Page 52 of What Sleeps Within the Cove

And landed within my own body, the cane still clutched in my hands as I rose to my feet, my wound in my abdomen healed.

THIRTY-TWO

NILA

I walked through the halls, keeping my head down as I passed by guards who made their way through the halls of Tar Mesa. They were unusually quiet, ignoring me as much as I tried to evade their notice.

None of them wanted to do anything that would bring them into Mab’s notice either, meaning that those of us who worked and lived just outside of what Mab would tolerate had an unusual sense of freedom.

The consequences for being caught might have been even more extreme than normal, but the odds of someone turning us in were greatly lessened.

I intended to take advantage of the moments I had where there were less eyes prying into my business. I intended to spend every waking moment I had working to embolden those who might have remained in the shadows.

If I died, so be it. It was only a matter of time before I succumbedto the madness after losing my mate, and I wanted to do something thatmatteredbefore I went.

I wanted to help. The wayhewould have.

I made my way to the back of the palace, where the mountains made of sand were larger. The Lliadhe worked to sort deliveries of food and supplies that came from the more lively courts of Alfheimr, fresh fruits and vegetables and all the things that Mab took advantage of having access to.

I ran my hand over a crate that had come from the Summer Court, the red-tinted wood calling to me. Where there might have once been the familiar call of sunlight in my veins, the magic that had belonged to my mate was no longer at my disposal.

I was not a God, and without him to share his magic with me, I was nothing but another Sidhe.

I moved on, slinking past the guards who monitored the distribution of supplies. Catching the eye of a Lliadhe I knew well, I waited for her to nod in confirmation that she’d managed to track down the very thing I’d asked for.

The Night Blossoms.

She lifted a crate into her hands, keeping her head ducked low as she walked past the most careless of the guards. He didn’t stop her as she made her way to me, striding past and retreating into the palace as I followed at her heels with a nonchalance I didn’t feel.

The guard gripped me by the forearm, his bright green eyes staring down at me when I finally turned to meet his stare. “Where do you think you’re going so quick?” he asked, the scent of smoke on his breath. There was a deep, herby hint to it, a reminder of the white leaves some Fae burned to inhale the smoke of.

“To help distribute the produce,” I said, the words rolling off my tongue. I would be helping in the kitchens, sorting through the deliveries as soon as I brought the Night Blossoms to Estrella’s rooms and arranged them for her return.

“Got another job for you,” he said, leering down at me in that way that so many of the guards had grown used to getting away with.

“I’m not interested in being your plaything for the ten minutes it will take you to finish,” I snapped, jerking my arm back from his grip. He scowled down at me, the fury on his face twisting his mouth into a snarl as he leaned closer.

I could make out each and every imperfection on his face, every scar that had marked him as dangerous and having lived a difficultlife. He wrapped his arm around my back, tugging me closer until his breath coated my face and body pressed into mine fully. “Have you forgotten your place here, girl? I wasn’t asking,” he said, leaning forward to run his tongue along the surface of my cheek.

“And what are you going to do about it if I have forgotten my place? Will you make a scene and risk any of your friends turning us both into Mab for the disturbance? Or maybe you’ll take me to her yourself?” I asked, shoving at his chest.

He let me go, leaving me to stumble backward before I caught my own balance on a stack of crates. The darkness around us was so complete I couldn’t see into the distance, only the illuminated area for the delivery. But every set of eyes had turned to us, Sidhe and Lliadhe alike witnessing our altercation and observing it.

The Sidhe who were part of Mab’s army were undoubtedly hoping he would put me in my place for all to see, but I saw the doubt in his glare. He didn’t want to risk Mab’s wrath for ruining any of the shipments needed for her feast. While I might have to deal with his rage later on if he caught me alone, it was worth it to bear witness to the way the Lliadhe remained hopeful.

“A storm is coming for us all, and with it will come a shifting of the Fates. I wonder who will beownedwhen it is all said and done,” I said, turning on my heel. I waited for him to strike out, to attempt to punish me for my insolence.

There was nothing but the faint whisper of those Mab had forced to work at her behest, and the guards barking for them to get back to work.

Never again would we allow ourselves to be owned, not after finding a taste of the freedom we could have if we managed to overcome Mab and her tyranny.

I met up with Tindra, the Lliadhe carrying the Night Blossoms, on the stairs, hurriedly making our way to the shrine we’d made from Estrella’s rooms. She raised a brow at me as I finally shoved open the door to the Princess’s rooms, taking the crate from her and carefully placing it on the seat of one of the chairs.

Removing the lid, I stared down into the blossoms that had not yet opened, the petals curled tightly into a ball in the hopes that the flowers would bloom when Estrella returned. She’d brought dozens of the flowers, giving me plenty to arrange over the surface of the table and the bedding, positioning them to form a star in her honor.

“You shouldn’t have angered Pyralis,” Tindra said, referring to the guard that I’d refused. His temper was one of the worse ones amongMab’s guards, and he fully reveled in the control he had over Mab’s victims under threat of exposure. He wouldn’t allow my insolence to go unpunished, but I found that mattered very little to me now.

I was numb to the reality of the consequences of my action. My death was certain, and it seemed prudent that, with that in mind, I did everything within my power to leave a better world for those who came after me.

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