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Rainer narrows his eyes.
“I thought we were to meet the prince?” I whisper to Kenisius. There’s no way this is the prince. Not with his unhinged aura, attitude, and not to mention, he was in the woods with Ken. Princes don’t wander the woods.
Do they?
Rainer smirks. “The prince is busy.” He turns to Fern. “Take her up to a guest suite. I’ll send Das Celyn with food.”
Ken gives me a thumbs up before he and Rainer head down one of the hallways that spill from the foyer, leaving me and Fern alone in the enormous entranceway. I wonder where the prince is. Ken and Rainer must be his guards of some sort. Surely both are built like warriors—Ken especially in his leathers and boots.
As soon as they’re out of earshot, Fern whines. “That cad took my wine!”
After the day I’ve had, it’s absurd she’s throwing a fit over wine. She appears to pick up on my disinterest, because she scoffs at me.
“Faerie wine is phenomenal.” She teeters on her heels, then shakes it off with a giggle.
“Are you—?”
“Human? Yes.”
I was going to ask if she was drunk, but relief shoots through me at her admission. “Is this…a refuge for humans?” I choose my words carefully. “Is it safe here?”
She snorts. “Nowhere’s safe. Though it’s better than whatever’s…out there.” She waves a hand and a hiccup bubbles out of her. “The fae are arseholes. Oh! And you better thank the gods Ken found you before dusk. The fae barely survive the woods at night, and you definitely wouldn’t have made it.” She shrugs, eyeing me up and down.
She’s beautifully done up, and awfully composed despite her drunkenness. Meanwhile, I’m covered in muck and grime, bogged down by grief. Rainer was right. I need a bath.
As if Fern can read the expression on my face, she says, “Well, come on, then.”
She turns away from me, leading me toward one of the grand staircases.
Reaching down, she unsnaps the clasps on her heels before tossing them aside with a dramatic sigh of relief. They clatter to the floor in the foyer. She leaves them there as she trounces up the stairs.
“Don’t those hurt your feet?” I ask.
She turns to look at me, gripping the banister so she doesn’t lose her balance. “Obviously. That’s why I took them off.”
My cheeks heat as we resume our ascent. I’ve never seen those kind of shoes before. Not even the lady wears them.
“What kind of… creature is Rainer?” I call from behind her.
We hit the second floor, and Fern spins around to face me again, but this time she cracks a grin.
“He would be appalled if he heard you refer to him as a creature. He’s a—” she hesitates and glances around the dimly lit, paneled hallway. “A faerie.”
“A faerie,” I repeat.
“Yep. You can always tell a faerie by their sharp ears and ethereal beauty,” she rushes out. “Look, I don’t know why you’re here, but you can’t stay.”
I can only balk at her, unable to determine if she’s threatening me or trying to help me.
“Ken is nice enough, but Rainer—” her eyes widen as she glances nervously over her shoulder. “He’s a scary fecker.”
“And what about the prince? Is he—should I fear him?”
“Funny you should ask.” She hiccups again, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. “They call him Prince of Fear for a reason.”
Prince of Fear?
My skin pebbles at the ominous title.
