Raith had more important things to do than to be a pawn in some royal game. If the desire to learn more about his mother wasn’t so strong, he’d already have gone.
All he’d left Scarlett with was a note saying they’d meet again. Could he have been more vague? If he’d known he’d be at the Unseelie Court so long, he’d have given her a proper goodbye. But what would that have been? A hug? A kiss? Passionate goodbye sex?
What were he and Scarlett? The bond between them kept them attached, but what if that went away? Neither of them could deny their connection, bond or no bond, but who knew what the connection should mean?
He couldn’t worry about her now. If he wanted answers, he’d have to stay here and humor Kaelem. If Raith left, Kaelem may never share the secrets he said he had. The fae were stubborn, if nothing else.
Kaelem swallowed a bite. “Delightful.”
“Completely.” Raith didn’t hide the sourness to his tone. It’s what Kaelem, who had the former Summer prince in need of information, wanted. Raith had known Kaelem long enough to know that games were fun to him, and his best chance to learn what he needed was to play along.
Although Raith grew impatient, he was under the protection of the Unseelie King. Should his brother, Cade find out he was still alive, Kaelem might keep him safe for nothing more than adding fuel to the fire of brotherly rivalry. That, and nothing angered a fae ruler more than someone coming in and killing his guests.
So, for now, Raith would be a pawn in Kaelem’s chess game. Until he got the information he needed.
Kaelem devoured the last bite of the cheesecake on his plate. Its sweet flavor lit up his taste buds. Dessert was by far the best part of any meal.
He watched Raith grimace in his chair. The Summer prince was too easy. Kaelem could get under his skin with just a look. Oh, the fun. He’d been rooting for Raith. Cade was too boring to be a fae king, all serious and moral.
So much so he’d made the mistake of leaving his brother alive for someone or something else to take care of him. Sure, to most it seemed a merciful deed, but to Kaelem, it showed his cowardice. Royals did not have the luxury for mercy. It made them weak and easy targets.
It was a mistake he’d only made once, and one that haunted him every day.
Two brownies came into the dining room and cleared the table, careful not to meet Kaelem’s eye. He wasn’t sure why they feared him so much. Most likely an effect of his father’s ruling tendencies. Kaelem didn’t see the need to entice terror in everyone around him like the late king.
“I take it I won’t be getting any answers tonight,” Raith grumbled.
“Not tonight, Summer prince.”
Kaelem laughed at the anger pouring off of Raith. The Summer prince really needed to get his emotions in check, but that would take away the fun, which would be no good.
“Then I’m leaving.” Raith paused, waiting for an objection.
If Kaelem refused, he’d stay. If he asked Raith to dance like a drunken chicken, he’d do that, too. For as much as Raith pretended to be uncaring, Kaelem had seen inside his mind when his mental shields were down. Raith would do whatever it took to learn more about his mother. Well, almost whatever. Kaelem had read his thoughts of the human girl. Those feelings would be the one line he may not cross, even to know more about his beloved mother.
Which made Kaelem want to push the boundary even more.
When Kaelem didn’t respond, Raith got up from the table and left the room without another word.
Kaelem smirked. That human girl had both Summer princes intrigued. Only, she was never truly human. Kaelem could sense the fae in her the first time he saw her.
And he’d felt the moment she took the pill he’d given her.
Now she wasn’t human at all.
A soft wind blew against Kaelem’s skin. Someone had evanesced into the room, which only few could do. The palace barriers prohibited evanescing for most fae. Only Kaelem and a few of the Unseelie guards could.
And the Fates, who appeared in front of him.
Their raven hair contrasted sharply against their pallid skin. All three stared at Kaelem with deep set, obsidian eyes, so dark it was impossible to distinguish between iris and pupil.
“Hello, King of Darkness,” they said in unison.
Kaelem slouched back in his chair and lifted his feet onto the table. A visit from the Fates, how interesting. The last prophecy he heard landed him the position of king. “To what do I owe the pleasure of you beauties?”
It’s wasn’t a lie, the three sisters were beautiful, in a harsh way. Big eyes, with thin rose lips, and flawless pale skin. Had they not had the habit of bearing bad news, they might have been more likable.
“As proud as ever, we see,” they said. “We come to share news of a great power.”
The Fates were nothing if not dramatic.
“Don’t brush us off, King. Or you may just suffer the same fate as your father.”
Kaelem kept his face still, but the jab got to him. His father had been warned of the threat the Seelie Queen posed, but he swept the warning away.
“Our words are never true or false,” the three voices sang in perfect harmony. “But we speak the outcome we see.”
And they were almost never wrong. Their visions were legend. Fae kings and queens taught their heirs to believe or regret it.
Except Kaelem’s father. He told them to go to hell, and that’s probably where he was that very moment.
“I’m listening,” Kaelem said.
The Fates cocked their heads in unison, like crows perched on a fence. “Trouble bubbles for the fae world. A power, long undiscovered, awaits those brave enough to search. But only two parts of a whole and one part of another can free it from its chamber. That is the key.”
Mumbo jumbo, as usual. The Fates never spoke plainly. Riddles were their game. But Kaelem liked games, and he liked power.
“What type of power?” he asked.
The Fates giggled, their voices carrying like bells through the room. “What fun would it be if we told you that?”
Within a blink, the sisters had vanished.
Damn Fates. They dangled steak in front of Kaelem like he was a dog, salivating at what was out of reach. Two parts of a whole and one part of another. What in the hell was that supposed to mean? If something were whole then it wouldn’t have another part. Maybe it was more than one thing?
A crumpled piece of paper on the table caught his attention. He grabbed it and unraveled it to find the words start with the human written inside.
The human? Did they mean Scarlett? She wasn’t a human anymore, not technically, at least. But she’d already caught the attention of two Summer princes, one of whom was now king. The Unseelie Court lived amongst the mortals, but Kaelem rarely talked to them. His fae played with humans, but Kaelem didn’t know any by name except for Scarlett.
It wasn’t just the Summer princes she’d intrigued. He’d spoke to her to mess with Raith and Cade, but somewhere along the way he’d grown fond of the human. Why else would he have given her a pill to enhance her fae heritage?
She had to be the human in the note.
The Fates weren’t loyal to any court. They could be telling Cade about the future they saw at that very moment, and if he got to Scarlett first, Kaelem would lose his chance.
No, that wouldn’t work. He needed to bring Scarlett to the Unseelie Court.
Now.
But first, he’d need to find her.