Shadow Faerie

Chapter 14

Fourteen

I swing my door open and find Roarke right outside. “Uh, good morning. Afternoon, I mean. Clarina said you wanted to talk?”

“Hello, my love.” He bends forward and kisses my cheek. I freeze and tell myself not to shrink away. “You’ve recovered from last night’s festivities, I see?” he adds.

I step back to let him in. “No need to bother with the ‘my love’ nonsense. No one else is around to hear you except Clarina.”

“Oh, but you are my love.” Roarke gives me a sly grin as he walks past me into the room. “Or, at least, I hope you one day will be.” He nods briefly to Clarina as she curtsies and leaves the room. He turns slowly on the spot, looking around, and I almost expect him to walk into the bedroom and start looking for Dash. But then he smiles serenely and sits at the table beside my tray of lunch.

And at that moment, Bandit, who I’ve managed to keep hidden until now, comes bounding out of my bedroom in the form of a bear cub. He shifts into a wolf, jumps onto the divan, and takes a flying leap into my arms, landing in the form of a blue-haired sloth. I remain motionless, but my gaze snaps straight to Roarke. For once, he appears utterly speechless. I bite my lip, waiting for his response.

“Is that—is it … yours?”

“Yes. This is Bandit. He came with when you brought me here, although he must have been in a form too small for either of us to notice.”

“So he’s been here with you—in your chambers—the whole time?”

“Yeeees.” My voice is uncertain, almost questioning. “Well, I wasn’t aware he was here for the first two or three days. I think he may have been scared of the unfamiliar surroundings, so he remained hidden for a while.”

“I see. How interesting.”

Bandit snuggles closer to my chest and tries to burrow his head beneath my arm. “I hope you don’t disapprove,” I say carefully. “I like having him around. He … he means quite a lot to me.” Instinct tells me I shouldn’t reveal to the man I still don’t trust that I care about anything. He might choose to use that information against me. But if Roarke cares for my happiness the way he claims to, then he shouldn’t mind Bandit’s presence here.

“Well, I doubt my mother would approve of animals in bedrooms,” Roarke says, his deep reddish-brown gaze fixed on Bandit, “but she doesn’t need to know. And if she finds out and has a problem with it, I’ll remind her how exceptionally rare and valuable formattra are, and that it’s only fitting a princess would have one as her pet.”

I nod. “Cool. Thank you.” Hopefully Aurora feels the same way and doesn’t freak out when she meets Bandit.

“Anything to make you happy, my dear,” Roarke says. “Now, why don’t you sit here so we can talk?” He gestures to the chair beside him at the table.

“Uh, before we talk, can I ask you something?”

“Of course.” He smiles at me. “My soon-to-be wife can ask me anything.”

I cross the room to the table and take a seat. I lift my hand and touch the small circular device behind my ear. “I know you put one of these things on Dash, but what if he gets it off? What if the Guild or his friends find out where he is and come after him? I just don’t want anyone else interfering, remember?” To be more specific, I don’t want anyone ending up in some nasty Unseelie dungeon or, far worse, facing the same fate as that man who was dragged through a cavern into the king’s office.

Roarke examines me closely before answering. “You really didn’t have anything to do with your friend showing up here, did you.”

“What? No, I already told you that. Did you think I was lying?”

“Well, I’d be an i***t to believe that you trust me. Perhaps you arranged for a way out before you even got here.”

“I did not. I told you I didn’t want anyone—”

“Yes, I know.” He leans back. “Still, I wondered if you might just be a very convincing actress.”

“But you’re not wondering that anymore?”

“You still seem genuinely concerned about the possibility of others discovering you’re here. So let me put your mind at ease, Emerson. Even if someone can locate Dash’s whereabouts, and even if they come to the very spot they expect to find him, they won’t see any palace. Only if that person is in the company of one of our guards will they be able to see and enter the palace grounds.”

“Oh. That’s … convenient.” Kind of like … No, it’s gone. I almost had it, an image of the safe place belonging to the Griffin rebels, but it’s like trying to hold onto smoke. “Well, I feel better now. I’m glad no one will be able to interfere.”

“Good.” Roarke waves the fingers of one hand through the air, and a rolled-up piece of paper appears in his loose grip. “Now, we have some preparations to make for the union ceremony.”

“We do?” I never expected to be consulted on any wedding-related details. I assumed the queen and Aurora would take care of all of that. As it’s been pointed out to me many times already, I have no idea what’s appropriate and what isn’t for formal events of the faerie world.

“You need to memorize the union vows,” Roarke says, placing the paper on the table. “Everything you need to know is on this scroll.”

I almost comment on how antiquated the use of a scroll is—I mean, come on. Surely folding a piece of paper is simpler and takes up less space—but I’m more concerned about the fact that I have to memorize vows. “So, um, I won’t be able to repeat the words after someone?”

“For part of the vows, yes, but the words are in another language, so you need to practice pronouncing them correctly. There’s magic involved, so you don’t want to get the words wrong.”

“Uh—”

“And the other part of the ceremony is the private vows we make to one another without anyone else overhearing. You’ll have to memorize those.”

“Oh. Why are they private?”

His expression becomes bemused. “Because they’re for our ears only.” Beneath the table, his hand slides onto my knee. “The special, romantic things we wish to say to one another.”

“Oh.” I inch a little to the side, moving my leg out of his reach. “But … then why do we need to say them? You and I both know we’re not entering into this union for any of the traditional reasons. We don’t need to go into detail with anything romantic.”

If Roarke is bothered by the fact that I don’t want him touching my leg, he doesn’t show it. “As I said a moment ago, our vows involve magic. We can’t simply skip that part.”

My frown deepens. “But … okay. I just … don’t quite understand. If those extra words are a standard part of the union magic, then why are they private? Do I really need to memorize them?”

Roarke simply laughs. “Emerson, this is the way the ceremony is done. It’s been this way for a very long time. We can’t just change it because you don’t feel like memorizing words.”

“It isn’t that I don’t feel like it.” I loop my hair back behind my airs. “I’m just concerned I might forget something or make a mistake. If it’s so important to get everything right, then what’s wrong with repeating after someone else or reading the words off a page?”

Roarke sighs. “You won’t be reading words off a page, Emerson. That’s not how it’s done.”

“Okay, okay.” I reach for the scroll and pull it closer. “So, will you explain to me what all the words mean, or am I expected to recite nonsense I don’t understand?”

The corner of Roarke’s mouth lifts. “It’s a good thing I’m the one teaching you these words. Anyone else would be highly offended.”

I lean back and unroll the paper, revealing far more foreign words than I’m comfortable with. “Aurora wouldn’t be offended.”

“True, but Aurora will only learn the private words when it’s her turn. It isn’t appropriate for her to know them yet.”

“Ah, more inappropriateness.” I let out a long sigh. “I would ask why it’s inappropriate, seeing as this is a standard part of every ceremony, but you’ll probably just tell me ‘this is how it’s done.’”

“Yes. That’s exactly what I’ll tell you.” His eyes crinkle at the corners as he smiles. “I’m so pleased to see you’re learning.”

I lean back in my chair and begin reading the vows out loud, doing the best I can with the unfamiliar combinations of letters. After about three words, I’m aware that I’m probably massacring the faerie language. Roarke waits until I reach the end of the first line before putting me out of my misery. “Okay. I see this is going to take longer than I thought.” Another twist of his wrist produces a quill. He hands it to me. “I’ll pronounce each word, and you can write it down in whatever way makes sense to you.”

We get about halfway through the public portion of the vows before a quick knock interrupts us and my door is thrown open. “Sister, dear!” Aurora calls out to me. “Oh, you’re awake.” She stands in the doorway and grins. “Look who I found roaming the halls.” She reaches back and tugs Dash into view.

“I did tell you I invited him to stay, didn’t I?” Roarke says to her.

“Yes, but I haven’t seen him since the day we stunned him in Em’s bedroom back in the human realm. I didn’t get a proper look at him then. He’s handsomer than I remember,” she adds with a teasing smile, slipping her arm through Dash’s and pulling him closer.

“Thanks.” He gives her an equally flirtatious smile. I fold my arms and direct a frown at him, but all he does when he sees my expression is shrug.

“You remember what he is?” Roarke says to Aurora with disapproval in his tone.

“Of course I do. And I remember,” she adds in a mock whisper, “that it’s a secret.”

“We were actually busy with something before you so rudely barged in here,” Roarke comments.

“Ooh, yes, memorizing the vows. How romantic. Can I take a peek?”

Roarke swipes the page away from me and promptly rolls it up before Aurora can come any closer. “No, you may not. I wouldn’t want to spoil anything for you before it’s your turn.”

“How thoughtful of you.”

Roarke taps my hand with the scroll. “We can try this again later, my dear betrothed—when we have a little more privacy.” He spins the scroll on his hand and it disappears.

“The reason I barged in here,” Aurora says, “was to suggest we all go down to the tea together. And I wanted to check Em wasn’t still fast asleep.”

“Oh, is it time already?” I ask. “I thought the tea was later.”

“Tea?” Dash asks.

“Yes, at the queen’s bower in the garden. Mother’s hosting it for those who stayed here after the party.”

I push away from the table and stand. “Hang on, I need shoes.” Aurora accompanies me into the bedroom to help me select appropriate footwear. I pull the silver slippers on quickly, wanting to give Roarke and Dash as little time as possible in which to wind up fighting.

Once the four of us are out in the hallway—with several guards striding both before and behind us—Roarke asks Aurora if he can speak privately to her. The two of them walk ahead while I fall into step beside Dash. “I wonder how Jewel would feel,” I say to him, “if she knew the kind of attention you were receiving from the enchantingly beautiful Princess Aurora.”

Dash sighs. “Hopefully she’d understand, given the fact that we had a conversation recently and I told her I don’t feel the same way she feels.”

“Oh. Um … well done.”

“Yeah. It, uh, didn’t go the way I hoped it would.”

“I’m sorry. That must have been awkward. Was she very upset?”

“Actually, she convinced me to go on a date with her.”

I almost trip as I look up at him in surprise. “Really? You said you didn’t have romantic feelings for her, and that conversation ended with the two of you going on a date?”

He gives me an amused look. “Is there something wrong with that? Something about the idea of me going on a date with Jewel that upsets you, perhaps?”

“Don’t flatter yourself. I’m surprised, that’s all. You don’t seem like the kind of person who lets conversations get away from you.”

“I didn’t let it get away from me. I simply decided to give her a chance.”

“A chance?”

“She asked me to give her one date. I told her I didn’t see the point, that I didn’t want to lead her on, and that I was sure of my feelings. She asked how I could be sure if I’d never given those feelings a chance. So …” He sighs. “I thought what if—just what if—she was right. So I agreed.”

“And?”

He cuts a sideways glance at me as we reach the bottom of a staircase. “You seem very interested in the result.”

“Only because I’m trying to figure out if you really are the player I always assumed you to be. If you’re dating Jewel while also entertaining Aurora’s affections … well, that’s not cool.”

“Entertaining Aurora’s affections?” he repeats. “My, you’ve picked up some fancy lingo since moving in with the Unseelies.”

“Oh, just shut up and tell me what happened with the date.”

“I don’t think I can both shut up and tell you something at the same—”

I fold my arms across my chest. “Dash.”

“Fine. It was awkward. Seriously weird. I spent the whole evening terrified she was going to try to kiss me at the end of it, and thinking it would be exactly like kissing a—”

“—sister?”

“Yes. And that’s just wrong. So before that could happen, I told her—gently—that it wasn’t ever going to work out.”

“Ok.” We reach another grand staircase leading down to yet another vast hallway. “Well, I’m glad you didn’t string her along at all.”

“Of course I didn’t. I’m actually a decent guy, remember?” He lowers his voice. “Unlike the prince you’ve foolishly chosen to marry.”

“I didn’t choose him. Not like that, anyway. I chose this agreement, and he happens to be part of it. And you don’t actually know him. I think he may be more decent than you think.”

Dash snorts. “Right. Whatever you say.”

I close my eyes a moment and sigh. “Can we please not argue about this any longer?”

“Sure. Tell me this then: what have you been filling your time with the past two and a half weeks? Has it all been parties and teas with the queen and being waited on by your own personal servant?”

“Yes, it’s been absolute perfection,” I say drily. “I’ve been waiting my whole life to have someone choose my clothes, run my bath, make my bed, and prepare my food.”

Dash squints at me. “Really?”

“No! I can’t stand it. I’m perfectly capable of doing all those things myself.”

“Look, you had kind of a crappy life at Chelsea’s,” Dash says, holding his hands up in defense, “so forgive me for thinking you might actually enjoy having someone else do all the hard work.”

“I don’t. It’s weird. And I haven’t been spending all my time at parties and teas, actually. Aurora’s been teaching me plenty of basic magic, along with some of her hobbies, like archery and dragon riding.”

As we reach a wide doorway leading to the sunny outdoors, Dash stops. He looks more closely at me. “Dragon riding?”

“Can you two wait here?” Aurora asks. “Roarke just needs to show me something quickly.”

“Yes, okay,” I answer.

They disappear down a corridor, and Dash turns to me again. “Did you say dragon riding?”

“I did.”

“Seriously? So you’re a dragon rider now as well as an Unseelie princess-to-be?”

“Not yet, but I’d like to be. Is there something wrong with that?”

“No, it’s just …” He shakes his head. “I feel like I don’t really know you anymore. You haven’t been here that long, and already you’ve changed.”

His words hurt more than I could have imagined possible. “Changed? What do you mean?”

“Well you’ve … you’ve learned a lot in a short time. And you look …”

“I look?”

“Like you belong here.”

I dismiss his words with a casual wave, hoping he hasn’t noticed how deeply they’ve cut me. “That’s just the clothing.”

“Is it? The way you carried yourself last night, on the platform and while dancing … you looked every bit the princess people are expecting you to become.”

I pull my shoulders back a bit, ignoring the ache in my chest. “Good. At least I know I’m playing my part well.”

Dash’s expression softens the tiniest bit. “As long as it’s only on the outside …”

“Of course it’s only on the—”

“Okay, are you ready?” Aurora calls out as she and Roarke reappear. “Let’s get to this tea before we upset Mother with our tardiness. And you—” she adds, looking at Dash “—I shall introduce as a friend of mine. Please don’t contradict whatever story I decide to go with.”

“Oh, uh …” Dash hangs back as Aurora tries to usher us both forward. “I was thinking,” he says, “that perhaps it’s best if I don’t attend this tea thing. If my sleeves roll up too high, and if the makeup rubs off my wrists, your mother might see my markings. She’ll know what I am.”

“That’s possible,” Aurora admits, “but if you don’t come to the tea, you’ll almost certainly end up wandering the palace on your own and risk getting up to all sorts of mischief.”

He gives her a sly grin. “And what if I promise to stay in my room like a good boy? If anyone asks about me—which I doubt anyone will, since no one knows me—you can say I’m not feeling well.”

“If we could trust you to keep your word,” Roarke says, “and not sneak out of your room to try and dig up information that might be useful to your Guild, then certainly. That would be fine.” Roarke’s gaze moves briefly to mine before settling back on Dash. “But we don’t trust you. Even if I posted guards at your door, you might climb out of your window instead.”

My arms tense at my sides. He can’t be hinting that he knows Dash climbed into my room earlier, can he? Unlikely. He would have been angry when he entered my room if he’d just learned that Clarina discovered Dash in my bedroom.

“Climb out the window,” Dash says, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Now there’s an idea. I may have to try that later after everyone’s gone to bed. I hadn’t thought about trying to dig up any useful information—Em was the only reason I came here—but now that you mention it, I’m definitely wasting a valuable opportunity by not doing more to find out what kinds of laws you Unseelies are blatantly breaking.”

Roarke’s placid smile never leaves his face. He steps closer to me and places an arm around my back. “As you said, Emerson is the only reason you came here. If you are indeed a true friend to her, you’ll focus on comforting her during this difficult time instead of thinking up ways to bring down her future family.” His thumb rubs up and down against my arm, a gesture that’s probably supposed to be caring and tender, yet somehow comes across as threatening.

Dash watches Roarke’s hand on my arm for a moment before lifting his gaze. Then his eyes narrow as he focuses on something behind me. I look over my shoulder. A woman dressed in dark maroon crosses the hallway with quiet, confident steps. She pauses for a moment to look at us. Perhaps it’s the way the shadows fall across her face, but her eyes seem completely black. She tilts her head and sends a knowing smile our way, revealing pointed teeth behind her full, red lips. She turns away and saunters toward the stairs, leaving a cold breath of air in her wake.