Page 216 of The War and Deceit Series omnibus

Later, we lie together under my cloak, our legs entwined. Our bodies are sweaty, and I can feel his release between my legs. I know I’m going to have to return to the others soon, which is going to be…awkward. However, right now, I push thosethoughts away. The lazy smile on my face is genuine as I draw patterns on the exposed skin of his chest with my finger.

He captures my arm, stopping my movements, and twists it gently as he holds it up, examining it. “This tattoo is new. I didn’t notice it earlier.” The campfire outside the tent offers just enough light for us to see, but I don’t think that’s the reason he didn’t notice earlier.

“It’s my tribal tattoo,” I tell him, pointing out the symbol of the hawk in the center of the other symbols and swirls that wrap around my right arm. “I received it when I became a member of the tribes.”

Humming a sound of acknowledgement, Grayson continues to examine it, brushing the swirls with his finger, making me shiver at his touch. Gently, he releases my arm and sits up, shifting his weight so he’s facing me. His expression makes me anxious, and I know our perfect bubble of peace is about to be burst.

“There’s something else I need to tell you. It’s the reason I’m able to stay with you.”

These words shouldn’t make me nervous, after all, the outcome is a positive one—Grayson finally gets to stay with me, we can be together. This is a good thing. Right?Then why does dread fill me? Hugging the cloak to my chest, I sit upright and face him. “Okay, tell me.”

“The magicians’ guild wants to fight alongside you.”

I stare at him for a few seconds as his words sink in. “Wait, what?” This was not what I was expecting him to say. I knew the magicians had stopped fighting for the King of Arhaven, but to say they would fight for me… Do they even know what they’re fighting for? Taking a deep breath, I decide to focus on the biggest issue. “You know that the elves fight with me, right?”

The humans and elves have been warring for centuries, with the mages being the humans’ greatest fighters. Their onlypurpose has been to worship the Great Mother and protect the humans from the elves. If they fight for me, they will be working alongside elves, and I don’t know if they can do that.

As if proving my point, Grayson’s expression hardens and he grits his teeth. “Not all of them.” I can’t hide my sigh of disappointment. I know it was stupid to wish Grayson would have gotten over his prejudice towards the elves. But since learning I was part elf, I hoped that would make him more open to accepting some of the elves. Seeing my despondency at his response, he reaches out and squeezes my hand.

“I know not all elves are evil,” he murmurs slowly, like the words are difficult for him to say. “They’ve helped you and you trust them, that’s enough for me.” I watch him as he speaks and gratitude fills me. He’s come a long way. He may not trust the elves, but to be able to trust in me, knowingItrust them, that means the world to me. I believe every word he says, but is it enough?

Smiling sadly, I squeeze his hand. “No, but they’re still elves. Are the mages going to be able to make that distinction?” I trust Grayson, I trust Wilson, but would I trust an army of magicians who have been trained to kill elves on sight? Their hatred runs deep, and the same goes the other way. I’m not even sure how the elves would take it. Would they be able to fight side by side with men they have been taught to hate? I think most of the elves would accept it if I was to speak with them.

It’s the high elves I’m not sure of. Or more specifically, Eldrin. He was captured and tortured for years by the humans. He’s never gone into details, but I’m sure the magicians were involved, if his hatred for them is anything to go by. Would he think I was betraying him if I was to accept the magicians’ help?

Feeling a headache coming on, I shut my eyes and rub my temples, sighing deeply. I’ll need to go back and speak with the others, which I know isn’t going to go down well. Another majorissue comes to mind. The mages split from the king because of his treatment of his people. I know they want to change how the city is run, but that’s not what this fight is about, and they need to understand why we are all here.

“I’m not going to war against the king,” I clarify, lowering my hands as I meet his eyes. “The elf queen is my enemy, do they know that?”

Grayson nods, reaching for his shirt as he starts to get dressed. “We’ve seen the evil the queen is capable of, it’s spreading across the land.” He shakes his head, his face paling, and I realise he must have seen some of that darkness on his travels. “The Mother came to us, she told us to trust in you, that you will guide us.” This surprises me, although I don’t know why I’m so shocked. She appeared to Grayson in a vision when he first saved me, so it makes sense that she would appear to him again.

“We know the elf queen needs to die,” Grayson continues, snapping my attention back from the past. “If we have to work alongside elves in the process, then so be it.” Relief fills me, but I get the feeling he’s trying to decide whether to tell me something or not. I stay silent, watching him dress until he just sighs and meets my gaze. “The other high mages will try to convince you to help us once all this is over though.”

He doesn’t specify what help the high mages want, he doesn’t need to, I know already—the king. Frowning, I make a noncommittal hum and pull my clothes on, knowing the time for cuddling is over. My feelings about the king are too complicated to think about now, especially when we’ve got a war looming on the horizon.

“Do the other mages agree with this?” I ask. Grayson might have decided to trust me when it comes to the elves. I can even believe that a few of the magicians will have strong enough faith in the Mother to put aside their hatred and work alongside theirenemy. However, what I struggle to believe is that they all came to this agreement. Who is going to keep them all in check?

That tightness in his jaw is back, so I know I’ve touched on a difficult subject. “The high mages came to an agreement.” The way he says it makes it sound like it wasn’t an easy or unanimous decision. He falls silent as he buckles his trousers, but as he reaches for his boots, he sighs and looks up at me. “They’re here to talk with you.”

I nod my head slowly. I half expected him to tell me this, after all, there were only two real options next—he was either going to ask me to go to the guild, or tell me the guild was here to see me. Seeing as they are propositioning me, I suppose it makes sense they came to me.This whole situation is crazy, my mind protests, part of me wondering how I’m so calm about this. “This isn’t just my decision, I don’t dictate,” I inform him as I finish dressing, working out the logistics of how we’re going to manage this meeting without everyone killing each other. “We need to speak with the elves and the high chief of the tribes.”

“There’s something else.” It’s his tone that alerts me to the fact that something is wrong. Before he just sounded wary, like he wasn’t sure how I was going to take his news, but now, something has changed. That sense of dread returns as I take in his serious expression and the apology in his eyes. “We have a message for you.”

“A message?” Confusion and fear fill me, who could be sending me a message, especially one that would cause this reaction from Grayson? “From whom?”

“The king.” His answer strikes fear in my heart, and I work to keep my expression blank as I wait to hear the message. “He wants you to return to Arhaven.”

“Did you sleep at all?” Vida chides as she runs her gaze over me.

Groaning, I rub the heels of my hands against my eyes, trying in vain to push back the weariness that torments me. The answer is no, or at least it feels that way. After Grayson’s revelation, we returned to our respective groups to arrange a meeting. The tribes agreed to a conference almost immediately. The wood elves and sea elves were wary but decided to trust my judgement. If I thought they would be safe, they would go and hear what the magicians had to say. As I suspected, it was the high elves who were causing problems.

It was already late when I returned, and Eldrin had been pacing the treeline. As soon as he saw me, he was at my side, running his eyes over me, and I saw the moment he smelled Grayson on me with his enhanced fae senses. It was a good thing Grayson didn’t come back with me, because I think Eldrin would have tried to kill him, if his snarls were anything to go by. After that, he wouldn’t let me out of his sight, fighting me at everyturn as I tried to organise the meeting with the high mages. Thankfully, Vaeril and Naril helped calm him down, taking him into the woods, and I was eventually able to crawl into my tent with Tor. It was a fitful sleep, and what sleep I did get was plagued with dreams of forsaken and the King of Arhaven, who laughed as he watched me crawling through puddles of blood to get to my dying mother.

“I’m fine,” I reply with a tight smile. Looking around at the group, I can’t help but feel a wave of anxiety.

The only way the mages would agree to meet with the elves was if one elf from each group attended the meeting. Speaker Hawthorn from the wood elves and Speaker Beck from the sea elves stand together, speaking in quiet voices. Beck is tall, broad shouldered, and blue skinned like all sea elves, with webbed fingers and toes, but he’s adorned with shells on his pointed ears and around his neck. His simple shift-like clothing is beaded and also covered in shells. I met him briefly before, and like the sea elves I’ve encountered previously, he seemed soft spoken and kind. Vaeril stands near them, but instead of taking part in the conversation, he’s watching me. It was agreed that, as my mate, he was the best option for the high elf representative. My aunt, as high chief, and the other eleven chiefs are here, and it was agreed that Vida, as one of the tribes’ religious advisers, could attend. There is much the magicians don’t know about the tribes, so this meeting is important if we are all to work together.

“Do you think this is going to work?” I keep my voice low, not wanting the others to overhear. We’re just waiting for the mages to arrive now, and I find the steady, no-nonsense attitude of Vida calming, so I’ve been waiting with her.

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