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“I’ve come,” I said. “I’ll make Sihde right again. I’ll purge the evil from the realm and make you wholesome again. My words are binding.”
I heard a satisfied, collective sigh.You’ll have our alliance, true queen. Be aware of the double faces and two foulest entities in one. Only when you and your mates find her darkest secret will you overcome the dark power and free us all. Be aware of the betrayals; not all are who they appear to be.
Was this another riddle? Puzzles made my head spin.
“Who will betray us?” Rosalinda asked.
This time, everyone had heard the spirits’ words.
The warriors stared at hard at each other, as if wanting to nail the traitor right now to the tree. The forest spirits’ message was clear—there were moles among us.
“Who will betray my mate?” Iokul pursued the question in a soft, lethal voice. “Who?”
The ones closest to the queen, the spirits said.
My brow furrowed. My mates were the closest to me. The other warriors sent a glance their way before quickly darting away their gaze at my glare.
My mates would never betray me. They’d rather eat their own hearts before they hurt me.
“Clarify!” Rai demanded. “We need names!”
But the spirits had withdrawn into the depth of the forest, completely silent.
A shadow fell on everyone’s face.
“We shall not let dissent grow among us,” I said, scanning the warriors. “We need to be a united front. Innocent until proven guilty, no matter what the spirits say.”
“We’ll not be divided,” Zembyr said, approval and respect shining in his eyes before steel returned to them. “But if anyone betrays our queen, I’ll play with their intestines. Their death won’t be quick.”
That was a bit graphic.
“Anyone betrays my mate, including me and my brothers,” Blaze said. “I’ll skin him and roast him.”
The forest turned deathly quiet.
It revealed the path to its other side and led us to the dark Fae high court, where the evil queen dwelled and ruled.
4
Blood-red trees lined several arches we walked through. We kept our eyes peeled for any enemies.
The surrounding was eerily quiet, except for our footsteps on the grass.
My warriors were tense, their knuckles white on the hilts of their swords. Zembyr and fifty or so Fae marched at the front, my mates and Rosalinda guarding me in the middle, and over a hundred rebel Fae warriors brought up the rear.
Our main army remained just outside the Fae realm. Only once Sihde and I had a pact could I break down the veil and summon my army inside. I needed to form a bond with this realm, but I didn’t know how.
It was a great risk to bring little than a hundred Fae warriors into the enemy’s territory, but it was the only option. I wasn’t planning on killing any other Fae, except Tianna and her true supporters. Bringing a small army deep into the enemy’s heart would also send a message to the other Fae under her thumb—that I did not fear Tianna and I came to claim what was mine without causing carnage.
We prowled on, ready for an attack. Though we were a small number, every warrior I brought was lethal.
“The enemy army must be camped near,” Zembyr said in a low and menacing voice.
The assault we expected never arrived. Nor were there any enemy guards in sight.
What kind of game was Tianna playing?
I quit my speculating, because it might be her plan to unnerve me. But I knew she was waiting for me, like the queen spider waiting for a fly.
