Page 36 of The Light Falls
“Tell me what happened,” he demands, stepping from the shadow in the corner of my room. Gripping my shoulders, he scans me from head to toe.
“I’m fine. That’s not true. I’m pissed I didn’t get to finish my date with Lorn,” I snarl. “But other than that, fine.”
An incredulous look crosses his face.
Knowing he’s getting annoyed; I roll my eyes and spill every single detail.
“Sending messengers into enemy territory. Pretty extreme. I can’t help but wonder what in the hell Leandra stole from him,” I muse. “Besides the essence she took to make me, of course.” The words bounce around in my head.
“Something he desperately wants returned,” Cormal murmurs softly. “I’m going to look into a few things. I’ll get back to you. In the meantime, start your training. We need you at full power.” He swoops down and places a hard kiss on my lips.
And he’s gone. Again. Since when did we start kissing each other goodbye? My lips tingle, and I rub them together as I try to convince myself that it wasn’t the kiss I wanted tonight. I fall back on the bed with a scowl. Even with the creepy messenger, it was a damn good first date, and Lorn’s kiss would have been spectacular.
CHAPTERFIFTEEN
MERI
Chaos and fear plague my dreams. Flashes of scenes and people cycle rapidly in my mind, but every time I try to hold on to an image, it slips away. Emotions bombard me. Magic, power, anger, fear. When I wake, pixies are hammering in my brain, and the scowl I wore to bed is the same one on my face this morning.
Solandis strides gracefully on to the balcony where I’m sitting with a strong cup of coffee. “Oh, dear. You look dreadful. What’s the matter?”
Where to start… With the messenger, Cormal’s new habit of kissing me, or the nightmares? Not ready to discuss the first two, I keep it simple.
“Bad dreams,” I reply with a sigh. “What do you have on the agenda today?”
A fan appears in her hand, and she waves it across her face. “Fallon and I have a call to discuss the metal supply situation. I need an answer for the next council meeting.” She flashes me a grin. “Tonight, Kaius is taking me on a midnight picnic to look at the stars. A good choice for our third date. Very romantic. And I have the absolute perfect little number to wear. He’s going to melt when he sees it on me. I do hope he’s picked out an isolated spot.” Her turquoise eyes gleam with intent.
Chuckling, I raise my coffee cup to her. “He has no chance whatsoever.” Third date? I must have missed one somewhere. “Do you think you made the right decision to move forward with Kaius?”
Cormal’s kiss weighs heavily on my mind. Part of me wants to just move on from our co-dependent relationship, but I can’t help wondering if I’ll have regrets.
She places an elegant hand on her chest. “None. I feel it in here. I was like this with Vargas too. Although it was tougher with him. A demon mated to a royal Fae. A fairytale for me, and a nightmare for everyone else. Nyssa and I fought for weeks, but I refused to deny him. It took her a long time to speak to me again, but it’s hard to argue with fate.”
Her shoulder lifts in a dismissive shrug. “I’m sure the aristocratic Fae will look down on Kaius for being a guard, but at least he is Fae. Until Vargas returns, I want to stay here with you, and I couldn’t do it if Kaius was a demon.” With a smile, she leans over and pecks my cheek. “I’ve got to go. Have fun with the trainer.”
Training today. At this rate, there’s going to be a permanent scowl on my face. “Wait. If I wanted to find out what happened in another part of the palace, who would be able to tell me?”
She stops and gives me a questioning glance, but when I refuse to elaborate, she answers. “Eris. She either knows the answer or can find it for you. Brownies pretty much run this place. Is that all?”
I nod my thanks. When she’s gone, I call for Eris.
Should I just blurt out my question or see if she knows anything first?
“Some of us have important things to do today,” Eris says, impatiently crossing her arms and tapping her tiny foot. “What can I do for you, Your Majesty?”
Eris has to be the absolute snarkiest person in the entire kingdom.
“I may have lost my temper a few nights ago,” I admit with an embarrassed smile. “Do you happen to know who fixed the hallway?” Sucking my lip between my teeth, I nervously wait for her to answer.
Mahogany brown eyes shoot me a strange look. “Your friend. Cleaned everything up and erased all your magic.”
“Rivan?”
Her eyes practically pop out of her head when I say his name. She shakes her head. “No, the other one. Dark hair, dark magic.”
There’s only one with dark hair and magic. “Cormal?”
She jerks her chin. “That’s the one. Anything else?”
