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With apocalypse averted, Zora died to bring about Kymaris’s end, and Deandra ascended the throne. Or rather, she took it. There was an argument to be made that Callidan should inherit, but he’s too much of a spineless pushover. He was happy to let his daughter rule, and he’s living a quiet life in the country, or so I’ve heard.
“I’m not happy this continues to occur,” Deandra says as she walks closer to examine the tear. “Amell isn’t keeping his subjects in line.”
“King Amell has more important things to do than worry about sheep wandering into the Underworld,” Truett says in defense of his friend.
Of course, he just said that to the queen of the Light Fae, and anger flashes in her eyes. I’m sure she’s going to make him pay for that in bed.
“It’s more thanjustsheep,” she grits out, and then shockingly, I see sorrow feather across her face. “An entire family was murdered three days ago. One was a baby. All of them had been nailed to iron crosses with iron spikes through their brains to finish them off.”
Iron is fatal to the fae.
“Were they nobility or lower class?” I ask, and it’s an important question because only the nobility have any significant magical power.
“Lower class,” she says, and I can hear the menace in her tone. No matter how outlandish Deandra can be, the one thing she does far better than her mother is govern the poor. Nimeyah didn’t care about them at all, but clearly her daughter does.
Admittedly, that warms me slightly to her.
“So they were defenseless,” Truett growls.
Deandra waves her hand over the tear in the veil and it seals. She spins on me. “Amell has to stop this. I demand he deploy guards to patrol and catch whoever it is.”
“You know that’s not feasible,” I say as I rub the back of my neck.
“Make it feasible,” she snaps in irritation. “He better deploy every ally he has to catch whoever is doing this, or I’m going to march my forces into his dark little world and decimate the entire Dark Fae race.”
Some might think that’s an overreaction or that the silly woman doesn’t know what she’s talking about.
But Deandra has always been a vicious warrior and I watched her kill her brother for his perfidy without a single hesitation. She’d go to war with the Underworld.
“We’ll bring your concerns to Amell,” Truett says with a slight bow.
“I want more than a discussion of my concerns,” Deandra warns.
Truett glances at me and I give him a slight nod. He and I both know that if Amell were to use his forces to patrol around his realm, hoping to catch someone making a breach, it would leave the cities defenseless. However, the threat of Deandra marching on the Underworld is of equal concern, so Amell needs to decide what to do.
With his chances of getting laid by the Light Fae queen ground to a halt, Truett offers her a slight but longing bow and opens up the veil to return to the Underworld.
The minute he’s gone, Deandra takes my arm and coos, “All’s not lost. You and I can still—”
I pull away from her. “Not interested, Deandra.”
My chest constricts painfully with the knowledge that the only one I’m interested in isn’t interested in me anymore.
Glancing at the bed, I do wonder why I’m denying myself. Deandra is a beast in the sack, and I’d get my rocks off in a very nice way. Zora has disinvited me to her bed, and I owe her no loyalty.
“I can see you’re considering it,” Deandra says with a delighted clap.
I sigh with fatigue. “Yeah… I considered it, but I’m going to pass.”
“Oooh,” she teases in a singsong voice. “Maddox is in love.”
Not sure that’s true, but I am all kinds of fucked up in the head. Still, the only thing I want to do right now is figure out how to keep Faere safe.
“What exactly are you contributing to fix this issue?” I ask the queen.
Deandra shrugs and examines her fingernails, as if she doesn’t care about her people. I know this is untrue though.
“I’ve got my own patrols moving about the realm, but they’re concentrated most heavily among the lower class since they can’t protect themselves as well.”
