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In his pockets.
I paced back and forth in my room until a line formed in the lush carpet. It was ludicrous. Offering an alliance to the person I came to the Faeland to kill.
Gwyn flashed across my mind. Then the initiates at the Order. The blurry faces of the hungry in Cereliath the king had all but executed. I didn’t know when they would die along that road, but their blood was on the king’s hands. Just as my hands dripped with the blood of the names carved into my skin.
Killing the Shadow only bought the Halflings time from the king’s rage. A few years would pass, more magic would fade, and they would not be safe from his wrath. Didn’t I owe it to them to at least try to end it, once and for all?
You promised.
Maybe her dreams weren’t meant to be a torment, but a push. She had echoed the Shadow’s words—only if you leave a crown to claim—did she think an alliance would work?
Only one way to find out, I thought to myself.
I needed to find the Shadow.
I started with Nikolai. I wasn’t convinced he was the Shadow, but I was still thinking of his parting words. I was trained to remember faces at the merest glance and I knew I’d never seen Nikolai before Feron’s ball. Yet he alluded to an encounter I didn’t remember.
Unless he’d never shown his face.
He was the best lead I had. Theonlylead I had.
I took three days to learn his routine. Nikolai stayed in a luxurious apartment across from the palace. The only thing I learned about him was he didn’t just love flirting, but he also loved fucking. Every evening there was another visitor at his door, sometimes two. They would spend the night eating delectable cuisine and drinking the finest wines. There had been Fae, Elves, and Halflings. Most of them females.
How did someone with such a long string of lovers keep their identity a secret?
I didn’t have much of a plan. I needed to speak to Nikolai alone. On the fourth night, I waited for his suitor to arrive. I recognized the Elf from Feron’s dinner. Her deep skin glowed under the moons, accentuating the layers of light blue fabric she wore.
I stood behind the trunk of a large tree near the entrance. I’d been waiting, hidden under the branches, ever since the guards switched shifts. They were too distracted watching the pretty Elf to notice me sneaking in the door. I pressed my back against the wall and waited for her to walk by.
I held a tiny bobble in my hands. It was made of blown glass and had a sharp needle protruding from it. One prick and she would be asleep for hours. She never even turned around when I jabbed her neck. She fell backward into me. I caught her limp body in my arms and set her gently on a small bench.
I climbed the stairs to the fourth floor. There was only one door in the middle of the hallway, painted gold against the white stone walls. I thought about kicking the door in, but I couldn’t picture his suitor doing the same.
I knocked.
“Come in,” a voice called from inside.
He was sitting at the edge of a grand bed, the nightshade of his clothing stark against the white silk of the sheets. His hood was drawn over his face, but I knew he was watching my every movement. Each step. Each breath.
The Shadow.
“He’s not here,” he said. His voice was a dark rasp that cooled my blood.
“Who?” I said, trying to cover my surprise.
He stood, casting a tall shadow over my face. “I wasn’t going to let you kill Nikolai.”
“Why do you assume I was coming here to kill him?” I asked, taking a step back. I needed space to get my bearings. I hadn’t expected for the Shadow to appear. Let alone armed. “Maybe I was just jealous of all his pretty lovers.”
“He’d be ecstatic to hear that,” the Shadow said flatly. He pulled the long sword out of the holster along his back. “What of the Elf? Did you kill her?” He raised his blade toward me.
I pulled out a long, curved blade from my belt.
“No,” I said. “She’s sleeping.”
He pounced, swinging his blade. I stepped to the side as the steel clanged against the stone floor. I rolled over the back of the sofa. He slashed, ripping into the fabric.
I swung my own blade. He jumped back crashing into the bed.
