Birthright

  I was surprised that the wisp voices hadn’t managed to shake all my teeth loose. Then again, I did have a mouthful of blood.

  “Enough,” Kade said. “Put your wings away, and attend to your other studies. We are done with magic for the day.”

  My stomach churned, but I lifted my chin.

  “No,” I said. I spit blood on the floor, and took a ragged breath. “Again.”

  “You remind me so much of her when you get like this,” he said.

  I’d become used to his odd comments. I was pretty sure that the mystery lady I reminded him of was his lost love, not that he’d ever open up and talk about her. It was just a feeling I got sometimes when he looked at me. In those moments, it was obvious he didn’t see me as a niece. That was enough to make me want to run screaming, but I ground my teeth and growled at him instead.

  “Again.”

  Chapter 35

  I hung my head over the toilet, and vomited more blood. Today, after six weeks of training, I’d finally made a breakthrough. I’d been able to hear my uncle’s voice in my head.

  I hadn’t been able to filter out the other voices when he’d brought the other wisps into the room, but I knew that with more practice, I’d finally be able to question the wisps about the night Ceff and Torn disappeared.

  Ceff. Oberon’s eyes, I missed him. Still no word from Ceff or Torn, but no corpses either. So long as they remained unfound, there was still hope that they were alive.

  I had brought them here, and I would fix this. I just needed to push myself harder. I could do that, as soon as I stopped puking.

  “Are ye sure they really be out there, princess?” Skillywidden asked.

  He’d become my post-training shadow. He fussed over me like a mother hen, bringing me food from the kitchen to make sure I didn’t forget to eat—not that I could stomach much these days. It was like he was channeling Jinx.

  A tear ran down my face, and I struggled to breath. I hadn’t told Jinx about where I was going, and I had no idea how much time had passed in the human world. I could only hope that Forneus had lived up to his end of the bargain, and was keeping her safe.

  “They’re out there, Skilly,” I said. “And I won’t give up on my friends, not any of them.”

  “But this magic,” he said, wringing his hands. “It be killin’ ye.”

  I vomited up more blood. Skillywidden had a point. But I’d rather die than fail my friends. And right now, fae magic was my best shot at fixing this mess.

  “I need my magic to find Ceff and Torn,” I said.

  I sat back on my heels, and tilted my head toward the ceiling. I couldn’t face Skillywidden’s concerned face right now. If I did, I might crumble.

  “Then will ye at least get some rest?” he asked. “Ye haven’t slept for days.”

  I blinked at the fey lantern overhead.

  “I’ll rest when we’ve found our friends and proven their innocence,” I said.

  I pulled myself to my feet, and strode back into my room. I crossed the floor, and pulled open the door.

  “Tell Kade I’m ready for more training,” I said, barking out an order to the nearest guard.

  “But, Princess,” Skillywidden said.

  I turned around to where the brownie stood in the center of the room, beneath the glowing ceiling of stars.

  “I can’t rest knowing that they might be out there somewhere, suffering,” I said.

  “If they be suffering, lass…” Skillywidden said, following at my heels.

  I grabbed my things, and limped out into the corridor.

  “…they’re not the only ones.”

  Chapter 36

  “You’ve made remarkable progress, my dear,” Kade said.

  He licked his lips as his eyes traveled over my chest, and I swallowed hard. He was in one of his odd moods, making frequent references to how I resembled some woman from his past, and looking at me like I was an ice cream cone. I wouldn’t have liked the attention from any man, but the fact that he was my uncle made me want to gag.

  “I am my father’s daughter,” I said, reminding him of our familial connection. “Magic seems to run strong in our family.”

  He blinked, and took a step away. I relaxed and let out the breath I’d been holding. My congenial uncle was back.

  He’d been having these spells more often lately. I ran a jerky hand through my hair, casting a sideways glance at my uncle.

  I’d seen this kind of behavior before in other long lived fae. Melusine and her jealous preoccupation with Ceff. Leanansídhe and her twisted love for a man long dead. Manannán mac Lir and the centuries of self inflicted torment over the guilt of his lost love. The common thread was blind obsession with something, or someone, that they’d lost.

  There was a price for immortality. For some fae, the cost was their sanity.

  “Yes, our family’s magic is indeed strong, but you have had much to overcome,” he said. He licked his lips, an eager, feverish gleam returning to his eyes. “You are a fighter, just like her.”

  Damn, that didn’t last long.

  “I had to fight through your brother’s, magic, true, but that just means I’m stubborn,” I said.

  I took a slow step away, sidestepping his hand as he reached for me. I kept my eyes on Kade, and tried to talk him down. I’d come to care for my uncle. We lived together, took our meals together, and he made time for me each day to teach me more about my wisp magic. In Ceff and Torn’s continued absence, and with Jinx and my other friends back in Harborsmouth, I’d begun to rely more and more on both Skilly and Kade’s solid presence. We’d grown to become more than friends—we were a family.

  I just wished that Kade would stop looking at me like he wanted to get in my pants.

  “My brother?” he asked, lips curling in a sneer. “You will always choose him over me, won’t you? No matter how much I love you, it will always be him. It has always been Liam. Always. Always. Always!”

  I grimaced, a bitter taste rising in my throat. I’d come to hate this dance, tiptoeing along the brink with a man I’d come to love and respect. I could leave, of course, but that would mean turning my back on more than my uncle. I’d be abandoning Ceff and Torn as well.

  I’d dealt with enough abandonment in my life—my father walking away without a trace being a pivotal part of my childhood, even if it did take me years to unlock those painful memories—and I wasn’t about to become the kind of person who left people behind just because things got difficult. No, I wasn’t ready to leave, and I wasn’t about to give up on my uncle. His mental instability was a symptom, not a reason to walk away, or to kill him like I had Melusine and Leanansídhe. Not yet.

  There was also the nagging fear that these bouts of psychosis were partly my fault. My uncle had agreed to teach me wisp magic, but that continued use of power had its own price. I’d begun to see changes in me. Would it be such a stretch to imagine our training was fueling Kade’s odd behavior?

  “Let’s go get something to eat, uncle,” I said. “I’m sure the kitchen has dinner waiting for us by now.”

  “What?” he asked.

  He stood there blinking, looking like a lost child. I wanted so badly to go to him, to put an arm around him and tell him that everything was okay now. But I had no idea if embracing him would spur another bout of crazy, and touching Kade was not an option. I never wanted to experience the loss of the woman he loved through his eyes. It was bad enough seeing the way it haunted him.

  “We were discussing dinner,” I said, forcing a smile.

  “Were we?” he asked.

  “I know I’m starving,” I said.

  “Yes, you are right,” he said. “Enough magic for one day.”

  “Come on,” I said. “We can see what the kitchen’s cooked up. Maybe they’ll have pancakes.”

  It had become a joke between me and Kade and Skillywidden. Apparently, my initial reaction to the palace’s pancakes—smothering them in fruit and shoving them in my face two at a time—had
inspired the cook to add them to the menu for every meal. Pancakes; it’s what’s for breakfast, and lunch, and dinner.

  “I hunger for more than pancakes,” he said.

  A chill ran up my spine, and I swallowed hard, no longer in the mood for pancakes or any other food. I’d lost my appetite.

  Chapter 37

  “Let me inside,” I said, looking down my nose at Flavio.

  It wasn’t easy. The man had at least four inches on me, and that wasn’t counting the wings. I had wings too, of course, but they were safely tucked away. I’d made progress with my wisp powers, but I still hadn’t mastered blocking out the voices of the wisps around me. I could handle a few at a time, but not a crowd.

  And right now, we had an audience.

  Kade had declared today was the day that his guards must unseal the guest chambers, and allow me to snoop around for clues. Their investigation had taken long enough. To say that Flavio was unhappy about that decision was an understatement.

  But Flavio was loyal to Kade. He wouldn’t go against his orders. That didn’t mean he’d make this easy.

  The corridor was filled with the floating glowing orbs of wisps hoping for a fight. Flavio wanted one too—I could see it in his eyes—which is why I wouldn’t give him one.

  “Lord Kade has ordered for these doors to be opened,” I said. “Are you defying a direct order?”

  “He ordered these rooms to be unsealed,” Flavio said, lips curling in a sneer. “My Lord said nothing about opening the doors.”

  “Fine,” I said. “I’ll open them myself.”

  I pulled out one of my throwing knives, and Flavio licked his lips, his eyes beginning to glow. I rolled my eyes, and turned to the opposite door. I used the iron and silver blade to cut through the magic ward that crossed the door like police tape. I could almost hear Flavio’s teeth grinding from across the narrow corridor.

  My skin itched having him at my back, but I didn’t keep a wary eye on him over my shoulder. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. It’s not like he could stab me in back with a corridor full of witnesses. He knew it and I knew it. His little stunt of orchestrating a public fight had backfired.

  I smiled, and reached for the doorknob with gloved hands. I’d touch the knob, to check it for visions, later, once I’d searched the room for traps. I wouldn’t put anything past Flavio and his lackeys. My smiled slipped when the knob didn’t turn.

  “Having a problem, princess?” Flavio asked, a shit eating grin on his face.

  Bastard.

  “Nope,” I said, pulling a roll of fabric from the inside pocket of my leather jacket. “No problem at all.”

  My uncle had tried for weeks to get me to dress like a proper princess, but I’d argued that any clothing he gave me was likely to cause me painful visions, and he’d finally given up. I was especially glad of that now. My jacket and utility belt of tricks and weapons would have looked awfully silly worn over a spider silk dress.

  I unrolled the fabric, spread it on the floor beneath the doorknob, and drew two lock picks.

  “What are you doing?” Flavio asked, voice no longer so smug.

  “My job,” I said, inserting an L-shaped torsion wrench into the lock. “You’d be surprised how often I need to pick a lock in my line of work.”

  I applied tension to the lock cylinder, stopping when the cylinder turned a fraction of an inch counterclockwise. I applied gentle torque to the wrench, and held it in place with my left hand. With my right, I inserted a hook pick just above the torsion wrench. Working back to front, I pressed up with the pick, feeling each of the three pins. Starting with the pin which offered the most resistance, I pressed the pick upward setting the pin. I repeated the procedure, continuing with the final two pins. I removed the pick and turned the torsion wrench counterclockwise, holding my breath. The lock clicked, and I turned the knob. I was in.

  This was it. I’d spent endless sleepless nights worrying about what I might find behind these doors. Would there be blood? Had Ceff or Torn left me some kind of message, a clue to point me in their direction, or the direction of their kidnappers?

  With shaking hands, I packed away my lock picks. I took a ragged breath, stood, and pushed the door open.

  It was a guest room, less opulent than the royal quarters I’d been given, but nicer than your average hotel. There was a queen size bed, a chest of drawers, and a standing closet—an armoire I think they call them—but nothing overtly out of place. No torn fabrics. No knocked over furniture. No blood.

  I was glad of the last, though blood would have given me a clear connection to my friends. I’d just have to find another way to exploit the memories in this room.

  I spun in a slow circle, examining the layout of the room, imagining where either Ceff or Torn might have stood. It was then that I realized that none of their belongings were here. I knew that the guard’s initial reports stated that the beds didn’t appear slept in, but I’d assumed that my friends had at least had time to drop their bags, strip off their outer gear, perhaps even take off their boots.

  I went to the nearest piece of furniture, the bureau, and started opening drawers. I looked inside, even giving the drawers a sideways glance that would pierce through glamour. I ran my gloved hands along the top, bottom and sides of each drawer. I knocked on the wood, searching for hidden compartments. Next, I got down on all fours, and searched beneath both the bureau and the bed.

  Nothing. Not a single rug fiber out of a place. Not one damn clue.

  “That’s a good look for you, Princess,” Flavio said, his voice coming from outside the door. “You should spend more time on your knees.”

  “Classy, Flavio,” I said, leaning back to sit on my heels, and shoot a glare over my shoulder. “I’ll make sure to pass your suggestion along to Kade.”

  That shut him up. Flavio’s lips pressed together in a hard line, and the vein on his forehead started to throb.

  I turned back to the room, and sighed. I wasn’t finding any clues. It was time to get out the big guns.

  I slid off my glove, took a shaky breath, and reached for the top edge of the bureau. It was the type of spot a weary traveler would rest their hands. Unfortunately for me, Ceff and Torn weren’t the wisp court’s first guests. Hundreds if not thousands of fae had passed through these rooms. It was likely that I’d have to suffer through hours of visions just to find a single one involving my friends.

  Oh well, I was already on the floor. I wouldn’t have far to fall if the visions were bad.

  My fingers brushed the cool surface of the wood, and I closed my eyes. I was prepared for a psychic assault, but nothing happened. I frowned, and slid my hand further along the edge of the bureau. Once again there was nothing, not so much as a psychic whisper.

  I opened my eyes, and tilted my head. Something wasn’t right here. Had the bureau been a new acquisition just prior to our arrival? I rolled to my feet, and strode to the fey lantern beside the bed. I touched the purple orb, but again, nothing.

  Next, I ran my hands across the bed, the comforter, and the stacks of silken pillows. Heart racing, I moved to the walls, the floor, every fixture. The world around me remained the same. Nothing happened. Not one psychic vision.

  I bit the inside of my cheek, and tried to think. Either nothing extremely good or bad had ever happened here to warrant a psychic impression, or this entire room had been wiped clean.

  The scope of that was overwhelming. It wasn’t like scrubbing a room of fingerprints. The only way to remove psychic impressions was to remove the very surfaces of the room itself. If I was right, then Flavio and his men had taken these rooms apart piece by piece.

  If that was true, I’d return the favor, starting with Flavio’s pretty face.

  Chapter 38

  As I suspected, the second guest room was as devoid of clues as the first. Someone had gone to a lot of trouble to keep the truth of what happened to Ceff and Torn from me. I just had to prove who and why.

  I figured my best cha
nce of getting those answers was by questioning the other palace residents. I’d already interrogated the human size members of the palace guard. That left the rest of the guards, staff, and their families. It was a huge task, made more daunting by the fact that speaking to the tiny glowing balls of light required wisp magic that I was only beginning to control. It sapped my strength, made my nose bleed, and left me with one hell of headache.

  Good thing I wasn’t a delicate little flower.

  I methodically questioned every member of the palace staff. The sentinels were more difficult to track down, but eventually, I interrogated them as well. Head spinning, I returned to my room, and fell face first onto my bed.

  “Ye look like ye should be pushin’ up daisies,” a voice said. “I take it ye didna find the answer ye were looking for?”

  I couldn’t roll over, or I’d crush my wings, and I was too tired to fold them away. Thankfully, I recognized the voice. It was Skillywidden, and the brownie posed a threat to nothing except my patience.

  “No,” I mumbled into the pillows. “Not yet.”

  “Maybe ye should accept that they be gone,” he said.

  “No,” I said. “I can’t do that.”

  “Do ye think they’d want this for ye?” he asked.

  “I won’t give up on them, Skilly,” I said. “Just like they’d never give up on finding me. And…I know they’re out there. I can feel it.”

  “I hope ye be right, lass,” he said.

  “Me too, Skilly,” I said, too tired for tears. “Me too.”

  Chapter 39

  “I need to leave the palace,” I said.

  “No,” Kade said. “You are not ready.”