What Lurks Between the Fates (Of Flesh & Bone, #3)(69)

“I do hope Twyla has received word of your existence. She should bring your crown with her if she is aware, and that would be far more befitting of your station,” Nila said, carefully evading the subject.

I ignored the panicked thump of my heart in my chest, the horror of wearing a true crown. I thought of Caldris’s spiked silver crown that bled shadows upon the earth, wondering just how heavy the metal of it had to be. His amusement pulsed down the bond, as if he couldn’t wait for the day my discomfort became reality.

I swallowed, shaking off the dread I felt over the forced acknowledgement of my status in this world. I hadn’t asked for any of it, but it seemed I’d been born to receive gifts I’d never wanted.

Or maybe they were a curse when it all came down to it.

“The Tithe, Nila,” I said, reminding the Fae woman of the topic at hand. My dread couldn’t be stopped, but I could focus on what was to come that night and do my best to prepare for it.

“We sacrifice seven lives to Tartarus every seven years. It is necessary, else things slip through the wards containing the prisoners of Tartarus. It has been... difficult since the Veil was constructed. We’ve gone far too long without paying a Tithe, and this will be the first Solstice since the Veil fell—”

“What does the Veil have to do with the sacrifices? Do you mean to tell me that the Fae sacrifice humans to Tartarus?” I asked, my outrage only growing.

Humans had been sacrificed to the Veil for over a century. Humans were sacrificed to Tartarus even longer. It never stopped amazing me just how little any of the creatures in this world valued human life—as if our ability to reincarnate changed any of the heartbreak left behind for loved ones to experience.

“Changelings, yes,” Nila admitted. “The Fae once took their place in the human realm, so their families never know they’re missing at the time. It is better to avoid mass panic as a general rule, and the person disappears eventually over the course of the year. It’s gradual, so the humans never realize their loved ones were taken all at once. With the Veil down, the practice will resume.”

“The courts are bringing human Changelings to sacrifice?” I asked, hanging my head forward. If any of them were a loved one of mine, I would bring down the entire court before I allowed them to die.

“Six of them. Mab has also selected one of her own,” Nila said.

I sighed. “Why seven? There are five courts,” I answered.

“Seven is a magical number to the Fae and witches alike. So each Tithe year, two of the courts must present two sacrifices instead of one. They rotate. This year it will be the Winter Court and Summer Court, Twyla and Rheaghan.”

“I think I’ll stay here tonight,” I said, shaking my head in disgust. I didn’t want my first memory of Caldris’s mother to be her participation in such a brutal ritual.

“The sacrifice will not happen tonight, Princess. It is a thirteen-day long ritual, with a great many factors to be considered. Mab will expect to show you off as her new prize to the other court royals, a trophy of her reign. She will not take kindly to you remaining in your room, and I imagine you will be forced to attend one way or another,” Nila explained, stepping back and making her way to the door of my chambers.

She tugged it open, revealing Malachi waiting on the other side. His eyes tracked down to my arm, to the unblemished mark of my mate bond upon my freshly grown skin. There was a promise in his eyes, a malicious intent to see how far he could push it the next time Mab allowed him to try to take my mate bond from me.

I had a feeling I may be lacking an arm the next time.

I glared back at him in challenge as I brushed past him and into the hallway. Nila traipsed behind me, doing her best to arrange the train of my gown appropriately. The beading and gems glimmered in the candlelight as I took a few steps forward, heading toward the dining hall that waited beside the throne room.

“Aren’t you coming? You shouldn’t keep Mab’s prize pig waiting,” I said, turning to look at Malachi over my shoulder.

His lips twitched in something like a moment of amusement, but he shut it down immediately. He caught up with me with a slow amble, making sure to let me know that he didn’t rush for anyone but his master.

“One of these days, she’ll allow me to tear you limb from limb. I greatly look forward to the way you’ll scream. That is the only use I have for your mouth.”

“And one of these days, I’ll cut off your cock and feed it to you, Malachi. I have no interest in your screams,” I said, tilting my head to stare up at him through my lashes as I smiled sweetly. “Only your silence.”

He clenched his jaw, turning his gaze forward as we made our way down the hall. The doors to the dining room were already open, the enormous table filled with Fae.

I followed behind him as Nila gave one last adjustment to my train before skittering out of sight.

“Crown Princess Estrella of the Winter Court and the Court of Shadows,” Malachi said, making the Fae in the room fall silent. “Mate of Crown Prince Caldris Arawn.”

Caldris turned from where he sat in silence, pushing out his chair so that he could stand slowly. He’d abandoned his usual armor in favor of a pair of black trousers that hugged the muscles of his thighs. His dress tunic was the same deep teal as my gown, like the deepest color of frozen oceans, with a black jacket draped over his shoulders that struggled to contain the muscles of his broad chest and biceps.