Page 84 of Fortress of Blood and Power

When we reached my chambers, the king swung open the door, offering me a view of the glamoured humans already waiting for me, their blank eyes turning to study me without emotion. “They’ve been ordered to only dress you in what Nerissa and I gave them,” Preston said, his sharp eyes dragging over my forget-me-not dress, half-concealed by Garrick’s coat. “Arrive wearing anything else, and there will be consequences.”

With that, he shoved me into my chambers and slammed the door.

My heart thundered in my chest. Had our walk taken enough time? Should I have tried to stall Preston further? I glanced out the window, looking at the moon already climbing in the darkening sky, and prayed all our careful plans wouldn’t unravel.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

Igazed into the mirror once the maids had finished dressing me, relieved to find Preston and Nerissa had ordered me to be clothed in leathers that reminded me of Garrick’s hunting outfit or the attire of a fae warrior, not a flimsy dress fit for a sacrifice. It seemed they wanted to continue the farce of using me to be Silverfrost’s savior until the last moment. In some twisted way, they were delighting in their deception, just like the other games they’d played.

While one of the women left to summon an escort for me, I considered the conversation I’d had with Garrick and the Ashwoods the previous night.

“They need more than my blood,” I’d explained, “or else they would have killed me and drained it from me the moment they learned of my heritage. They need me alive to open the entrance. And yet, all this time, they’ve also feared me and suppressed my magic. I don’t understand. If they’ve weakened me and I doubt my ability to command my power...how do they expect me to succeed?”

“It’s possible the entrance is easier to open—especially since it’s already ajar—than it is to close,” Prince Fitz had mused. “It would likely take more effort to undo what has already begun. If it’s already open, your presence and willingness to open it might be all that’s required. But to close it? That could demand a lot of power.”

“It always takes more power to hold the darkness back than to join it,” Prince Holden agreed. “It’s likely that you need to be at full magical strength to send back the demons and seal the entrance.”

A knock at the door jolted me from my reverie, and I straightened as one of the maids opened the door for an escort of four guards. While the guards were likely a way to show the court that the king and queen wouldn’t allow anyone to kidnap me again, I couldn’t help but also see it as a sign of their fear of me, no matter what Preston said. They knew my magic was no longer locked away. Outside of my enchanted rooms, I was free to wield it as I pleased.

I could only pray it would be strong enough to do what I needed to.

Wordlessly, I filed out, letting a male and female guard each take the lead while two others flanked us. It was a long trek through the castle and down into its bowels, past the dungeons and through catacombs lit with flickering torches. Our footsteps echoed in the cramped space as we wound through countless tunnels, past silent tombs of Silverfrosts long dead. The air smelled dank and smoky, while the shadows were heavy. The same dread I’d experienced each time I neared underworld creatures settled in my chest, though this time it multiplied a hundredfold.

At last, the sounds of people murmuring pierced the eerie silence. We rounded a final few bends in the catacombs before entering an open, well-lit space. The same one I’d seen in the vision Preston had given me, when he and Nerissa had first emerged from the underworld. Cobwebs clung to the edges of the ceiling, which was a little taller here, letting me feel like I could breathe freely after the cramped tunnels we’d exited. Three of the walls were smooth and bare, plain earth without any tombs or signs of disturbance. Just before us, King Prestonand Queen Nerissa stood on a stone floor with a small group of heavily armed fae guards.

Ahead of the siblings, on the far wall, was the entrance to the underworld itself. If I’d thought the air had been oppressive before, it was now suffocating. The door was simple grey stone, carved with ancient markings in a forgotten language. One side was slightly ajar, offering a glimpse into nothing but blackness. Worse than blackness. It felt like a void, like endless nothingness and despair and misery.

I’d expected a larger crowd to witness this supposedly glorious moment, but I supposed this was where the siblings’ show ended. It didn’t matter if anyone watched what happened next—perhaps they felt it would be easier to manipulate me if they didn’t have others around who might interfere. Once the demons infiltrated our world, they would soon overrun the kingdom. Everyone would know of my failure.

It was a grave reminder that Icould notfail. Too many innocent lives hung in the balance.

Foreboding raked its icy claws down my spine as my escort closed in about me, two of the guards seizing my arms. Here it was: the moment when the undead souls before me enacted whatever plan of manipulation they had in store. I could only hope that, while they were distracted, the rebels, Ashwoods, and Garrick could make it down here in time.

“Where are the demons I am to return to the underworld?” I asked, trying to sound confident as the guards dragged me toward Preston, Nerissa, and the waiting door. “Wouldn’t they need to be present to be returned?”

Preston waved a careless hand. “There’s no need to play pretend anymore, Snowflake.”

My eyes darted back and forth between the guards, from those lined up beside the royals to the ones holding me in theiriron clutches. I scowled. “How did you gain their assistance in destroying the world?”

Nerissa smiled contentedly as she stalked forward, her eyes piercing mine. “Their cooperation ensures their lives will be spared. Now, enough stalling. You have work to do.” She drew a dagger from her belt, letting the naked blade reflect in the dim light of the lanterns as she raised it toward me.

I scoffed. “As if I’ll open the entrance for you. My intention has always been to close it.” My breath frosted between us as the air grew chillier, full of the threat of my building magic.

But Nerissa’s gaze remained unafraid. Without drawing her eyes from me, she snapped her fingers.

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