Page 2 of Crowns of Ice
But that had been before, when I hadn’t been willing to challenge the king. Now, I would taste his blood upon my tongue before I would see my mate or mother harmed again.
I swung the door open, and a large hall lit with fairy lights waited.
Warmth from the castle hit me. I strengthened myillusion Shield around us, keeping our voices hidden from any passersby. Thankfully, no one was about to see the door open and close behind us.
Ilara stepped inside, and began to walk silently down the corridor, my guards at our backs. “Do you think he’s already scheming to have that deadly veil re-instilled within Isalee?” she asked.
“Knowing my father, yes.”
My guards growled quietly, and Ilara’s nostrils flared as we strode down the hall toward my private wing.
While I wanted to outright accuse my father of what he’d done and what he undoubtedly was currently doing, such a tactic would prove fruitless. The king would simply deny any involvement. Worse, he was probably already covering his tracks and ensuring any link between him and the warlock was erased.
If we’d been able to come sooner, perhaps we could have caught him unaware, or if we’d been able to kill the warlock after he’d confronted us in Isalee’s field, then it was possible my father would have never known what we’d done, but we’d been too weak to accomplish that.
The spell we’d found to counteract the veil of deathhad drained all of us entirely of our magic. We’d been too depleted to kill the warlock, and in that state we would have been too vulnerable to return to Solisarium to expose my father. The risk would have been too great.
But now, after four days on the Nolus continent,resting and recuperating, we were ready to meet whatever was to come.
Familiar scents of roasting meat drifted through the air when we passed the kitchens. Guards were positioned intermittently, but none of them glanced in our direction since my illusion kept us invisible.
Ilara kept pace beside me, my guards moving just as swiftly. I didn’t pause. Securing Drachu’s necklace was paramount. I wouldn’t expose Ilara to my father until it was safely hidden.
Once Drachu’snecklace was locked within my safe, I dispelled the illusion cloaking us. We still stood in my bedroom chambers, my wards firmly in place.
“Ready?” I placed my hands on my hips, eyeing everyone.
Sandus’s silver beard shone in the fairy lights when he nodded.
Haxil crossed his arms, his round cheeks for once not lifting in a smile.
Nish’s usual scowl made an appearance, and Ryder’s braid settled between his wings when he tucked both hands behind him, close to his swords.
Ryder nodded toward the door. “After you, Your Highnesses.”
We left my private wing and entered the common halls. We didn’t mistphase. I wanted our return knownnow that the pendant and looking glass were safely stowed.
Servants froze in every corridor the second they beheld us and my mate’s white wings. Whispers immediately erupted behind cupped hands, and the night staff became a tizzy of activity.
Since Ilara was entirely transformed within her angel affinity, her usual blue irises now shone like amethysts. And those rare eyes and equally unusual black hair among Solis fae made for a magnificent sight.
When we entered the convening area of wings, only a short distance from the throne room’s entrance, the castle commander strode toward me.
“Prince Norivun?” The commander’s gaze cut from me to my guards. Two palace guards flanked the commander’s sides, their eyes bright yet apprehensive. Cocking his head, the commander added, “I see you’ve finally returned.”
“Indeed we have,” I replied dryly.
Not surprisingly, word had spread before we reached the throne room, the servants no doubt taking flight through their magical corridors and hidden halls that allowed them to navigate this monstrous castle at a high rate.
The commander took a step closer to my mate while assessing her white wings. His brow furrowed, a line appearing between his eyes. “Lady Seary?”
Ilara’s chin lifted, her eyes defiant. The earlier nervousness I’d detected from her was still there, stillstrumming along our bond, but she hid it admirably. “I’ve returned.”
“As I can see. The king’s demanded you be brought to him.” The commander reached for her arm.
“Be careful how you touchmywife,” I growled.
The commander’s arm whipped back, and I lifted my hand for him to see the mark that was inked into my skin. It was the supreme symbol that united all of the gods and goddesses—a circle with an array of connecting swirls and stars—a sign of our eternal marriage that declared we’d been bound before the gods.