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Chapter3
My hands trembled as I slowly let them creep from my hiding spot out around the tapestry.
My chest thudded loudly, and I pulled the lavish and heavy print back from the hiding place it had given me as I peered down the hallway.
I’d barely made it to the discreet spot by the time the soldiers’ boots I’d heard stomping down corridors nearby came into view.
There were three Unseelie soldiers whose boots I could make out. But they moved sure and steady past the tapestry, heading down the long corridor that led toward the center of the castle. At least from my location.
I stepped forward, breathing in slowly. I winced as my body involuntarily shuddered. A tingling sensation crept over my neck and chilled my body.
The events from the last time I’d had a run-in with the soldiers in the castle were still far too fresh in my mind. And I hated how it locked me up.
The last time I’d seen them moving so furiously through the halls was when the horrific events of the glamour had unfolded, and most of us were thrown into the jail far beneath the Unseelie castle halls.
What’s going on now?
Nicole’s room was only a few more turns away. She was much more in the main hustle and bustle of servant life than I was; she stayed in an area that saw greater foot traffic than I did. With smaller quarters and less privacy, she was living the life most human feeders experienced. Though she had her own room, it was not nearly as lavish as mine, being the prince’s feeder. And yet, if I had been shown to her quarters when I first arrived, I’d have been grateful for them too. They were by no means dingy.
I shivered, clenching a fist as I took a few short breaths and moved at a jog from my secret spot. I ran as quietly but quickly as I could to Nicole’s door.
Luckily for me the busy sounds of commotion were farther away now, and I went unseen as I rapped at her quarters. I may have freedoms around the palace, but the last thing I wanted was a run-in with any of the palace guards.
While I knew a glamour was behind most of what had happened to Nicole and me a few months ago, that didn’t make me feel more comfortable or at ease among the soldiers in the palace. Many were fine, most were fine. But now, having experienced torture at their hands, nausea hit me whenever they were near.
“What took you so long?” Nicole’s hissed whisper was how I was greeted at the door.
She yanked the sleeve of my dress, pulling me quickly inside and shutting the door behind me.
“What is—” I stopped talking the minute I noticed the tremors in Nicole’s shaking arm that still clung to my sleeve. She brought her other hand to her mouth and bit her nails. “What’s happening? Why are you so worked up? And why are the guards running around like they’re on another hunt?”
Nicole took a step away from me, her breath unnaturally shaky. Finally, she cleared her throat, regaining some of the strength I knew her to have. The lapse of weakness being shown to me, let alone anyone, was rare, and it was enough to be wary.
She glanced toward her window before turning, pressing her hands to my back as she pushed me over to it. She pointed outside into the dark night. “There.”
On the horizon, a bright flame illuminated the sky, standing out like a beacon. Smoke pillars streamed into the darkness above, disappearing from view.
I stared, mouth agape at the sight.
“What’s on fire? What is that?”
“If I had to guess, a small village to the north. Far too close to Dukesburg.”
Dukesburg rang a bell in my head. I’d heard that before. But where?
Nicole must have seen the confused look on my face. “The border city.”
“Where the king and queen were ambushed coming home from,” I added firmly, without question.
“Yep.”
“Is it the Seelie?” I asked, staring at my closest friend.
Her eyes bored into the night sky. “Yes. It’s the largest attack they’ve made this close to the palace.”
The silence settled between us. Smoke rose up in the distance like it was flailing in distress, begging for acknowledgement. It was a stark reminder that there was a war going on here.
Something far bigger than card games and hurt feelings over crushes the prince had.
