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Her heart flickered. He didn’t like to tell many. But he had toldher.
“If it makes a difference, you don’t seem Wilde Fae at all to me.” Her breath caught in her throat. “Of course, you don’t seem all that Dark Fae either, if I’mhonest.”
“I know what you must think of us,” he said. “And I wish it weren’t the case, though I certainly understand why. Some of usarethe monsters you imagine us tobe.”
“Yeah. Like PrinceTaveon.”
“Bree,” he warned. “You know that is nottrue.”
She had no answer to that. Rafe was right in a way. Over the past weeks, Bree had gone from one opinion to the next. Sometimes Taveon seemed like the monster she’d met. But then others...it seemed like his cruelty was nothing but anact.
Still...she didn’t want to dwell on Taveon’s confusing nature, not when she had Rafe by her side looking all handsome and breathtakinglygorgeous.
“I wish I didn’t have to go back into my quarters,” Bree said with a light sigh, gazing wistfully back down the hallway. “It was so nice getting out for once, and I know when tomorrow comes, everything will go back to normal. My room might be nicer now, but my situation has remained the same. I just sit inside, day after day, unless I’m training withyou.”
Rafe gazed at her thoughtfully, before he finally grabbed her hand. She jerked with surprise. The warmth of his skin seeped into hers, and she couldn’t stop the gasp that flew from herlips.
“Right. Come with me. There is something you should see, and it might be a long while before you get this chanceagain.”
Heart thundering, she let Rafe lead her through the maze of the castle. They went up and up and up, climbing stairs that reeked of mildew and dust. This tower, or whatever it was, was definitely not used very often. It was hidden away, and probably hadn’t been cleaned inyears.
At the very top of the stairs, Rafe pushed open a creaking door and strode to a small window overlooking the world below. He pushed up the window and motioned for her to go first. Head spinning, she climbed through the small space and found herself on a balcony high in one of those tall jagged towers she’d seen from so far away when she’d first arrived with Taveon. Rafe climbed out beside her. There was just enough space for the two of them to stand there with their shouldersbrushing.
The world spread out far below them. She could see for miles. The forests and the fields. The lakes and the valleys. Underworld was alive beneath them, the colors so bright to her eyes after so many hours spent trapped inside of gray stonewalls.
“This is beautiful,” she said in a slight whisper. “The view is amazing from my window, but this is far beyondit.”
“There is something far better than this.” Rafe took her shoulders gently in his hands and twisted her to turn left, facing away from him. Her breath caught at the sight that met her eyes. Far beyond on the horizon, fingers of silver and gold raced across the sky as the hint of the moon poked up from behind the darkground.
“Every fae, Dark or not, should always see at least one moonrise in their life. And this one, the one after the Silver Moon night, is one of the most glorious of the entireyear.”
Bree didn’t know what to say. All she could focus on was the beauty before her. Every second that passed, the glory of the moonrise only grew. More silver streaked across the sky, joined by brilliant blues and deep purples. Somehow, even in this strange dark place, color stillprevailed.
“Seeing this almost makes me forget what kind of world I’m now living in,” Bree whispered. “It makes me forget that I’m living in the midst ofdemons.”
“You speak as though Underworld is a terrible place full of terrible fae. We are not demons, Bree, even though I know that is what the Light Fae like to callus.”
“Are you not?” she couldn’t help but ask. “Your people had a cruel and vicious King. You enslaved not only Otherworld but the human realm as well, forcing humans to turn into terrible beasts who kill innocent people. You have horns. You have fangs and redeyes.”
“We are not demons, though I suppose we are something closeenough.”
Eyebrows raised, Bree glanced behind her to see a thoughtful look on his face. “What do youmean?”
“We are the fallen,” he said simply. “Our ancestors were once angels. Angels who fell. They were entranced by humanity. Corrupted by it. So, they were cast out of the heavens, doomed to live a life forever entwined to humanenergy.”
Bree widened her eyes. She had never heard this before, though she hadn’t been told much of anything in her time spent in Underworld so far. “You are fallen angels. So, you’re not reallyfae.”
A ghost of a smile flickered across his face. “That is what fae are. Fallen, shortened.Fae.”
“The Light Fae,too?”
“They are angels who fell but for different reasons. They left the heavens to try and stop us from corrupting ourselves. In the end, leaving meant leaving their immortality behind, and they were cast down to their ownrealm.”
Bree’s heart beat a little harder. “I didn’t know all this. No one ever told me. I don’t even think Norahknows.”
“It is ancient history. It happened so long ago that it no longer matters.” A beat passed. “But I wanted to tell you. I thought the knowledge might help you better understand this world you are so doomed to livein.”
As much as she hated to admit it, Bree felt a little bad for what she’d said to Rafe. Because as much as she hated Taveon, she didn’t hate this fae. He was different. Kinder. More...morehuman.
