Page 14 of Lyric of Wind
“Riker,” Devlin exclaimed. “You can’t possibly be protecting her.”
“Father. Please leave us. You’ve insulted all of our guests. Some of whom, by the way, are honored friends of King Callum, having fought in the quest for the Four Treasures with resounding success. You owe them an apology.”
Devlin’s gaze held Raven’s for a moment before he turned to Bianca and Seamus, his squat body all but vibrating with anger.
“My apologies,” Devlin bit out. Raven wondered what the battle of the Four Treasures was. She’d have to ask Bianca about that later. Now, as the adrenaline from the flight wore off, Raven swayed on her feet and reached out a hand to steady herself on the Alicorn.
“Riker?” Raven whispered, ready to ignore Devlin and find the nearest bed. Maybe she could sleep next to this magnificent beast who had just acted as her protector. When the Alicorn turned and regarded her with warm eyes, Raven was pleased to see she’d gotten his name right. “Riker. That’s a grand name. You’re pretty damn majestic, by the way. Thanks for looking out for me. If nobody else does here, at least I know I can come find you.”
The Alicorn let out a soft sound of happiness when Raven stroked its neck, and a cooling wash of energy moved through her, as though the Alicorn was gifting her with a mental reprieve from the altercation she’d just had. Leaning in, she pressed her forehead against his flank and looped one arm across his back, dead on her feet.
“Come on, Queen Raven. Let’s get you to bed.” Kellen’s voice at her shoulder jolted her, and Raven realized she had quite literally started to doze off on a magical flying Alicorn.
“Sorry about that, Riker.” Raven patted the Alicorn before accepting Kellen’s arm. Not only did she need the support, but if he really was the ruler here well, then it wouldn’t look so bad for her to enter the castle at his side. It was all about sending the right message to people, and Raven didn’t want the message to the Air Fae to be that she was weak. Because she wasn’t. But shewasdamn tired.
Kellen was silent as they walked through the gates of the castle, and Raven caught more than one Fae eyeing her with speculation in their eyes. She only raised her chin, meeting each gaze head-on, well versed in the game of street stare-downs.
“Thank you,” Kellen finally said, and Raven jolted at his voice, turning to look up at him in surprise.
“For what? Picking a fight with your douchebag of a dad? I’m not sure that warrants a thanks.”
“You stood up for me. You didn’t have to do so. I’m used to my father’s behavior. He’s harmless, really. He’s just–”
“A jerk?” Raven supplied as Kellen steered her into a roughly cut stone passageway. “Big ego…little…” She held up her pinky finger, and it took Kellen a moment to understand her meaning. His laugh rumbled from his chest, and the look of surprise on his face was like a reward to Raven.
“He’s struggling to find where he fits in now that my mother is gone,” Kellen said, reaching across Raven’s shoulder to push open a wood door with floral etching.
“Well, shit. Now I feel like a right arse,” Raven mumbled, her eyes widening at the beautiful room they’d entered. It was the same room that had been projected into her mind earlier, and she wondered if the Alicorn had done that or Kellen had. Either way, clean white marble lined the walls and the floor, and a large four-poster bed dominated the room. Ethereal robin’s-egg blue gauze curtains were wound around the posts, draping and falling in such a manner that just looking at them soothed Raven. The room was coolly and calmly beautiful, and already the knots in her shoulders were starting to release. Turning, she looked up at Kellen.
“I’m sorry for your loss.” Raven meant it too. She’d lost a lot on the streets, and it was just a way of life, but that didn’t make it any easier.
“Thank you.” Kellen’s face was a mask, and Raven wasn’t sure if she should press for more information or leave it. In the end, her time on the streets won out. People’s secrets were their own, and if Kellen wanted to talk about his mother, he would.
“Is there…a place to wash up?” Raven asked instead, knowing she likely was not at her freshest after forty-eight hours on the streets.
“Yes, a washroom is through the curtain there.” Kellen indicated a curtain, in the same blue as the bed. “Food and water is here. I’ll make sure you’re not bothered. After you rest, just come to the door and say my name. I’ll hear it and lead you out of the tunnels. Don’t try to explore them on your own. They burrow through the cliffs with an incredible number of twists and turns. Some end at the edge of the cliff with no way back. It’s a security feature that can be deadly. If you prefer that Bianca comes to you, just call for me, and I’ll bring her.”
Kellen turned to go, but Raven grabbed his arm. Again, that tiny shiver of awareness ran through her when she touched him.
“Kellen. I suppose I owe you thanks.”
“I don’t know if you do. Yet. I’m still not entirely sure of your role in all of this. But I couldn’t let you die, either.”
With that, Kellen disappeared through the door, and Raven was left alone in the nicest room she’d ever been in. Unsure of what to do or if she should touch anything, Raven defaulted to self-preservation. Filling a cup with water, she downed it in two gulps before filling it once more. Food she was used to going without, so instead she took the cup with her and was delighted to find a modernly equipped bathroom. Stripping, she showered and then wrapped herself in a gossamer thin robe that somehow perfectly modulated her temperature.
The benefits of magick, and all that, Raven thought, carrying her cup to the bed. The sheets looked so pretty, with everything perfectly made up, that for a moment Raven considered curling up on an armchair tucked in the corner so as not to mess anything up. But in the end, her exhaustion won out, and she slipped beneath the lightweight blanket.
Sleep came instantly.
8
Raven
Raven awoke,moving seamlessly from sleeping to alert, as her past had taught her to do. For a moment, she blinked in confusion at the gauzy blue curtain draped above her head before it all came roaring back.
She wasn’t in Galway anymore.
“Kellen,” Raven whispered, bringing a hand to her lips, her first thought of the magnificent man whom she’d ridden with to this new place. Seconds later, the very man she spoke of materialized by her bed, a blur of movement so fast that Raven barely had time to register his presence.