Winter's War (Her Guardians series Book 4)(21)

The looks of relief around the room are clear. This has been a losing battle until now, we were just hoping for luck to win the war, but this is something else. This gives us a chance.

“You can’t fight him alone,” Atti says gently, looking down at me. I look at him before meeting everyone else’s eyes in the room.

“I won’t, but this is what I called you here for. Our first meeting of all the supernaturals, the first time we plan anything together. War is coming, and we need a united plan to win. There isn’t any other option, so sit or leave,” I say, and everyone takes a seat.





13





Winter





“What was the reason you called us here today, Queen Winter? I have a feeling the revelation about the crown is new to you,” Harold asks as everyone finally sits down, and I stand up from my seat. I look around the room at the mixture of supernaturals in here, all of them sitting side by side to plan a fight. Harold, Drake, and Leigha are here for the vampires, today. Lucinda, a man I recognise as one of her mates, and Harris are here for the shifters. Then there are three witches, one man and two older women I do not know, but I’m sure they look familiar to me. For the angels, are Gabriel, Lucifer, and a female angel with long, dark hair and black wings; she also wears a stern expression as she watches me for the answer. I clear my throat before I speak, having the eyes of so many powerful people on me is a little daunting.

“Do any of you know about the fray? The fairies? Some call them Fey,” I ask, and no one says anything until one of the witches I didn’t recognise puts her hand up.

“I’m sorry, I do not know your name,” I say, and she stands up, bowing before she speaks.

“My name is Duzella. I was on the council for Atticus’ mother, and she was a true queen, as well as loyal friend. I was kept in the dungeons until Atticus took the throne, like he always should have. My loyalty is to our king, the rightful heir and the rightful new Queen.”

“Thank you, Duzella, my mother spoke kindly of you often,” Atti says with a sad smile directed at Duzella.

“I’ve heard stories of the fray, the ones who live in a dimension next to ours. They say the fray cross over when the wards between worlds are weak, to cause havoc. There were many books on the fray in the royal libraries of the witches. Unfortunately, I only read a few, but I will ask around the surviving witches and see if anyone read more than I did. I only saw them as fairy tales, I’m afraid,” Duzella tells me.

“Thank you, that would be highly appreciated. Let it be known, the fray are a very real race, with a very real world,” I reply.

“The plants tell me the fray are not to be trusted, that they only bring sorrow. Their world is connected to ours, with portals only fray can see. The plants told me about the portals but nothing else,” Lucinda tells me. I nod at her and give her a friendly smile. I haven’t had time to speak to Lucinda, but I did watch her in training the other day. She was teaching sword skills to some teenagers, they looked terrified of her by the end of the day. Well, except Freddy, Josh and Mich, who loved it. They are all amazing fighters, and it’s clear they have been training since they were little, with the way they fought. A clearing of someone’s throat makes me come back to the present and remember what I was going to say.

“I apparently can dream call, a demon power I have. It’s a variation of the demon king’s power to control his own blood. My mother was rumoured to be able to control people, but I can only control bringing blood relatives into my dreams. I dream called the Queen of the fray by accident, her name is Lily, or that’s what she told me. But, it seems like she played me for a fool by making me believe she was friends with my mother,” I say, and Wyatt frowns as I look down at him.

“Just before I was taken and controlled by the demon king, I had a dream. In this dream, my mother, Elissa, and Demtra were there.” There’s hushed whispers following my words. “They told me about how Lily is no friend of my mother’s like I was told, and how she cannot be trusted.”

“How does that affect us all, Queen Winter?” Lucinda asks me.

“It’s just Winter, no need for the title every time we speak. We have a lot of discussions to be made,” I say, and my mates chuckle a little. I hold in the urge to kick one of them under the table.

“I made a promise with the Queen of Fray. I promised to hand over a half-fray child that is in this world, in exchange for soldiers and weapons on the day of war,” I say, and there are more whispers around the room following my words. I wait for someone to say something, knowing that all my mates know of this already, so it’s no shock to them. It is a shock that the fray has tricked me, and the anger written all over each of their faces says it to me. They are as mad as I am.

“It sounds like an easy enough promise, and I don’t see how she will get herself out of it,” Lucifer says.

“But, I disagree, mate. The child part is easy, the offer she made is not. There is always a way around what you promise in a deal. If the fray are not be trusted, then we can expect them to betray us,” the woman next to Lucifer says.

“I don’t trust her. I have no idea if those soldiers will betray us, but I know we need to be prepared if they do,” I say, and there’s silence around the room for a long time as we think about it. I don’t know how she is going to betray me, but I just remember my mother’s panicked look when I told her I had made a deal with Lily. She wouldn’t have wasted her time warning me otherwise.