Page 2 of Kingdom of Briars and Roses

If the Fates were the light, the Furiosities were pure darkness. Kings of Hel whose shadow gifts fed off the black-hearted and the corrupt. They were the demons of nightmares and the bedtime stories used to keep children from being naughty.

“Probably why Heliconia wasn’t chosen,” I pointed out.

“Yeah,” Lilah muttered. Her expression sharpened. “Then what happened?”

“When Heliconia lost her place among the Aine, she became bitter. She blamed the Fates and the Aine they’d chosen—specifically the Summer Court’s warriors—for shutting her out unfairly. Her heart twisted with darkness, and she vowed revenge.”

“What was her revenge?” Lilah asked in a hushed voice.

“One night, she trapped a demon in the forest and forced him to give her some of his dark magic. Then she used it to kill one of the Aine and took its power inside herself. She’s been using that power to kill the Aine and end the practice of making more ever since.”

Lilah stared at me with wide eyes until I’d finished the story. Then, she blinked, and her expression cleared to something so matter-of-fact that it caught me off guard.

“I know, but why us?” she pressed. “We’renot Aine. And we didn’t do anything to her.”

“She’s power-hungry and bloodthirsty. And instead of taking one life at a time, she craves the realm itself.”

“That’s why she attacked Concordia,” Lilah said.

“Yes.” And why she’d vowed to come for the rest of us.

“She’s a meany-head,” Lilah declared.

“A complete meany-head,” I agreed.

I braced myself for more questions, but my sister was apparently satisfied enough to change the subject—back to the one she undoubtedly cared about most right now.

“I asked Mother if I could go to your party, and she said no. It’s not fair.” She pouted.

“It will be way past your bedtime,” I reminded her.

“And yours,” she shot back. There was a dreamy sigh in her voice as she added, “I just want to meet Prince Callan.”

Callan.

His name was spoken more often than I cared to hear it. My future husband, the heir to the Autumn Court. The fae male I was meant to marry to secure an alliance strong enough to protect Sevanwinds from the growing threat of Heliconia. To ensure we didn’t share Concordia’s fate.

Lilah looked back at me, stars shining in her eyes. “Do you think he’s handsome?”

“I think that matters a lot less than if he’s good or fair or kind.”

Lilah shrugged, still too young to understand the gravity of our world. “I bet he’s handsome. You’re lucky. By the end of the week, you’ll have a prince for a husband. Mother says maybe someday I’ll get one, too. And then we can both have our own castles.”

Her innocence, her joy… It made me smile, though there was a heaviness beneath it all. I envied her. To be that carefree, untouched by duty. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d felt that way. If ever.

“I’m sure you will,” I said softly. “But for now, you’re too young to be thinking about princes and husbands.”

Lilah laughed and twirled, her blue dress spinning around her ankles. I spotted dirt along the hemline and shook my head. Before I could warn her about letting Mother see it, she conjured a fistful of wildflowers and held them to her chest like a bridal bouquet.

“One day,” Lilah said as she twirled, “I’ll have a big wedding just like you, with flowers and music and dancing?—”

“Lilah,” I interrupted gently, catching her mid-spin. “Marriage is not just about parties. It’s hard work.”

“How do you know?” she teased. “Have you ever been married?”

I shook my head. “Have you?”

Lilah tilted her head, but before she could say whatever was on her mind, a bell tolled from the temple tower across the courtyard. It was past time. And now I was late for more than just the meeting with my parents.

---