Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 123190 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 616(@200wpm)___ 493(@250wpm)___ 411(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 123190 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 616(@200wpm)___ 493(@250wpm)___ 411(@300wpm)
“That’s not what I was talking about.”
He folds his arms, frowning. “Is this about the Elora Seven?”
He doesn’t remember. “No . . . I mean, I’m still thinking about all that.”
He nods slowly. “Well, you’re still here, so I’m taking that as a good sign.” He grins. “Anyway, we have the oracle on our side.”
“Yes, but . . .” Maybe I shouldn’t push the issue, but he was so unaffected by the ring, I need to be sure. “Did you go somewhere last night?”
He waves this away. “I needed to see if I could get any decent intel from those guys we saw in the dining room, so I pretended I wanted to join their cause and followed them to a captain’s manor down the road.”
“Did you see anything interesting while you were there?”
He shrugs. “Just the usual rebel machismo.”
My heart twists. It shouldn’t matter. I should be glad my ring works, glad my secret is still a secret and the magic is still intact.
“Oh, before I forget.” He pulls a vial from his pocket and tosses it toward me. “You’ll need to re-up your glamour before you leave the room this morning.”
Frowning, I glance toward the door. How is it that they all already have their pointed ears and ethereal fae glow? “Did Skylar take hers while I was sleeping?”
“Nah, we’ve been at this for a while. We can handle bigger doses, so we don’t need to take it as often.”
“Oh.” I fight my frown but can’t help it.
He laughs. “What’s that look for? Jealous that we get to chug more of that sludge than you?”
“It’s not that.” I shrug and study his ears, then his light blue eyes, which glow even in his human form but more so when he’s glamoured. “I was just looking forward to seeing you as your human self each morning, I guess.”
His face goes serious. “You really do hate the fae, don’t you?”
“I feel like we’ve covered this.”
“Time is running out for you to deal with it. You hit your eighteenth birthday without coming to terms with—”
“I should pack up.” I shove him out of the room, close the door behind him, and sink to the floor. Exhausted on every level.
We weren’t on the road by first light, and it was mostly my fault. It took me longer than I expected to load my pack, and by the time I reached the stables, the sun had already crested the horizon.
Now we’re finally riding, but we don’t make it past the high captain’s manor house before Remme lifts a hand, indicating we should all slow down.
Then I see why. There are uniformed sentinels ahead, blocking the road. Beyond them, several children cling to their mothers’ legs, crying.
“What’s going on?” I ask, straightening in the saddle and trying to see what the guards are blocking.
Remme falls back, and Kendrick draws our mare beside his friend’s while one sentinel breaks rank to approach us.
Kendrick flattens a rough hand against my bare stomach, and I suppress a shiver. “Let us do the talking, okay?” he murmurs in my ear. “Those are palace uniforms, and the last thing we need is them recognizing the princess’s voice.”
I nod. He doesn’t move his hand. Instead, he pulls me closer, as if he’s afraid this guard might try to snatch me away.
“Can’t let anyone ride this way through the village,” the guard says. “You’ll have to go around.”
“What seems to be the problem?” Kendrick asks. “You’re a long way from the Midnight Palace.”
“Her Majesty, Queen Abriella, has charged my squadron with investigating the mysterious deaths plaguing the court. This village is, sadly, the most recently afflicted.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Kendrick says solemnly.
“How can we trust her to find the cause when she may be behind this?” a horned male calls from behind the guards.
“She sent her guard,” a tall female beside him says. “What else do you want?”
“She could be doing more!” the horned male protests. “How do we know the queen isn’t using the faceless plague to kill off her enemies? It was no secret that my brother and sister were no fans of the queen, and now look at ’em.”
The child clinging to his leg whimpers. “I want my daddy.”
“How many are among the dead?” Skylar asks.
“I’m not at liberty to reveal details at this time, milady. If you’re concerned for your family, I recommend you contact them personally to make sure they’re safe. We’re advising everyone stay in at night. The curfew is voluntary for now, but ignoring it is hardly worth the potential consequence.”
“Thank you, sir,” Skylar says.
He bows his head before returning to his post.
“It’s getting worse,” Natan says. “If the queen has this many of her own guard in this location, it has to be getting worse.”
“All the more reason to move quickly,” Skylar says.