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Lewis wiped at his nose. “I know. It’s just?—”
“Fucked?” Breana said from beside Lewis. “If it makes you feel any better, my family and I were only a day away from making it into Elkway when our boat capsized, and I ended up in this stars-forsaken place. It’s been ten moons, and I still don’t know what happened to them—my parents. Or if they’re even alive.”
My mouth gaped. “Did you get stuck in a storm?”
“Nope. No clouds or waves in sight. Something pushed our boat over.”
“You don’t think—” I began.
“That it was a fae?” Breana finished. “I put nothing past them. Why do you think I begged for death earlier?” She slurped brown mush that resembled pudding into her mouth and made a face. “Sorry about that by the way. I realize it was a smidge dramatic, but it was worth a shot.”
While logically I knew I shouldn’t, I couldn’t help but like her. And Calandra. And Lewis. In different circumstances, I could see us being friends. It was a shame we were going to be forced to compete against one another in hypocritical morality trials.
“Five more minutes, competitors, let’s hurry it up,” a loud voice thundered throughout the hall. It came from none other than the emerald-eyed guard, his face as hard as stone.
“Say what you want about the fae.” Calandra took a swig of her drink and set her cup down. “That man is fine.”
I choked on my food, unable to control my surprise.
She smirked. “What? Like you guys weren’t thinking it?”
My gaze trailed the room to meet his piercing stare once more. She was right. He could’ve been hand-carved from the stars themselves. Only celestial hands would be capable of sculpting such chiseled features.
But it meant nothing. Something told me he was as cruel, if not more vile, than the rest of them.
The corner of his lips twitched into a smile, and he winked.
Fucking winked.
I shifted in my seat, and a fluttering swarm of butterflies erupted in the pit of my stomach. Desperately, I busied myself in the contents of my tray, silently praying for the ground to open up and offer a merciful escape from his eyes—his mouth.
Candelabras lit the way as three fae guards steered us along a narrow corridor and into a secluded section of the castle, lined with wooden, embellished doors and oil paintings. The portrait’s eyes followed us as we walked down the narrow hall, the same revolting look on their face as the rest of the fae court. Not even inanimate objects welcomed our presence in the castle.
The oldest of the three guards turned to us as we came to a stop at the end of the hall. “Your attire will arrive at your rooms shortly,” he said, and although he appeared to be three times their senior, he was as fit and burly as the others. “Clean up, get dressed, and meet back in the throne room in training gear, ready for assessments.”
Our doors unlocked on their own and pushed open with an invisible breeze, revealing identical, cozy bedchambers.
The guards left us to our own devices and made no effort to avoid shouldering past us as they disappeared around the corner.
I wanted nothing more than to curl up into a ball on top of the comforter and sleep for days. Escape this horrible nightmare; run away in my dreams.
But reality was never too far behind my dreams of escape.
An elbow to my mouth forced me back, and mass chaos ensued.
Everyone, all at once, began vying over the rooms, fighting each other to claim which one would be theirs. They’d been kept in cages for so long that it seemed it had almost turned them into the beasts the fae claimed they were.
My jaw fell open as Kelvin shoved Lewis and Martell—two of the smallest competitors—into the wall as he claimed the chamber furthest away. Aeron had someone in a headlock. Calandra had Jeston’s arm twisted behind his back. Someone cried out in agony.
There was going to be a bloodbath before the trials had begun. Or maybe this was a trial in and of itself.
I tried to get out of everyone’s way the best I could, but there wasn’t anywhere to go. I was stuck in the thick of it, dogging hands and feet until the madness dwindled, and everyone claimed their rooms.
Sucking the blood from my teeth, I locked the final remaining door behind me—not trusting someone wouldn’t change their mind—and rested my head against the wood. A four-post bed was the centerpiece of the room, underneath the same iridescent windows that encased the rest of the castle. I imagined how tranquil it must be to fall asleep under the kaleidoscope of lights, and my muscles ached, yearning for sleep. If only I had time. If only I hadn’t got myself into this mess.
Seated on the bed, I drew my legs close to my chest as I sought comfort in the solitude. If choosing a room had been any indicator, the trials would indeed be messy.
In the blink of an eye, everything was irrevocably different.
