Page 62 of Tell Them That I’m Coming

I’m from Sombra, a world of shadow and fire and ash. I never knew what gold metal was until I landed here, but I’m pretty sure it shouldn’t feel this cold and foreboding.

As we approach the Gilded Court from behind, that’s all I can think of. It’s bright, yes, but while I imagined that the palace would be similar to the crystal structure in Mavro where Duke Haures and Duchess Susanna live, it’s not. As though made of sheets of gold hammered together, with deep shadows at the foundation, holding it in place, it oozes a warning that a smart halfling would heed.

Too bad they didn’t pick a smart halfling to be the demoness in the Prophecy of the Gilded Throne. If Thane… and the guard that tried to take me… and the slavers who almost did can be believed, that’s me.

Alana of Sombra.

I’m almost there.

I don’t ask how Thane knows the way to sneak into the Gilded Court without being caught by guards. His essence tells me that he grew up as one of the noble fae before turning to banditry in the Shadowed Woods. He confirms it himself before I get the chance to question it.

Though he didn’t want to bring me here, he’s delved deep enough into my essence to see that, once I set my mind to something, there’s no changing it. All along, I wanted to get Rafe back. The slavers were too afraid of Thane to refuse his order. Unless something happened to Rafe along the way once he was passed over to the queen’s soldiers, he’s in there.

And that means I’m going in there.

Sneaking in through a servant’s entrance, I see that the palace walls are gilded stone shot through with veins of a darker metal that swallows the light instead of reflecting it. Shadows cling there unnaturally, thick and restless. Just taking a few steps inside Queen Celestes’s home, I can feel it: the same smothering force that’s been dulling my magic since I arrived in Noctavara.

This is where shadows come to die—no. It’s where they come to be owned.

Binx senses it, too. Though I offered to let him wait outside, knowing that he would never do so, he stays close to me. Once inside, he presses even further against my calf, his shadowy fur fading until he’s sleeker and smaller than I’ve ever seen. His unease mirrors mine, a low, vibrating warning that keeps passing down our soulbond.

Thane isn’t happy about being here, either. Just like when he confronted the slaver, he doesn’t look amused at all. Not one bit cocky. The bandit’s grin is gone, stripped away by the sight of the Court that made him what he is.

His jaw tightens. “You don’t have to do this.”

Oh, Thane…

“Is Rafe in here?”

“If he’s anywhere, he’s here,” is Thane’s twisty non-answer. He hears it, catches himself, and clears his throat. “That’s not what I meant, Alana. You don’t have to do this. I’ll find Rafe for you. Buy him back from the queen. You don’t have to face her.”

That’s what he says.

Fate, however, feels differently.

“Now that they know I exist, she won’t stop hunting me. Say I go home. I leave my mate behind… that won’t stop them. The slavers could enter Brille Rouge. They can go to Sombra. I’d be putting my parents… my other friends… my clan in danger.

“I won’t wait for her to send someone else,” I continue, pausing only to point at the monarch butterfly that fluttered in through the door we left open. “Even they know it. The crowned wings are supposed to herald my arrival. Well. There you go.”

Thane exhales slowly. “You’re right. I’m fooling myself, but… love makes one foolish, doesn’t it? It doesn’t matter where you go. She already knows you’re here.”

I smile at him, letting my wee fang peeks through as my demon eyes blaze. “Good.”

That settled, Thane takes the lead. No matter how long it’s been since he lived in the Gilded Court himself, he knows how to navigate the narrow halls, the dark shadows, the blinding light flickering in gold sconces. When I ask him where we’re going, he doesn’t answer, and I understand why. He’s bringing me to Queen Celeste because that’s what I asked him to do, and wants nothing more than to prove himself worthy of my trust.

I know we’re getting close when a quartet of fae soldiers in polished armor appear in one corridor, each one holding a sword just like Thane’s.

My mate eases back, covering both me and Binx with his cloak. Under his breath, he mutters, “Last chance, demoness. If they take you, nothing will stop them from bringing you to Celeste. Four against three… not the best odds.”

I know. “I’m ready.”

Is it a lie? Could be. But I know… I know… that the way to Rafe is through Queen Celeste.

And that means I need to meet Queen Celeste.

Watching his profile, I see his throat works, then another crooked grin. “‘Tell them that I’m coming?’” he says, throwing my own words back at me.

I shake my head. “Tell her that I’m here.”