Page 40 of Oleander
“Fuck!That asshole!” I shout, staggering to my feet the best I can with my hands shackled behind my back and my head spinning.
I glance up, coming face to face with the most ethereally beautiful young woman I have ever seen. With light blonde hair, a crown of flowers, and lilac eyes, I know this is Oleander’s mother. The queen.
Shit.
“Oh. Um. Hi.Your Majesty.” I bow awkwardly, dizzying nausea washing over me.
Onyx and Birch appear next to me, bowing as well.
The whirring of the portal stops, and the queen speaks with zero emotion infused into her stern words. “Follow me.”
I remain silent, keeping my head down as she leads the way back to the academy. Six guards flank her, and I’d have to be an idiot to try and run.
Portal sickness is a real bitch, but I make it through the woods without throwing up on myself or anyone else. As we near the school, anxiety swirls in my gut at the thought of walking down the hall in iron handcuffs, like I’m a violent criminal or an escaped convict.
“Blindfold him,” the queen commands and the guards move to obey.
“Hey! Wait! Stop! Why?” Even though I’m a wrestler, the fight I put up is to no avail as a small cloth is placed over my eyes and tied tightly behind my head. I can’t use my arms and feel like a flightless baby bird. “I’m sorry! I won’t escape again! I promise. Please, I don’t want to be locked in a dungeon. I’ve decided I want to stay here. I’m not going back. I’ve seen what I needed to see, and now I’m straight.” I pause on the last word, “Well, notstraight-straight, you know what I mean?”
Oh God. I clearly have plenty of word vomit today, not just regular vomit.
Superb.
My entourage ignores the outburst, leading me down steep steps into a cold, damp place.It’s a dungeon.I’m certain. I’m going to spend the next century locked in a cold, dark hell. I pull and tug, desperate for this not to be my reality.
No one answers me, adding to my growing unease. A short walk later, the blindfold is suddenly released. I blink, staring into a long, dark tunnel.
“We can’t reveal the location of any access points. You understand, I’m sure,” Onyx reasons. I ignore him, still annoyed at being left in a new world with absolutelynothing.
I admire the large underground tunnel system we’re walking through. It’s big enough for a tank or anarmy. “Wow,” I say in awe, staring up at the ceiling of twisting, twining roots. Small, golden orbs dot the canopy, like a star-strewn galaxy.
We continue on, guided by the subtle glow of the fairy lights. A short time later, we take an offshoot of the main route before climbing a ladder. Onyx goes before me and leans down, grasping me under the armpit and pulling me to the surface. I emerge from a trap door hidden in the floor of a small storage room underneath the academy.
My mind is fascinated by the escape route, but no one else speaks, so I follow suit and take the steep stone steps in silence. Finally, we get somewhere I recognize, the administration office. I follow my captors down the long hallway to the headmaster’s private office, passing Ember along the way. She’s at her desk with an overly satisfied smile.
“Your Majesty,” Ember says disingenuously before chastising me with a glare as I pass her. “Another poor decision, I see, Skyler.”
I narrow my eyes at her, and she only winks.
Argh!
When we finally get to the headmaster’s office, I find Oleander sitting in an uncomfortable chair, his worried eyes immediately darting to me. He shoots up from the seat in alarm. “Skyler! Are you okay?” he asks in a rush, concern lacing his voice. His brows scrunch in confusion when he notices my arms behind my back. I subtly turn to the side, showing him my iron handcuffs.
“What is the meaning of this?” he shouts in outrage. Warmth blooms in my chest, chasing the chill from the tunnel away.
He’s standing up for me.
“If you weren’t my son and heir to this kingdom, you’d be in handcuffs as well, Oleander,” the queen says curtly, taking a seat in one of the wingback chairs by the warm fireplace.
“Your mother’s right. It is against the law to open an unsanctioned portal on school grounds,” Headmaster Goulding informs us, pacing in front of Ander. My stomach drops againat the thought of being locked up in a Fae dungeon for the rest of my life. “But seeing as how you’re both new here and have quite unusual circumstances, I understand it must be a hard adjustment. Therefore, we will let this infraction slide on the condition that you each take up a very specific course of study to negate the ill effects of your recent endeavors.”
Oleander’s gaze darts to his mother, his eyes glowing lavender. “Which is. . .?”
Queen Hyacinth gets up from her seat by the fire, strolls over to her son, and gently caresses the lilac vines decorating his face. My brows jump up in surprise.
She’s immune to his poison.
Makes sense, I guess.
