Page 20 of Wrath of the Fae Queen
What ifthisis another test? To see how trusting I am or how far I let my guard down? How fast I can react to an unexpected attack?
My soul lights up the moment Keira rouses from the light sleep she fell into while her litter-bearers carried her toward the next town. She is shivering in the cool morning air. Her stomach is growling and cramping because they refuse to feed her anything that hasn’t been thrown at her. Our secret supporters can only smuggle her so much. Her lips are cracked and her throat is parched.
Worst is the sickly dread coiling through her at the anticipation of the abuse she will endure in the next town and the next.
It fuels a burning rage through me.
No amount of violence seems to quell it.
Those aremy peopleattacking my mate. Their own rightful queen. It breaks my fucking heart that she is exposed to the darkest side of the mob, feeling their misplaced hatred. All because of Titania’s lies and my failures.
It should be me facing their ire, not her.
I have to trust that Cyprien and Drake are doing all they can for her while I am stuck here. They promised to infiltrate the palace using the old tunnels and watch over Keira when she arrives, but she needs to endure this test first.
Her soul strokes against mine.It is as soothing as a gentle hand caressing my cheek.
Can I stay with you a little while? Can I live through your eyes and escape my reality?She almost begs it of me.
Always. You never need to ask.
I try to ignore the shudder that tears through me as the road before her leads into another settlement with waiting crowds. I grind my teeth and bend the knife in my hand in half. Keira blocks the view from me. It is as though she takes my face in her hands and turns it away, pointing our joint attention toward my surroundings.
I need the distraction, Aldrin.
Dante is speaking while he piles a plate full of food, but I hardly register his words. He takes meatballs covered in red sauce with green herbs and places them on top of long noodles already on the plate. Then he adds a few slices of a loaf where thin meat has been rolled around a center of cheese and baked in more of that sauce. Beside it are a spongy focaccia is with roasted bulbs pressed deep into its surface, as well as marinated clams and fish. He takes a slice of a dish that is simply layers of meat sauce, sheets of pastry and cheese, then surprises me by dumping the plate in front of me.
I look at the spread with confusion, poking it with my fork. It is all the same colors: red, yellow and brown. There are no vegetables. It is mostly meat.
Gods, I would kill for just a bite of steaming hot food right now,Keira moans.
Guilt churns through me.Sorry, I?—
Take a bite, Aldrin. I want to know if I can taste it through you.
I move the food around on the plate, not recognizing a single thing on there, then glance up at Dante. “What kind of meat is this?” For all I know, the fae of the Starlight Court could be cannibals. They definitely have a reputation dark enough to have earned the title of the Shadow Court, which they claim to be an offensive slur.
Rude, Aldrin,Keira chides. She is practically salivating.
Dante sits slowly, his own plate in hand. “Are you concerned that when you chopped off Nico’s hand, we sent it to the cooks to be included in the dinner? We don’t like to be wasteful, Aldrin.” His eyes sparkle with devious light.
My eyebrows rise and my mouth falls upon, but I have nothing to say. Keira’s laughter fills my mind, but I’m not so sure it is a joke.
Dante grabs a jug of wine and fills my cup. “Don’t worry. Nico consumed his own hand to regain the organic matter.”
My stomach revolts. “He did what?”
A half-smile tugs up Dante’s lips. “We Nightmares do not dine on our own flesh, Aldrin, so you can take that look off your face.” He slaps me across the shoulder, hard. “It turns into a mist of particles and flows back into us, just like breathing. And your food—” He taps at my plate with a fork. “The meat is all cattle. Dark hounds, longhorn bovine and sometimes abyss fowls, though getting them here without them turning to ash in the dusk light is a logistical nightmare. No high fae or nymphsin there. Not even a stray human. I have heard you are fond of them.” He laughs again.
I like him,Keira murmurs.
He will probably try to kill me. You know that, right?
I wait for her witty quip or laughter, but none comes. Then I see the sneers of the crowds pointed at her. Hear the derogatory insults they throw her way and flinch when fruit is tossed at her, even though it hits her subtle air shield and slides away without hurting her.
Stay with me, Keira. Leave your body behind. Taste this food.
It is all I can do for her from this distance. That, and keep my mind clear of the anger rising within, of the frantic desperation to save her, so it is a pleasant place for her to reside.
