House of Lies and Sorrow (Fae of Rewyth #1)(56)

“What are we waiting for?”

He took a second before responding, “We’re waiting for somebody important.”





CHAPTER 31





Malachi





Something was wrong.

I tracked Serefin and Adeline for miles until I found them both at what looked like another campsite.

“What’s going on?” I asked them. “I thought you both were dead. You were supposed to be back by now.”

“Check this out,” Adeline said, gesturing to the site. “Somebody’s been here. Recently, too.”

The hair on my neck stood up. “Who?” I asked.

Serefin sighed and answered, “We can’t tell. No markings anywhere, no personal belongings. Just this leftover fire and the blanket.”

I surveyed the area around us. We were pretty far from our own campsite. It could have just been a coincidence.

But this far into the forest?

My hand moved to the handle of my sword strapped to my hip. “Adeline, come with me to get Jade. Serefin, stay here for another hour, and if nobody shows up, come find us. Let's hope these people are smart enough to leave us alone.”

“What do you want me to do if they come back?” Serefin asked.

“If they’re simple travelers, let them go.”

I clenched my jaw and let my mind wander to what could happen if we were found. What if my father had sent people after us? What if there was a bounty on Jade’s head?

“And if they’re looking for us, kill them all.”

I knew Serefin understood. He would do whatever it took to keep us safe.

He nodded and Adeline and I turned to head back to our campsite. She followed behind me without saying a single word.

“You can tell me what you’re thinking, you know,” I said after a few minutes.

She exhaled a large breath. “I’m just worried. I hope you have a plan for all of this, Mal. The humans won’t be welcoming of us.”

“They’ll be welcoming of Jade. She’s one of them.”

“Not anymore. She’s your wife. She’s made an alliance with the enemy. She’ll hate them just as much as she hates us.”

Adeline had a point, but it wasn’t something I had time to worry about. Jade in the human lands was far safer than Jade in the fae lands. Adeline, Serefin, and I could take care of ourselves.

“We’ll figure something out,” I said.

She went back to silence, step after step, for nearly the entire walk back to our campsite. It would have been quicker to fly, but flying over the trees would draw attention to anyone around us.

We had enough of that already.

“What about your mother?” she asked.

The words rumbled through me. “What are you talking about?” I asked.

“You know damn well what I’m talking about, Mal. Father has been keeping her whereabouts hidden from you. Are you just going to give up? Are you leaving here for good?”

I shook my head and clenched my fists. “I can’t keep holding onto something that isn’t real, Adeline. I don’t even know if she’s alive. For all I know, he’s been lying to me this whole time.”

She nodded in agreement. “As long as you’re okay with it.”

“I can’t keep worrying about everyone else. It has to end at some point.”

“You’re right.”

I crossed the last few steps to our campsite and stopped dead in my tracks.

“What is it?” Adeline asked. “What’s wrong?”

“Someone’s been here,” I said. I could smell the presence of multiple fae.

My brothers.

A growl escaped me, my power rumbled through my body and pulsed at my fingertips.

“They took Jade,” I said. “They took her.”

Adeline already knew. She was running around the campsite, checking for any signs of her. But I already knew what happened.

Just when we thought we were free, my father sent them to kill her.

“I’ll kill them,” I told Adeline. I didn’t recognize my own voice. I didn’t care. “I’ll kill every single one of them if I have to. They’re not getting away with this again.”

Adeline looked at me with a fierceness I had never seen from her before. “We have to find her,” she said. “We find them and we get Jade back.”





CHAPTER 32





Jade





My consciousness was fading. I had to stay awake. Just a little longer, and they would find me. They had to find me.

I had no choice.

Lucien threw a small rock in my direction, making me snap back to my surroundings.

“Wakey, wakey, princess,” he teased. “If you fall asleep you might miss all the fun.”

My head rested on the cement wall behind me. “You say that as if spending this time with you isn’t the highlight of my night.”

Lucien stepped closer. “I’ve always envied Malachi and his wives, you know.”

“Really? You don’t quite strike me as the marriage type,” I joked. Every word took more energy than I had left.

“You flatter me,” he responded, still stepping closer with each tiny, torturous step.