Page 16 of The Jester

Fury erupts like a volcano deep inside me. I fly at him, throw my hand around his throat and squeeze until he chokes out a stifled, “Lord Eldrion, please. I thought you’d want to know.”

Dropping him so hard he falls to the floor, I turn around and stride back to the window. “Get out,” I growl, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. “Get out, now.”

Finn scurries from the room but I barely hear him go.

I pace the length of the throne room, my wings twitching. With a roar of frustration, I slam my fist against the window pane, sending cracks splintering across the glass.

The Gloomweavers can do what they will with the rest of the elementals. They can strip the forests bare, and the valleys, and the beaches. But Alana is mine.

She is mine, and I will do what I must to claim her.

Chapter Seven

ALANA

Iwake with a start, my neck screaming in protest as I lift my head from where it lolled against my chest during the night. The chains around my wrists dig into my skin. I can’t believe I fell asleep. It must have been sometime in the early hours, when the sound of the others crying became too much to bear. Even with my gates up.

My mouth is dry, and my tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth.

As my eyes adjust to the dim light, I see Rawk’s lifeless body still sprawled on the floor and wish I was still sleeping.

“Would have been easier if he’d stayed an asshole right up to the end, huh?” Kayan says, his chains clinking as he shifts to look at me.

I offer him a wry smile. My hair has fallen across my face, but moving it is awkward because of the chains. “Don’t worry about Rosalie,” I offer him. “She’ll be fine. She’s feisty.”

He smiles, and his cheek dimples. “She certainly is.” He inhales sharply, looking at me as though he’s about to say something important. But then the cell door clangs open, and the bulky silhouettes of the Gloomweavers appear on the other side of the bars.

Rough hands grab at us, dragging us to our feet. I don’t recognise these ones, but it doesn’t matter. They are all as cruel as each other.

They herd us out of the cell, prodding us with the butts of their weapons, their laughter echoing off the stone walls as we pass through dark, dank tunnels.

We emerge into a vast, circular space, a colosseum-like structure with tiered seats rising up on all sides. The light stings my eyes, and I squint up at the stands as thick, humid air meets my skin.

The stands are filled with a raucous crowd, drinking and hollering despite the fact the sun is only just creeping up over the horizon.

“Eldrion lets this happen?” Kayan hisses at me. “I mean, he must know about it, and he lets it happen?”

I shake my head and sigh. Over the years, I’ve become good at listening. When no one speaks to you, it is about the only thing you can do. And I’ve heard the rumours. I’ve heard what they say about the lord who rules Luminael. About his cruelty, the way he treats women, the backhanders he gives to criminals and thugs in order to keep the streets under control.

The elders keep it from the rest of the villagers. But they know what happens in the cities and, because of them, I know too.

“Why would he care what happens here?” I ask with a sigh. “Sunborne care for no one but themselves, and he is the oldest of them all. To him, elementals are bugs to be squashed. Not because we are inferior like the Shadowkind, but because he is afraid of us.”

Kayan hisses through his front teeth. Before he can answer me, we are thrust into a pen at one side of the arena, our chains rattling as we collide with each other in the tight space.

Across from us, a stage rises from the dirt floor, and upon it stands the female Gloomweaver who ended Rawk’s life. She raises her hands, and the crowd falls silent.

“Welcome,” she calls out, her voice ringing through the arena. “Today, we have a special treat for you. A fresh batch of forest fae, ripe for the picking.”

My stomach churns at her words, bile rising in my throat. Beside me, Kayan tenses, his jaw clenched tight.

The Gloomweaver gestures to the side of the stage. The crowd falls silent, and then my heart leaps into my throat as Rosalie is dragged forward, her hair tangled and matted, her face streaked with tears. Kayan’s entire body uncoils and he lurches forward. A guard nearby slashes at his shins with a large metal prod, then smashes it across his back, striking his wings and sending him to his knees.

Rosalie stands, trembling, in the same pale brown dress I was given to wear. She searches the crowd, then her eyes land on the pen. She cannot see Kayan because he is still on the floor, but she sees me. Her eyes catch mine.

I nod at her and try to smile. Try to tell her it will be all right if she stays strong.

Oh, how I wish I could take her pain away. Absorb it all, swallow it down, and leave her feeling brave and powerful instead of like she’s about to crumble.