Page 26 of The Dark Will Rise

King Irvine had professed to have allies everywhere. Even the Siren Queen had fallen into that category. I wondered how far my uncle's reach extended and if the memory of my mother would be enough to save me when or if we were found by someone with bad intentions.

I had little magic on land, and the water reacting to my anger on the rocks had been unexpected and something I wasn’t sure I could replicate again. Whenever I looked at my mates, Rainn and Tor, I saw how beautiful, powerful, and capable they were. All of the things I wished I could be.

I couldn’t help but think of my years in the castle, barred from leaving even to go to the market and watch the dancers. Or choosing clothing and attending school with the other courtier's children.

The day was spent in thought, though Rainn and Tor remained alert, searching every shadow for a sign of an attacker. I wallowed, dredging my self-loathing like the bottom of the lake. Mining my inadequacies and wondering if I would ever be good enough to stand at their side. Would I ever be able to command respect like the Siren Queen or be safe enough to have a family like the Selkie Queen?

The last gairid path spat us out on the top of a rolling hill. The lake sat in the distance, the size of a shiny silver coin. Panic grabbed me, and I thought about the time it would take to return to the shore. As Rainn had said, would we make it to the village the next day? Had the gairid path thrown us far across the Night Court to fend for ourselves?

The path seemed to have taken us exactly where Rainn had expected us to be, though that knowledge did nothing for my panic. Rainn seemed to enjoy flying by the seat of his pants. I had once been the same before everything had happened.

I had never seen such a large building on land before. The beaches surrounding the twilight lake were all but barren, save for the Skala beach and the nymph village, which was primitive compared to Cruinn and Tarsainn.

The inn looked like a castle in its own right, though smaller and made of wood. Several towers jutted out from the base, each twisting like coral and held up in a way that would only work underwater or through magic. Each of the windows blazed with light, and though there was snow on the ground of the valley, I felt the warmth from the inn—beaconing us closer and enticing us with the promise of a hearty meal and safety for our traveling party.

I rubbed my hands down my arms, feeling the gooseflesh on my exposed skin. I wore Rainn’s cloak, but further north, it seemed colder somehow. Away from the lake, which shared a border with the Day Court, the scant sunlight was gone, leaving a beautiful night sky with a host of stars I had never seen from the water.

Rainn helped me down the slope, and though I tripped several times, I kept my feet. I threatened the selkie with violence every time he let a laugh slip free from his lips.

Rainn put his hand over his heart, wounded. “Tor, won’t you protect me? We’re meant to be a team.”

Tor rolled his eyes. “If you wear jewels when you swim by a coral reef, you will attract a barracuda.” He said sagely.

Luckily, we made it down the valley without falling on our asses, though it was close. Cold and wet, we approached the inn. Tor and Rainn sauntered down the wood chip path, lined with burning torches, as if they walked amongst the land fae daily. My nerves halted my steps at the edge of the path, and it took a moment to push my fear down before I continued after them. My desire for a warm meal and a good night's rest was too strong to allow myself to succumb to nerves.

My mates waited at the door until I caught up, tightening Rainn’s coat around my shoulders to hide every part of myself below my throat. The lake was too far for me to feel comfortable on land. There was no way to summon water as I had done on the rocks, and I did not possess any undine abilities that might have made me a threat to any hostile Fae.

A wave of sound leaked out of the heavy wooden door as Rainn pushed into the inn. The smell of delicious food and warmth I wasn’t used to. Life under the waves had disadvantages when it came to smell, and I was unused to the sense of being unfettered. My mouth filled with saliva, and my stomach growled. Tor shot me a toothy grin, and I knew he had heard it.

My eyes took a moment to adjust, though the faelight in the room was bright enough that I could see every table. A wall of bottles sat behind a bar, with barrels stacked against one side of the room. The floor was wood, but there was no consistency in the color. Several spots were darker than others, and I soon realized the lighter spots were where people preferred to stand. The color had worn away by hundreds of different pairs of feet over the years.

We approached the bar, and Rainn drew a leather pouch from his belt, counting out five silver coins—the like of which I had never seen before. Though I was certain that people used money under the waves, I had never experienced such a thing. I wondered if I should start thinking about treasures and providing for myself. I had relied on fae guesting laws to a point, but would my situation change? What would happen if the selkies disowned Rainn because of me?

My curiosity and good mood soured.

The fae behind the bar swept forward, her breasts bobbing with every step, threatening to fall out of her linen top. Her ears were pointed, the same as many water fae in their humanoid forms, though her eyes were a sharp violet that glowed as she studied us.

Rainn placed the coins on the bar before pushing his hands back into his pockets as if troubled by the feel of the coins. He rocked on his heels and flashed a more subdued version of his well-known Rainn smile. There was no heat in it, as there was when he looked at me. His expression remained cordial as he waited for the female fae to speak.

“That’s enough for one room.” She narrowed her eyes, looking at all three of us.

“We only need one room,” Tor growled.

The female fae arched her blonde brow and eyed me appreciatively. “One room, it is. Alright then. Good luck with these two. They look like freshies that haven’t yet had a fuck on land. Pull the bell if they give you trouble.” She put a key on the bar and pushed it toward us. I snatched it and tucked it against my chest.

“What was that about?” I whispered as soon as we moved away from the bar. “What’s a freshie?”

“Someone fresh from the water. A water fae without experience on land.” Rainn grumbled, looking like he’d bitten into a squid and gotten a mouth full of ink.

Tor bit back a laugh, “She thinks you’re a lady of the night.”

“I am a lady.” I frowned. “I have a title in the Esteemed Undine Court. It was never taken from me, though my mother died. I also reside in the Night Court…”

Tor coughed to hide a laugh, and Rainn looked even more uncomfortable.

“She thinks you sell your body to travelers from the lake. The land fae surrounding the lake often believe that the water fae don’t know how to… that they don’t know what it feels like to… above the surface.” Rainn stammered over his words.

My brow furrowed. I had never known Rainn to be nervous about sex. “And you’re upset because you think my honor is besmirched?”

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