Total pages in book: 129
Estimated words: 121339 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121339 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 607(@200wpm)___ 485(@250wpm)___ 404(@300wpm)
The princess’s voice was mocking. “But she is not your champion, is she, Tarian? She is your taboo little toy. You didn’t want an equal in your bed. You wanted a sniveling little creature to dominate. You wanted a creature that made you feel godly—”
“Enough,” the king said, and the court fell into uneasy silence.
There we are, Faelynn said, closing the wounds, chasing away the pain.
Leave the pain. Daisy winced. I need to know what is still hurting and how much. You can chase it away when we’re safe again.
“You do not understand, Elamorna,” the king said, sounding amused. “That is because you’ve never been with a human. They are so easily broken that they, in themselves, are a game. How hard can you ride them before you kill them? How can you twist them just right that their spasms of pain milk your pleasure? How can you prolong their death until you are well and truly ready to break them? It’s an art, keeping a human alive. Tarian is learning that art. He is starting to crave it. He will join us yet.”
He paused and fabric swished, the princess frustrated but unwilling to defy her father.
He spoke again, this time to Tarian. “I do uphold the rules of the court, my dear lad. Of course I do. The fae that attacked you within the court, for example, would have been sentenced to death. Given you had no choice but to take care of that, in defense, I will kill his mate. As for your human, she is not fae, and therefore she is not subject to our rules. She is below them. But I will guarantee her protection in court and in the games…for now. I wouldn’t deny myself the pleasure of a human, after all. It’s been so long since I’ve had one. Now, you may go and see to her, if you wish. I know what a sad thing it is for someone else to break your toy before you are done playing with it.”
Faelynn sat Daisy up gradually, and pain radiated from deep within Daisy’s body. Her dress didn’t have any holes in it, but it felt like her skin still did.
“Yes, sire,” Tarian said tightly.
He turned on his heel, and Daisy expected him to stalk out of the court, leaving her to his Fallen like in times past. Instead, he bent and scooped her up, cradling her gently to his chest.
“Careful,” Faelynn murmured, her hand flowing over Daisy’s legs.
I’m okay, she told them as Tarian walked toward the dais and around a seat grouping. Humans aren’t that breakable. Not when they have the Demigod’s blood magic.
Thank fuck for that, Gorlan murmured.
Tarian stared directly at Princess Elamorna. I warned you, he said in a deathly quiet mental voice. I warned you what would happen if you touched my property. Now you will know true sorrow.
He walked across the marble court with Daisy in his arms. The nobility parted ahead of him, wariness or outright fear on their faces. The doors opened when he reached them, and fae servants on either side hurried to clear the way. The doors closed crisply after they’d passed through.
Are you okay? Tarian asked Daisy. Faelynn hurried beside them, her hands on Daisy’s ankles, helping Daisy’s body repair the damage.
Yeah. I’ll heal. My ACL is just about good. I’ll be fine to walk in a moment. Almost there. It wasn’t a deep cut, thank god.
The other damage?
Before Daisy could answer, Faelynn dumped a plethora of images and feelings into their heads, detailing the magical maladies and what was healed and what was left to go.
Who was helping her? Tarian mused to himself. She doesn’t usually team up with anyone. She doesn’t keep anyone that powerful close enough in case they try to sabotage her.
Is teaming up with someone a vulnerable thing or something? Daisy asked as they turned a corner.
Yes. Very. It requires great trust. You are linked for a time, and in that time, your power can be used against you. It’s the perfect opportunity for a fae to betray another, so very few do it.
Daisy lifted her eyebrows. She must really want you. This level of obsession is extreme.
She always has, yes.
Tarian is the ultimate prize in this court, Faelynn said. The realm, really. The most handsome, the best pedigree, the promise of the most powerful offspring—she wants him like she wants to breathe. And she recognizes that he found in you what she has always wanted him to find in her.
Let’s hope she’s the only one who recognizes that, Gorlan murmured, his eyes continually scanning. Or else—
The lighting in the hall cut out.
They are trying my patience, Tarian said, setting Daisy down in the middle of the hallway. Stay there. Don’t move. Let us handle this.
(Like hell she would.)
Daisy. Tarian waved his hand, and diffused light peeked through the black along the top corners of the ceiling. I don’t need your hidden thoughts to alert me to your stubbornness. Stay there.