Page 76 of Fae Champion

No doubt, also the most terrible.

But his flattery tipped the queen’s head upward, a shadow of a smile toying with her lips. “Azariah!” she barked.

The unisus trotted over and dipped his head with that majestic horn toward the ground. “How may I be of service, Your Majesty?”

“Rush is to swear an oath before your magic.”

“Yes, of course.” He stood, and Rush quickly repeated the same oaths as before, his carefully precise wording identical.

Azariah nodded and announced to the queen: “He speaks the truth.” But once she again dismissed the unisus, he glanced back at Rush several times, as if the magical creature knew exactly what Rush was doing.

“Very well, Rush. You get another chance,” the queen said.

“And the Lady Elowyn? I’ve sworn to protect her with my life.”

The queen pursed her lips, mumbling something under her breath that sounded very much like,Thanks to my idiotic husband, but I couldn’t be sure.

A pair of eyes danced too close, making me work ridiculously hard to ignore them, when the queenrelented. “Fine, I won’t publicly accuse Elowyn of conspiring against me either.” No mention of how she’d imprisoned me for days and intended to let me die in the dungeon. None, either, about how she’d gotten Lennox to stab me when everyone’s backs were turned. No reference to how a public accusation was the least of my worries when it came to her.

My muscles didn’t so much as ease in relief. I knew what was coming next. What someone like her would do.

“It doesn’t matter anyway.” As if bored, she studied the giant ruby on her finger—a match to the ones swinging around her face—and how it glimmered in the sunlight.

I warred with the urge to snatch that ring and ram it down her throat. Death by opulence would be a fitting end for her, if a little too light on the suffering.

She met Rush’s waiting stare. “You must do what’s best for Embermere. Do you understand?”

“I do.”

“In case you’re tempted to forget, I have your precious Drakes Hiroshi, West, and Ryder in the fae dungeon awaiting … my command. Make a wrong step and they’ll join the corpses of Elowyn’s shifter and that hideous dragon of hers.”

Which was it, already?! Were they alive or dead?

She was lying now. She had to be, or I’d have failed my friends for good this time.

Rush’s tan face paled. “They’ve done nothing wrong.”

“And if you don’t either, then you’ll have nothing to worry about. Remember, Larissa depends on you too.” Another casual scan of her ruby. “She’s been looking a bit wan lately, wouldn’t you say?”

The queen’s lilt was mocking, taunting, but all Rush said was, “Please.”

She only hmmmphed in his direction before grinning evilly at me. “I’ve made sure you can’t call on any more of that dragon filth today. This fight will be won based on your personal magic alone.” Her mouth twisted in repulsion though I wasn’t entirely certain why.

“I don’t have personal magic.”

That disgust morphed into pleasure. “Exactly.”

“You have enough to revive from certain death,” Rush said.

She spun on him. “Whose side are you on?”

“The side of what’s right.” But those words, he directed them at me. Though he looked back at the queen, I felt them in my heart almost like an … apology. “I’ll do what needs to be done.”

I couldn’t decide whom he was speaking to now, perhaps both of us.

“See that you do,” the queen said tightly. “Your prize will be the eventual crown of Embermere and a wife who’ll do whatever you want, no matter how base your desires.” My jaw clenched and my nostrils flared before I forced myself to pretend I didn’t care. “You’ll join me in doing what must be done for the mirror world and its fae.”

“And Larissa? My friends?”

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