Fates, this sucked.
They had to be poisoned.
Of course.
My limbs grew heavier and heavier as I neared the stone arch, until it felt like I was dragging them along the ground. My vision began to blur, and I fumbled in my pack.
Connor had given me a few potions that came in handy in most situations, one of them being a cure-all healing draft.
By the time I reached the small clearing around the stone arch, I’d found the little blue vial at the bottom of the bag. I stumbled to my knees and raised it to my lips, my arm shaking.
The potion tasted foul—like old sewer water, if I had to guess. But it immediately began to work, sending warmth and strength shooting through my limbs. Within seconds, my vision had cleared and I was able to stand.
Shaking, I got to my feet. My leather pants were torn to shreds, but at least they were still mostly covering my legs.
“I am so going to kill you,” I muttered to a mental image of the Ice King.
Without hesitating, I staggered toward the stone archway. It was carved with beautiful scrollwork, parts of which were darkened a deep red.
Blood.
It would want fresh blood—Fae, probably. I might not have my wings or my ears, but I still had Fae blood. I sliced my finger and pressed it to one of the dark spots that had been smeared with blood before, then tried to step through the arch.
Magic shocked me, feeling like burning steel across my flesh. The pain centered around my upper back, where my wings would have been if I’d had them. I nearly went to my knees, but managed to stay upright. I stumbled back.
Damn it, this was going to be difficult. I didn’t know if I could take another hit like that one. The magic had been designed to attack a Fae’s wings. If I’d had them, I might not have survived.
Maybe my weakness became my strength in this case.
Carefully, I inspected the decorative scrollwork on the arch, trying to find the pattern. I’d have only one more chance. It took a while, but I finally I saw it. The carvings weren’t just decorative lines. They were actual things. Most of the blood that had been smeared on them was probably meant to distract.
Only one would open the gate.
Several of the carvings were trees or plants. Those were very Fae things, but this was a Court of Ice.
Yet there were no carvings that looked particularly icy.
There was a sea dragon, however. Graceful and dangerous. It made me think of their king.
I pressed my blood fingertip to the dragon’s red face. Magic sparked within the portal, then pulled me though. The ether grabbed hold of me and spun me around, spitting me out in the Realm of the Ice Fae.
In front of me, a guard spun around, his brows lowering. “Intruder.”
4
As the Fae guard surged toward me, my fighting instinct kicked into gear. I drew a throwing ax from the ether and flipped it around, then slammed the blunt end against the guard’s skull.
His eyes rolled back in his head, and he slumped to the ground.
Panting, I whirled in a circle and looked for any other threats.
There were none. For now.
I stood on a section of mountainous cliffside just like the one I’d left behind, with hills soaring up behind me and the land in front dropping away toward the sea. A path stretched ahead and behind me, following the coastline for hundreds of miles. The southwest coast path went all the way around England’s southwest peninsula, but I’d never walked the entirety.
The guard sprawled at my feet, dressed in an ice blue uniform decorated with silver trim. The colors should have looked non-threatening, but instead the uniform was so sharp and simply tailored that it had the opposite effect.
As with most Fae kingdoms, the entrance to the realm was located fairly far from the main Court. Security measures, of course.
In the distance, more than a mile down the cliffside path, the Court of the Ice Fae rose starkly from the landscape. It clung to the edge of the cliffs, the ornate castle starting on the hillside and spilling down the slope toward the sea.
It appeared to be silver and white, glinting in the light of the setting sun. It’d take me a while to get there, and I didn’t need anyone sending up an alarm.
I looked down at the unconscious guard. “Looks like I’m going to have to tie you up.”
His limp form didn’t respond.
Quickly, I bound his wrists with his belt and his legs with his boot laces, then rolled him under the bushes. With his arms behind his back, he wouldn't be able to untie his legs, so it’d definitely buy me some time. I debated killing him—so much was at stake—but I just couldn’t make myself do it.
With the guard incapacitated, I started down the path, running at a quick jog. As soon as the thorny bushes thinned on the seaward side of the path, I cut through them, getting off the main road and moving closer to the sea. The waves crashed below, sending icy spray up into the air.
As I ran, the moon rose over the sea, sparkling on the waves. Everything about this place was magical in a way that Magic’s Bend wasn’t. The city was great, of course, and full of plenty of magic. But this…
Even though it wasn’t my Fae homeland, it was a Fae homeland. And that was enough for me, apparently. It made my blood sing.
I drew the cold night air deeply into my lungs and kept going.
Where are you going?
The voice sounded in my head, making me jump.
I whirled around, searching for the source.
Down here, nimwit.
I frowned and looked down, spotting a small fox in the underbrush. Its russet coat blended well with the undergrowth. “Are you speaking to me?”
The fox looked around, keen eyes bright. No one else here.
“Fair enough.” I couldn’t linger out here. Darkness was providing some cover, but not enough. I turned and began to jog along the path.
The little fox followed. You’re really going there?
“Yeah. I don’t have a choice.”
We always have choices.
My brow arched. “What are you, a wisdom fox?”
My other ride is an owl.
“That doesn’t make any sense. And also owls are fairly dim birds.”
I’m offended.
I glanced down at the fox, exasperated. “Talking animals aren’t really normal, you know.”
Um, I am not normal. How rude. The fox kept up the pace, sticking right beside me. But I’m really not sure you want to go in there.
“I have to.”
Suit yourself. But it’s a miserable place full of miserable Fae ruled by a miserable king.
I was nearing the castle, and I’d gotten close enough to see it up close.
The true nature of the structure became apparent.
I stumbled to a halt, horrified by the sight.
The silver and white that I thought was beautiful stonework was actually ice. And it didn’t look intentional. No Fae would live like this.
I would have bought it if the ice were ornately carved and beautiful—that was a Fae thing. But this was something altogether different. It looked like the sea had frozen and crawled upward, coating the entire castle in a thick layer of ice.
The whole place was enormous and terrifying.
I pointed to the ice. “Is that why they’re miserable? All that ice?”
Probably. It’d make me miserable.
“Same.” I had to force myself forward. If Connor weren’t inside, there was no way in hell I’d approach.