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I spat at his feet. “You’re one to talk for a lowly brute. I can see why humans think so little of you creatures.”
His raven hair fell into his face as he grabbed both my wrists in one hand and pinned them behind my back. While my breathing grew ragged, his stilled.
“Does it feel good?” I thrashed with a grunt. “Overpowering someone half your size?”
He gripped my chin. “Keep testing me.”
“Or what? You’re going to kill me? Please, spare me the theatrics.”
He clenched his jaw and shoved me forward, causing me to trip on my own feet, but he didn’t care. The faerie man kept walking, kept forcing me further and further down the narrow corridor.
I peered inside each cell lining the way, trying to spot the other humans that Pipion mentioned, but I didn’t see anyone. Only rows and rows of empty cells inside a damp, cold dungeon that led nowhere.
We walked until my feet went numb before light appeared at the end of the hallway, blinding me. I half expected to enter a barbaric castle filled with tortured and crying souls, but the room before us left my jaw on the floor.
It was light and majestic—boundless and bewitching. Vines and flowers clung to the ceiling and wrapped around the columns. Large iridescent windows cast a spectrum of colors onto the marble floor, entrancing my mind, and for a split second, I’d forgotten I was in a realm crawling with foul creatures. Dancing light unfolded, and a shiver ran down my spine, a stark reminder that beauty coexisted with peril on this side of the river. Enchantment held hands with danger.
I saw them as we neared a set of double doors adorned with intricate carvings—the other humans. There were nine, each with a faerie guard at their side. I tried picking up my pace to reach them sooner, but the cruel guard held me back.
“You’re not to speak to anyone until after you meet with the court. Do you understand?”
“Says who?”
“You sure are demanding for someone not in the position to make them.” He huffed a laugh, keeping his attention ahead. “I don’t care to listen to you drone on and on about trivial human nonsense.”
I scoffed. “Trivial? I’d hardly call being held captive against our will trivial.”
The guard jerked me to a stop out of earshot of the other humans. “Are you done?” His question sounded more like a demand.
“Not even close, you brute.” I matched his scowl.
Loud, orchestral music played from behind the closed doors—the rich, graceful assortment of violins and flutes rang through the air, as did the murmurs of a sizable crowd. A symphony to accompany punishment. It was beautiful. Terrifying. Who knew what horrors awaited us in that room?
I shook my head. The fae were more deranged than I imagined.
“I hope you’ve gotten your snide comments out of your system,” the faerie guard purred into my ear. The hair on the back of my neck stood at attention. “The king will not be as forgiving of your disrespectful remarks—so don’t screw it up.”
I ground my molars together. “Am I supposed to drop to my knees now or later?”
“When your insides are leaking onto the floor, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
With that, he seized my arm. A permanent bruise likely marred my skin, and he led me into the lion’s den.
Five
The throne room was darker than the rest of the building, glaringly so, and it took a minute for my vision to adjust. Blue and green opulent light leaped along the cathedral ceiling and down the walls, while a golden throne sat high on a dais in the middle of the room. It was mesmerizing and intimidating all in the same breath, and blood drained from my face.
Days ago, my mother and I were eating dinner together, and now there I was: stripped of my integrity. A prisoner.
My life hung in the balance of this majestic room, leaving me powerless as they decided my fate. I twisted the ring around my finger, struggling to remain upright as my knees knocked together.
Cheers and hollers erupted as we entered, and one by one, we made our way to the dais. I loosened my shaky breath and forced my face into neutrality as I took in the rows and rows of fae bordering each side of the room, reaching to the very top of the vaulted ceiling. They were there to watch the punishment unfold.
My skin burned like molten lava under the warmth of the candles adorning the metal chandeliers. Sweat beaded on my forehead, and I wiped it away, pretending there weren’t hundreds of people watching me.
I hated crowds. Hated being the center of attention.
“Stop!” a blood-curdling shrill sounded to my right.
