Page 65 of What Lurks Between the Fates

“That seems to be the norm for her, does it not?” I asked, glaring at her.

“You are a prisoner. Remember your place and, for once, remain silent,” Mab ordered, spearing me with a glare.

“Funny. Even as a prisoner, she has more queenly tact than you ever did, dear sister,” Rheaghan said, slicing through the meat he’d placed upon his plate and taking a bite. The rest of the table sipped their wine, remaining silent as the two siblings had a stare-down.

However Mab had become the Queen of Air and Darkness, I suspected she’d stepped upon her family to do it.

23

Caldris

I tucked Estrella tightly against my side, keeping her close as we walked out of the dining hall with the rest of the court royals, Mab, and her guards. Estrella hadn’t had the chance to interact with most of them, the mood of the dinner dropping even lower after Rheaghan shunned his sister.

I liked it when Rheagan stood up to Mab. He was the only person she would occasionally tolerate an insult from aside from Estrella, but when she didn’t retaliate straight away it usually meant violence was on the horizon.

I’d do whatever I could to not let Estrella be the victim of Mab’s rage, even knowing that it was often outside of my control. I’d shield her from harm, but even I knew I could donothingif Mab truly wanted to hurt her.

I had to hope she wouldn’t be the convenient outlet for her rage. She’d already suffered enough and would continue to suffer throughout our time spent in the Court of Shadows. Mab had shown how cruel she could be when made me choose between the only two things I’d ever wanted in my life.

But if I had to choose between Estrella and my freedom, I would always choose her.

“Where are we going?” Estrella asked, looking up at me as we walked in a procession toward the doors that led outside the palace.

The doors to the mountain took six Fae to operate, turning locking mechanisms and gears until they wound open.They towered over us as we approached, the creaking of the gears echoing loudly through the foyer to the palace as we paused before them.

“Outside,” I said, grimacing as I glanced down at Estrella’s bare arms.

While Tar Mesa wasn’t as cold as the Winter Court and the land outside the rolling hills was characterized by barren landscape and salt-filled deserts, it was still far too cold for her to be exposed to the harsh winds.

Cursing, I shrugged off my jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders as the first breeze blew through the crack in the doors. The white salt outside blew in, drifting over the dark stone floors and spreading between the feet of the royals in front of us.

Many of the royals led the way as they approached those slowly opening doors, well acquainted with where the sacrifices would be kept until the Tithe. I didn’t relish Estrella’s reaction, knowing she would condemn me as much as she despised the lot of us for the crimes we committed against the humans in order to keep the things locked up in Tartarus. I couldn’t expect her to understand, not until she had to partake in her first hunt, and she witnessed the kind of monsters that lurked within it.

Mab trailed behind us, Fallon at her side as the younger girl tried to escape her mother’s notice. She would undoubtedly hear of Mab’s dissatisfaction later on, when they were alone and she could give her an earful without appearing bothered to the Fae she considered her enemies.

I ignored her, knowing that I could hardly help myself when we were trapped within the Court of Shadows. HelpingEstrella had to come first over helping Fallon, even if my mate would have wanted something different.

Estrella snuggled deeper into my jacket, wrapping it tight and covering her entire torso in it. Whatever she was, her innate power didn’t make her comfortable in the cold. Was she descended from a creature of the Summer Court? Something that lived on the coast of the Crystal Sea?

The thought had merit, and for a moment I wished I could trust Rheaghan enough to ask. But he was unpredictable at best in the way he loved his sister, often caving to her desires and ambitions in the interest of keeping the peace—in the interest of not losing the only remaining bond he had left.

Estrella and I followed behind Rheaghan as he strolled forward to follow the group ahead of him.

“What happens outside?” Estrella asked as I held her close.

Rheaghan rounded the corner first, the group of others far enough ahead that we lost sight of them in the blowing salt. Estrella lifted my jacket, using it to shield her face against the onslaught as I tucked myself against her back and guided her with my body.

I knew the way to the pens far too well for my liking. The rooms were carved into the side of the mountain where human Changelings were kept until they could be sacrificed.

“What do you know of the Tithe?” I asked, hoping to perhaps have a few moments to prepare Estrella for the coming reality.

I suspected her handmaid had told her something, giving her at least a basic idea of the reality that was coming. I had to hope so, because I couldn’t guarantee that she wouldn’t dosomething foolish to interfere if she wasn’t prepared. As much as I doubted Mab would have intentionally done Estrella any kindness whatsoever, Nila had been an excellent choice for Estrella’s handmaid.

Maybe she’d done it to use against her. Maybe she’d done it to test Nila’s loyalty. But Estrella could have had the misfortune of someone like Malazan as her handmaid, and I shuddered to think of how quickly Estrella would have slit her throat if given half a chance.

We came closer to the entrance to the pens, the first of the royals reaching it ahead of us. Time was running out to make her understand what was coming. While I might not have agreed with humans being chosen against their will, I would never speak out against it. Not when my mate was present, not when her life and her body could be used against me. As wrong as it might have been, I would have killed every last human in Nothrek if it meant saving her and protecting her from harm.

If that made me their villain, then I would gladly play that part.

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