“I’m sure it’s fine.” He attempted a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “After you m’lady.”
“Not better!” I commented on his new choice word to address me. “Stick to Isay, why don’t you?”
He scoffed, “Where’s the fun in that?”
“You can’t have fun and be serious at the same time.”
We soon entered the dining hall and several heads turned our way, making Regar tense despite him having some fun on my account.
None of them looked malicious, however. Not like I’d perceived the court when I first arrived. I didn’t know if it had anything to do with my worsened eyesight, or perhaps my first impressions had been terribly wrong.
A few of them even smiled at me as I passed by to the table at the corner I’d started to associate as my spot.
When nothing threatening happened, during the next few hours Regar trailed me across the reservation on my daily exploration walk, he seemed to ease into his usual relaxed posture.
I could almost fool myself that he was simply there to keep me company and not watch my back. We were both taken off-guard by a scream that pierced through the gardens that stretched from the palace to the Northern gate. There were several accommodations spaced between where we stood and the exit, and it could’ve been anyone screaming, but with the wind coming from the North in a strong gust, I was certain it came from the tower post.
It had to be the guard. And that meant the Felrothians had come for me. Terror snaked down my spine, my eyes meeting Regar’s.
It appeared he had come to the same conclusion as me. “Isay, back to the palace. Now!”
He ushered me toward the looming structure, doing everything in his power to get me to move short of pulling me along with him. He would not touch me—out of fear, respect for the king’s orders, or because Karmuth warned him off.
But I could not budge. There were people between me and the gate, people who were not all brought up as warriors.
Death fae, sure, but otherwise completely normal fae, like Ronya and Sela. I didn’t know them, but they were going to become casualties in the dispute I’d started. I couldn’t let that happen.
“Isay, for death’s sake, move or I’ll throw you over my shoulder and carry you back,” Regar’s voice was harsh in his alarm.
His one and only priority was keeping me safe, and I was much more trouble than he’d anticipated. If he’d known I tended to run toward danger more often than away from it, he wouldn’t have chosen to guard me today.
I seethed, “You wouldn’t dare!”
“Oh yes, I would. Your safety is my top priority, and if that means I’ll have to grab that ass, I will face whatever punishment follows the impropriety of groping someone else’s mate.”
“What?” I gaped at him as whatever danger creeped closer through the gardens. I knew it did, as the air of dread foreshadowed its arrival just like a cloud of smoke foretold the presence of a delther pack.
“Move!” Regar repeated and I finally obeyed, but not in the direction he wanted me to go.
I ran towards the gate instead. He was right on my heels, cursing me to hell and back and gasping for air in between.
The first house we saw was abandoned, the second was left in a hurry with the door hanging wide open. It’s possible that I might’ve been wrong about people needing help.
Everyone here knew how to look out for themselves. There were safety protocols in place. Protocols which said the princess should head to the palace, where it was the safest. And I had taken us farther from it.
I stopped in mild panic, unable to decide the best course of action.
Regar had no such problem. “Are you done? Are you ready to come with me now?” he huffed.
I swallowed over the lump in my throat at his harsh tone and nodded. He didn’t throw me over his shoulder, just nudged me in the direction of the palace and kept a rapid pace until we ran into another fae.
“Ferro! Thank fuck,” Regar exclaimed, relieved to see the other fae while my own stomach turned sour in an instant.
Ferro’s gaze travelled from Regar to me and then back, a sly smile spreading on his face that disturbed me even more. Dread unfurled within my gut at the sight.
There was something wrong with my vision as my transformed eye kept blacking out completely whenever I tried to get a closer look at Ferro. I thought I was just lightheaded from our run, but Regar was fully visible, if only a lot darker than I was used to. Ferro on the other hand was shrouded in darkness. A dark and unrelenting cloud and when he smiled, the cloud thickened.
“An inconvenient time for a stroll, don’t you think?” he asked. His full focus on me made my skin crawl, but I refused to back away.
Regar had nothing crawling across his skin, nor had he any trouble with his vision, since he gratefully pushed me toward Ferro. “Very convenient to have run into you. Take Isay to the palace. I’ll go reinforce the gate.”
Ferro had no reservations against touching me. With an iron grip around my wrist, he started pulling me in the direction we’d been going. When Regar was out of sight, he steered away from the palace and toward the closest tower instead. I was unable to resist his direction.
Terror snaking down my spine, I’d tried to let go of the shield to pull out the barbs, but the darkness relished his skin against my arm. My protest went unheard as much as my physical restraint.
I didn’t know where we were going. All I knew was that I was not safe with Ferro.
Chapter 29
KARMUTH
DISTURBED BY SHOUTING OUTSIDE MY WINDOW, I ROLLED OUT OF the bed to go see what the problem was. Pulling my pants on, the shouting soon turned to screams, and I discarded my shirt, grabbed my dadao, and sprinted outside instead.
Death fae scurried in every direction from the collection of housing my one room apartment connected to. It was nothing as fancy as Isay’s quarters, but I didn’t use it for much other than sleeping. I was wide awake now.
A fae male ran past me, and I called out, “What’s going on?”
“Felrothians crashed through the gate!” he shouted back without stopping, breathless from his pace.
