Winter's War (Her Guardians series Book 4)(38)

“Y-yes,” the man blurts out, and Dabriel lets him drop to the floor.

“Dab?” I ask, and he looks over at me with a kinder smile, but tension is written all over his face.

“The army they promised you is full of untrained soldiers who have no idea what they are doing. The weapons they promised can only be used by people with fray blood, and most of the soldiers are just picking fights. We had to put a few hundred of them in the dungeons underground, and our supernaturals teamed up to kill a few who flat out wouldn’t play nice,” Dabriel tells me, shooting a disgusted look at the fray on the floor.

“What?” I ask, looking down at the man who only stares at the floor.

“The weapons are things like sword handles, which have silver swords come out of them when a fray touches them. There are strange bracelets and other things I have no clue how to use,” Dabriel says.

“Why shouldn’t we kill you, send a message back to your queen about how we don’t like to be tricked?” Atti says walking over to stand next to Dabriel, and I wait for the man’s answer.

“The army she sent are all prisoners of the fray war, some may be able to fight, but most are too weak from being kept in the dungeons for years. The queen would never risk her royal army, and she doesn’t care about a single fray here,” the man says, his words aimed at the floor as he doesn’t look up at us. “Just kill me now if you wish.”

“There is a war in fray?” I ask, ignoring his offer.

“Yes, and there has been for a long time. Ten years ago, Lilyanne made an army. She hunted down every royal fray and killed them. There is only her left, now. We have no choice. My family are being held captive, I have no choice but to do as she asks. When I return to fray within twenty-four hours, if any of the fray here come with me, she will kill them all,” he tells me, only looking up at me for a second, and the guilt is written all over his face. I believe him when I can see the pain in his eyes, and in some ways, I know Lily is smart enough to do this.

“I believe you, and I won’t kill you for telling me the truth. Lily is the only one I want dead right now,” I say.

“You say all the royal Fray are dead?” Dabriel asks.

“Yes. I don’t know every detail of how the war started as I once was a simple man that lived in the city and worked as a jewel miner. There were once four families for the four royal courts. The autumn court, Lily, is the only one left now,” he says.

“Lily made a promise with me, she told me she needed a half-royal fray that lives in our world,”

“Then, there is hope,” the man breathes out, and for the first time, there’s relief all over his face. “You must never touch the royal fray, no matter what. She is not safe in my world, but I will return. If the royal ever comes back, I will be there at Lily’s side. She needs me to control the miners in the city,” he says.

“I will never touch the royal, I never want to make good on my promise,” I tell him honestly.

“You may never want to, but magic of the old Gods will make the promise come to pass. Promises are always fulfilled,” he says, and I just look away from him. I know they have their own Gods and their own magic, the lily marks on my wrists are proof of that.

“So, we have thousands of refugees, instead of an army?” I muse, looking through the glass windows just as the sun rises up in the sky.

“Yes,” he says.

“Get everyone in front of the castle, so they can see the balcony. All the fray and supernaturals,” I tell the man, who nods and scrambles off the floor, running out as Dabriel still glares at him. I don’t see him as a threat to me, but I’m not stupid, I’m going to be careful.

“I will call my witches and ask them to bring everyone as well. I hope you have a plan, or we all need to come up with something quickly,” Atti says and presses a kiss against my forehead before he steps away. Dabriel walks over, and I wrap my arms around him.

“I’m sorry about the angels who were killed,” I mumble quietly.

“What’s the plan?” he asks gently as he pulls me as close as he can to his chest.

“I need to do what I was born for, I need to be a queen,” I say, resting my head on his chest.





20





Winter





I look down at the thousands of people on the ground watching me. It’s strange to think how many different races there are down there, mixed races, and yes, they all may have differences, but we are here together. All of them are dressed for war, even the women and children are standing with weapons in their hands and determined looks. There are so many people that they stretch out into the forest edges as they wait for me to speak. I try not to remember the human woman who would have laughed if I told her she would be doing this in a year. I’m not her anymore; I’m the queen of four races of people who need my help. They need to see me strong, to remember me like this. Remember me leading them into war for one thing: for peace. For a life for our children. I glance to the side of the balcony, where Freddy is standing, dressed every bit the prince he is, and the small crown on his head reflecting the sunlight. The sun is high in the sky as everyone looks up at me and my mates. I glance behind me once more to see all four of them standing next to each other, each one looking every bit like the kings they are. Wyatt is the only one without a crown, but he doesn’t need it; he commands power on his own, like they all do. The crown is nothing without the powerful king that wears it. I believe that. I turn back to the people; the silence is only broken by the cold wind as it blows against the castle. The fray are standing to the left of the supernaturals, a clear gap between them, and no one seems to want to move. The fray all have strange, bright-coloured hair and old, ragged clothes, and they clutch weapons in their hands. They honestly look terrible, and over half of them must be teenagers or women. There are even some children dotted around, and one woman holding a baby in her arms. Right at the front of the castle, is a group of fray, all big men with determined eyes as they look up at me. A ward is around them, and I know they must be the fray that started the fights and killed the angels. Not the best way, but then if they have been kept in dungeons for years it’s likely their families have been too. I know I would do anything to keep my family safe, and I bet they think coming here is just Lily’s way of killing them.