CHAPTER 56

Faye's lips whispered over his, a feather-light caress. Tentative. Hesitant. Rune smoothed the back of his fingers over her cheek and pulled back. He'd caused her reluctance through his misdeeds. Knowing he was responsible was a knife twisting in his chest.

The Ra'Voshnik slowly circled the edges of his mind, sluggish as he was.Ask her forgiveness,it grumbled.

Faye would need actions, not words. Rune gazed down at his queen and said, "Allow me to court you and begin anew."

She sank deeper into her bath. "If you want to court me, I don't want to be trapped here." She upturned her face and said, "I want to go home. I want my freedom back."

Build her an estate.The Ra'Voshnik purred through his mind, eager to curry Faye's favor. Urging him to return with her to her home.

Rune held no desire to reside in Anaria, and arguing with her would prove pointless. His queen desired control, needing things done on her terms. Proceeding by her decision. Perhaps he could offer her something she might prefer more than returning to Anaria. She'd grown aroused with the male beneath Kayla's crop. What other proclivities did his queen possess?

Rune leaned closer to say, "And if I were to request you remain with me until I find your altar?" The minx stilled, gazing up at him.

"If I pleaded…" Rune purred softly as her pulse quickened.

Faye parted her lips as his breath fanned over her ear. She exhaled slowly, and her lids slid closed.

"Begged," Rune rasped.

Pink tinged her cheeks, and she turned toward him. Her gaze fell to his mouth for a moment before returning to him. "The proud Shadow Prince would beg an Anarian peasant?"

"Would you want me to?"

Faye blinked, the flush crossing her cheeks had nothing to do with the bath she soaked in. Rune wanted to lift the corner of his mouth but refrained. He'd pushed far enough. Faye would mull over his words and cultivate the ideas he planted.

Rune pulled back slightly, running his fingers through her hair. Giving her time to collect herself.

After a while, she said, "I'm due back in my village."

"I will happily escort you anywhere you wish. Your village. A bookstore in Necromia."

Faye's smile lit her gold arced eyes, and an unfamiliar tightness took hold of Rune's chest. His queen's happiness oddly filled him with the same emotion.

Finally learning to enjoy life?The Ra'Voshnik snickered.

The creature was right. Rune looked forward to the moments he could spend with Faye. Longed for them.

Faye leaned into his hand. "Can we go to my village tomorrow?"

"Of course," Rune said, brushing his fingertips along her scalp. Faye leaned further into his hand and closed her eyes. He was certain if she were able, she would be purring for him at this very moment. "Tell me when you wish to go."

Faye sighed her agreement as Morbid's voice filled his mind.

If you wish to speak with me, Prince, I suggest you do so now. Angelique grows restless and is demanding we return to Chaos. She will require my attention for the next few days.

I will arrive in a moment, Rune said to Morbid's mind and snapped the connection.

We will remain with our queen,the Ra'Voshnik growled, prowling his mind.

We will return. Be silent.Rune grated as he glanced down at Faye. "I have some matters that require my attention. You should soak for a while. The herbs help with discomfort and assist in healing."

"Thank you." Faye nuzzled his hand and moved away, sinking into the milky bath to her chin.

Rune stood and phased to the north wing. The creature growled, pulling back before bashing itself against the surface of his mind. It fought him viciously for dominance of his body. Desperate to return to Faye. Rune sank his claws into it, dragging it down.

If you cannot conduct yourself in a civilized manner, I will treat you as an animal.

Returning to her,the creature yelled from its confines.

Be silent,Rune grated. There was more to be done than laying at her feet. The fool creature had a singular mind.

Rune followed Morbid's mental tug to the third bedroom. The Familiar King stood near the fire, cradling a sleek white cat. Morbid's wife rarely accompanied him to court before she was poisoned and remained solely in Chaos after. This was the first time he'd seen her since the assassination attempt.

Angelique twisted her head, biting the leather trench covering his forearm while kicking his hand with her hind legs. Morbid turned toward him, meeting his gaze.

"Is the Lady well?" Rune asked.

Morbid pet her affectionately, indifferent to her teeth and claws. "Being away from Chaos unsettles her mind."

Rune nodded. "I will be brief. Tell me what she is."

"I have told you time and again, Prince, she is your queen."

Tension lined his shoulders. "You know well that is not my question. What race is she?"

Morbid shrugged. "Can't say. Does it matter?"

"She needs her shard to defend herself," Rune pleaded.

Morbid leaned back and raised his brow. "From what Prince?"Those that would harm her to strike at me,Rune thought bitterly. Morbid clasped his hand over Rune's shoulder and met his gaze. "Every answer you seek lies directly in front of you."

The Familiar King vanished before Rune could reply. He glanced up and exhaled. Familiar riddles were of no use to him. He reached for Sadi's mind.

I require your assistance on a matter.

Sadi appeared next to him. Disheveled, and covered in Damian's scent. She was wrapped in a robe made of layers of lace. "It's early," she growled.

It most certainly was not, but from the look of her, Damian woke her at a dreadful hour and had not allowed her a moment's rest.

"Apologies," Rune said. "I need to witness the fall. Understand how I survived."

Skilled Familiar were able to step into a point in time during an individual's life and watch the events unfold. This type of viewing was known as witnessing. Rune understood his task was taxing, but it was necessary.

Sadi took a deep breath, rolling her shoulders. "You need to tread carefully with her. My visions say she's dead."

Sadi stepped into his mind and carried his consciousness with her. They appeared at the top of the psychic ravine cradling the Darkness. A few feet away Rune saw himself holding Faye while the Ra'Voshnik lingered nearby.

Sadi held up her hand and twisted it as she curled her fingers down.

The scene played as Rune remembered. They plummeted. Sadi screamed above them.

Just as Rune hit the Darkness it formed a hollow, encasing them. He'd never seen the Darkness behave this way. It churned and curled in on itself, but this. The winged Faye had said a part of the Darkness was hers.

Had Faye's survival instinct saved him because he refused to let her go?

Rune glanced at Sadi as the vision pulled them through the Darkness. Dragging them deeper. Sadi tensed and muttered, "I don't like this."

Neither did he. Rune reminded himself that witnessing events in this matter couldn't hurt them. He endured the uncomfortable moments and the Darkness opened into a circular room Rune recognized. Fine white sand covered the ground. His bed arranged at the center of this circular hollow cut into the Darkness.

Faye's winged double stood near the bed floating a few inches off the ground. Her hair and lace gown drifted around her as though she were submerged in deep water.

The telltale signs of Familiar magic.

She outstretched her hand, carefully guiding their limp bodies onto the bed.

The scene froze and Sadi turned toward him. "She's not Familiar. How does she have our magic? How are there two of her?"

"Can you look into her double? Does she have her own line separate from Faye?"

Sadi quieted for a while and frowned. "I've never seen anything like this. They are the same line. You thought the lives I saw were a spell being perfected. What if this part of her is what carries through her lives."

Sadi waved her hand and the scene dissipated, melting away. She paced the room, hugging her arms to her sides. "I feel death in my vision. I can't see it clearly, but I feel it."

"I am quite difficult to kill," Rune reassured her. "I need to locate her altar so I can make her whole."

Sadi paused before the window, glancing through it to Hell's ever-twilight sky. She quietly murmured, "Like calls to like."