Page 32 of The Crown of a Fallen Queen
“Rye knows me well enough to see through any attempt at manipulation on my part. Besides, the only Fae who has any real power over her is the Shadow King, and maybe her grandmother…” I search Elio’s gaze, almost certain I’m missing a vital piece of information, some reason why Rye is still alive. If the rumors are true, she should have been put to death for her involvement with the rebels and the attacks she carried out on the Winter and Shadow Courts. Reading between the lines, I’d say they need to pick her brain about some grand scheme. “Have you thought of asking Mabel for help?”
“Mabel has helped us quite a lot already, but I’m wary of asking her to betray her own granddaughter,” Elio says. “And she doesn’t want to come back to Faerie.”
“Have you tried sayingplease?” I quip, well-aware that Mabel could not refuse her grandson’s pleas if he put some heart into it.
Elio’s gaze drops to the ground. Some things are contagious, I guess—like stubbornness.
Sara returns with the healer in tow, cutting off our conversation. Her eyes widen at the sight of Percy and Byron bickering, and she winces, shaking her head. Our eyes meet, and I know from that one glance she’s just as worried as I am about them rekindling their courtship, considering how the last round ended.
The young brown-haired healer hurries to my side, her oversized burgundy robes hanging from her gaunt frame. Her gaze falls to my injured arm, but she hesitates. “Hi, I’m Leona.”
“Thank you for coming to my rescue, Leona. I’m Devi.”
“Devi Eros, I know.” Her cheeks flush a deep shade of red. “Can I take a look?”
“Go ahead.” I gesture for her to proceed.
She kneels beside me, setting her healer’s bag on the ground with a soft clatter. Her fingers move quickly as she rummages through its compartments, pulling out a pair of scissors to cut off my torn sleeve.
“What kind of creature bit you?” she asks.
Percy hovers in the air above her head, lips pursed with worry. “A nightmarish wolf.”
Leona uses a small bottle filled with a blue-tinged liquid to wet a bunch of white gauze and cleans the wound, her touch gentle despite the sting.
The bite marks beneath the clots become visible, and she sucks her bottom lip into her mouth. "This might fester if it’s not properly cleaned." Her hands move swiftly, wrapping the wound with cling wrap, concealing it from view, and securing the temporary bandage with a metallic pin. "You’ll need to come with me to Tundra’s sanctuary. I’ll also need every detail you have on this wolf."
Seth rises from his seat. “I’ll come with you, witch.”
“Do you want to meet us for dinner afterward?” Lori asks.
I rub my hands down my thighs, trying to push the exhaustion away. “It’s late for us. Can we pick this up tomorrow morning?”
Lori nods. “Of course.”
“I’ll prepare two guest rooms in the East Wing,” Sara adds.
Seth looks like he’s about to say something, one corner of his mouth curled in an impish smile. I cut him off before he finds the gall to ask for only one room. “That works, thanks.”
“And here,” Sara picks a winter fur coat from the rack beside the door. “Wear this.”
It’s one of those enchanted garments that completely repels the cold.
“What about me? Am I to freeze to death?” Seth says.
Sara rolls her eyes and hands him a dark wool blanket.
I slip on the coat and head for the door, my heart pounding in my chest. Back home, I’d convinced myself it would be easy to sell everyone on the idea of Seth and me being in an actual relationship, but I hadn’t anticipated that everyone would be so well acquainted with myfiancé.
He’s exactly my type—Nemesis aside—but I don’t do relationships. I hadn’t expected my emotions to be so volatile around him, or for his wit and mischievous grins to get under my skin so easily.
Percy cowers in the large inside pocket of my coat once we step outside Sara’s office, and I let the healer take the lead as I fall into step beside Seth.
“How do you know the castle so well? Or Sara and Byron, for that matter?” I ask, my tone slightly dry, wondering what else he forgot to mention.
“I stayed here every year for a few weeks during the Yule pageant as the Spring seeds’ sponsor.”
“Oh.”
