Page 42 of Upon the Riven Throne

At the water’s edge,they removed their boots. Nisha stood beside Mireille, and barefoot, they walked together toward the pool, the rest of the fae watching from the bank.

The water was so cold Mireille gasped. She spared a moment to think of Thomas, warm by the fire in his chambers but probably worried sick. She hoped they’d been right to tell him she was safe, and she hoped their time away had given him a chance to complete the favor she’d asked of him.

Water closed around her legs, filling her with the sensation of movement. If it was magic, it was a gentle sort, like the wisteria tree. It seemed to promise it would not harm her, even if it smelled a bit of bad cabbage.

And she had just gone and blindly trusted it, the way she had trusted everything Alder said.

The crash of breaking glass was followed by female shouts and screams. Nisha spun, grabbing hold of Mireille’s wrist. A monstrous shadow with strange glimmering eyes flung one of the fae ladies aside, then another as the woman rushed it with a violent cry.

It was a thing of nightmares, nothing like the creature that had attacked Mireille on her first night. It stood taller than any man, its claws formed entirely of darkness. The thing’s eyes never came off Mireille. There was no question it was there for her as it released a hungry growl and lunged toward the pool.

Nisha shoved Mireille behind her, then leapt toward the creature, transforming mid-air not into a slender mink, but a sleek and massive beast, as large as a lion and jaws spread wide. The shadow creature shrieked. Nisha’s cat-like claws sunk into its chest, and they both splashed down into the water.

The force of their impact shoved Mireille back and into a deeper pool. She tried to kick out but could no longer reach the earth beneath. Unseen hands pressed her suddenly down, beneath the surface and into complete darkness. Body spinning, she couldn’t find which way was up. She inhaled a lungful of earthy water. She’d always been a strong swimmer, but her limbs floated uselessly, the weight pressing around her somehow far more than any sea.

A hand closed around her wrist.

She was jerked to the surface, gasping and choking the instant they broke through. She felt Alder behind her, one arm wrapped around her waist as she heaved out water.

When the heaving subsided, he brought her to the water’s edge. Throat burning, eyes blurry, Mireille searched out the creature that had attacked. It was nowhere on the bank. Nisha, in her human form and dripping with both water and something thick and dark, scowled at Alder. “I had it under control.”

Mireille glanced back at the water, and saw, finally, the shadow creature unmoving, its skin smooth and onyx, the magic that had surrounded it gone.

“She nearly drowned.” Alder’s voice was cold, the rumble of it flush against Mireille’s back, his arms still around her.

“I was handling it,” Nisha repeated.

“We will argue at the palace.”

Nisha appeared to want to argue right then and there, but with one look at Mireille, hanging wet and limp in Alder’s grip, she nodded sharply instead.

CHAPTER19

Mireille’s stomach turned as the scenery shifted around them, then they were in Alder’s study. He braced her while she tried to regain equilibrium, but there was no use. Drenched and with her lungs burning, she slumped against him. He lifted her effortlessly, carrying her toward a cushioned chair in the corner. After settling her gently upon it, he knelt at her feet, his dark eyes more earnest than she had ever seen. His jacket and crown were absent, his shirt soaked through. “Are you injured?”

She shook her head. “There was something in the water, but it only pressed me down.” She pushed a strand of wet hair away from her face with a trembling hand.

His own hand lifted, as if to help, then stopped short. “You have my sincerest apologies that she was able to get that far. The queen was securely inside the palace, but her influence has clearly reached further than any of us knew.” He stood. “This proves she believes our ruse, if nothing else. She is terrified we may go through with the ceremony, and that means she will try again.”

Mireille’s throat was raw. She felt as if she’d heaved up a great deal more water than she had swallowed. “How many times does she have to attempt to kill me before we catch her?”

His gaze shot to hers. “The attempt must be hers, and then, only once. But she has bought her way to you, likely with bargains or threats. There will be no proving that she sent that creature tonight.”

“Then how can you be certain that it was her? Surely there are more than a few from your own court who would see me dead.”

His shoulder flexed beneath the damp shirt, and he jerked loose his cravat. “Because if it was a member of my court, I would have sensed it sooner. There was no warning before the creature attacked. He may have appeared to you the same as the shadow creatures that reside on our lands, but those loyal to the queen are a species entirely aside.”

Mireille slumped into the cushions, aware that she was likely ruining a lovely piece of furniture, but unable to summon the energy to move. She’d made a mistake. She should have taken the queen’s offer. “We didn’t complete the rite.”

He rolled a shoulder. “Nisha had her moment. She won’t push again, especially after what happened. It’s not as if—” He shook his head and Mireille had the sense he could not say what he’d wanted, that it did not matter whether the ceremony was complete, because she would never truly be his wife. He finished, “If the land accepts you, it will tell you itself. It will show you in its own way.”

She picked a rogue leaf off the skirt of her gown, trying very hard not to think about the fact that the land had shown her its heart, the wisteria tree. “You were watching the entire time?”

“You played your part well.”

Played her part. Because she had been acting, because none of it was real. She did not meet his gaze.

“You’re shivering.” Alder lightly touched her cheek. “How careless of me.” Flames burst to life in the fireplace, licking across fresh logs as if they had been burning all night.

---