Page 18 of Fae Trials

“Sicily!”

“The Italian island?” the faerie asked.

“That’s my sister’s name.” I tried pulling myself upright, but now it felt like some force on my back kept me down. “She made a deal with the dark fae, and the peacekeepers interrupted them. Now she’s missing.”

His face dropped. “What? Which Noble House?”

“I don’t know.” My throat dried, and I coughed to get out the words. “They were pale with black hair and wore black armor. There were five of them, and one got killed.”

The guards exchanged concerned frowns, which made my stomach churn with worry for Sicily’s plight. Faeries that powerful had to be notorious, and they probably knew all about the five dark brothers. I tightened my stomach muscles, preparing to hear bad news.

In the kind of slow voice people reserve for speaking to morons, the guard with the flat cap said, “What is your Noble House, young lady?”

I shook my head. “I’m Unity Quayle, nobody important.”

“That’s a human name.” His brows drew together.

“Yes, I’m human. Can you find my sister? She went to the deal circle in Hope Woods and met some dark faeries. Four of them disappeared with her, and the fifth said he would put me under a curse.”

“Ah, I see.” He pulled off his cap, revealing a shock of teal hair, and rubbed his chin.

“What’s that, sir?” asked his companion with the tall hat.

He nodded in my direction. “She’s a cast-off. Her Lord father probably wiped her memory and placed her in the circle to be found by the peacekeepers.”

My eyes bulged. Faeries were unreasonable, but they tended not to make up stupid stories. “No, I’m a human from Doolish.”

Ignoring me, they continued their conversation in low voices. The dense fog in my mind shifted, allowing me to push myself upright and strain to listen. Elijah had once mentioned that some faeries claimed the half-bloods they had with human women, but most cast them away at maturity if they didn’t develop any useful power.

I paused, waiting for the pain of his dismissal to strike, but nothing happened. How could I fret about my love life when the dark fae had my sister?

My shoulder blades twitched but seemed to extend beyond my body, and the air at my back shifted. I twisted around. Two huge butterfly wings, in shades of iridescent purple and blue, flapped behind my back. This had to be some kind of joke.

“Excuse me?” I asked.

The two faeries stopped their conversation and stared at me through the bars.

My mouth dried. “What’s happening to me?”

“Everything’s alright,” he said in a voice laden with pity. “We occasionally get children like you wandering the woods with their memories erased. We’ll call someone who can help.”

I shook my head and told the guards the events of the night before. Their faces froze in sympathetic smiles as I recounted how the dark faerie’s mist had curled around my senses, but they dismissed it as a false memory. Apparently, noble houses who got rid of their half-bloods also wiped all knowledge of their previous existence.

The guards opened my cell door to allow in a human servant with a trolley laden with china plates covered in silver domes. The rich aroma of roasted coffee beans filled my nose. It mingled with the scent of pastries baked in spices.

A lock of golden hair fell into my face, making me shudder. What else had they changed? “Is that for me?”

“My Lady.” After pushing the trolley to the side of my bed, she bobbed into a curtsey. Uncovering each plate, she said, “Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon, cinnamon whirls, croissants with Belgian chocolate spread, orange juice, and Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee.”

“My name’s Unity,” I said. “Unity Quayle. I’m a human, like you.”

Her gaze flickered to the wings flapping behind my back and then back through the bars at the watching guards. “Of course, My Lady.”

My shoulders sank. Despite the interventions of King Oberon and the UN, generations of fae cruelty had taught us humans to be cautious. Pressing the point would only distress the poor girl, so I thanked her as she scurried out through the door.

“Stay put.” The guards walked out of sight.

I should have salivated over the wonderful breakfast, should have sipped the coffee like it was fine wine, but right now, it felt like I’d been sucked dry by the Jack of Smiles.