A week after the opening ceremony, Raith sat on the edge of his bed in the castle and pulled his boots on. With everyone coming to witness The Hunt, he had decided to spend the night inside the castle instead of in his tree. He didn’t understand why so many people cared to come to this event. It wasn’t as if they could see The Hunt itself. He and Cade would be in the dark forest, searching for a fucking boar. What better way to have two brothers duke it out than to have them hunt for dinner? Seriously, who decided that?
No point in complaining now. Raith made his way to the courtyard. The king and queen sat on the outdoor thrones that had been moved there for the occasion. The same fae that had introduced everyone at the ball stood next to Kassandra. Raith walked up to them, bowed to the king and queen, and waited next to the other fae. A few minutes later, Cade showed up, hand-in-hand with Scarlett, who wore a dazed expression on her face. His brother must have just fed on her.
Raith hadn’t seen Scarlett since they’d made the bargain—when they sealed it with that kiss. Its intensity surprised Raith. He could sense that he and Scarlett shared a strong chemistry and had made the kiss part of the deal just to mess with her head. But the sparks between them exploded when their lips met. It made him even more curious about the human, something that could become dangerous.
Another flash of her memory hit him when their lips had met. A woman lay dead on the floor, blood splattered at her sides. It was horrific and Raith pushed it away, then got lost in the passion between them. But in that short moment, the pain he experienced felt like being carved alive with the dullest of blades, excruciating and never-ending. It was Scarlett’s pain, and now he understood why it had been so easy for Cade to lure her to Faerie.
He did as she wished. He returned Natalie to her home, her memories of Faerie wiped. Even though fixing her pain wasn’t part of the deal, Raith felt for the girl. Her silly human vanity was making her miserable. A boyfriend had told her to lose weight, and that tiny seed had sprouted into an entire garden of self-doubt. Raith didn’t like messing with memories—it usually brought guilt, as if he were meddling in things he shouldn’t. But he saw Natalie’s vibrant self when her pain had been dulled from his feeding, so he erased the fat comment, too.
Scarlett’s eyes met his.
He winked, and he swore she held back a smile.
“Welcome,” the announcer spoke. “We are ready to begin.”
The crowd quieted, their gazes shifting to Raith and Cade.
The fae continued. “We are here to witness The Hunt. Both brothers will be fighting to be the one to spear the beast. But to make things more interesting, each will take a serum that blocks his mental shields against the forest.”
Well, shit. How did Raith not know that part? From the wide-eyed look on Cade’s face, he must have been surprised, too.
The announcer took out two vials of liquid, the same size as what Scarlett took at the ball. But this liquid was emerald. He handed them to Raith and Cade.
“After you take the liquid, you will be evanesced into a cordoned off section of the forest. The only creatures allowed inside are you two and the beast. Neither of you may leave until the beast is speared. You will each be given a spear and a bow with magically refilling arrows as well as a horse.”
How hard could it be? Raith lifted his vial into the air. “Cheers, brother.”
He gulped down the liquid, which tingled as it went down. It tasted like a pinecone. Raith gagged.
He heard the announcer wish him good luck before he vanished and appeared inside the forest. Raith had been in the dark forest many times, but never this far in. The trees remained still around him, not even a bird on their branches. He heard a rustle behind him. Raith flipped around, arms raised in front of him. A black horse was tied to a tree. Its black mane shined. Raith recognized him. It was Theo, his favorite horse from the stables. It had been, what, three years since Raith had last ridden? He’d been so busy practicing with weapons and his battle magic he didn’t think of tuning up his horseback riding skills.
“Hi, Theo.” Raith patted Theo’s neck. “Good boy.
Propped against a tree were a spear and a bow and arrow, just as the announcer had promised. Raith slung the bow over his shoulder and fastened the spear in front of Theo’s saddle. Raith stuck his foot in the stirrup and grabbed onto the saddle horn then pulled himself up. He grasped the rains and gave Theo a gentle kick, and they were off.
He’d missed this, the feeling of the breeze as they galloped. Now, all he needed to do was find the boar, shoot it, and be done.
As they rode through the trees, something shifted ahead. Was it Cade? Or maybe the beast?
“Woah, boy.” Raith slowed Theo down to a trot.
Something grew out of the ground—tree roots. They climbed higher and snaked toward Raith. He tried to back Theo up, but the tree was faster. The roots circled Raith, binding him in place.
His arms struggled against the bonds with no luck. He was stuck. Theo kept still beneath him.
No, this couldn’t be happening. It wasn’t real. Raith remembered the liquid he drank. His mental shields were down and the forest had strong mind magic. This was an illusion—and a powerful one. Raith again fought to break the hold. No luck. Fuck.
His mental shields had been strong for so long, he’d forgotten the influence the forest could have. He’d been able to defeat it before. He could do it again. A squawking noise caught Raith’s attention. A raven sat upon a branch. Another joined. Then another. Their screeching grew louder and louder. Raith felt something drip from his nose. Blood.
He closed his eyes. This wasn’t real. It was an illusion meant to distract him. He emptied his mind, inhaling a deep breath. His brain pictured the forest as it was before, calm, with no attacking roots or loud birds.
When he opened his eyes, everything was back to normal.
It had been an hour and no sign of Raith or Cade spearing the beast. The announcer had told the crowd that once it had been killed, the three would appear back in the courtyard.
Scarlett watched fae talk amongst themselves as they waited for something to happen. She had thought the ball was full of fae, but there were at least twice as many here now. The ball had been adults only, but now children ran around their parents, trying to make the most of their freedom.
Since Raith and Cade had disappeared, Scarlett kept quiet a few feet from the thrones. When she’d first arrived, she had been drained from Cade’s feeding of her emotion. But as she waited, her brain cleared, which had been happening faster the longer she’d been in Faerie.
Kassandra had a human servant bring her a glass of wine, which had been magically refilled three times now. The king sat in his throne, back straight and glossy-eyed. He hadn’t spoken, not even when the servant asked if he’d like wine, too. His expression remained forward as if he looked for something off in the distance.
Scarlett felt odd just standing there, but she wasn’t sure where else to go. Occasionally, she’d catch the gaze of someone in the crowd. Some eyed her curiously, probably wondering who in the hell she was to be accompanying a fae prince everywhere. Some glared. Some seemed to pretend she didn’t even exist.
Kassandra motioned for her servant. “Bring me a plate of fruit. I’m famished.”
The servant, around Scarlett’s age, nodded and rushed off, brown eyes full of panic. Her black hair was pulled into a bun that accentuated her long neck. She came back with a platter of grapes and apples.
“Where are the strawberries?” Kassandra asked as the servant tried to hand her the plate.
“I…They…” She replied.
“I won’t accept it until there are strawberries.” Kassandra shooed the servant girl with a brush of her hand.
She hurried away and came back with strawberries on the plate. Kassandra took it this time, with no thank you. The girl returned to the side of the crowd.
“What are you staring at, human?” Kassandra turned her head toward Scarlett.
Scarlett hadn’t realized she’d been staring, but her gaze had been focused on the queen as the servant had given her the fruit. “Nothing. Sorry.”
“Come here.”