Gade
ake, fool. Reach out and touch what is yours.
A voice as dry as old bones hisses through my skull—the curse, come to torture me, refusing me a moment’s peace.
Take, it commands.
Take what lies in front of you.
“Shut up,” I whisper back.
Inhale the scent of innocent flesh. Take her soul. Bend it to your will.
She is yours and your blood knows it well.
Do it now.
I jolt awake and blink at the human’s sleeping form. She faces me, her hands folded under her cheek, a strand of honey-colored hair moving in front of her lips in time with her breathing.
Last night, as the girl slept, I inched closer, allowing her earthy, human scent to fill my senses and the pad of my fingertips to trail over the silky skin of her face, along her shoulder to her wrist. Silently, I begged her to feel me, to open her eyes and witness my desire to possess her, to own her as no man has before.
But alas, she slept on.
Now, in the firelight, I slowly raise my hand to tuck the errant lock of hair behind her ear…
Wait… Firelight?
I lift my head and look over the girl’s shoulder, the room coming into focus. A fire blazes, lighting up my sister and Elden packing for this morning’s journey.
How long have they been working, while I’ve lain here cozying up to the mortal?
“Gade, you’re finally awake,” says Mern, her words informing me they’ve been busy for some time. “Since the curse allows you little rest these days, and you looked so comfortable, we decided to let you sleep.”
How thoughtful of them, allowing me to spend longer lying next to the mortal as though we’re bonded lovers. They’ve obviously lost their minds.
I grip the girl’s shoulder, my fingers sinking through the blanket into soft flesh and breakable bones. I give her an abrupt shake. “Wake up. We’re leaving soon.”
She stirs, and before her gaze can arrow through me, I climb over her body, taking care not to touch her.
Standing with my shirt unbuttoned and feet bare in front of the fire, I stretch my back and greet Mern and Elden. I ignore the mortal as she rises, coughing from the smoke, and then shuffles to the outhouse that Queen Mab made for the human shepherd who guarded her sacred flock many centuries ago.
Faeries don’t produce waste. We utilize all we consume, even toxins, which are transformed into energy that helps fuel our magic, more proof that we are superior beings and that humans are base and disgusting.
Porridge bubbles in a pot above the flames, the smell conjuring fond memories of past hunting trips with my father and Uncle Fyarn.
Elden drops spoons into two bowls, passes one to me and the other to Holly as she walks through the door, an icy draft slipping into the room alongside her.
“Thank you,” she says, taking the bowl. “Good morning.” Her eyes flit everywhere except toward the corner I lean in.
“Mern, come with me.” Still shoveling porridge in my mouth, I usher my sister outside, walk across the yard, and press my shoulder against the rough bark of an ancient pear tree.
A cold wind rustles the silver leaves on the ground, but all else is silent. So quiet I can hear the trees whispering to each other.
“You won’t like this,” I warn Mern. “But you and Elden must leave now.” I cram a particularly large spoonful of porridge in my mouth and chew slowly while my sister gapes at me. “I’ll travel alone with the human.”
Mern scratches the base of her left horn. Something she does when she’s angry and trying to hide it. “And why is that?”
“I have my reasons.”
“Stupid ones that likely involve slaking your lust for the pretty mortal.”
“Pretty? I would call her no such thing.” But I’d most definitely think it.
She laughs. “Then you fool yourself, Brother. I’ve seen the way you watch her.”
I shrug a shoulder. “And, still, I ask this of you.”
The pear tree’s roots curl and buckle, Mern’s frustration affecting the earth beneath our feet. “No. It’s too dangerous. You’re still weak. The magic I transferred to you last night had almost no effect. You admitted as much yourself.”
“But I’ve found a way to access power, limited though it may be. I assure you I’ll be safe, and you and Elden will not be far ahead. Give me your golden horn. I promise to summon you with it should trouble find us.” Its magical call can be heard over greater distances than the physical ear can detect, fae or not.
With a sigh, she removes the horn from around her neck, hidden beneath her clothing, and places the chain over my head, tucking it beneath my shirt and fastening two buttons around it.
“Thank you.”
Mern takes my empty bowl, and the hut door swings open. We both watch the girl stride purposefully in the direction of the stable. I unfold my arms and push off the tree, standing straight.
“Where’s Holly off to?” Mern asks.
“Where do you think you’re going, human?” I call out.
Without faltering a step, she yells back, “To visit Wren, as I do every morning.”
My shoulder sinks back against the tree trunk.
Mern stabs her finger into my chest. “Gade, wipe that smug expression off your face and tell me how you’re accessing power.”
“I wasn’t feeling smug. More like pleased with myself.”
“Same thing. Now hurry up and tell me.”
“I know I said I’d explain last night, but I’d rather not speak about it. It might ruin it, cause it to stop working.”
“Gade, I don’t like this.”
“Riddle me this, Sister, who will one day rule our kingdom? You or I?”
“Very funny. To become king, first you need to find your fated queen. So for now, we are equal, and because you love me, you’ll give me an explanation.”
Smiling, I tug her close and kiss her cheek. “Dearest Mern, thank you for not revealing my identity. She thinks I’m a palace guard, and I’d prefer to keep it that way.”
Mern’s brow rises, and she shakes her head, nearly taking my eye out with a horn. “You never ask much of me, so I won’t refuse you this request, no matter how baffling I find it.” She paces back and forth, arms folded tightly across her leather chest armor. “A castle guard? How did you manage to speak such a lie?”
“I didn’t. She assumed it was so and spoke the words herself, and I didn’t see the value in correcting her. It is my duty to protect our kingdom and the castle. The role of guard is close enough to the truth.”
“That explains a lot.”
“What?” I push my weight off the tree. “What do you mean?”
She strokes hair from my eyes. “Simply that a picture is beginning to form.”
“Of what?”
“The foolish game you’re playing.” Then she turns and stomps off toward the stables.
“Mern. Wait!” I march after her, skidding to a stop near the entrance to the ivy-covered barn. I grip my sister’s arm and swing her around to face me. “I’m playing no game. What do you speak of?”
She nods toward Wren’s stall.
My horse whinnies loudly. At first, I think he’s greeting me, and a smile tugs at my mouth in response. Then I look closer.
The girl strokes his nose as she grooms him, and I realize it’s her presence he’s delighted by, not mine. Heat lashes my chest, not from anger, but from something much worse—jealousy.
Holly hooks the brush on the wall, adjusts Wren’s saddle and bridle, sloppily I note, then leads him past us, not once glancing to the side, ignoring me as if I’m an insignificant stable hand.
Mern and I watch her mount clumsily then trot my horse around the yard, smiling like a child at play.
Disgusted, I click my tongue. “She cannot ride very well. Look how she’s abusing my Wren, bouncing around on his saddle, treating him like a child’s pony instead of a warrior prince’s steed.”
Mern laughs, slamming her elbow into my ribs. “How is she to understand Wren’s importance if you haven’t told her who you are? She may not ride like a fae, but she seems perfectly capable to me.”
“Well, whatever she thinks she’s doing, I don’t like it. I shall insist she stops.” I take a step forward.
“Gade, wait a moment.” My sister’s forest eyes hold me firmly in place as she looks me up and down, her gaze shrewd. Mern has always seen more than I’ve wanted to reveal, even when we were children.
Stepping back, I lean against the stable’s rotting door frame and push stones around the paving with my bare foot.
Mern squeezes my arm. “You’re troubled by the girl’s presence. Perhaps she should ride out with me now, and you can follow behind with Elden.”
My head snaps up, cracking against the door frame. “What? Absolutely not.” Stones crunch, turning to dust beneath my heel. “Trust me, that wouldn’t be wise.”
“Why not?”
I ignore her question and ask one instead. “Why didn’t you bring a horse for her? That was a mistake,” I say, tipping my chin at the girl.
She eases Wren into a walk and bends over his neck, stroking his red coat. I am beyond amazed to see my traitorous steed tolerating affection from a stranger.
Mern shrugs. “The images Lleu showed us didn’t include Holly. We saw only that Wren was with you and in good health. Come, Brother, tell me why she discomfits you.”
“She’s human. Isn’t that enough?”
“No, Gade. It really isn’t. I never thought of you as prejudiced, but I suppose the curse has changed you and—”
“My power surges when I’m physically close to her. For this to be possible, an enchantment of sorts must have been placed on her. I don’t understand it, nor do I trust her. But at present, I need her. I can’t make this connection when others are around.”
And that is only because I don’t wish my sister and cousin to witness me interacting with the girl. That would be mortifying—a future king of Faery gaining power from a human girl’s kisses.
“But this is marvelous.” Mern grips my forearms and shakes me. “Do you think she’s the one?”
Panic surges through me—flame and ice on repeat until I push Mern’s hands away. “Don’t be ridiculous. I would know my mate on sight, and though she once threatened it, Aer would never dare match me with a mortal.”
“But, Gade, she—”
“There is something else I must tell you,” I say. “The day before yesterday, the annlagh appeared to us. I believe he rose from the earth solely because he sensed a human’s presence and was curious. The creature rendered me immobile but didn’t hurt either one of us, though he could’ve. He confessed to an ongoing interest in the girl. There’s power in possessing her.”
One of the stable sparrows flits down from the rafters and lands on Mern’s shoulder, ruffling its gold-speckled wings. “The annlagh? Now I really don’t like this situation. We should shove her through the first portal we can find and send her back to wherever she came from.”
“Not yet. I need time to understand her power over my magic.”
“Fine.” Mern nods, her expression blank enough to make me suspicious.
“Really? Your lecture is concluded?”
Mern pinches the tip of my ear. “We’re ready to leave and have prepared supplies for your saddlebags. Since you’ve decided to shun our company, we’ll make a start now and leave you to your human.” The hug she gives me is quick and brutal, a sure sign she’s anxious.
“I’ll take care. I promise,” I say, pulling her back for a gentler hug. “See you at home.”
“I’m unfortunately familiar with your version of taking care, Brother. Think how you came to be injured in the first place.” She sighs. “I’ll leave glyph messages in the rocks as we scout ahead. Make sure to pay attention.”
“Don’t I always?” I walk backwards in the direction of the human, grinning at Mern. “On second thought, don’t answer that question.”
Elden stumbles out of the hut, arms laden with supplies. He tips his chin at me. “Good travels to you and your mortal, Gade.”
“And the same to you and my overbearing sister.”
Laughing, Elden continues toward the stable.
Wren trots forward, the human frowning and muttering to herself in the saddle as they cross Elden’s path. He grabs the reins and pulls them to a halt.
“If I were you, I wouldn’t call Gade a fecking-feckless-fae-who-thinks-he-owns-you too loudly,” he tells her. “He has a terrible temper.”
She reels backward. “I whispered that. How did you hear me?”
“My element is air. And just as I heard Gade’s travel plans from inside the hut, not a single tree’s whisper escapes me. I say this to help you, Holly. Mind your words when I’m about. Gade, too. When his powers are firing, he hears everything around him.”
Elden clicks his fingers and multi-colored leaves appear, spinning around the girl’s head. She looks impressed by his cheap trick—one that even I, a future king, couldn’t perform in my current state.
Unless I kissed her stupid first. At that thought, flames lick along the skin of my arms and chest—and possibly a few other places.
Smirking, Elden winks and mounts Neem, his sturdy brown and white roan.
Within moments, Mern and Elden are cantering through the yard, then disappearing into the trees. And once again, I am alone with the mortal.
I march over to my horse and snatch the reins from the girl’s hands. “Dismount. We need to get ready to leave.”
As she swings a leg over Wren and slides to the ground, I swipe an ax from the woodpile and walk in the direction of the creek, planning to restock the hut’s firewood. She skips to catch up with me.
“I thought you said we were leaving straight away. Why didn’t you want to travel with Mern and Elden? Is it because of the kissing thing?”
I roll my eyes.
Yes. Of course that’s why, but I refuse to say it out loud and admit I’ve changed my plans because of her and the wildly disturbing effect she has on me that I have no wish for my family to witness.
“I have some things I need to do first,” is my only reply.
Such as waste a little time to give my sister a decent head start.
“Now stop plaguing me with questions and help me put the hut to rights before we leave.”
