Page 32 of Luca

“He’s the guy from the market,” I muttered, mostly to myself, studying those ghostly gray features, and the now vacant red eyes that still seemed to stare into my soul, leaving me an empty husk. “I didn’t know they were following us.”

Cair shifted to the side, breaking my stare. “You saw him at the market?”

I nodded. “I thought he was one of Rathe’s guys.”

“They were reapers. Assassins of a sort. They don’t fight for any particular cause, or really exist for anything other than the enjoyment of bringing psychological pain to their victims. They are bound to a master until they carry out their task, then they flit around the darkest corners waiting for the next. Unless they die.”

“I’ve never heard of them.” I frowned. In all the books I’d read on the monsters of the Otherworld, I hadn’t seen a creature like that. I’d have remembered. “And I suppose their task was, what, to kill me?”

Cair’s jaw clenched. “I believe so.”

“Why?”

“I am unsure, but I will find out,” he said, resolute. “They were likely hired by rebels, and if that is the case, they will be brought to the palace and tried for treason—if I don’t get to them first.” I swallowed thickly. “In the meantime, please tell me if you see anything oranyonethat sparks concern, even if you think it’s unimportant. Knowing you as I do, pet, your gut instincts are typically right.”

“I will.” I looked down as I picked leaves off my pants. “I’m sorry.”

Cair tapped the underside of my chin, bringing my eyes back up to meet his. “No apologies are necessary, sweetheart. I’m only glad they didn’t succeed.”

I smiled up at him, and a positive response that I had to wrench from the deepest recesses of my brain was gathering on my tongue, but at the same second, I became acutely aware of the dampness around my butt region. My face contorted into a wince. “Um, can you help me stand? I’m pretty sure I’m sitting in a pool of blood and I’m really not loving it. Either that or I’ve pissed myself, and in that instance, Iwillbe passing away.”

With an amused huff, Cair helped me to my feet. My knees wobbled, shaken by the ordeal, and though I was slowly coming to terms with the fact that there was nothing I could have done differently, the thoughts still lingered. An irritating nip in my ears. But everything was slightly clearer now, and I felt more and more like myself with each passing second. Cair’s closeness helped. He was glued to my side, always touching me as if he was afraid of letting me out of his sight, and I was grateful for the reassurance. I linked our fingers, needing the extra grounding, and he studied my face, his concern evident.

I smiled again, though this time it actually felt genuine. “I’m okay.”

“Your Highness?”

I flinched at the gruff voice and slotted myself under Cair’s arm, getting a better view of the stranger I hadn’t even noticed approaching. She was some type of wood nymph. I recognized it not only because she was distinctively beguiling, but because of the tree bark covering both of her hands and the parts of her face peeking out from the thin scarf-mask over her nose and mouth. There was also a branch protruding from the side of her head like an antler, nestled among a thick cascade of leafy hair. She was elegance personified, tall and unapproachable, giving off an air of authority and self-assurance I was only slightly intimidated by.

She dipped her head at me in a passing gesture before turning her full attention back to Cair.

I relaxed.

“Did you find the runaway?” Cair asked, and she gave a firm nod, her fluorescent amber eyes flaring with a hint of smugness as she adjusted the carved wooden bow strapped to her back—the craftsmanship of which was stunning, and oddly familiar.Where have I seen red gems like that before?

“It is dead.”

“Good,” my mate said coldly, and I felt a little tingle in my stomach. “Do you have any idea where they came from?”

“None. As is typical with those wretched beasts, they wore no emblem of their master and carried no evidence. I do know that they were tasked to eliminate His Highness.” Her eyes flicked to me before returning to Cair. “The reaper who fled was under the impression the job had been carried out. I took immense delight in informing it otherwise before I put an arrow through its black heart.”

I knew there were bigots in the Fae realm, a handful of monsters who, like the king, hated the idea of interspecies mixing—especially with humans. So it wouldn’t be a surprise if they’d recruited the reapers to wipe me out, hiding behind the guise of anonymity rather than dealing the blow themselves. It was scary,actuallyhaving a target on my back instead of just considering the possibility, but I’d known the risks when I bonded with a Fae prince.

Well, I’d sorta waved them aside because I was impatient and bullheaded, but the point stood.

“Send word to Rathe at the palace,” Cair ordered, using his ‘dominant voice,’ as I affectionately called it. “Tell him what has happened, and to inform me immediately if any of his associates hear any whispers of a coup. If anyone has information, it’ll be him.”

“Already done, boss,” a second stranger reported, wandering out from between the trees. They were the two who’d helped Cair fight off the reapers, I realized—delayed reaction. Though in my defense, they’d whirled onto the field like tornadoes, so quick I could hardly tell whether they were friend or foe. Then, of course, I’d had my psyche tampered with by some Grim Reaper dickhead, so I could probably be forgiven.

“Our two fastest scouts are on their way to the palace as we speak,” he added, radiating a cocksure energy that dwindled in potency when he tripped over his own feet. I bit my lip as he tugged down his hood and mask to properly scowl at the floor. “The others are tracking ahead or surveying the area, making sure nothing is amiss.”

Cair tilted his head in acknowledgment, poised and regal despite having witnessed the same display. “Thank you.”

“Um… hi.” I ventured out from the safe confines of Cair’s wings. “Are you guys… the Shades?”

The matching dark gray outfits they both wore were a bit of a clue, although they leaned more toward assassins thangeneral spies as I’d been expecting—what with the effortlessly sexy knee-length coats, the tight pants, and all the belts and holsters equipped with various weapons.

Oh, and the cloaks.

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