Rise of the cinder fae, p.14
Rise of the Cinder Fae, page 14
This is why I risked drinking faerie-tainted water.
But that didn’t include speaking to the king about this directly. If he locks his own daughter away for disagreeing with him about her own life, what leverage do I have?
I pray a bolt of lightning will spread the clouds and strike him down, but until that happens, I need to grasp the remnants of bravery. “I think progress for any realm is constantly changing. My stepmother is correct about our gratitude, however….” I clear my throat. “Ashbury would benefit from additional deliveries of food and water.” My ears rang, and every organ in my body flew in an effort not to be chopped up and used as fertilizer in the gardens, but I did it. I said what needed to be said.
Finnian notices my trembling hands when I tuck them under the table, and his hand covers both of mine without appearing to move. I want to pull away; I want to shove him off, but the touch does remind me to breathe.
King Jasper ponders and stares in silence. Then, the deep laugh in his chest causes me to grip Finnian’s hand tightly—as if that will stop retaliation for my honesty. It’s not Finnian’s responsibility to save me, nor do I believe he would.
“An extra wagon a week it is,” he says.
I blink.
It can’t be that simple. If any valuable lesson came from my father, nothing comes without strings.
“Thank you,” I breathe, the uneven tremor of my voice the very least of my problems.
Queen Honora clasps her hands together with a soft smile. “Shall we retire? It is warm.”
“You’re a bright girl,” the king interjects. “You remind me of your father.”
I have the damnedest feeling that it isn’t a compliment.
“I have a proposition for you,” the king continues.
Irina glances at Finninan.
Finnian removes his hand from mine. Whatever the proposition is, he knows. Queen Honora’s fading smile warns me that I won’t be able to deny it.
“I am willing to discuss improvements for Ashbury,” he begins, but he only would have known my reason for coming here by speaking with….
Regina.
Gods, what agreement did she make on my behalf?
A servant clears the plates from the table before Jasper speaks again. “I need you to take your father’s place as Keeper of the Faeries.”
“Of course,” I accepted quickly. “I would be delighted to remain close to the faeries, and as you can imagine, I did learn quite a bit from shadowing my father.”
Regina’s scowl flips into a triumphant grin, stretching her thin skin taut.
My relief is short-lived.
“After speaking with your mother—”
“Stepmother,” Irina corrects.
Regina’s scowl snaps to Irina, only to be met with an icy glower from the queen.
Jasper ignores Irina. “We have come to an agreement. I know your hardship since your father’s passing and that a dowry does not accompany you.”
A dowry. Those are only needed when….
“But you are well-bred. Good breeding leads to strong lines.”
Did he truly just compare me to a fucking horse?
Finnian inches away from me, guilt enveloping his profile. I start to shake my head, but I can’t move. My fate has been decided, my freedom stripped away. This was supposed to be my choice, my decision. I needed to be able to walk away—that was our agreement. If I’m to be the Keeper, marriage isn’t required. I can earn wages until the faeries leave, be given the power to do something, and not be tied to such an arrogant prince.
But riches will always outweigh me.
“The union between the Prince of Pumpkin Hollow and the fallen Princess of Ashbury will reflect well on our realm when a son is born.”
The fallen princess.
That name.
He wants to twist his invasion of my kingdom into a story of unity. ‘A union’ is precisely what I wanted. It’s what I need for my home to thrive, but the condition, the removal of choice. “A son,” I repeat slowly, as if it’s multiple syllables. “A son….”
Dolly barks a heinous laugh. “You want Ellie to be your princess? She is nothing but a servant! She scrubs floors!”
Daffodil joins in. “All hail Ellie! The princess of ash and dirty rags!”
They break into a fit of laughter. Regina says nothing to calm them, to stop them, only broadening her smile at the blooming pink of my cheeks. “What have you done?” I whisper to her.
“Oh, Ellie,” Regina says, “It’s what your father wanted.”
My lips part. What my father wanted?
“Enough!” Finnian shouts over their incessant mockery. “Leave this castle. You are no longer welcome here.”
Regina’s victorious smirk drops. “But the agreement….”
“We have restored your fortune,” Finnian interrupts. “That was the extent of what you’d get in return for your cooperation.”
Am I breathing? I can’t be.
Everything around me is spinning too quickly.
“Her cooperation?” I ask breathily. “You knew about this?”
It is Irina who replies for him, “Arranged marriages are by contract, Elora. It is signed by each party when negotiating a betrothal.”
“But there isn’t a betrothal—”
“There is,” Finnian mutters. “I signed.”
The heat and shock have made me dizzy and cold, and I am unable to reconcile any of this. I should feel ecstatic that my efforts aren’t needed, but instead, I feel…. Betrayed.
His kindness was all a lie. Nothing between us was real. Every touch and stolen look was fabricated to gain my trust.
Not allowing me to leave, begging for me to stay for Midsetting. Gods, his meeting this morning was for this moment.
“But my father is dead,” is all I can argue.
“He came to me long ago,” the king says, rubbing his bloated belly. “I wanted to meet you first, but not during your bereavement. He signed his name before his death.”
The heat has dried my eyes to the point where tears won’t fall, but they’ve certainly impeded my vision; everyone surrounding me is nothing more than blurs.
My own father signed away my future.
Freedom was never a wish. It never even existed.
King Jasper leans forward despite the lack of room between his stomach and the table. “We will discuss timeframes for providing an heir another day. Until then, you will assist with the faeries, and I will listen to your requests.”
He will listen, not honor.
I can’t fight this. I didn’t emancipate from the household after my father died. I stayed for the memories and proximity to Azrea, and that choice sealed my life to Regina’s decisions. As sole executor, she could’ve prevented this. She didn’t have to agree with my father’s decision, but she did.
She signed me away.
I blurt, “What if I don’t want this?”
Finnian stills. Irina lowers her eyes.
But the king lazily waves his hand around the empty air. “Use your imagination.”
I read too much as a child because my vast imagination can create the worst horror stories. The gallows, the deaths of everyone I hold dear, the final destruction of Ashbury. He could take his pick.
I push my chair out and stand. Fatigue nearly overcomes me when backing away from the table on shaky legs. “I need a moment.”
Ancient fae magic within the spell prevents me from wishing against the will of others, but humans…. People like the king and Regina will stop at nothing to benefit from imprisoning others. The second I crossed that bridge, my life was decided.
I fell right into their trap.
Such a foolish doe to graze where lions play.
Fifteen
Irina stands to run after Elora, calling her name, but Elora doesn’t turn back. I move to follow Irina, but Jasper hits his fist against the table. “Irina!” Jasper rumbles, “Sit down! We do not chase lowly girls.” He calls for one of the men hidden in the gardens to fetch the girl and bring her back to the table.
But, I stand. “Leave her be. You bombarded her with this information. It was unnecessary.”
Irina, whose strength derives from defiance, lingers in the doorway of the glass summerhouse. “She is not part of this family yet. You will allow her to grieve her freedom.”
“I am her king!” he bellows in response.
“And wretched. I know that stealing power from women is your favorite pastime, but she does not belong to you,” Irina adds, her disgusted glare moving to me. “She is apparently yours now. How fucking disappointing.” Gripping her skirt in her hands, she flares it as she spins and leaves, leaving me no time to form a reply.
“Irina!” Jasper shouts, grunting as he stands.
I lean on the table with his fists. “Leave them be,” I repeat, pointing to the man awaiting instruction while looking nowhere but at my despicable father. “Call him off.”
Jasper’s chest heaves, his fists clenching. Irina’s disobedience is typical behavior, but mine shocks him. I was born and bred to agree with every decision and am partially the reason Elora’s freedom was stripped away from her, but I will not allow him to torment her before she has time to accept it.
The remaining guests remain silent. Jasper reluctantly motions for the guard to return to his post while my mother breathes a sigh of relief—not for Elora’s sake. Jasper has often clarified that being his son will not prevent any punishment he deems fit.
“Ellie always has to be the center of attention,” one of the stepsisters says with a sigh. I haven’t cared enough to learn their names. One of them is a hideous flower, I think.
The vile creature continues, “If I looked like her, I would try to draw less attention to myself.”
My nostrils flare from the sharp air intake at her remark—the insulting way she speaks about my future wife. “Leave,” I demand. “Your invitation across the bridge has expired.”
Regina dares to look offended. “But the wedding! Elora is my—”
My entire body tenses. “Do not say daughter. You are not her mother. You gave her up without a thought.”
Regina rears back. I silently dare her to test me, but my mother speaks before she can rile me further, “The wedding will be small. It is happening quickly, per our king’s request. It will be blessed by a presiding bishop for the gods to bestow goodwill upon them.” My mother stands and clasps her hands, resting them against her waist. “My son is correct. Your presence is no longer needed.”
The floral sister wraps her hand around Jasper’s wrist. “Your Majesty—”
He yanks his arm from her and stands so quickly that his chair topples backward. “You should lose your hand for touching your king so freely!” Again, he calls for his men, desperate to order someone around. “Escort them from Pumpkin Hollow immediately.”
The twins shriek in protest, but Regina calmly stands and bows to Jasper. “Girls, it is time to return to the palace manor. Thank the king for his generosity.”
Each woman dips into pathetic curtsies with trembling bottom lips. How is Elora years younger than them, yet they behave like scorned children?
But Regina gazes upon me with an unsettling curve of her mouth. It is an unspoken challenge that I cannot prepare for. “Send Elora to collect her things,” she says.
My only response is to gesture for them to leave. And it isn’t until they are out of earshot that I turn to Jasper with fantasies of the sun burning him alive that I say, “It was not part of our agreement to inform Elora of this tonight. She barely knows me.”
He grunts. “I do not require your permission, boy.”
I open my mouth to spew everything he needs to hear—why his people fear him, why none of his family respects him—but my mother gently touches my arm.
“Go, son.”
I contemplate speaking anyway. The need to break free from him grows by the day, but my mother would be the one to receive the brunt of his anger. And the maddening urge to find Elora outweighs the desire to kill him where he stands.
For now.
“She’s not in there.”
“Hades,” I snap, flinching. Knocking relentlessly on Elora’s door has proved pointless. “Where is she, Irina?”
Irina lifts a shoulder in a shrug, avoiding my gaze.
“Irina,” I growled. “I didn’t know—”
“That you signed away her freedom? I find that hard to believe.” She crosses her arms. “After everything he’s put us through, you did the same to her.”
I drag a hand down my face. “It’s not as simple as that, Irina. And you said to secure an engagement!”
She shoves my chest with both hands. Twice. “By honorable means, Finnian! Excuse me for assuming you would know that!”
I fight the urge to hang my head like a scorned dog.
“You could’ve gotten to know her and gained her trust, but instead, you took away her choices.” She threads both hands in her hair. “We had a chance with her. She’ll never trust you now.”
I sink against the wall.
“What happened this morning, hm?” Her lips pinch, waiting for me to respond. “When you left, you asked me to treat her well. What changed between then and now? Did you fuck someone last night? Did you find someone else and forget about her?”
“No, Irina. I didn’t go anywhere last night.” Honestly, it crossed my mind after I left her yesterday evening. After seeing Elora soaked and wondering how sweet she might taste, I wondered if sinking my cock into someone else would soothe the ache of not touching her, but I couldn’t…. Stomach the idea.
“We met with the advisers this morning,” I murmured, closing my eyes. “We didn’t speak of Elora, but then…”—my hand curls into a fist—“Regina came in and approached Jasper with a proposition. She informed us that a male warrior has been trying to court Elora for years.”
Jealousy from that moment resurfaces. “The male is the brother of their leader. And the leader’s mate is her closest friend. Because of those two faeries, they will do anything to ensure her safety. Jasper already feared their closeness, but they’re loyal to her, Irina. Loyalty is dangerous in the wrong hands.”
She gestures for me to continue. “And?”
“And,” I sigh, “with the rumors of displeased residents in Ashbury, Jasper agreed with Regina. Forcing Elora to wed instead of giving me time to entice her would be more beneficial.”
“For whom?” She wags a finger when my exasperation turns to annoyance from her probing. “No, Finnian. You didn’t have to agree with him.”
“I did it for her,” I say quietly. “Regina agreed to abide by Harry’s wish of a betrothal only if their fortune was restored. I just… blacked out. Elora was being traded like livestock, and I wanted her away from Regina. I didn’t want her to return with them.”
“He’ll kill her,” she reminds me, her teeth clenched and fists balled. “If she doesn’t follow exactly what you laid out in the arrangement, he will kill her. He doesn’t give second chances.”
“I’ll protect her—”
“How?”
I haven’t found time to detail a plan.
“Keeping me from having to wed is not the same as protecting Elora when she doesn’t provide an heir, Finnian.”
Nothing I could say would satisfy her because she was right. Nausea hasn’t left me since I signed my name underneath his. “I just want to find her, Irina.”
She turned and walked away, but I chased her. “Irina, please. I need you to trust me. Be upset with me, but trust that I will protect her. I don’t know how yet, but I’m your brother. Hasn’t that earned me a little faith?”
The topaz color of her eyes always darkens each time she cries, which is rare. Irina is unbreakable, yet when she looks at me over her shoulder, the disappointment in her tearful gaze makes my chest tighten. “You are my brother, Finn. And my best friend.” She entirely turns to place a gentle hand on my chest. “And I love you. But I swear to the gods, Finnian, if you fail, if that girl loses her life because of you, you will never see me again.”
“Irina,” I breathe, eyes widening in surprise.
“I will not stand by and let another man control the fate of women, Finnian.”
My throat constricts as I try to swallow her heavy words. The thought of never seeing my sister again brings an entirely new level of regret to my mistake. A dagger would’ve hurt less than being compared to our father.
“I can protect both of you,” I promise.
She stares at her hand on my chest, contemplating divulging Elora’s whereabouts.
“Irina, please.”
She squeezes her eyes shut. “I told her to use the underground tunnel to leave the castle undetected. She wants to go home.”
I stumble down the steps just as Elora opens the tunnel door. Out of breath and red-faced from running around the castle to beat her here, I lunge when she tries to slip back inside.
I take her wrist. “Elora—”
She tries to pull herself free. “Go away!”
“Elora,” I try again, dragging her closer. “Elora, I was going to tell you privately. I didn’t know he planned on telling you….”
“You think that’s why I’m upset?!” She stabs her finger against my sternum repeatedly. “You tricked me.”
Wincing, I rub my chest. As small as they might be, Irina and Elora hold a surprising amount of pain-inducing strength. “I didn’t trick you, Elora, and this wasn’t to be cruel.”
“Let me go,” she snaps, trying to peel my fingers from around her wrist.
“No,” I growl, “Not until you listen.”
She reaches into the pocket of a gray hooded cloak. I recognize it from Irina’s wardrobe. She has multiple coverings available for disguising herself to leave the castle. Seeing Elora in one to escape me enrages me.
I wait for her to produce a small weapon to drive through my chest, but she opens her fist for the strand of pearls to dangle from her fingers. “My collar, Lord Finnian.”
Sighing, I let her drop it in my palm. Rattling off my list of things to apologize for in my mind, I’m not prepared for the elbow she drives into my stomach. I release her on impact and double over to groan. She breaks into a run, heading the complete opposite way of Ashbury.
