The Winged Fae (The World of Fae) (7 page)

She smiled. “Then you will tell my knight, and he will challenge you again, if he doesn’t kill you the first time. I’ll be back as soon as I make the potion.”

“Hurry,” he said, but he sounded like he was already nearly asleep.

She sighed. “You will feel a strong wind, but don’t worry.”

“You’re scattering our fae trails again.”

“Yes. Sleep. I’ll return as soon as I can.”

He was the most honorable fae she’d ever encountered. Except for the kiss, but that was her own fault for having kissed him first. But she’d never met a man who would challenge the knight, who would tell him just what he thought of his allowing Serena to paint the message, when Reginald knew just the kind of trouble she could get into for it. Not once had Reginald even offered to paint it instead.

And that had niggled at her to a degree.

Of course, painting the message had been her idea, so she had thought it was important that she write it. And she loved painting murals, though she hadn’t done anything quite like this before. She’d had to study a lot of graffiti–covered walls in the States before she thought she had the concept down pat.

Not that the humans came up with the idea. When it came to mischief, the fae were at the root of it. She just hadn’t ever painted graffiti before.

What would Niall have done in Reginald’s place? Asked the queen for her hand in marriage? She wasn’t sure. But she suspected he would not have allowed her to earn the queen’s wrath in that manner. He’d never once acted anything but kindly toward her, even as angry as he had to be with her for drugging him. Oh sure, he’d been irritated with her, but still in a mild–mannered way—for a lion fae.

She sighed, contemplating how she could help Niall win against the knight. She would never have considered such a thing before. Aiding a lion fae warrior against a dragon fae she wished to marry?

She did wonder how Reginald would take defeat if Niall should win. That would tell her more about Reginald’s true character. He always lost at the human games because he was paid to do so. He’d storm off angrily because he was supposed to. But was that his true nature?

Did she truly want to wed Sir Reginald? Or was she just trying to make a statement to her mother and to the lion fae queen? She wanted a choice! And choosing Reginald for her husband…

She glanced back at Niall. She was thinking she’d made the wrong choice. But maybe she could come up with the remedy for that, too.

Her small stone croft with its tidy thatched roof welcomed her inside. Herbs and flowers hung from rafters, drying in various stages, the fragrance of jasmine, lilac, and mint filling the air. She pondered the mural she’d painted across all four walls of birds taking flight and those nestled in the tall meadow grasses—eluding to the winged elves who once could fly and now could not.

She started a fire at the hearth and peered into the ceramic bowl where she normally kept her sunflower seeds. Empty. One of her maids must have collected some to make a special treat for a friend—Calicia, most likely, and the friend, a handsome, unruly Mabara royal.

Serena would have to return to the meadow and gather some seeds while her water began to boil over the fire. Heading back across the meadow, she hadn’t needed to return all the way to where Niall slept to find the sunflower seeds. But she couldn’t help herself.

She hurried back to where he slept, and as she plucked sunflower seeds, she kept glancing at his sleeping form. Poor Niall.

He was good natured, too, despite all that had happened to him where she was concerned. She sighed, stared at him for a moment more and then did what only the ancients were said to have done when they’d claimed someone who might be considered the enemy among her people. She plucked a handful of lilacs nearby, then kissed the petals and slipped them into the pouch at his waist.

If anyone should find him before she cured him of his sleeping sickness, he or she would have him searched and they would know that Serena herself vouched for Niall. That he was under
her
protection.

Then with her basketful of sunflower seeds, she rushed back to the croft. She added several herbs, primrose, and rose petals, and five sunflower seeds. And would toss in the rest of the flowers and herbs as soon as the others had cooked long enough. Five minutes more to go.

But as soon as she heard men’s hushed voices, she knew she was in trouble. Someone must have spied the smoke coming from the chimney of the croft. She was nearly done with the potion for Niall.

But all of her effort was doomed.

Chapter 6

Night cloaked Niall in a comforting darkness when he finally woke from his unnatural slumber. He blinked his eyes as he peered at the ebony sky sprinkled with shimmering, winking stars and a sliver of a pale moon suspended in the inky blackness.

A soft breeze rustled through the fragrant flowers surrounding his impromptu bed, the hollyhocks and sunflowers nodding sagely to him, but he didn’t see any sign of Serena. Nor did he feel any better.

He narrowed his eyes. Had she left him here? Abandoned him? Intended to meet with her knight and tell him that Niall wouldn’t joust him because he didn’t have the strength? Or courage?

Annoyed to high heaven, Niall sat up. He had to have missed the joust.

He was about to call out her name when he heard male voices.

“They came here,” Deveron groused.

By the gods, not Deveron. Niall lay back down and covered his aching temple and shook his head.

“I know, I know, my lord, but their fae dust is scattered so far and wide, I have no idea where they are. We’ve been searching for hours. They could be anywhere in the Mabara kingdom by now.”

Niall didn’t dare make them aware he was here. How could he explain why he had helped Serena to escape the Denkar prison?

Niall knew Deveron had never experienced such a horrible hangover as he still felt. But now he didn’t want to explain further how he was to fight a dragon fae, and how he’d lost Serena in the bargain. Not only that but he had no potion to counter the effect of the drug. Serena’s abandoning him bothered him the most.

“At least she’s back in her own kingdom and should be perfectly safe,” Deveron said. “We’ll return home, and I’ll let Queen Irenis know.” He sounded more relieved than angry.

“What about the count, my lord?” the tracker asked.

“He most likely has already returned home. Come on, let’s go,” Deveron said darkly.

Niall didn’t hear anything more that was said between them and figured they had returned to the Denkar castle. He closed his eyes and groaned silently to himself.

When it was first light, he’d make his way to the Mabara castle and let the queen know what he’d done for her daughter, how he had freed her from the Denkar dungeon, although he didn’t want to explain that either, but he would. And maybe the queen herself would take pity on him and give him the antidote.

Then he was back to wanting to strangle Serena.

***

Oooh, Serena wanted to scream! She couldn’t believe she’d nearly finished making the potion to give to poor Niall when her own trackers had the notion to look for her at her herb cottage in the wildflower meadows. And hauled her off to the tower.
The tower!

Now she was confined until her mother reigned in her anger enough to speak with her. Serena was afraid to even mention Niall, that he was dead to the world in the meadows, sleeping off the potion she had zapped him with. She had hoped she could get word to one of her lady companions to go to her herb cottage and finish the draught, then find Niall and serve it to him. Then he could go home. He’d missed the jousting tourney at least, and that was a good thing. She knew he could never face Sir Reginald the way Niall was feeling now.

She paced across the tower room, reserved especially for any of the royalty who dared disobey the queen. It wasn’t used very often—mainly because her mother usually didn’t learn about Serena’s shenanigans—but the room was nicely furnished, thank the goddess.

Lilac cushioned chairs were seated near a high window that let in light, when it wasn’t night out. Softly padded, burgundy velvet benches were situated around the room for visitors who wished to visit with the incarcerated royal. Even a wardrobe sat against one wall for storing clothes, should the prisoner have to stay for more than a couple of days. Serena had left a couple of her favorite gowns in there for the occasional stay.

A curtained bed cloaked in burgundy took up one whole wall, the curtains and covers pulled aside just for her. A maid must have been alerted to take care of the task before Serena had been brought up to the tower. A warm fire also glowed at the stone hearth, and the chamber had been aired out.

So the chamber wasn’t that bad a place, certainly not like the Denkar dungeon Serena had been manacled in, except confinement
was
confinement. Understandably, the tower room was warded to prevent fae travel from it.

As the day waned and the night took hold, she realized no one was coming to speak with her. No ladies came to visit to let her know just what was being said among the courtiers, the guards ignored her entreaties to send a message to one of her lady companions, and the queen did not call on her either.

Serena could just imagine poor Niall waking and discovering she’d disappeared. She hadn’t given him the antidote and had made him miss the tourney. She was certain he would be furious with her and no doubt believe she’d left him on purpose out of fae spitefulness or some such thing.

Sir Reginald, for all his blustering about besting Niall in the joust, wouldn’t come near the Mabara castle. She had met him at the Renaissance fair during one of her forays to the human world in search of fun where she could still fit in while showing off her wings. She and the knight only met there because she was certain her people would never discover she was with him since the dragon fae had claimed it as their own territory. Rarely did anyone cross them.

The first time she had arrived at the fair in Texas, Reginald had immediately shown his interest in her, despite that she wasn’t a dragon fae, and that she had wings. She loved being treated as someone special outside of her own kingdom.

Now she wondered if Niall, when he woke, would search for her. She hoped not, fearing it would go badly for him if he was found wandering around in the dark meadow or woods, searching for her. And then of course she would be questioned as to how he knew her and why he was looking for her. And who had drugged him and why.

She groaned and paced across the room some more, her stomach grumbling, and realized she hadn’t eaten in ages. She called out to the guards. “I haven’t eaten since yesterday at nooning meal. Will you have a platter brought up?”

Neither guard said a word. She really didn’t think she could eat, not with worrying about Niall. What if her people found the dark fae wandering through the meadow and put him in prison?

She couldn’t ask about him. If they didn’t know he was out there, they wouldn’t send search parties. Hopefully, he’d return home to reveal to Queen Irenis what he had learned about the winged fae, although Serena was certain he wouldn’t tell the queen about the kiss.

“Food?” she asked again, with a more appealing tone than a demanding one this time. She hoped she could scribble a message to one of the cooks who sneaked chocolate bars to her anytime she needed a fix. If she could only get word to Niall…

“Does the queen want her only daughter to starve to death?” she asked, her tone sharp, her patience gone when neither of the men responded.

She thought she heard the guards snicker. If she was queen, they’d be sitting in the dungeon. At once!

***

Deveron had the untenable task of explaining to his mother how they had not only lost the winged fae’s trail at the Renaissance fair, but also lost track of her in her own kingdom. Niall had still been with the princess, and Deveron assumed that her mother, Queen Verbenia of the Mabara, would have incarcerated Niall by now. Although he also thought once Niall took Serena home, he would have returned to the Denkar. But when Deveron arrived at the castle, he quickly learned Niall
hadn’t
returned home. No one had any messages concerning either Serena or Niall. Which worried Deveron.

Maybe the Mabara didn’t realize Serena had been in the dark fae dungeon. But how would the princess have explained having been with Niall? None of it made any sense.

Ritasia met Deveron in the hall leading to their mother’s throne room before he reached the entrance, and she quickly pulled him aside. She looked fretful, and he felt her anxiety, too. As highly annoyed as he was with Niall for freeing the pixie–like fae, he was concerned about him.

“Is he safe? Have you found him?” Ritasia asked.

“Nay. Well, and aye. We found his trail in the meadows surrounded by a forest. According to our maps of the region, the Mabara’s royal castle is a couple of days walk from that location. We don’t know if they returned to the castle or not. But at least she’s safely within her kingdom’s boundaries.”

Ritasia scoffed. “I don’t care about the winged fae, dear brother. She has caused our poor cousin enough grief.”

“Our cousin caused his own trouble. I still cannot believe he freed her from the cell!”

“Yes, well, you would have had to have done so as soon as our mother returned and you learned Serena was the Mabara princess, not just any royal winged fae.”

“True, but I would have brought her to see our mother and not taken her to a human Renaissance fair!

“Why would she go there, I wonder?” Ritasia asked, her head tilted to the side in puzzlement.

Deveron pondered her words. “Seems odd, doesn’t it?”

“I’m going to check it out.”

“I’ll go with you.”

Ritasia raised her brows. “I thought you were going to see Mother and apprise her of the latest news.”

“It can wait. I’d like to know exactly why Serena took Niall to the fair first.”

“Maybe you could get word to Alicia and the three of us could go?”