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Lily
Krynn walked forward swiftly—he seemed to know where he was going. He also seemed to be able to see in the dark because he didn’t stumble or hesitate even a little. I wondered if that was the reason for the glowing eyes all the Fae seemed to have—did it allow them to see, even in the pitch blackness?
I wished I had that ability myself. It was scary walking in the darkness without being able to see anything at all. It also occurred to me that I was now all alone with two huge, strong males—a situation I would never have allowed myself to get into back in the human world—or the “Mortal Realm” as they called it.
Yet I didn’t feel like either Seldarin or Krynn posed a threat to me…though I did wonder why they were so eager to proclaim me the “Lost Princess.” It seemed like I had stumbled into an otherworldly plot filled with political intrigue.
I didn’t really want to be caught in the middle of the conflict between the two of them and the Regent, Mordren, who had apparently been about to be crowned ruler before I had been caught watching the Fae ceremony. But events were moving so fast—I felt like I was being swept along on an invisible current I couldn’t fight.
At long last, I began to see a pale blue glow at the end of the tunnel. It grew brighter and brighter until we stepped out into a kind of cave.
I had been to Lurray Caverns in Virginia on a family vacation once, and marveled at the underwater structures that time and water had carved into the solid rock, but this space was nothing like that. I mean, yes—there were the stalactites and stalagmites growing from the floor and hanging from the ceiling, but they weren’t muddy and brown. Instead, they seemed to be made of some pure white stone which had a sparkly, rainbow sheen. It made even the most common rock formations look like priceless jewels.
“Come, through here is the living area where it is said that Lolth herself dwelled in the early days, before the Palace was built,” Krynn said to me.
He led us through the maze of long, slender rock spires and out into a kind of room where the walls and floors were smooth and pale blue, swirled with white. In fact, they looked a little like ice, I thought. But when I touched a wall, it wasn’t cold—or at least, not icy cold—and my fingers didn’t come away wet.
There was some furniture set up that looked like it belonged in a Queen’s bedroom. I saw a table with several chairs made of some kind of white wood and decorated in filigreed silver. Further on, there was an immense four-poster bed made of the same white wood. It was hung with gauzy silver curtains and covered in a thick white fur spread that looked as soft as silk. There was even a vast bookshelf filled with leather bound volumes and a deep, comfy leather chair that had a fur throw draped across it so you could sit and read.
If you’re wondering how I could see all this in what should have been a dark cave underground, it was because of the trees. Scattered around the living area were weeping willow type trees, all between four and seven feet tall. They had silver bark and their long, trailing branches had glowing leaves in all different colors…soft pink…pale blue…lilac purple. It gave the whole place a magical feeling…as though I had just stepped into an enchanted grotto where a fairy princess under a spell lay sleeping.
“Oh, this is amazing,” I breathed as I turned in a circle, taking in the beautiful room.
“You don’t think it’s, er, overwhelming at all?” Seldarin was frowning at me anxiously.
“Overwhelming?” I shook my head. “In what way? I mean, it’s not like anything I’ve ever seen before and it’s really beautiful, but I don’t feel any different than I did before I came in here.”
“You see?” Krynn shot Seldarin a look over my head. “I told you she wouldn’t be bothered.”
“Bothered by what?” I demanded, frowning.
Krynn hesitated, as though trying to think how to put it.
“The…atmosphere in the Cavern is somewhat rarified, my Lady. Those without Royal blood in their veins feel the pressure of the power of Lolth, which still lingers in this space.”
“It’s like having a heavy fucking bolder on your back,” Seldarin growled, rolling his broad shoulders. He looked down at his hurt arm, the one that the dagger had landed in. “Fuck…I’m bleeding all over the fucking place!”
“Let me see,” I said at once. You don’t raise two kids without learning how to deal with cuts and bruises. Also, he had taken that dagger to the arm for me—if he hadn’t been holding and protecting me, it might have gone right through my throat!
“I really don’t think it’s proper for a Princess to tend wounds,” Krynn objected. But I was already towing Seldarin to the back of the cave, where there was an enormous round tub which was made of white marble.
“Here—sit,” I commanded.
With a bemused look on his face, the big Fae did as I said. The taps of the round tub were shaped like a golden swan. I lifted one of its wings and cold water began to flow from the swan’s beak. I lifted the other and the water became warmer. I fiddled for a minute before I got it right, then I reached for a white cloth which sat on top of a folded pile of towels to one side of the tub.
“Here, now this might sting,” I told Seldarin as I wet the cloth and began cleaning his arm.
“I don’t mind how much it hurts, but you really shouldn’t be tending my wounds, Princess,” he objected. “It’s far below your rightful station.”
I gave a bitter little laugh.
“Considering that I’ve been living in my minivan for the past few weeks, I doubt cleaning up your arm is ‘beneath my station.’” At this point, dumpster diving wouldn’t have been beneath my station—and believe me, I had seriously considered it.
“The blood—does it…affect you?” Krynn asked, stepping forward to watch the process, a look of concern on his gorgeous face.
“Affect me?” I raised my eyebrows. “If you’re asking if the sight of blood makes me sick then, no—not hardly. I raised two kids and the oldest one was accident prone. Chris Junior was always in the ER for stitches and broken bones. He?—”
I stopped talking abruptly because remembering how things had been when the kids were little made me sad. I missed the sweet way they used to come to me for comfort and hugs and tickles. The way we’d all been such a happy family before they grew up and moved out and Christopher lost interest in me and kicked me to the curb…
