Ever After (28 page)

L
avender finished tying the lock of her enchanted hair around my wrist. “There. That should get you past any of Mother's spells on the estate.” She blew out a frustrated sigh. “I should be going with all of you. My power is the only one she fears.”

“Not for long,” I assured her, squaring my shoulders, invigorated by the weight of my armor and weapons, my adrenaline spiking at the promise of impending battle. Dressed once more in the king's livery—more as a statement than a necessity—I was eager to be on our way.

I let my gaze take in my ragtag group in a glance, hoping like hell I'd be bringing them all back with me unharmed—or sending them all home safely without me.

Nicky was geared up in all black and loaded to the gills with guns, knives, a small crossbow, and night-vision goggles. He looked more like some sort of Special Forces operative than the leader of a crime syndicate turned legit businessman. Merlin had donned his druid robe, his expression fierce. The warrior wizard he'd once been to Arthur Pendragon had replaced the Las Vegas showman. To my surprise, Ivy and Lily had insisted upon joining our party and wore their magic like armor, their fairy light enshrouding them with a ferocity I'd never witnessed. They were their father's daughters and planned to prove it.

And Seth . . . He accepted a lingering kiss and an enchanted walking stick from his wife, murmuring quiet words that only she could hear, but the lavender glow they brought to her skin caused the rest of us to avert our eyes and give them a moment together.

I should've been going in without them, putting only my own life at risk. But I needed them, as much as I hated to admit it. And the seasoned warrior in me knew that every battle had casualties, and some of them were friends, family. As I took in each of them in turn, a horrible sinking feeling in my gut warned me that one or more of them might not make it back.

Trish strode into the foyer, trying valiantly to hide her concern for the group. “The king's coming around,” she said, going to Nicky and slipping easily into his embrace despite all his gear. “But I haven't told him anything about this little expedition you've planned.”

“Don't,” I told her. “Keep him ignorant of what we're doing for as long as possible. Otherwise he'll insist upon confronting Mab. And I'll not risk his safety again.” My gaze traveled once more over the faces of my friends. “I have enough to worry about.”

“Remember,” Lavender said, “Mother tends toward the dramatic.”

Seth grunted. “How could we forget?”

“She leads each strike with a flourish,” Lavender continued, ignoring her husband's acerbic comment. “She uses her reputation and authority to intimidate, but she's not all-powerful, Gideon. And she tends to leave her left side exposed.”

I nodded, her grief over the situation compounding my own. “Lavender, I—”

“You've been lied to, you know,” she interrupted, her brows coming together.

I glanced at the others before shaking my head in confusion. “Sorry?”

She sighed. “You were brought up believing that your kind—the Unseelies—were inferior to us, that your magic was less potent. If you tell someone they are inferior for long enough, eventually they begin to believe it. But it was a lie, Gid. Your people were subjugated in the ancient times because they were
feared
by the Seelies.”

“I don't understand,” I admitted. “Why tell me this now?”

“Because you need to believe that you can defeat my mother,” she told me. “You are exceptional, Gideon. My father saw that the moment he met you. He knew you were destined for more than what you'd been led to believe. Those who know and love you see it in you. And Arabella is counting on you to see it in yourself. If you are to be the man you were born to be, you must believe that you're as extraordinary as all of us know you to be.”

Her words weighed heavily upon me, the truth of my people's history difficult to accept. I gave her a terse nod by way of thanks, then tore open a rift in time. “Let's go.”

 

We emerged near the lake that butted up against the Seelie estate, twilight casting thick shadows as we crept along the tree line toward the house. A fine misting rain had begun to fall, cooling the air and creating a dense fog that hovered close to the ground. Although the fog provided much needed cover, it also could provide the same for any approaching guards.

We'd just reached the edge of the lake when I felt the wall of magic Mab had placed around the estate. The power of the spell made my skin buzz with electricity. I felt Ivy's and Lily's gazes upon me, their hesitation understandable. As much as they disliked their stepmother, they still feared her and the power she wielded. I took a deep breath and let it out slowly with a glance down at the lock of Lavender's enchanted hair tied around my wrist.

Now or never.

I stepped forward, the spell squeezing the air from my lungs as I passed through it. When I emerged on the other side, I heaved a sigh of relief, grateful for Lavender's talisman against her mother's malice. I turned and motioned for the others to follow. They too managed to pass through without any ill effects. I could only hope that Mab hadn't accounted for such assistance from her daughter and that even now a warning bell wasn't going off somewhere to alert her to our presence.

When we were all together again, Merlin cast a glance my way, asking a silent question. When I gave him a curt nod, he muttered a spell sotto voce, then swept his hand in a gentle arc. The fog began to grow thicker, swirling now of its own accord.

Nicky lowered his field glasses and motioned toward the guard tower in the distance, then held up four fingers. He then gestured at either side of the mansion and held up his hand. Five guards at each of the back entrances. I knew there'd be at least that many manning the front as well. The house was surrounded. And with the guard tower fully manned, they'd have the advantage of the high ground. The best option was to take the tower guards out first and as quietly as possible to maintain the element of surprise.

I nodded toward Nicky and Seth. Their heads dipped in unison, knowing the plan we'd agreed upon before leaving. They each headed off in separate directions, Lily and Ivy in tow, ready to move in as soon as I took out the guards in the tower.

When they were out of sight, I turned to Merlin. He grinned and raised his arms and began to murmur under his breath, his voice little more than a whisper on the wind, but it was enough. The spell he wove drifted upon the fog, winding its way toward the house. I crept forward along with the spell, keeping to the shadows.

The first guard to fall under Merlin's power merely slumped forward, half-draped across the demi-wall of the tower. His companions only had time to frown in confusion before the spell ensnared them as well, and they dropped as if in slow motion, sinking out of my sight. With the night watch snoring softly, Merlin turned the spell on those guarding the back entrances. The men began to yawn in turn and nod off. Some of them slowly drifted to the ground, curling up contentedly. Others merely slumped against the house, sleeping where they stood.

Within moments, all of the guards at the back of the house were asleep. I heaved a sigh of relief, glad that the spell would most likely keep them alive if we were able to get in and out again before it wore off. It was a quick and effective spell—but, unfortunately, it wasn't long-lived. And it wasn't one Merlin could just re-up when it wore off. After that, the victim's brain wouldn't be lulled again so easily. He'd explained that very clearly when I'd expressed my desire to move in on the estate without any further casualties. But it was our best option for now, and so I was willing to give it a try. Of course, just to be on the safe side, Merlin had a backup plan. One that I wasn't exactly privy to, which worried me more than a little ...

When we reached the ruined music room doors, still in disrepair after my earlier escape, I let my senses drift, searching for any emotions lingering nearby. But the room was completely empty. I frowned, not trusting the ease of entry. There should've been some kind of barrier erected to keep out the cold night air at least, but none existed.

“It's quiet,” Merlin murmured. “Too—”

I sent a warning look his way, cutting him off.

His brows lifted and he shrugged his shoulders. “Well, it
is
.”

As much as I hated to admit it, he had a point. There was a stillness in the air that I didn't trust. I moved deeper into the room, glass crunching under my boots with each step. I would've expected the house to be dark, but to my surprise, light from the hallway spilled into the room.

I made my way to the doorway and peeked around the doorframe. When I saw that the hall was empty, I motioned for Merlin to follow. My stomach sank as we crept down the corridor, the evidence of my confrontation with the guards still staining the walls and rugs, a gruesome reminder of what had transpired.

“You'd think if they knew we were coming they would've cleaned up the place,” Merlin drawled.

I shook my head, my skin beginning to prickle with warning. “No,” I told him, my voice low. “They'd want me to see this again, remember what my betrayal has cost.”

As I spoke, the light in the adjoining hallway gradually grew brighter, as though luring us on.

“Hel-lo,” Merlin murmured, his eyes narrowing. “What's this?”

My grip tightened around the hilt of my sword. “Drawing the moth to the flame.”

Merlin grunted. “More like the lamb to the slaughter.”

“You should get out of here, Merlin,” I tossed over my shoulder as I strode toward the light.

“Are you completely mental?” Merlin hissed, jogging to catch up with me. He grabbed my arm. “It's a trap. You must realize that.”

I clenched my jaw and reined in my temper to keep from wrenching my arm away from his grasp. “That's why you should go.”

“Don't be a bloody idiot,” he snapped. “You can't help Arabella if you're dead, Gideon.”

“Neither can you, my friend.” I rested my hand on his shoulder. “Now, go keep an eye on the others. They'll need your assistance should the guards awaken.”

Merlin drew himself up to his full height, clearly torn. But then he gave me a curt nod and hurried back the way we'd come, leaving me to face my fate on my own. I turned back toward the light and focused on an image of Arabella's dimpled smile, the glint of mischief in her dark eyes, the soft glow of love that surrounded her when she was lying in my arms, and I went forward, ready to move heaven and earth to see that face again.

I followed the corridor, and as that light faded another light drew me on, pulling me deeper into the bowels of the mansion. I wasn't in the least surprised when I eventually came to the intricately carved doors that led into the throne room that Mab had insisted upon adding to the mansion when the king designed it.

I stared at the doors for a long moment, feeling out what might be waiting for me on the other side, ready to unleash all hell the moment I went inside. There were several people on the other side of the door, I knew. I could sense the weight of their presence in the air. Reginald was among them, his thick, nauseating jumble of disgust, maliciousness, and disdain making me reel.

And Mab was there, haughty and aloof. Yet for all her coldness, her hatred for me burned so hot I half-expected the door between us to burst into flame. I'd always known of her dislike, her anger over the king's insistence that I be treated differently from all the other servants, her resentment at her advances toward me being rebuffed. She had buried her emotions deep for all these years, but finally was letting them come to the surface now that all other truths had been laid bare.

I swallowed hard, then took a deep breath and shoved open the doors with such force, they swung open in a massive arc, slamming into the walls. I strode in, my shoulders hunched forward, ready to cut down anyone who got in my way. But no one intercepted me. The guards that stood at equal intervals along the wall stared straight ahead, their eyes glazed over, seeing nothing but what Mab willed them to see.

The queen sat on her gilded throne upon a raised dais, imperiously peering down her nose at me as I prowled toward her. Her fairy light burned so brightly in her rage, her skin was luminescent, emanating a soft golden light.

“Where is my husband?” she demanded, her voice echoing ominously in the great hall, her eyes glowing golden orbs.

“Safe,” I replied. “Protected.”

“So you say,” she hissed. “But you must forgive me if I find it difficult to trust the word of a slave. Tell me where he is being held or suffer the consequences.”

“He's in Lavender's care,” I admitted, knowing that truth would infuriate her even more than my reticence.

She narrowed her eyes at me, her entire body trembling with rage. “You
dare
to turn my own daughter against me?”

“You needed no assistance from me in that regard,” I assured her. “I believe you've done well enough on your own.”

Mab rose, drawing herself up in indignation. “You will bring him to me immediately.”

“To what end?” I retorted. “So you can finish him off? Not satisfied with just grievously wounding him?”

“That's none of your concern,” she insisted. “Now, do as you are bid or I will be
most
displeased.”

“My apologies, my lady,” I replied, inclining my head. A satisfied smile curved her lips but it faltered when I added, “But I serve the king and his family. And you are no longer counted among them.”

Mab moved so fast, she was a blur of motion. In an instant, she was standing mere inches from me, her fingers grasping my windpipe, the heat of her fury searing my skin. But I didn't flinch. I turned my unconcerned gaze down to hers, towering over her slight frame.