He held my gaze for a breath and then released me. I imagined that single sultry look had gotten him a very long way with women in the past.
Britaxia turned to me again. She pasted a soft smile onto her lips as she inclined her head. "It is nice to meet you, Sera." Her eyes had faded to a pale amber color, and her words, to my surprise, sounded sincere.
Before I had a chance to respond, she whirled on Io again. "That prick set us up." Her eyes flared red again.
"We don't know for certain that we were set up, Tax," Aben said.
"What happened?" Io demanded.
Britaxia glanced meaningfully at me, and I was ready to be asked to leave so that they could talk in private.
Instead, Io nodded to her.
Britaxia's sculpted brows shot up, but she went on. "Six big, ugly men were waiting for us where the...uh, merchant's man told us to meet. We were forced to dispatch them in a very public way."
By dispatch, I was certain she meant that they killed them.
"No one who saw it could have blamed us. They struck first," Aben pointed out.
"Yes, but a fight like that would not go unnoticed by the guard in a city this small," Britaxia added.
A city this small?That had me furrowing my brow as I wondered how big the cities in Nightfall must be if this massive city was considered small.
"Did you deal with the bodies?" Io asked. He had his hands in his pockets as he leaned against the table. It was obvious that whoever he was, he was their leader. They were not simplyfriendsas he let on.
"Of course we did." Britaxia rolled her eyes. "And the ape threw so much gold around at the witnesses that I'm certain that did not go unnoticed either." She sighed. "We should have done as you said and gone in from the bottom. Gold is not always a shortcut for meticulous infiltration." She gave Aben a sharp look.
"So, I'm assuming you're trying to get to Castille," I said. All eyes shot to me. "And you thought you could buy your way into that information?"
"We hoped," Io said. He looked at me assessingly. "What do you know about him?"
"Well, I know he's almost a hero to the common people, which makes him nearly untouchable." I felt slightly unnerved by their intense stares.
Io narrowed his gaze, "Why is he a hero?"
"He does more for the poor in this city than the crown ever has. He does so much that they ignore the fact that he sells people and peddles dangerous black-market magic. It's disgusting and something...that should be taken care of." I'd almost saidsomething I intend to change.I needed to watch my reckless mouth a little better. “What do you want with him?”
"We have reason to believe he's responsible for the recent disappearances of Withian children," Io said.
Aben's gaze shot to him, and then to me in surprise.
"Why would he steal Withian children?" I asked, though the question of why the disgusting slave trader stole any children was just as fair. I had always wondered if he had a hand in Tatana and Set being taken, but I had never dared to try to find out.
Io didn't answer, but I saw his jaw go tight.
Britaxia supplied the answer. "They have an inordinate amount of magic in their skin. Have you never seen a Withian child?" she asked me.
I shook my head. I had hardly even seen a Withian adult.
She gave me a sad sort of smile. "They positively glow with the amount of magic that sits just on the surface. It's there to protect them from the cold of the unforgiving north. It fades as they grow, sinks deeper, and settles into their bones and blood once they learn to master it."
"Why would that make Castille want them?" I asked, dreading the answer.
