My throat tightens as my eyes take in the sight of her in a white bikini. I’m an idiot. I should’ve known it’d be impossible to pretend she doesn’t affect me.
I have to force myself to keep walking forward and turn my focus to the ground instead of her. But the image of her is squarely under my skin. After only a couple of feedings from me, she’s become a woman. Her curves are supple, her muscles shaped to perfection. The bright copper waves of her hair, grown just past her shoulders now, reflect the sunlight in golden streaks. Her skin is a perfect peach, scattered with freckles, only the scar on her neck from Kieran marring the smooth surface.
It was inevitable that she would blossom once she was able to feed properly and use her powers. I should’ve known that what I saw that first night was because her demi side had been starving for so long. Now she’s exquisite.
Aelia comes down the path through the trees just as I start to back away, heading for my cottage again.
She spots me and points. “Faelan’s here for fun? I didn’t think that was possible.”
Niamh and James trail behind her. James grabs Niamh, picking her up with a hoot and surging forward, leaping into the water as she squeals in protest. Niamh comes up sputtering and scolding as she makes her way back to the edge of the pool.
James gives me a nod while the girls aren’t looking, like he’s making sure it’s all right that he’s around. I nod back. I could not care less if he hangs with Aelia, sleeps with her, even if he’s feeding from her, as long as it’s consensual. The rules against underlings being equals with druids and demis have seemed archaic to me since the industrial revolution.
Niamh climbs out of the water and grabs a towel from one of the chairs, pouting. “You totally messed up my hair, James.”
James leans on the edge and rolls his eyes dramatically. “Oy, pixie, leave it at the gates, will ya. We’re not on show.”
Aelia scoffs, “Silly, James, you’re always on show.”
James just laughs and works his way over to Sage. “Hello, love,” he says, his grin wide, fangs showing. “How’s the ascendance going today?”
“Horrible, as always,” she smirks, sinking into the water.
James turns to me. “You joining the fun, mickey? Or you just gonna loiter?”
“Come on, coach,” Sage teases, splashing me. “Come show us how to breathe underwater.” I want to feel relief at her playfulness, but something about it feels forced.
“Okay, you guys, I have news!” Aelia says, working her way down the pool steps. She holds out her hands, like she’s preparing us all for something big. “So, last night I was at the Dark Circle club, and there was this girl there who’s a shade concubine for Kieran, and she said that our Prince of Shadows hasn’t been seen all week.”
I glance at Sage in time to see her face fall.
“He hasn’t been seen at all?” I ask, not sure I’m buying it.
“Nope. The dark prince is totally missing,” Aelia says, sounding very sure. “No one’s seen him since his freaky party.”
“Why’re you listening to a concubine, Lia?” James asks. “You know they gossip like church ladies at a potluck.”
“Hey,” Niamh says from her chair, offended.
“You know it’s true, dear,” James says.
Aelia continues, “This girl is completely trustworthy. She’s a super-solid part of his House. She said he left that night—the night of the murder party. Since then, he hasn’t popped up anywhere, not even the European compound. And he didn’t go back to New York with Princess Mara.”
“Very mysterious,” James says in a conspiratorial tone.
Sage stays silent and swims over to the far edge. A stone sinks in my gut. She seems concerned about Kieran.
A maid appears down the pathway, looking a bit lost. “Excuse me, mistresses.” She’s holding a black velvet bag out in front of her like she’s a little afraid of it. “A messenger dropped this off for the princess. They say it’s very important. It shouldn’t wait with the other tributes, they say.”
“Who is ‘they’?” Aelia asks her.
The maid just gets a lost look on her face. Whoever they were, they wiped her memory.
I walk over and take the bag from her. “Thank you, Martha.” She scampers away, back to the house.
“Open it, Faelan,” Aelia says, swimming to the edge. She gets more excited than Sage does about this stuff. Sage isn’t even paying attention. She’s still several feet away, staring at the surface of the water.
“We’ll let Sage do it later,” I say. “I’ll put it in her cottage.”
Aelia sticks out her bottom lip, but James kisses it, and she seems to forget about presents for a second.
“I can set it inside,” Niamh says, reaching out. I hand the bag to her and she smiles, curling her fingers around it possessively. Pixies. She’s probably hoping it’s something shiny; she’s sure to open it once she’s in the cottage.
She turns and starts to walk away, saying over her shoulder, “I need to get this water out of my hair or it’ll turn purple again. Can I use your bathroom, princess?”
Sage doesn’t answer.
Aelia unhooks her lips from James. “Yoo-hoo, Sage! She’s talking to you.”
“Oh,” Sage says absently. “Sure. Whatever.” Then she swims over to the waterfall and glides behind it, perching on the ledge there. She stares at the water and moves her legs back and forth, her mind lost now, all sense of playfulness evaporated.
And for the hundredth time, I want to slit Kieran’s throat.
FORTY-TWO
SAGE
I listen to the splashing of the water and watch it swirl in small eddies in front of me, lost in a sudden rush of anxiety. As soon as Aelia mentioned that Kieran hasn’t been seen since the party, my gut sank. A very real fear for him bubbled up, and I have no idea what to do with it.
How can I feel any sort of worry for Kieran?
“You good?” Faelan says.
I turn toward his voice. He’s treading water two feet away, hair slicked back. Sunlight bounces off the water, glittering around him, shimmering in his green eyes, the water thickening his lashes.
This is the guy I want. Not Kieran. I should be glad for the dark prince to disappear.
“Uh, yeah,” I say, absently. “It’s all good.”
He squints at me like he’s trying to figure me out. “You sure?” he says. “I could get you something to eat—”
“No,” I say quickly, not wanting him to worry about me. “I’m just tired, that’s all.”
I step out of the pool and walk over to grab one of the towels folded on the chair.
“I know something’s wrong, Sage,” he says.
I don’t turn around. “I’m fine. Just let it go, Faelan.” I dry my face, but when I hear him getting out of the water, I add, “I’m going to try and get some sleep,” and then I walk away, heading for the cottage.
I open the door and go inside, nearly colliding with Niamh. I’d totally forgotten she was in here. She turns, dropping the black velvet bag in surprise. She raises her hand up in front of me, like she’s trying to show me something. And then she goes perfectly still.
Her skin becomes waxy and pale.
Blood runs from her nose in a slow, thin drip.
Crimson pools in her large eyes.