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“I didn’t bring my car,” I said, pausing. “I came in Geoffrey’s limo.”
“I’ve got my BMW here.” Lannan motioned us toward it. He flipped open his phone, trying to contact Regina, but after a moment, hung up. “She’s not answering. I don’t like this.”
Grieve hung back. “I won’t get in the car with him. Cicely, how can you?”
In tears, frustrated and confused, I swung on him. “You’ll get in the fucking car. Do you know how much we risked for you? And now we’re on our own. We no longer have the backing of the vampires, and trust me, to defeat Myst, we need as many allies as we can gather. So shut up—both you and Lannan—and just get in the damned thing. Lannan—we’ll keep calling Regina, trying to warn her.”
Lannan rolled his eyes but said nothing. Grieve stared at me, his lips full, and I wanted again to rush into his arms, to feel his heart beating against mine. After a moment, he inclined his head.
“Very well. I will obey.”
“The machine will be painful, but I can withstand it for a short time,” Wrath said. “We have a long night ahead of us.”
But before I could climb into the car, my cell phone rang. Exasperated, I flipped it open. “Hello?”
“Cicely, can you get home, now? And bring help.” Rhia sounded frantic.
“What’s wrong?”
“The Shadow Hunters have broken through the wards and they’re on the way toward the house. We can’t fight them alone.”
Crap! “We’re on our way. I’m bringing Wrath, Grieve, and Lannan with me. Get whatever weapons you can together.”
“Lannan?”
“Yes, Lannan. We’ll tell you all about it when we have the time. Now just get off the phone and be fucking careful.”>Something about his look, his voice, frightened me more than anything he’d done or said before. “What is it?” I stumbled back as he stepped toward me.
“Cicely, take Myst’s place. Fulfill her original plans. Let me turn you, and become my partner. You will be part Indigo Court, but more. You are half magic-born, and that will help you to control the ravaging nature. If you embrace the power, together we can destroy Myst, and together we can take this land by storm. I know you are not cut out for ruthless rule, but you don’t have to be that way—you can rule with a just hand. And you can still have your Fae Prince for a lover. I would not object.”
I stared at him. The light in his eyes told me the warlord was still lurking beneath the surface, that you could take the warmonger out of the Dark Ages but you couldn’t take the Dark Ages out of the warmonger.
“I can’t believe you just asked me to do that.”
“You were Myst’s daughter. To see you go up against her, a queen in your own right, would be a blow hard for her to ignore. It would unsettle her and she’d make mistakes.”
“You want to use me for psychological warfare, you want to turn me into what she is, only you hope to control me because I’m only half-Fae. What would Lainule say if she knew?” I stumbled back toward the door, half-afraid he was going to grab me and drink me down.
But at that moment, Lainule and Anadey appeared from behind a screen in the back of the room. Lainule looked pained. Anadey looked sullen.
“I told you not to approach her until we were here and could explain matters to her.” Lainule shook her head. “You’d better hurry. Regina was just down the hall and may come in here. You don’t want her finding out what you’re up to before we’ve had time to prepare.”
I stared at Lainule, as it dawned on me that she’d known all along what Geoffrey was up to. But had she also been behind Anadey’s little stunt?
“Lainule, you know what Geoffrey asks? You can’t approve! I’m Cambyra Fae—I am not Unseelie! How can you even dream I’d agree to this? And where’s Grieve? Were you the one who tried to force Anadey to strip away my feelings for him?”
“Your lover is with us, young daughter. Do not push your luck. You may not be Unseelie in your own heart, but many of the Uwilahsidhe are on the darker side of the Court. I am the Queen of Rivers and Rushes, and I am the heart of Summer’s realm, but not all of my people are bright and beautiful of spirit. The world is made of shades of gray, young Cambyra.”
“Did you know what Geoffrey wanted of me? Did you help Anadey?”
Lainule looked pained. She shook her head. “No, I did not help her. It would have killed you, and she will be taken to task for her actions.”
Anadey shifted, looking at me through shaded lids.
Lainule ignored her. “As for Geoffrey, yes, long ago he convinced me of the wisdom of his plan. You can still have your lover, Grieve, and do as Geoffrey asks.”
Her gaze was cool, and I remembered how ruthless she could be. She would sacrifice anyone in her court to destroy Myst—and that included Grieve. And it included me. If she thought this alliance with the vampires would work best, then she’d back it all the way.
“Do I have a choice?” I asked, my voice flat. If they decided they wanted Geoffrey to turn me, I wasn’t likely to get out of here alive.
