Page 56 of Beltane

“Alberich,” Diana said, “have you come to apologize?”

He twisted his features into an incredulous scowl before barking out a laugh and clapping. “Apologize? Whatever for? Trying to protect my own?” Alberich glanced around at the bystanders, former members of hisFiannaand peerage alike, and opened his hands as if to suggest he meant them no harm. “Look at the damage that has been done since we allowed their kind in.” He pointed over the hill, toward the entrance of Faerie. “Have you seen what they did each other? When left uncontrolled, they revert to wild animals.”

“That’s not true,” Ivy cut in. “You did this to them. You did this to all of us.”

Diana held up a hand, shushing Ivy, who gave the queen a side eye but didn’t argue.

“My love,” Diana said, shaking her head with a soft smile. “Can we not find common ground?”

Poppy chose that moment to move around Diana, opposite Siobhan, and grab her hand. Alberich focused on the changeling, his dark eyes even more villainous now that the object of his ire had shown herself.

“We can, my love,” he snarled, “if you rid yourself of thatthing.”

Poppy winced and ducked her head, squeezing her free hand into a fist.

He stood to the side, showing the diminishing remains of the veil. It had been rotting when we’d come through on Beltane, but now, it hummed with a fraction of the same power I’d come to associate with it. If we didn’t act soon, we might not make it out of Faerie.

“There is the door,” Alberich said, holding out a hand in a dismissive gesture. “Look at it. So weak. So volatile. Just like them. It won’t last much longer. Send them through it. Send all the humans through it, and we can go back to how things used to be.”

Sure, Poppy had made mistakes, and I’d be the first to say she couldn’t be trusted, but that didn’t mean she wasunhuman. She wasn’t athing;she was a person. We all were. We didn’t deserve this type of treatment, no matter what had happened in the past.

I reached into my pocket, squeezing the ruby dust as Lex’s plan from last night churned in the back of my mind. Alberich deserved a taste of his own punishment. He’d messed with my mind since I was a child, he’d made Diana forget her entire life, he’d used Poppy and nearly killed her. Now, I planned to do the same. The elemental magic buried in its molecules hummed through my blood. I could manipulate it if I wanted. Ivy had given me the spell.

“That is not an option.” Diana straightened her shoulders, folding her hands in front of her, setting her jaw in a tense clench.

“Well, that is unfortunate.” Alberich’s gaze drifted to the battle maidens before narrowing on theFianna. “And this show of strength is meant to…what? Intimidate me?”

Siobhan straightened, jutting her chin out defiantly.

“Do you think me so weak that I could not just—” The king flicked his hand like swatting a fly and half of the battle maidensslumped to the ground, their eyes gone obsidian, their bodies limp.

“No!” Siobhan called, taking a step forward before Diana held up a hand to hold her back. Alberich cut his hand the other way and a third of theFiannadid the same. This angered Finn, who squared his jaw and tightened his grip on his sword.

“My lady,” Finn murmured. “Give the order.”

Instead, Diana shook her head and tsked her teeth. “Charades, my darling. Come now. We are surely past this. There is no need to enthrall our own.”

“Traitors, the lot of them.” Alberich snarled before narrowing his eyes on me again.“Little Thistle.”His sinister voice filled my head, taking me back to that night. “We had so much fun. Don’t you remember?”

Flashes of his memories came next, ones where he held my wrists by my head and shoved himself inside me. I writhed and moaned and arched into the touch like I enjoyed it, like I wanted more. I’d been dreaming about Carter. I’d thought he was my star-crossed lover.

Holding back a sob, I visualized myself behind my castle tower again, forcing those wretched images out of my head, forcing him to retreat.

“Miri,”came a feminine voice from my right. Ivy was still standing there with me, holding my hand in my head, if no longer in reality. I squeezed tighter, holding Carter’s palm even harder.“Miri, hang on to us. He can’t hurt you anymore.”

I moved past the point of agony and straight into flaming rage.

How dare he take from us like that? How dare he violate me with no repercussions?

“It seems we are at an impasse.” Alberich’s lips pulled into a cruel smile, his gaze drifting to Ivy and Lex.

A tense moment passed, the anticipation so thick that it nearly electrified the air. Wisps of darkness licked at my face, rolling over my curls in a soft caress. I shook it off, grimacing against the icy fingers that tickled down my spine. I hated it, almost as much as I hated him.

Then, two things happened in quick succession.

Ivy called, “Miri!” and reached out for my hand. I turned to her just as a white blast flew out of the queen. The force hit me square in the chest, knocking me back, and just before I landed, I focused on Diana and Alberich lifting into the air like two fallen angels hellbent on destroying everything in their path.

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