Page 117 of The Cursed Kingdom

“Let me go!” I grunt, kicking out my foot.

The guard hisses as I make contact with his shin, and before I can register what’s happening, I’m being spun around. He holds my wrists against my lower spine, pulling my shoulders down and back until every breath and movement I make hurts.

“Where’s Kie?” I ask through clenched teeth.

I need to know. Lill’s all I can think about, and these past several hours of solitude have me fearing the worst. Kie was so angry, and I’m afraid he’s had her killed or something equally as horrible.

What if he’s torturing her? Or having one of his oversized guards do it for him?

She didn’t do anything wrong, and he’s an idiot to think otherwise. Lill came to the human realm as a child, barely even seven years old. He has her confused with somebody else.

“Queen Gitta wishes to see you,” the guard says, forcing me to walk through Kie’s home. He’s leading me to the front door.

His warm breath brushes against the top of my ear as he pushes it open, and I shiver in disgust.

I look for Kie as I’m led outside, but I see no sign of him.

My heart pounds, and I can’t tell whether I’m more frightened about not knowing what’s happening to Lill or that I’m being taken to see the queen. Is Kie going to be there? I assume Queen Gitta is his mother.

I bet she’s just as bastardly as he is. Maybe even worse. He had to learn his lack of charm somewhere, and I doubt the apple falls far from the tree.

The guard forces me through a courtyard before leading me down several wide walkways. He maintains his hard grip on my wrists, and he tightens up every time I struggle against him. It’s overkill. The faeries are easily ten times stronger than I am,andthey have magic. There’s no need to be so rough.

“Release me,” I plead, dragging my feet against the ground. “I’m delicate.”

The guard snorts, but the noise is cut short. His eyes grow comically wide before his head jerks sideways, and I stumble away as his back bows and his knees buckle. He collapses to the ground in a heap, and I curl my fingers around the nearest vine-covered trellis as I lock eyes with the feral shifter standing behind him.

The guard’s on the ground, and his violet eyes are shut. I don’t think he’s dead. I hope he’s not dead.

I turn back to the shifter.

“Mason.”

Mason cocks his head to the side, his gaze briefly sliding down my frame, before he grunts and reaches for me. I don’t bother trying to run or break free as he maneuvers me into the same aggressive hold the guard had me in.

At least this one doesn’t physically hurt.

I’m getting sick and tired of this, and I bite my bottom lip until it bleeds as Mason leads us back toward the building Kie locked me inside.

I was hoping Zaha would return him to the forest to be attacked and eaten by the other shifters, but I suppose none of my wishes are coming true today.

Chapter Forty-Nine

ABBY

MASON DOESN’T SAY a word as he shoves open the doors to the home Kie locked me up inside, but I can tell he’s pissed. It’s his usual level of pissed, though, so I assume he hasn’t heard about Lill. At least, he hasn’t heard about heryet. I’m sure it’s only a matter of time.

He releases me the moment we’re safely back inside Kie’s space, and he shuts the door behind us with a loud slam. It’s so aggressive that the floor vibrates beneath my feet.

I didn’t pay attention to the details of Kie’s home before, but now I take a moment to look around.

It’s a surprisingly cozy, open-concept living space. There’s an oversized black couch in the center of the room, and across from it is a fireplace that has no business being as large as it is. A tall row of windows is behind it all, and despite how dark it is outside, I see twinkles from the lights woven throughout the vines covering the stone wall surrounding the compound.

“Kie?” Mason asks.

He storms through the living room before disappearing down the long hallway Kie forced me down earlier. Kie’s nothere, but I’m not in a rush to tell Mason that. He’s distracted, and I want him to remain that way.

To my right is a kitchen, and I do my best to remain quiet as I slink past the large island counter separating it from the main living space. The kitchen looks nearly identical to what I’d expect a wealthy human’s kitchen to look like. The countertops feel expensive, and five wooden barstools are shoved underneath the long island.

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