Torrent of Tears (Scourge Survivor Series Book 3)(22)
“Attalos is a floating realm,” Zale said bringing my attention back to him. “It travels unseen by members of both realms. We are a private race of Fae who chose to distance ourselves from others in the dark times of persecution.”
“And I’m Water Fae? That’s what Freya said.”
“Yes. All Eligibles have been engineered to be Water for almost seven cycles—since a civil uprising cost many lives. Water are known for their intelligence and leadership. Unlike the savages attacking and stealing from the outer rings.”
“The citizens of other elements? They were behind the unrest?” He nodded and we turned to follow a wide canal toward the metropolis of the city. I checked over my shoulder. Terran nodded, looking calmer.
“When I was a young boy, Fire Fae tried to overthrow the Queen. They demanded Her Majesty stand down.”
“Had they ever been violent before?”
He shook his head. “There was a terrible battle, but when they failed to overthrow the Queen they went after the nine houses of nobles. It was a terrifying time. My father locked Mother and I away in a hidden cabinet behind the library bookshelf. It was dark and we were stranded for days, hungry and frightened.”
“And what happened?”
“The very structure of our race is governed by the nine houses. With many of them killed, there was a restructuring of the affinities. Fire Fae were sent to the outermost ring, Wind and Earth the next two in that order and Water kept control of the city.”
“And your father?”
“Killed and praised as a hero of a terrible time.”
“And all this happened when?”
“A few years before you would have been born.”
“So, the Queen began rebuilding the noble houses by prostituting her offspring to the sons of the nine houses of Water Fae?”
Zale cast a frantic glance around us. “How could you say such a thing? Our Queen is a righteous and proud woman. Everything she does, she does for the benefit of our people.”
Uh-huh. “And if they stand against her they get their heads chopped off. Very democratic.”
Zale squeezed my fingers until I felt the bones grind together. “I don’t know how it is where you come from, Princess, but here in Attalos women know respect and obedience. You’ll learn soon enough to bite that forked tongue of yours or it will be removed.”
I back-handed Zale across the face and freed my hand with little trouble. Terran was at my side in an instant and I slid my hands down my fancy dress. “We’re through here, Terran. Lir-Zale, you can scratch my name off the invitations. I’ll pass on the nuptial servitude. Thanks anyway.”
CHAPTER NINE
“Can you believe that asshat?” I stomped through the streets, mindless of where I was going or who I was bowling over as I went. “I mean really, can you see me married to that smarmy beefcake batting my lashes and kneeling before him? Hells no.” No way would I kneel for him as a supplicant or as a woman.
“Lexi,” Terran said, jogging to keep up with my rant. “Please, Princess, cool. People are taking note. Your words are treasonous. Please.”
“Terran.” I pointed my finger into his chest. “I have never been anyone’s doormat and I’m not going to chill. If that woman wants to sit on her throne and refuse me as her daughter, then why should I care? There are some major flaws in the hierarchy of Attalos and I’m not going to get railroaded into a fucked-up marriage to some pretty-boy yes-man just because mommy dearest says so. Screw. That.”
I heard the intake of breath around me and realized that I did, indeed, have an audience. Terran and I were standing in the merchants’ square with wide-eyed amazement surrounding us on all sides. My mind tried to recap what my mouth had just been spewing and I winced.
Getting my head chopped off is not on my ‘to-do’ list for today.
My apology was on my lips when a woman in an apron stepped off the stoop of the bakery and stretched out a dainty, flour-dusted hand. Her blue, velvety wings stretched to their full span as she snapped her fingers. Not sure what I was expecting, but as the sharp snap, snap, snap, continued and gained strength, I just stared. In a matter of seconds, a chorus of snaps rose up and filled the square.
I scanned the faces of the crowd and caught a flash of fuchsia. On the far side of the merchant area, the woman from my vision turned away and melted into the crowd.
Ignoring Terran’s protests I rucked up my skirt and swept across the stone courtyard and around the corner. Trying to catch a glimpse of the drunken brunette I’d seen not three hours ago, I hustled through the narrow stone streets, the click of my heels tapping out my hurried pace.
“Where is she?” I asked Terran, searching up and down the alleys and doorways as I ran.
“Who, Princess?” Terran asked behind me.
“The woman from my vision.” When his expression blanked out, I remembered he still thought I collapsed with some kind of seizure. As we made our way back and forth, weaving along the water-bordered streets, I gave him the Cliffs Notes version of my visions and what I had seen.
“And you saw this woman just now? In the square?”
“Clear as day.” I came to the end of a street and headed around the corner, searching the faces of people we passed. No one looked familiar. Crestfallen, I dropped the fabric of my dress and let it flow to my feet. “Damn. I lost her.”