Oh my stars. If this rescue mission’s success hinged on my remembering to kiss the queen’s ass, we were all doomed.
The guard returned and showed us to a suite of interconnected caves with comfortable furnishings and a selection of snacks and drinks. He politely informed us someone would come to fetch us for a meeting with the mer queen’s vizier.
Farris the Fucking Fae waited until the guard had left before checking his watch.
“Now that you’re safe here, I’ll take my leave.”
“Um, what?” My heart rate spiked in alarm. Without Farris, we couldn’t use the fae portal; it required his magical signature to work. And besides, we were allegedly here as part of a tradedelegation, so the mer queen would be highly suspicious if the only high fae in our party disappeared before he’d spoken to anyone important.
“The terms of our deal were that I brought you here. You said nothing about helping you leave again.”
“That’s bullshit!” My bear growled. Zane slid across the exit, blocking the fae’s escape. Rasmus was the only one of us who seemed unconcerned. Whether that was because he was a chill vampire or he knew Farris was talking out of his ass remained to be seen.
“You said, and I quote:I want you to get me and my matesintothe mer kingdom so we can rescue Kai.”
“Stupid witch,” Kenji muttered while rolling his eyes.
“Excuse me?! Nobody else spotted the obvious flaw in my bargain!”
“Try leaving and see how far you get with no head,” Zane warned Farris with an unhinged smile.
The fae plucked a speck of nonexistent lint from his coat and sniffed.
“Kill me and you’ll have a bounty on your head so high every fae assassin in existence will come after you. But by all means, try.”
“You’re a horrible fae!” If Farris abandoned us, we’d be trapped down here forever. None of us could swim to the surface. Well, I couldn’t. Even Zane would be stuck, as there were barriers to prevent magicals from teleporting in and out of the mer kingdom.
We’d all drown!
I’d tried drowning and hadn’t enjoyed it much. It had proved way less relaxing than I’d anticipated.
A huge argument broke out between Farris and my males. Kenji perched on a table and watched while his two tails flicked aggressively from side to side.
The magic in my chest exploded, reacting to my emotional meltdown. A firestorm turned the cave into a raging inferno. My mates yelled in panic, but I was too furious to listen.
“While cooking the fae is amusing, I suggest you rein in your magic, witch.”
I ignored my familiar.
How dare the fae double-cross us!
Fucking fae.
A cool hand curled around my neck. “Calm down, little witch. The fae won’t leave us.”
My magic settled at Rasmus’s smooth voice. He sounded very certain Farris wasn’t going anywhere, and even though he and I didn’t know each other all that well yet, I still trusted him.
After sucking in a few deep breaths to regulate my emotions, I then focused on rewinding the threads of chaotic magic back into my chest. When I looked up, Farris was busy staring at me in surprise.
“What? Not seen a magic tantrum before?” I glared at the asshole through slitted eyes, still unhappy he’d threatened us.
“The shadow magic was a surprise,” he said.What?When I lifted my gaze, I realized not all of my magic had vanished. While the fire had burned out, thick shadows still coated the ceiling, showing no signs of abating.
“You should probably pull it back before the mer delegation arrives,” Farris advised, his expression tight.
“I will if you agree to stay and then help us all get back to Starfall Academy safely.”
He rolled his eyes.
