Page 56 of Kingdom of Briars and Roses

By the time I reached the top of the stairs, the crashing noises had stopped, replaced by the low murmur of male voices. I couldn’t make out what they were saying, but the shattered vase was evidence they’d come this way.

I crept silently after them, trying not to imagine all the horrible creatures that might have somehow gotten through the wards. Obsidians weren’t the only monsters to worry about. Nor were they the hardest to kill.

Voices reached me, too low to make out but a clear sign that the intruders were not the beasts my worst fears conjured.

Still, I tensed, my worry growing with each step. Doors had been opened along the hall, but I ignored them and kept moving, aiming for the room at the end where the voices were coming from.

I slowed, moving with soundless precision as I counted. Two, both male. They didn’t smell or sound like Obsidians, but that did little to settle my nerves.

I pressed my back to the wall beside the door and listened.

“Seven Hels,” one of them muttered in awe. “Look at them. Tyrion and Celeste. The king and queen of the Summer Court. Asleep, just like the legend.”

I sucked in a sharp breath at the wonder in his voice. And the small speck of magic that radiated from him. Not Furiosities or Obsidians. Fae males.

The fact that fae were standing here, in this castle, felt like a dream. It was also a nightmare.

“Enchanted, maybe. Cursed. Don’t touch anything,” the second voice warned, sharper than the first. “We don’t know how far thecurse extends.”

“Yeah, yeah,” the first male said, excitement creeping into his voice. “You thinkshe’shere somewhere too?”

I stiffened.

“I don’t know, but we need to be cautious,” said the second voice, firmer now. “We don’t know who or what else might be lurking.”

“Good point.” The first male’s voice held a shudder.

There was a beat of silence, and I bit my lip, trying to weigh the risk of an ambush. I had no weapon, but I’d have the element of surprise, at least.

“Fletcher!” the second male called sharply. “What did I say about touching anything? That goes for people.”

That was all I needed to hear.

In one swift motion, I shoved the door wide and raced toward the intruders. They whirled toward me, startled. Soldiers, based on their uniforms. A stag head, its antlers wrapped in goldleaf, was stitched onto the breast.

The room glowed softly, thanks to the moonlight streaming in through the window. But I clung to the shadows and hoped my expression was fierce enough to make them hesitate.

The one closest to me did just that, eyes wide as he began to lift his sword then stalled. I closed the distance between us in the blink of an eye, ducking low and sweeping my leg out the moment I was inside his reach. He went down on his back with a thud.

I grabbed his sword from his hand and spun to face the other one, crouching to keep my balance. The new blade was heavy, foreign. But I ignored the protest of my muscles and raised it high.

He stared at me like he’d seen a ghost. “W-wait.”

“You’re trespassing,” I snarled. “Get out.”

The one I’d laid out groaned. I could hear him getting to his feet behind me and knew I was almost out of time to takethem both on. Not without using my magic, which wasn’t remotely an option.

With a guttural yell that I could only hope would spook them, I raised my stolen sword and swung out. The second soldier managed to block me—barely. But the clang of our blades seemed to snap him out of his shock. He fought with renewed ferocity.

“Keep her busy,” the first male said then raced out of the room.

I snorted.

A coward then.

If the second soldier—the one called Fletcher—was upset by being abandoned, he didn’t show it. His expression merely hardened with determination as I came again.

Our blades clashed, the sound of steel meeting steel ringing in my ears. I pressed the attack, relentless, forcing him toward the wall as far away from my parents’ bed as I could manage.

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