AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Glad to hear it.” Father sighed. “As soon as the guards return from their pursuit of Prince Sai and his party, let me know.”
Sir Eldrick and the others bowed. The velvet of Eldrick’s party suit glimmered in the lamplight as he turned with the others and strode out of the hall.
I’d waited in the wings during their conversation. I could have requested a private council with Father before he began the meeting. After all, I was the Prince and the information I possessed was important. A tremble skittered down my spine as I approached Father and bowed. I clenched my teeth together to keep my expression neutral. I’d allowed Father to deal with other details first because I wished to put this conversation off.
“Yes, Lennox. What is it?”
“There’s something I must tell you.” A wobble entered my voice, and I hunched away from Father as his eyes tightened.
“That is?”
“Prince Shaan’s zevar.”
A pulse of tension beat between us. Father’s face turned to stone. “No.”
Me gaining Shaan’s zevar was the only thing I’d done in my two decades of life that had ever garnered a drop of respect from him. Now I’d lost it in front of a crowd of fairies within the warded walls of our palace. I’d only ever taken it for the sake of our people with the aim of earning enough respect from Father that he’d mark me as his heir. The Seelie weren’t all cruel like Father, and they had to have a champion. Father would need an heir to pass our people’s magic to, and I was the only option. That meant I had to earn his approval, so he’d mark me for our magic.
Shaan and I never had a chance. I loved the man, but I had a role here that only I could fulfill. Even if my father didn’t loathe the Prasanna—which his use of the slur Unseelie was one of many proofs of—he’d never allow me to marry a man and take the throne. Most Seelie didn’t accept different sexualities; they certainly wouldn’t change their stance for their ruler. I’d leave it all if I could, but our people needed me. They didn’t deserve wrath because their ruler was a nightmare. As much as possible, I tried to take the brunt of Father’s disapproval and attempted to steer his most malicious plans aside. Doing so had only pushed me further out of his good graces.
Until I’d returned with Shaan’s zevar six months previous. Father had noticed me for the first time in years, as if he wondered if perhaps I might possess a modicum of potential. The ability to take the throne, shift our court’s fate, and improve the lives of the Seelie had felt within reach. Now it was lost, and I doubted Father would ever give me a second chance as he glared at me. “It’s gone. I… I don’t know how but…”
“You couldn’t manage to hold on to one small gemstone on your body?”
“Forgive me, Father, it was…”
“I absolutely will not.” His glower cut off any response I might try to make. “You’re telling me that not only did they steal a guest under our protection as well as a globe on display in front of a ballroom full of fairies, but they also retrieved the Unseelie heart stone you were supposed to keep secured?”
“I…” Bowing my head again, I whispered, “Yes.”
He turned and slammed his hand against the stone throne which wobbled. Father, despite his age, was all muscle. He’d been a hero of the last war, like his father before him. Unlike me. “I need to discuss this with Eldrick. You’re dismissed.”
I nodded and walked out of the ballroom as quickly as I could without running. The fact that my zevar was stolen along with Shaan’s was something I couldn’t confess yet. My magic whipped through me, like a storm I no longer had control over that prepared to pour forth decades of wrath. I jogged up several sets of stairs and leaned against a wall as a wave of dizziness overtook me. Soon Father would realize I’d lost my zevar when I couldn’t manage my magic. He already loathed me; if he knew about this, he very well might disown me.
I straightened and walked towards my bedroom. I hoped the guards reached Lira and got her back safely. She’d looked so terrified as she screamed for help. She only stood a few dozen feet from me, and yet I couldn’t do anything. My actions were limited by my missing zevar which had untethered my powers. Plus, Father wanted our magic use kept secret. He discouraged magic among the Seelie. The Prince unveiling powers he shouldn’t have during a public gala would stir up trouble.
Sai was a bastard. I’d underestimated him because of my feelings for Shaan which was a mistake. I had so many questions. How had he escaped the jail, stolen the globe in front of a room of people, and removed both zevars from my neck without my notice? It terrified me for my people. What kind of magic did he have to pull that off? Then there was the dragon and the fire. That topic had made up the bulk of Father’s conversation with the officials. Was Sai elemental? How had he created such a scene?
The advisors had hissed words like water dropped on a hearth.Demon, devil, Unseelie.God, even after watching Sai take Lira violently from our court, I had a hard time accepting it. Shaan loved his brother, and I couldn’t believe Shaan would love a monster. Then again, he’d fallen for me. But one thing was uncontested: Sai possessed more magic than we’d believed.
I’d tried to understand Father’s fear and hatred of magic, but no matter how I looked at it, it seemed to leave us vulnerable to use so little. The Prasanna court had to know that few Seelie learned the full strength of their powers. If Sai, with a handful of ragtag crew, could overcome our palace’s wards and achieve all he’d accomplished, what could an army of their people do against ours? My heart fluttered.
Father’s move towards engaging in a war with them was illogical. I’d never fully comprehended how the Seelie, with our powers rooted in glamour, had overthrown the Alegre and Froh fairies a century prior. It was a war my father had fought in. He had his medals framed and hung prominently on his office walls. Father was the hero of our people. The Seelie—the court the divine had despised and given so little to—now rose in majesty and power. It wasn’t through magic we’d prevailed but through military prowess. We’d soon hold all the fae lands if Father was successful. Or not, if I achieved my ends.
Somehow, the rage and ambition that drove my father and grandfather had missed me. Perhaps it was because of my mother, or due to Father’s lack of involvement in my childhood, or maybe it was simply because I’d been born differently. I continued down the hall, paintings of my forefathers watching disapprovingly. God, I’d spent the last five years of my life trying to cram myself into the box of this family’s expectations, breaking parts of my soul to fit so Father would approve and hand the Seelie magic over to me. I wanted desperately to chart a better course for our future. For that purpose, I’d destroyed the connection with the only man I’d ever loved and ruined the only relationship that had ever made me feel whole. Shaan’s sharp expression and the wrinkles that webbed around his eyes when he laughed coursed through my mind. A ripple of heartache washed through me, and I sucked my lower lip between my teeth. There was no time for regrets.
I’d made the choices I had for the future of the Seelie as well as the Prasanna—to prevent a war between our people. My wants and happiness be damned. I passed the room Lira had spent the night in, reached the next door, and grabbed my handle.
Feathers drifted out of my bedroom door with the motion, and I bent to pick one up before stepping inside. A serf sat tied and gagged against a chair amidst the destruction of my room. Feathers from the cut open mattress drifted over the scattered papers, piles of fabric, and toppled furniture.
The serf garbled something, but for a moment I stood in the flickering lamplight taking in the chaos.
This was what I got for betraying Shaan.
This was my punishment.
And may God damn my soul to hell, I deserved it. It didn’t matter how much I justified it in my mind. I’d stolen the most precious thing from a man that deserved nothing but joy and love. Now I had to face the consequences.
I cleared my throat hard and walked over to the serf, removed the gag, and untied her restraints.
