Page 44 of The Last Heir of Elsewhere

He was wrong. I wasn’t calm at all, far from it in fact. I’d simply shut down, unable to think beyond anything but the present moment. If I let myself get as angry as Scion had the luxury of being, if I let the monster in the back of my mind out to play, I’d lose control.

Losing control for me wasn’t as manageable as it was for the rest of my family. If my magic leaked as Scion’s shadows did, I could destroy an entire village. If I removed the wall I constantly kept around my mind, I’d shift into my other form by mistake, and then we’d have an entirely different problem. I needed to maintain the appearance of calm…for now.

“Don’t say that as if she’s only mine,” I hissed. “Look at the state of this fucking room, this is not the behavior of someone who doesn’t care.”

He glared at me. “I’m only pointing out, you seemed far more concerned during the second hunt.”

“Of course,” I snapped. “Then, I knew she was in danger. There was a gigantic fucking snake…” I trailed off, realization dawning. Ambrose was not the only seer in the area.

“A snake?” Scion asked. “I never heard about a fucking snake.”

I ignored him, my eyes rolling again as I flicked through various angles of the quarry. This time, I wasn’t looking for Lonnie. My target now was much, much larger.

Finally, I spotted a disturbance in the water, enormous ripples covering the surface as if something large and serpentine were moving just out of sight. With an excited shout, I jumped to my feet. “I’ve got it.”

“Where is she?” Scion demanded, the mingled panic and relief evident in his tone.

“Not Lonnie,” I said, grinning as I returned my eyes to his. “But I know how we’re going to find her.”

19

LONNIE

ABOARD THE FORESIGHT

In my dream, I stared up in abject terror at the two Fae males.

Though I’d never encountered the Fae this close, there was no mistaking either of the men for human. One had long, chestnut colored hair, tied back in a braid at the base of his neck, and wore a black cloak that shifted with every movement, revealing a glint of a sword at his belt. The planes of his face were sharp, almost feline, and his sharp golden-yellow eyes held only cruelty as he watched me. The other male, looked somehow younger than the first. He was certainly cleaner, and his clothing was made of fine, evenly dyed fabric. His hair was silver—not the gray or white of age that I’d seen occasionally on those humans that were lucky enough to grow to old age, but silver, like mother’s knives.

A cold terror washed over me and I stumbled backwards, the gravel beneath my feet scraping and clattering.

The Fae were evil, twisted creatures who’d stolen my mother away from her real home in the night, never to see her own family again. I’d heard countless stories of the terrible court of Nightshade, that once stood on this land before the Gods had seen fit to punish the Fae for their wickedness. Mother made sure that from the moment we could speak, Rosey and I learned that our only weapon was to lie, and to hope never to be noticed. She said that the best thing a fairy could be was dead, and if we were ever taken by them that we should either kill them or hope to die trying. Still, I’d never had cause to take her warnings seriously. Not until today.

My heart raced as a large hand lunged toward me, aiming for the neckline of my dress. I could feel the fabric tighten as the chestnut-haired male dragged me to my feet. “What are you doing in the grass, girl?”

I opened my mouth wide and let out a high-pitched scream, using every ounce of air in my lungs. In a moment of panic, I swung my leg up and aimed a hard kick at the male’s legs.

Chuckling, the male turned to his companion. “Vicious little thing, isn’t it? Do you think it speaks the common language?”

“Leave her, Commander,” the silver-haired male said flatly. “We hardly have time for this.”

The commander yanked harder on my collar, shaking me so my feet dangled a few inches above the ground. “It’s been many years since I encountered a human, but I daresay this one looks familiar.”

“Familiar, sir?”

“Do you not see the resemblance? I think we’ve come across that Slúagh bitch’s child.”

The silver haired male stepped forward slightly, and I met his black eyes. He seemed to be trying to look through me, as if he could see something that was not there. Then, his brow furrowed and he shook his head. “Perhaps. But, if so, then that’s even more reason to leave the child alone.”

The commander ignored him. He leaned close to my face and spoke slowly and loudly, as if unsure if I understood him. “Slúagh, where is your mother?”

I tried to kick him again, and this time he dropped me. I landed hard on the ground, and gasped for air, my chest heaving as I let out another blood-curdling scream. The shadow of the male’s hand loomed over me for a split second, poised to strike me across the face.

“Don’t,” the silver-haired male said sharply, grabbing his commander’s arm and holding him back.

The commander swiveled his neck around, to look at his companion. His tone was sneering. “Am I offending you, Prince Ambrose? Do your delicate Seelie sensibilities extend to letting your heart bleed for humans?”

The other male’s expression didn’t change, and he looked bored as he made a derisive noise in the back of his throat. “Hardly, but if you murder Rhiannon’s child before we’ve even seen her, it certainly won’t win her over to your side. Is the greater good worth sacrificing over one human?”

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