Page 40 of Fae Games

Had Sicily suspected? She had always made barbs about having sex for money and treats. I placed both feet on the same step and pulled hard on the rail to hoist myself upright.

She couldn’t have known. If she had, she would have said something or barred Elijah from the house. The tears fell, and angry breaths rushed in and out of my flared nostrils.

The bloody bastard.

The bloody, fucking bastard.

He had been my pimp, and the moment I had needed him for protection, he had buggered off. I turned around, swallowing hard and wiping the back of my hand over my damp eyes. If I ever followed through on what Pokeweed said and became queen, I would have him executed.

No, I would personally castrate Elijah and send him to the worst brothel in Dubnos.

Rapid footsteps echoed up the stairwell, and I straightened. A boy I vaguely recognized from the remedial class emerged from around the spiral staircase, his cheeks flushed. “Unity! Everyone’s been searching for you. The beauty contest has already started.”

“What?” In my fury about Elijah, I had forgotten why I’d rushed to reach the ground floor.

He grabbed my arm and pulled me down the stairs. I hurried after him, holding onto the rail to stop myself from toppling over. We had always been careful to place iron on the door before curfew so that the dark creatures roaming the streets didn’t sneak in uninvited.

The only faerie we allowed into the house was Elijah, who had claimed to be sensitive to iron. That had probably been a lie to let all those full-blooded high faeries to stream into our home house and take what they pleased from my body.

“Mr. Whittaker sent us out searching for you last night after he returned from Pokeweed’s,” said the boy as we descended what now felt like a never-ending set of stairs. “Where did you go?”

I mumbled something about Healer Tarax putting me to sleep all night.

As we reached the downstairs hallway and stepped off the last stair, a cheer echoed down the stone walls, making me grind my teeth.

“Oh, no,” said the boy. “They’ve already started without you!”

I spun to the direction of the sound and whizzed past the portrait of the royal family. The boy’s footsteps pounded at my side.

A door opened, and Flora stepped out. Her hard features softened into an expression of relief.

“Right then,” said the boy. “I’d better tell everyone you’re on your way.” He jogged down the hallway and disappeared around the corner.

She rushed to my side, her dark eyes wide. “Where have you been? We were searching into the night, and then Prince August said you were with his brothers.”

“Did he, now?” It was a struggle to keep the fury out of my voice.

“They should have sent you back to change into your gown,” she said.

I stopped walking. “What?”

Flora frowned. “The one on your bed,” she said in the tone of voice I’d heard used on slow people. “Isn’t that where you went with Prince Caulden yesterday?”

We turned around and headed in the direction of the remedial building. So much had happened over the last twenty-four hours, I didn’t know where to begin. She didn’t think my memories were real, so telling her that Elijah had sold faeries a shape-shifting elixir to come to my house to fuck me was pointless.

Out in the courtyard, the morning sun shone down from a cloudless sky, reflecting its glory on the manes of the horses poking their heads out from the stalls. As we darted toward the remedial building, no one shot arrows or threw explosives or glass vials. It was just me, Flora, and yet another one of Elijah’s gut-wrenching betrayals.

In the girls’ dormitory, a dress lay on the bed that stole my breath.

Stemmed wildflowers decorated a rose-pink bodice of the most delicate, gossamer fabric that curved to a horizontal band that cinched the waist. The thin fabric flared down into a skirt embroidered with the same plants curling and twisting down its length to a multitude of flowers at the hem, each the exact shade as the four princes’ hair.

A surge of emotion filled the back of my throat, and I choked out, “That’s for me?”

“Who else?” Flora gave me a nudge. “Hurry up. No time for showers, but I’ll fix your hair.”

On numb legs, I walked to my bedside and slipped off my blazer. Joy fluttered in my heart, which blew my rage about Elijah back to the corners of my mind. Pokeweed had made this for me. Was he just motivated by the wishbone breaking his curse, or was there more?

I shook off those thoughts and continued undressing.