Page 61 of Chosen By the Fae King

Thirteen

Aeryn

The morning sun filtered through the cloudy sky above as I made my way to the edge of the courtyard, near the castle gates to the north. My stomach churned with a mixture of dread and anticipation.

Today was the hunt.

Nox would choose the winner to spend the evening with him. It wasn't a trial, but Liam had said the king thought a contest would motivate some of the contestants.

Motivate them to do what?

The thought of Nox spending time with another female, of his hands on her, made my blood boil. Which was ridiculous. I didn't want to be a queen, much less have a shot at beating out the other contestants.

I picked up my pace when I saw they were already gathered, several preening like lovestruck doves. Their demeanors juxtaposed with their attire. Sleek grey and black hunting outfits and shiny weapons didn't quite scream simper in the way ballgowns and high heels did.

Four of them had put on full faces of makeup.

“Lady Aeryn, you're late,” Nox chastised, his gaze raking over me.

Heat flushed my skin. “My apologies, Your Majesty. I had some ... trouble in the armory.”

Trouble getting lectured by Lorne because I didn't want to carry a sword, something I was shit at wielding. In the end I'd exited with a bow and quiver full of arrows, despite my insistence I had no intention of killing anything.

Nox glanced at Lorne who trailed behind me. The Vanilla Ogre grunted, which apparently meant it was fine because Nox let it go.

Lorne made his way to the front of the small crowd. “The rules are simple. First, for those of you who can, you will lose your portaling ability when you enter the hunting grounds. Second, this is not an actual trial so all the training rules still apply. Think of it as an opportunity.”

“An opportunity for what, My Prince?” asked Cadence, one of the vapid and superficial females who only kept company with Zoriyah and a few others of similar upbringing.

“Do try to think before interrupting, Lady Cadence,” Lorne answered testily, pausing for the snickers to die down.

I smiled. The male was growing on me. My fist lifted to hide my mouth when I heard Mirrelle's cackle.

Cadence was a Twat with a capital T. I'd tried making friendly conversation with her and her sister, Callis. They pretended they couldn't see me because, “Small pieces of dirt were so hard to see.”

Callis had risen out of her seat when I'd responded with, “Too bad the same can't be said for large pieces of shit.” She sat when Cadence hissed Dori's name as a reminder.

There wasn't enough coin in the royal coffers to get me to willingly socialize with that pair of tarts.

“Second,” Lorne continued, “you have until sunset to capture your prey. The female who presents the finest kill will join the king for an evening of companionship.”

My stomach knotted.

“Any other questions?” No one spoke so he motioned everyone through the gate.

Cadence sidled up to Nox, stroking his arm with her manicured nails, the glittering white polish contrasting her reddish bronze skin. “Will you be giving us a head start, Your Majesty?”

Nox's eyes sparked. “No, my lady. You'll have to outhunt me.”

Her glossed lips pushed out in an overdone pout. Nox patted her hand, smiling indulgently.

If I'd had claws I'd have swiped at both their mouths.

Once we'd all made it beyond the gates, Lorne moved ahead of the group, eying the crowd. “You begin ... now!”

The contestants scattered into the forest. Excited shrieks reverberated through the trees. All except me and Sofiya. We didn't chase after them.

Sofiya hadn't gone hunting since the day a baby deer had died in her arms. And I'd never hunted just for the sake of killing something.

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