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"My Queen?" Ophelia called.

At least she'd waited until the queen had come.

Sienna let the hem of her dress fall back down to her ankles as she stood. She patted Hollis's hair as she passed him. He remained on his knees, hands resting on his thighs as he watched her walk to the door and cracked it open.

"Yes?" she snapped at Ophelia.

"A warlock has been put in the dungeons for using unsanctioned magic. It is believed that he helped the criminals escape."

Another problem to be dealt with.

"And the suitors?"

"Mr. McHaynes and Mr. Maverick have both been escorted back to their rooms. Neither they nor the others have any memory of what was said today." She paused. "Except Mr. Weebly."

Queen Sienna beamed at her old friend. She pushed the door fully open to reveal Hollis still sitting on the floor.

"Hollis, you are excused." Sienna smiled at Ophelia. "He may return to his room as well. It appears as if he might be making himselfuseful."

She moved just enough to allow Hollis to walk into the hall. He hadn’t wiped his face yet so the evidence of what he’d just done was clear. Ophelia averted her gaze, her cheeks flaming.

“One last thing.” Sienna grabbed Hollis’s arm. “Why didn’t you get me a gift?”

Hollis looked back at her through his lashes. “What can I give you that you don’t already have—other than myself?”

Sienna looked Hollis directly in the face as she gave Ophelia one last order. “Clear his memory of all things fae. And I want to wake up to something wrapped with a tag that says ‘From Hollis Weebly’ on it.”

Ace

No one followed them. Not this time. Ace's sense of relief though was tainted with the knowledge that Adaram would be dead by the evening. The long walk back through the forest had made Ace's feet sore and she was sure the stolen heels were giving her a blister. Not to mention the dress weighed about a billion pounds.

Shelby hadn't said anything. Ace hadn't even tried to get him to. She wasn't alone anymore and the gods were arguing over the rising death toll this issue with the queens was causing. Citizens were either clinging to the gods and praying or starting to rebuke them all together. Their bickering kept her head busy. Which was good because she didn't want to think.

"Are we going to tell her what we heard?" Ace only asked once they'd stepped up onto the well-weathered porch. A stool had been set out today as if perhaps his grandma had sat outside and waited for them.

Only the moon shone down on them, the walk to the cabin taking up the rest of their day. In that slight bit of light Ace saw how glassy Shelby's eyes were when he turned to face her. He chewed on his lip, staring down at their feet.

"No, not yet. I don't want to worry her. She can handle her own. I'm sure she'll be fine." He shrugged.

"Do you think the queens will protect us?" Ace only pictured the death toll rising even further as Fae swept back through the land. They had to be coming back for their kingdom.

"I hope so." Shelby lifted his attention but not to her gaze. He watched her mouth long enough that Ace parted her lips on a slow breath. "The Fae were bad to us warlocks and humans alike. The queens are still cruel to us though so I don't see much difference in who rules unless both are stopped." Finally, he made eye contact.

Was he thinking about the kiss? Ace wanted to ask. Was he as surprised as her that it had felt so good? Not good. Amazing. Knee quaking, stomach knotting fantastic. She thought she could feel Mina's hum of approval in the back of her head.

If you don't take out the queen's, perhaps the Fae will.Sylik mused.

Ugh, another power shift! That might be a little hard on our tiny humans,Greshta sounded both excited and weary.

Shelby didn't knock tonight. He pushed open the door and escorted them both inside. A fire was roaring in the fireplace, blankets laid back out again. Ace expected to hear snores coming from the corner. Instead, when she stepped inside his grandma sat up in bed and blinked her eyes. A wide smile broke out across her wrinkled face.

"Oh look, you made it back. I was certain the two of you had marched off to die."

"Alive and well, Grandma." Shelby held his hands out at his sides.

Ace gently closed the door behind them. She gave the woman a little wave. Slipping past Shelby to go sit on the couch. Flames danced in the hearth, creating moving shadows that Ace stared down at.

A blue glow lit up behind Ace, leaving her to ponder if Shelby was back to working on the grimoire. After a second the light faded and he appeared in front of her. The ill-fitting suit was gone, replaced with tan trousers and a white sleeveless top that was so thin it was almost sheer. His feet remained bare and he made no sound as he walked around the couch and sat beside her with a sigh.

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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