A Thief of Nightshade(80)

He fought again for breath as panic seized him: He wore the snowy white garb of the Fae King, walked the icy halls of the Winter Keep in the Valley of Neath.

He wasn’t dreaming. He’d been brought back to Avalar and he hadn’t been brought back alone.

Tell him to reap it with a sickle of leather. Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.

And gather it all in a bunch of heather. Then he’ll be a true love of mine.

He pressed the heel of his hand to his chest, clutching as if to hold on to a name, a face to go with the voice. He opened his mouth, feeling it on the tip of his tongue.

Are you going to Scarborough Fair?

Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme.

Remember me to one who lives there. He once was...

And just as suddenly as it had begun, the

singing

dissolved

into

sobs—

disappearing then into the still and abrupt silence of night. Jullian leaned with his back against the wall and rubbed his temples. He’d lost his train of thought and suddenly couldn’t say why he’d gotten out of bed.





Chapter Twenty-


Nine


“THERE, THERE. DON’T CRY.“

Aubrey woke to the feel of a tiny hand on her head and Lipsey’s whispered voice. She must have been crying in her sleep.

“Lipsey! How did you find me? How close are we to sunrise?”

“I watched where they took you, but there are guards everywhere. It’s taken me hours and hours to get these.” He thrust his hands out, filled with a loaded key ring.

“But I don’t see a keyhole on this cell like I do on the other ones. Maybe it’s a magic lock. Or, maybe I got the wrong set.

Maybe they have more than one prison here? Too bad you’re not small like me, I fit between the bars. Sunrise is near ...

maybe an hour or two away.”

“I watched Saralia walk through those same bars and I don’t recall them using a key when they threw me in here.

The door just kind of ... appeared. Gives me the impression that those keys won’t work.” Her breath hitched as a wave of pain swept over her. She clenched her teeth until it passed.

“What do we do now? I could try and eat through the bars.”

“Did you see where Given and Aislinn were taken? Maybe those keys will work wherever they are and then they can come back and help you get me out of

here.”

Just then, they heard footsteps and voices echoing down the hall and Lipsey poked his head around the corner. “Oh no.

Oh no, oh no, oh no.”

Aubrey hung her head. “The Goblin King?”

“Yes, and he doesn’t look happy at all.”

“Go before they see you, quickly, and try to find Aislinn. Somehow, they’ve got to stop the coronation.”

“Will the Goblin King take you back to Koldavere?”

Aubrey shuddered. “I don’t know, but I’m about to find out.”

Aubrey barely made it a few steps before the weight of her own body caused her to collapse. Cedrick caught her before she met the ground.

“There are still Sidhe within earshot, so listen carefully to me. We need to make it a few paces farther before I can tell you everything. I’m not taking you back to Koldavere.” He paused and let her catch her breath before they headed toward his horse.

Just as he’d said, he stopped a short while later. He dismounted first, then reached up to help her down, keeping his hands on her arms to steady her once she had found her feet. She could only look at him in question. His eyes, though still as haunted as they looked before, seemed different somehow. He seemed different, almost as if he weren’t even the same person she’d met before. It reminded her of when Grant drank, how he’d appear at times as two completely different men.

“I hate Oberon,” he started. “But as much as I hate him, I hate his vile treacherous witch of a sister more. She used me, just as she’s used everything and everyone else in Avalar. Oberon removed the spell she cast on me. Too lazy to use her own forces, she thought she’d just use me to stop you from reaching the Winter Court.”

“A spell?”

“An elaborate one at that. So much so that I sent Cain down to keep tabs on any human brought into my dungeon. Saralia wove her magic in such a skillful way that I thought I’d had these prophetic dreams about you. I still remember them, but it all came from her.” He paused, a smile tugging at his lips. “You really are something, though, aren’t you? I don’t remember much about our interactions, but Oberon filled in the gaps. A human ...

causing all this trouble and mayhem. And no magic at all. You know, humankind used that as an excuse, their lack of power. They said they couldn’t fight the Fae.”

“You said Oberon came to you–did he say anything else? Is he coming here?”

“You didn’t hear it from your cell, did you? The battle has already begun.

Oberon united King Tabor and King Alexander.” He then added in a whisper, “This is the beginning of the end.”

“Saralia has the Oran.”



“I know, she showed me. Doesn’t mean you won’t be able to put up a good fight.”

“Do you know where the coronation will be held?” Aubrey asked.