Page 28 of Owned By the Fae
He snorts softly and licks his lips. ‘Well, you might be a filthy human, but I wouldn’t say no,’ he chuckles, leaving her as she is and withdrawing from the room.
I follow him, memorizing his face and silently promising retribution.
Unfortunately, there’s no time to do it now. I need to meet with the others and then go wherever our first mission together will take us.
I wait until I'm in a deserted corridor before I become corporeal again. Then, I make my way into the main hall where I know Varrik’s personal Gate is. I'm not sure why, but everyone says this is the one that’s usually used now, not the one that's located just over the hill from the new village.
When I get into the room, Varrik is nowhere to be found, but Dane is there, as are Rikoth and Vern. I stifle my sneer. No Fiana yet.
Good.
I give Dane and the others the barest of greetings, hardly even looking at Dane because I'm still angry about what he's done, even if Lia does seem to be all right and is at least safer here than in the Wilds.
His lips purse a little, but he doesn't say anything. As if on command, the small Gate opens in front of us.
‘Come on.’
‘Where are we going? I ask.
Dane glances back at me. ‘Just do as you're told for once, Kallum.’
He turns away before he can see my answering sneer.
I follow the three of them through the Breach, and we appear in a forest not unlike the one that we found ourselves in afterwe left Rondorai. But there’s something odd about this one. The leaves on the trees here are the wrong color. They're darker. Muted in some odd way.
I immediately focus, putting away my anger and all the other feelings pertaining to the cunts in front of me. My hand drifts to the pommel of my sword as I watch and listen, waiting for an ambush I can feel coming.
But no one appears to attack us.
I can sense that the others are feeling the same as I am, though, and they’re similarly looking around in anticipation.
‘What circle is this? What are we here for?’ I whisper.
‘I haven't been told,’ Dane mutters, gesturing to Rikoth and Vern, who are in front of us and seem to know what we’re doing here.
His eyes narrow at the two fae ahead. ‘Keep your eyes open and don’t turn your back on them,’ he murmurs to me.
I nod as we follow them down a wide, wooded path, keeping my gaze moving for dangers. Whatever my feelings for Dane at the moment, he’s still my friend, my brother, and I will protect him with my life as I know he will me.
We don’t have to go far before we’re met with a tall stone wall almost entirely covered in ivy.
Vern turns to me with a derisive look on his face. ‘Well? Go on then.’
I shrug. ‘It’s a wall of ivy. What the fuck do you want me to do?’
‘Use your skill, idiot. Go through, find the entrance, and open it for us.’
I frown, deciding I might kill him later for calling me an idiot. ‘What's behind it?’
He sniffs and then shrugs. ‘Fuck knows, but I'd suggest you go invisible first, Dreg.’
I roll my eyes at the slur that isn’t even true anymore. But I do what he says, albeit with a smirk and a rude gesture, passing through the thick wall in front of us.
I find myself in a square courtyard. At first, I don't see a way in or out; everything is so overgrown. As I look closer at my surroundings, I can see the remnants of swords and armor. Sun-bleached bones too. There was a battle here a long time ago.
I scout around the perimeter of the wall, not finding what I’m looking for at first. Then, I notice the tell-tale gleam of steel. I rip some of the ivy away from the stones, and I find an oak door that, at first glance, appears to have withstood the test of time, but when I grab the latch, it disintegrates in my hands. I push it open as best I can though it crumbles as I move it and slip through to walk around the outside of the wall to where the others are still waiting for me.
‘Follow the wall to the right,’ I say, relishing the way they all jump at my voice because I still can’t be seen.
