Page 66 of The Princess of Nothing
Awkwardly climbing the rope until my foot hit the ladder step, I inhaled sharply. Cedric grabbed my hand over the railing and pulled me over. “Are you hurt? I couldn’t see or hear much of what was said.”
Relief flooded me. “They need me to bring them the Objects of Kai,” I said carefully. “I agreed.”
Aquarius’s eyebrow cocked. “Why?”
I didn’t want to bring up Blaise, or how the mer king knew my weakness. I’d been told they could see into the heart, but never so invasively. “It’s complicated.”
“Any idea where they are?” Aquarius asked.
“I know where the dagger is. The sword should be at Ash Court. The Ring of Immortalem is with Xenos.” I growled under my breath, mostly angry at myself for letting it be taken from me. “The Amulet, if I recall, is hidden by the light fae.” I looked at Cedric. “So, your family.”
He scratched the back of his neck, then pulled at his collar. “I can’t get ahold of it.”
“I need you to,” I begged, curling my fingers together. “He wants to break the curses on them.” I attempted to squeeze the sea from my hair.
Cedric shook his head. “Are you mad? No way. If the curses are broken, those objects become ten times deadlier. Mortals can find and hold them, then become invincible to any immortal. The curses safeguard us.”
I didn’t reply, because I didn’t want to upset him with the truth; if he would not help me, then I would need to go behind his back to do it, which I didn’t want but I had no choice. If his family had the object, which I suspected, then I needed to find a way to take it from them.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Frosty winds nippedmy cheeks and lips. I shivered from the cold, turning my head toward Cedric, who had his arms wrapped around his front.
“This ought to do.” Aquarius emerged up on deck holding two fur coats. “I’ll be expecting payment once you’re queen.” He winked at me and handed the larger, brown jacket to Cedric.
“Thanks, friend.”
Aquarius smiled and passed me a thick white one. I pulled it on, nestling into its warmth. I gazed over the wintry trees that blended into the white horizon. Gray rocks made up the beach. Snowflakes melted when they hit the sea. Waves lapped ashore, dragging icicles and melting them in their grasp.
“So...” Cedric’s breath fogged in the air. “This is Niferum. It’s quite something.”
I enjoyed the emptiness of a kingdom trapped in an everlasting winter, or so it felt. In the distance, a still river and thin sheets of ice led the way to runes of villages housing feral and lost fae. Ahead of us, fir trees narrowed on a snow-covered path.
I turned to face Aquarius. “Will you help us navigate?”
He scratched the back of his neck. “We are not welcome here, by King Blaise’s orders. We could only take you so far without being seen, but if you ride east, through the path in the forest, you’ll come out to Glacier Lake, and the mountains that surround it. Lepidus is just beyond the north mountains. Unless there are glamours in place, you should be fine.”
