Page 40 of Fae Reckoning

RUSH

My mate was the most incredible woman I’d ever known. That the queen should believe herself Elowyn’s superior served only as additional evidence that the darkness the twisted bitch clung to had consumed her so completely that she viewed the world in a wholly different light than everyone else. Elowyn was every bit the leader the queen should have been.

Elowyn had managed to save all of us, transporting us with her enchanted map that graced the most gorgeous body I’d ever touched. And then my mate had somehow wrangled the black dragon, terrifyingly fierce, into obedience—though it was undoubtedly disgruntled obedience if the frequency of the dragon’s annoyed chuffs were any indication. But he was stationary in the clearing, and no more trees threatened to crush us to death.

With care for his new scars, I dismounted from Bolt, absently rubbing his neck in appreciation. Myhorse was one of my most loyal companions. I trusted him as much as I did Hiro, Ry, or West. He deserved a closer inspection of the wounds he’d received while protecting my mate for me in the savage wilds of the Sorumbra. Yet I couldn’t steal my gaze from Elowyn.

After fearing for her survival practically every passing moment since I’d first fallen in love with her, and then recalling all at once how I’d forgotten her and abandoned her to the queen’s machinations, the need to join with her was a pulsing, physical demand, as loud as hunger or thirst.

I wouldn’t, however, allow Ivar out of my sight. If anyone might be knowledgeable of the queen’s plans, it was he. He was a slippery, conniving, merciless bastard of a fae—a good match to his darling monarch. Behind his constant disdainful sneer, he was almost certainly brewing plans for his escape.

I’d bound him with rope he himself had been carrying. Dragon Xeno had clamped a clawed hand around Ivar’s throat, I’d patted him down—and discovered a small box sized for a mere few pencils. When I touched it, nothing happened. But when I forced Ivar’s hand to rub along the unremarkable wooden case, it stretched into a trunk vast enough to fit him, expanding so swiftly that it smacked me along the shoulder and chin—hard. The chest contained sufficient weapons to outfit a small army, along with rope. Even confiscating the bespelled trunk, now once more pocket-sized, unease burrowed at the base of my spine. As clever as the queen was, Isuspected Ivar was cleverer, and the cache of brutal weaponry was unlikely to be his only secret.

Gingerly, I placed the box atop a rock far beyond his reach and told Bolt, “I’ll find you water and food soon. In the meantime, stay on guard. If Ivar does anything suspicious, anything at all, drag him until it hurts so bad he screams, okay?”

I glared at Ivar, whose sneer deepened until it curled his upper lip, and then stared into one of Bolt’s big, dark eyes—damn, I’d missed him. The stallion tossed his head in affirmation. I ran a hand along his neck a few more times, ruffling his pelt and leaning closer. “Thanks, bud. You’re the best. I’ll be back soon. Stay on guard.”

He tossed his head again. The movement accentuated his new scars. Two long parallel lines slashed across his side, the end of one bisecting the jagged, silver streak of fur that had earned him his name, Lightning Bolt. The two new scars were red and shiny, starkly standing out from his black fur. His usually glossy pelt was dusty and clumped with grime.

“I’ll give you the care you deserve soon,” I assured him, swallowing theI promiseI’d nearly added. In a world ruled by a wicked queen, I wouldn’t make any new oaths. After all, hadn’t I promised Elowyn I’d never forget her only to do exactly that?

“It’s useful to know how much you care about that horse,” Ivar said when my stare had already been flickering several feet away, where Elowynand a goblin stood with Xeno, who remained in dragon form. Ivar’s voice was haughty as always.

I prowled toward him and lowered my face to his. “You won’t get out of here alive. So don’t bother making threats you won’t deliver on.”

A sneer curled his lip yet again, this time revealing teeth tinged pink with blood. Neither Xeno nor I had been gentle. “We’ll see about that,” he said.

My lips parted into a feral grin while I tapped the pommel of his cutlass, which hung from his weapons belt wrapped aroundmyhips. It felt foreign and nowhere near as comfortable as my own, but in the absence of mine, which was back at the palace, I was grateful for his. There was a spot for my dagger and two throwing knives as well.

My voice came out like a blade scraping against a grinding wheel, my breath hot against his face. “You’ve stood at the queen’s side while she tortured, maimed, and killed the very subjects she’s sworn to defend. You’ve been her champion while she destroyed this kingdom, turning it into a nightmare world it was never intended to be. You dove in front of Gadiel’s arrow to save her when all you had to do was stay out of the way.”

He snorted, turned his face away from mine. “She wouldn’t have died anyway. She only would have killed me for not defending her when she knew I could have.”

With a rough hand, I squeezed his cheeks and jerked his stare back to me. “I believe you.” I frowned. “Regrettably.”

His eyes were frigid as they held mine.

“I never could figure out why you do it,” I said.

His nostrils flared, but he eventually asked, “Do what?”

“Stand by her. Protect her. Kiss her ass at every turn.”

He flinched, but it was so fleeting, I wondered if it had been a twitch instead.

“I don’t kiss her ass,” he protested, but didn’t put much energy into it.

I laughed bitterly. “Why, Ivar,why? You’re smart. Everyone can see that. Surely you see she took a kingdom that was always intended to reflect the glory of Faerie and turned it into an Igneuslands. Why would you support her when she’s doing that?”

His jaw clenched, his throat worked. His eyes lost their coldness until they reflected nothing at all. “Is this your plan? To bore me into confessing?”

“Sure, why not? What do you wanna confess?”

He scowled. “Nothing. Of course, nothing. You won’t get anything out of me. My allegiance is to the queen, in life and in death.” He tipped his chin up. “Kill me if you must, but I won’t betray her.”

I studied him for long enough that I decided he meant what he said. “Stupid move. She doesn’t deserve your loyalty.”

Gesturing with my chin, I indicated the horse limping at the edge of the clearing. His scales were a scarlet so deep they were almost the color of rust. Hismane and tail were hair of the same hue. “Is he your horse?” I asked.

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