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“I told you, I don’t have it. Jackson Crimson did. If you want to experience his memories, find your mate and return to me.”
“Just tell me.”
“I just did,” she’d snarled, then spread her glorious white wings and took to the sky.
The outburst was the largest display of emotion Leaf had ever seen in Aleksandra’s bleak eyes. What the fuck did experience memories mean, anyway? He’d thought if he followed Crimson’s steps and read the journals, that was a practical observation of events. But maybe it meant something else. His lips flattened, and he grumbled. He couldn’t lose his nerve now. Not when he was so close to finding the truth.
Leaf’s thoughts traveled to Jasper—Maebh’s enemy and his ex-Cadre of Twelve team member. Jasper had inherited the Glass Crown after killing the old Seelie High King, his father. Before Mithras had imprisoned him, Jasper often resisted responsibility. But since he mated and spawned, he took to leadership well.
If these villagers had any survival instinct, they would have traveled to Jasper at Helianthus City or Aeron at Delphinium City for refuge.
Honestly, Leaf hadn’t expected this war to last so long. He’d assumed most Seelie would jump back into the Unseelie camp and face consequences for their defection. He’d also thought the Order would have learned how to ‘unmake’ Maebh by now. Or, at the very least, the Prime or Legion would give in and tell Leaf what he needed to know.
His gaze raked over the smoldering village. Maebh’s insanity grew after Elphyne split a few centuries ago. And most fae, on both sides of the war, knew Maebh was responsible for the taint on the Well. She was a wanted woman and would stand trial for her crimes.
But the Order’s hands were tied as long as her demogorgon protected her, and the taint prevented Guardians from working at their full potential. The Order’s power and influence in Elphyne was diminishing, as was everyone else’s.
Sighing, Leaf scrubbed his face and veered his horse toward the river. With any luck, a way across would still be viable. Perhaps a boat or a raft… but everything had been destroyed, right down to the jetty.
The river was too wide to cross on horseback and flowed like black tar at night. Riding around the river would add a week to his journey. He might dismount and attempt a portal, but as soon as the thought hit, he remembered Clarke’s experiment with the water and hesitated.
A cool breeze brought the sound of male voices. He reached over his shoulder, wrapped his fingers aroundReckoning’s hilt, and drew. Ringing steel was music to his ears.
He searched for the voices. They could be survivors.
A group of Unseelie soldiers congregated downriver. Leaf squinted into the night and caught movement in the nearby forest, where more soldiers emerged. Possibly bathing in the river. The brazen bastards must have raided the village, then camped here to pick at its bones like carrion. But why did they remain?
He sheathedReckoning. Despite the Order having a warrant for Maebh’s arrest, he doubted she would be here. No one had seen her in years. These soldiers were no threat to a Guardian if she wasn’t there. This was precisely why ignoring fae politics was a rule for the Order. Leaf could now go about his business without being hindered.
He spurred his horse forward. The group of five or so on the riverbank noticed his approach and moved into formation, ready to attack.
“Put your fangs away,” Leaf grumbled, slowing his horse to stop a few yards away.
It took a Well-damned moment for one of them to recognize the glowing blue teardrop beneath Leaf’s left eye, his steel sword, and the Kingfisher-blue piping on his battle uniform.
A vampire spat on the floor. “What business do you have here, Guardian?”
Leaf raised an indignant brow at the soldiers still brandishing weapons. Not very clever this lot. He briefly searched for contraband but found none and changed his opinion. They might be a little clever.
“I’m passing through,” he answered. “Since you destroyed the village I intended to find food and rest in, I expect you to supply a substitute.”
The vampire narrowed bloodshot eyes. There was too much red there for Leaf’s liking. Bloodlust turned vampires into insatiable, crazed, unquenchable monsters. Some vampires, D’arn Indigo included, had suffered accidental bloodlust but returned to sanity and control. Others had to be put down.
Leaf tugged the reins and cantered alongside the group, inspecting them further. Half had washed in the river, as he’d suspected. But he also detected a faint atmosphere of anticipation.
“Are you packing up camp?” he queried.
“No.”
“Then what is the occasion?”
Unseelie soldiers willingly bathing was a rare sight.
Silence.
Leaf narrowed his eyes.
“Who do I see for food?” he pressed, still pacing the horse. “Who is in charge here?”
