Page 165 of Court of the Fae Princes

I take in a deep breath and raise my head to stare at Cassia. The Keeper– her mother– lies still on the floor. Like the dead that surround her, she doesn’t move, doesn’t breathe, doesn’t radiate life. She’s learned a lesson she should have already known. As powerful as the fae are, there’s a reason humans were able to control us for so long. A blade is just as deadly to our bodies as it is to a human’s body. In that, we’re the same.

Cassia looks confused. She turns those brilliant blue eyes onto us, and our gazes lock. I try to rise, but the chains jerk me back down to the ground. It’s been so long since I’ve seen her. How long, I don’t know, but long enough that my heart hurts. I want to go to her. To hold her.

If she really loves us. If her words were really true.

“The pouch at her waist has the keys, Cassia,” Cobar calls out.

His words seem to shake her from her stupor. She kneels beside the body of the Keeper of Death, just outside the pool of blood forming beneath her, and rummages through the leather pouch. I’m glad she doesn’t show the body any respect. She doesn’t deserve it.

After a minute, the jingle of keys sounds through the chamber. She lifts them and smiles, just a little, but the smile warms my heart. We’re free, we really are, and Cassia is here with us. It’s unbelievable.

And she might love us. Really love us. Even though it makes no sense. Not after how badly I fucked things up with her.

I draw in a shaky breath. I’d given up hope. I truly thought we’d be here forever while the Keeper of Death waged war on our lands and destroyed the kingdom. Witnessing Cassia take down her own mother to save us feels like I just watched a dream. We’re free of the Keeper, and Cassia has been returned to us.

Hell, she came here, faced a dangerous fae, and somehow developed powers all to… rescue us?

Then she’s in front of me, keys in hand, and I catch her wrist, waiting until she looks at me. “I’m sorry for how badly I handled everything between us,” I murmur, my voice thick with regret. “I handled it like an entitled ass.”

The soft laugh that comes from her tugs at my heart. “We already fixed that in our dream, remember?”

“What?”

She laughs, running a hand lightly against my cheek. “We fixed things.”

“W-we did?” I stammer.

In our dream? What’s she saying? I remember dreaming of her, of holding her, of making things better between us, but that was all in my head. That wasn’t real.

Maybe it’s my pain, my exhaustion, or my hunger or thirst, but I have no idea what she’s saying.

“Wait. Have we been dream sharing?” Zane asks, his voice a tinge higher than normal.

Cassia nods. Every muscle in my body stiffens as my mind starts to filter through all the strange dreams I’ve been having involving Cassia since she became my mate. Did we really share all of that?

Sulien, still bleeding and broken, asks, “What about us in bed…all of us?”

Cassia blushes and clears her throat before responding with a clear, “Yes.”

That was a good dream.

“When I took you home to my castle?” Zane asks.

“Yes, I had that same dream, too. And the hunting dream,” she says, turning to me. “I learned a lot about each of you, in a lot of different ways.” And she sounds… almost embarrassed.

I rub at my wrists and neck as Cassia frees me, then moves on to everyone else. She said she was coming for us. She said she’d free us, and I didn't believe her. I couldn’t imagine anyone, including my beautiful mate, freeing us from the Keeper of Death. I watch her in awe, knowing how much I don’t deserve her.

Cobar hugs her first, wrapping his arms around her and breathing her in. I want to push him out of the way and do the same, but she’s all of ours. She loves us, and we have to learn to share our affections with her. Even if it kills me a little.

“How is it that you have magic?” Cobar asks, sounding as confused about the matter as I am.

She gazes toward Cobar, a smile tugging at her lips. “Lady Nova noticed the burns on me from the iron chains and assumed I was fae. She encouraged me to try using my powers, so I did some small stuff. All of this, though?” She waves her hand around the room. “I didn’t expect it at all. Well, that’s not exactly true. I could feel my power growing as soon as I entered this place. I didn’t understand why, and I had no idea I could do any of what I just did until I was doing it.”

She moves on to Zane. He’s quieter than usual, but he stares at her with awe as she unlocks the shackles from him. Then he takes her hands in his and kisses them.

“All you ever wanted was for your family to be safe. She offered you all of that and more, but you walked away from it. You walked away from your dream.”

The smile on her face is thoughtful. “Dreams change.”

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