Page 55 of The Fae Lord

“Of course.” I lace my fingers together behind my back. “How could I not, after what Finn showed us?”

Briony nods slowly. She pauses and scuffs her foot against the floor. “I’m not sure I want to.” She speaks quietly, and meets my eyes with a look that is swimming with guilt. A tear escapes and rolls down her pale cheek. “Alana, I’m not brave or strong. I was in the castle because I had nothing to lose. After Henrik died...” She inhales sharply. We haven’t spoken of the fact that my friend killed her lover, and that she was the one who reported Kayan to Eldrion, since we got here.

I do not blame her.

But she blames herself.

“Here, though...” She gestures to the forest surrounding us. “It’s peaceful, Alana. Perhaps we’re foolish for wanting more.”

“But Finn is right, Briony.” I rub my temple and try to shift the thoughts of Eldrion that are starting to cloud my mind once more. “He will never truly let us go. We’ll never really be free. And don’t you think we have a duty to make sure no one has to suffer at the hands of that man ever again?”

Briony sighs a heavy sigh. “I just want a simple life.” She stops and sits down, crossing her legs. She picks a daisy and smells it, smiling. “A husband, and some children. A vegetable patch.”

“That sounds delightful.” I sit, too, and smile at her. “But none of that will happen if Eldrion stays in power. He will never let it.”

I hesitate. For the second time today, I am tempted to share the truth about my visions. The future I have seen if Eldrion remains in power. Because now, more than ever, I am convinced that is what I’ve been seeing.

Before I can decide whether to burden Briony with my truth, a familiar bell chimes in the distance. Finn... Finn is back.

I rise quickly, helping Briony to her feet, and pad quickly through the forest, grass cool beneath my feet despite the warm sun above us.

When we reach him, he waves, and smiles. He runs towards me and scoops me into his arms, kissing me with a strength I haven’t felt in weeks. “I know how we’ll do it.” He looks into my eyes, then kisses my forehead. “Alana, I know exactly how we will win.”

Finn is pacing up and down. We are by the lake, alone. He asked Briony to leave us, and he’s speaking so quickly I can hardly keep up. “It all makes sense now,” he says, grinning at me.

His wings flutter as he speaks.

“Garratt, the elf, sent me to an ancient library. I read a text. A long, detailed text. It was in old elvish.”

“You speak old elvish?” I frown at him, almost smiling because of the energy fizzing on his skin but struggling to make sense of what he’s saying.

“We all do. All Shadowkind,” he says dismissively. “But that’s not the point, Alana. It told me his weakness.”

“Whose weakness?”

“Eldrion’s... Well, it didn’t tell me. Garratt told me before I even got to the library. But the text made it all make sense.”

“Finn, please slow down. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

He takes a deep breath, clutching my hands. “He has shadow magic.” Finn’s eyes brighten.

Shadow magic... I shake my head. “No living fae has shadow magic.”

“Eldrion does. There have always been rumours, but one of Garratt’s contacts in the castle saw it with her own eyes. Saw him using it. Garratt, too. Clearly, Eldrion’s losing control.”

Ice-like dread settles in the base of my stomach. “Finn, how is this a good thing? Shadow magic is one of the most powerful...” I inhale sharply. “I can’t fight him. I can’t win against a fae who can command that kind of darkness.”

“But you can if you can also command the darkness.”

“I don’t understand.” I let go of his hands and put some space between us. Over Finn’s shoulder, Kayan appears. He is watching us. He does not speak to me, but his words echo in my head. Do not trust what they say.

I try to dislodge them, so I can think clearly.

“Alana, you already took some of his powers. If you can make him use his shadow magic, and then take it from him – you can end him.” Finn looks at my hands, and I realise I am holding them out in front of me, palms up, as if they might start glowing at any moment. “And then you can use it to destroy them all.” Finn’s lips stretch into a grin. “Alana, if you can take Eldrion’s shadow magic, we can right centuries of wrongs, and truly free the kingdom. We can make Luminael what it once was.” He stretches out his arms and raises his voice. “We really can end them all, Alana. You can end them all.”

Finn doesn’t wait for my response, just squeezes my hands, and tells me he has to go and talk to Yarrow. “Do not speak of the shadow magic, though,” he says as he jogs away. “We have to keep that between us. The others won’t understand. They won’t trust your power.”

As soon as he is out of sight, Kayan appears in front of me.

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