Page 33 of The Unseelie War
She smiled at Ava.
“So.” Abigail smirked. “You’ve gone and really done it now, haven’t you?”
The silence in the theater was absolute. Everyone seemed frozen in place, unsure how to respond to the sudden appearance of someone who was, by all accounts, one of the most powerful beings in existence.
It was Nos who recovered first, dropping into a bow that was somehow both respectful and wary. “Your Majesty.”
“Oh, please,” Abigail waved a hand dismissively, though there was affection in her voice. “None of that formal nonsense. We're all family here, after a fashion.” Her gaze moved from Nos to Serrik and then to the others, taking in their little group with obvious interest. “Though I must admit, this isn't quite the gathering I expected to find.”
“You're looking for Valroy,” Ava said, finding her voice at last.
“I know quite well where he is.” Abigail's smile was enigmatic. “He is hardly subtle.”
“Ma'am,” Bitty squeaked, finally finding her voice, “are you here to stop the war?”
Abigail turned her attention to the tiny fae, and her expression softened. “Hello, little one. You’re that little dream-Seelie, aren’t you? I’m so very sorry that you believed I sent you away. I hope youknow I never would have done such a terrible thing. What's your name?”
“B-Bitty, Your Majesty.” Bitty looked like she was going to cry. “And I—I’m sorry I thought…”
“A lovely name for a lovely soul.” Abigail's gaze shifted to include them all. “And to answer your question—yes, I am here to stop the war. But not in the way any of you might expect.”
“What do you mean?” Ava asked, though she had a sinking feeling she wasn't going to like the answer.
“I mean,” Abigail said, her voice taking on a note of steel beneath the warmth, “that my husband has finally pushed beyond the boundaries of what I am willing to tolerate. The time has come for him to face the consequences of his deeds.” She stepped further into the theater, and with each step, flowers bloomed in her wake—not just on the floor, but growing from the seats, the walls, even the ceiling. The theater was rapidly transforming into something that belonged more in a fairy tale than reality.
“But that's a conversation for later. Right now, I'm more interested in understanding exactly what you have all gotten yourselves into.” Her gaze fixed on Ava, and suddenly the young woman felt as if she were being examined by something vast and ancient and utterly beyond her comprehension. “You have merged three realities. Impressive work.”
“I didn't mean to—” Ava began. She paused.
“Of course you didn’t.” Abigail waved away her protests. “No one ever means to reshape the fundamental nature of existence. It just sort of happens when you're not paying attention.” The casual way she dismissed the magnitude of what Ava had done should have been reassuring. Instead, it was terrifying.
“Your Majesty,” Nos ventured, “if you're here to stop Valroy, we should coordinate our efforts. He's already gathering forces, and?—”
“And you think you're going to stop him through force?” Abigail's laugh was like silver bells. "Oh, my poor man, you really don't understand my husband at all, do you?”
“Then how?” Ibin demanded. “How do we stop him from going to war?”
Abigail's expression grew serious. “We do not. There is no stopping the war. There is only one way to end this, now.”
Ava thought she might know the answer to her question, but she had to ask it. “Which would be…what?”
Abigail smiled grimly. “By destroying him, of course.”
CHAPTER TEN
The silence in the theater stretched was deafening.
“You’re going to just…pop in and drop that?” Ava shook her head dumbly. “You’re just going to…what?Kill him?”Ava felt something cold settle in her stomach—a familiar dread that came with realizing the people around her were making decisions that would fundamentally alter their lives without consulting her first. She really thought she’d fixed that problem.“How?”
“No, my dear. Not precisely.Weare going to destroy him.” Abigail smiled at her mournfully. “I am not certain if a creature like him can be killed.”
“Right. Cool. Back to vague half-speak and riddles.”Fucking fae.Ava tried to temper her nerves. Again. She was already worn thin because of Serrik.. “Can you please explain the difference?”
“It is very much the same way that you could be destroyed but the Web could not be killed, I suppose.” Abigail shook her head. “It is neither here nor there. Regardless, I am hopeful that I have a way to solve both our problems—my freed and violent husband and this…bit of trouble you have caused.” She chuckled, glancing at the amalgam of world still visible in the opera house around them. “Creative though it may be, I hardly think the state of things is tenable. Nor terribly fair to many of the more unsuspecting residents of any of the three worlds.”
“Which would be…?” Ava was really desperate for Abigail to get to the point.
The Seelie Queen let out a long and heavy sigh. “The Web, or rather, the creature that became focused into what you know as the Web—was fashioned into that shape because ofhim.”She shot a look at Serrik.
