Page 73 of The Dark Rises
He stares at me with blue starry eyes. “This predicament pisses me off because I do think the power should be yours, but rules are rules. You have to earn it. To get it back, you’ll have to run the gauntlet.” Standing to his full six feet nine inches, he lowers his brows and jerks me to him. “The clearing in the Wilds. You know the place. Midnight. Tomorrow. Bring them with you.”
In a flash, he disappears.
Lifting my chin, I pivot to face the dark Fae court with my usual scowl. “This might take another night to resolve, but make no mistake, the crown will be mine.”
Oryn walks up to the dais where Riona stands and takes her hand in his.
Standing beside the throne, I watch the crowd digest what just happened. Denir is gone. I’m likely going to be their next king. One they tried to kill. Without a single acknowledgement, they shuffle out the door, murmuring amongst themselves.
Cormal jumps up on the dais and strides over to his sister. He reaches over to hug her, but she backs away. She rips the scarab off her chest and studies it closely. He points to the eyes, then steps over and grabs the one from the pile of dust on the floor and shows it to her as well. Hand outstretched, he waits for her to give it back to him, which she does.
“The kingdom will be in an uproar until Madoc gains his power. If you want to stay at my place in The Underworld, it will be safe for you,” he offers in a gruff voice. Unable to take his eyes off her, he scans her from head to toe. “I never forgot you. All these years, I searched and searched. Became immortal so I could continue to look for you. I followed up on every lead. That’s how I found you. Oryn asked about your background, and one of my spies reported it back to me.”
Riona’s blue eyes flicker to Oryn, then down to their linked hands. “Thank you.”
Oryn sweeps a piece of hair behind her shoulder. “I could see you in there. Once I realized he was controlling you, I tried to find more information on your background so I could figure out what to do.”
Meri goes up to them and holds out her hand toward Riona. Her wide smile must convince Cormal’s sister that she’s not a threat because she grasps her hand. “I’m Meri. Cormal’s betterhalf. If you want to know anything about him, ask me. Him and I have known each other for a long time.”
Riona’s smile is weak, but it’s the first one she’s given. “Nice to meet you.” For a second, she pauses, then continues, “I’m sorry. I don’t remember him.”
Meri pats her hand. “It’s okay. It will come back to you. Give it time.” She flicks a glance at Cormal. “The first thing we need to do is get you away from here.”
Oryn steps forward. “I’ve got a small place by the lake in Winter. She’ll be protected on Theron’s land. It’s peaceful too.”
Meri raises an eyebrow. “What do you think? Does that sound good?”
Riona slips her hand from Meri’s and gives a firm nod. “For now.”
Cormal steps forward and holds out his hand. “Please. For a second. I need to know you’re real.”
When she places her hand in his, his emotions break and his eyes water with unshed tears. “It feels so good to see you, but touching you reassures me this isn’t a dream. Thank you.”
She pulls her hand from his. “Can we go now?”
Oryn hesitates, his eyes sliding toward Cormal. “Let her decompress for a couple of days. I’ll call you every day and give you an update on her progress.”
Cormal reluctantly agrees, and Meri takes his hand in hers. They stand there while Riona and Oryn walk away.
Meri throws her arms around him and squeezes him tightly. “She’ll come around. Give her time.”
He takes a deep breath. “I know.” He lifts her chin and kisses her deeply, devouring her lips for several minutes. “That’s the last fucking time I want to see you dead. Do you hear me?” His blue eyes glance at me. “Can we get the fuck out of here now?”
Rivan turns toward me. “What the hell is the gauntlet?”
“It’s a brutal test of strength and endurance. Pain delivered at the hands of the elite soldiers and monsters of The Wild Hunt. The last, and only person, to come out of it alive was Konnyr,” I explain. A laugh bubbles up and escapes my infamous control. Everyone stops to stare at me. “I’m literally fucked.”
“First, we need to take care of them,” Meri reminds me, pointing to the two piles of dust.
I’m tempted to have the servants sweep Denir out with the trash, but he did rule for three thousand years. Beckoning one of the brownies over to me, I motion to Denir’s remains. “Please see to it that he’s buried in the royal crypt.”
She nods, and with a twirl of her finger, scoops him into a royal-looking vase and seals it, then heads out the side door.
Meri walks over to the pile on the floor. With a wave of her hand, she conjures a water pitcher and magically scoops up Leandra’s ashes. “Remind me to replace the one at The Abbey.”
Cormal steps forward and places a hand on her back. “Where do you want to take her?”
“To the Flames of Hell,” Meri replies thoughtfully. “Her soul is gone to be with her daughter, but I want there to be zero chance she’ll be resurrected by anyone.”
