Page 88 of Crown of Slumber

“Would you have preferred I gut him with my sword?” I snapped. “Get on!”

Aurelia puffed an exasperated breath. She ignored my outstretched hand and swung up, settling in front of me on the saddle. With my arms on either side of her, I flicked the reins and dug in my heels, spurring the horse into motion. In seconds, we were taking off, galloping madly down the road. Behind us, more shouts echoed. I chanced a glance behind us and found flickering lantern lights illuminating dozens of shadowy figures.

Soldiers, no doubt.

I flicked the reins again, and the stallion put on a burst of speed. Wind whipped fiercely at us, and Aurelia’s hood fell down, her strawberry hair billowing around us.

“He won’t last long if we push him like this,” Aurelia said. “Not with two riders.”

“We don’t need to go far. We just need to make it to the Mistwood Hills and we’ll be clear.”

“What makes you say that? The soldiers can easily follow us through those hills.”

“You’ll see,” I muttered darkly.

Aurelia glanced at me over her shoulder, brows furrowed and her expression full of mistrust. I had already revealed my fae magic to her. And now, we were about to venture through the deadly Mistwood Hills, which would only further remind her of the despicable nature of my court.

As the horse carried us farther away from the Autumn Palace, my mouth set into a grim line as I felt that impenetrable barrier wedging itself between me and the princess once more.

We rode hardfor an hour before the mist began to overtake us. Aurelia stiffened in alarm, her back pressing into my chest, but she said nothing as we slowed to a trot to give the stallion a bit of a rest.

The mist would protect us. I knew that much.

When the fog was so thick we could barely see the path in front of us, I pulled on the reins, and the horse stopped. A sheen of sweat coated his flanks, and he was panting.

I slid off the saddle and helped Aurelia down. She looked around, her eyes wide with fear. “Are you sure we should be stopping?”

“The soldiers won’t follow us in the mist,” I said, stroking the horse’s nose. “There’s a stream close by where we can rest and drink.”

“Why won’t they follow us?” Her tone was sharp. When I said nothing, she grabbed my arm, forcing me to face her. Her expression was hard, her eyes glinting like shards of ice. “Answer the damn question, Fenn.”

I looked at her, my expression stoic and blank. “Because the mist is poisoned.”

Her face slackened in surprise, the blood draining from her cheeks until she was as pale as a corpse. “Poisoned?”

“Yes. It’s from a spell cast by my ancestors, meant to protect our kingdom from invaders. It went awry, and spread across the hills.”

“I—But we—How are we supposed to cross if it’spoisoned?” she sputtered.

“Anyone who possesses the blood of the Night Fae are immune to it.”

Her eyebrows lowered. “Ido not possess such blood, Fenn.”

My gaze cut to her. “You’re with me. You’ll be fine.”

Her cheeks flushed, her eyes darkening with rage. “Fenn, you’d better?—”

With a sigh, I silenced her by placing my hands on her shoulders. She glared up at me. “The spell has loopholes. If someone in a traveling party possesses blood of the Night Fae, the entire party will be protected. And even if that weren’t the case, I have a strong suspicion that you would be protected anyway. You aren’t fully fae. At least, not seelie.”

She blinked, but before she could reply, I turned back to the horse, grabbing the reins and guiding him forward into a slow walk.

After a few moments, Aurelia caught up to me. “What do you mean, I’m not fully fae?”

“When I cast that rune on you, I saw your unseelie form.”

She shook her head. “You’re wrong. I’m not unseelie.”

I turned to shoot her a dubious look. “Are you sure about that?”

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