Page 20 of Fae Mates

My heart thumped a steady beat as I staggered to the doorway. Coltrane stood at the roadside, craning his neck for a glimpse at the hovel’s interior, but I shut the door before he could get a proper look.

The cat jumped off my shoulder and landed on the floor with a crouch. “Stick your hand in the candle wax.”

“What?”

“Hurry!”

I raced to the corner of the room, where the candle stood in the corner. Ignoring the revulsion rippling through my insides, I turned my head away and sank my fingers into the warm wax.

My fingers brushed against something solid. “What’s that?”

“Pull her out!” hissed the cat.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I plunged my other hand into the depths of the candle, grabbed the hag, and yanked.

Her weight, which was surprisingly heavy for what looked like a little old lady, pummeled into my stomach like a boulder. I overbalanced, and we both fell to the ground.

“Mistress Catha!” McVittie rushed to the hag’s side. “What happened?”

As I knelt, her eyelids opened, revealing empty pits. Terror lanced through my gut, and I clapped a hand over my mouth to stifle a cry.

“I knew you would visit me one last time,” the hag rasped.

“Who did this to you?” I tried to keep the tremble out of my voice. “McVittie, fetch a healer.”

“It’s too late,” said the cat.

The hag’s head lolled to one side. “It was Nevermore.”

Fury burned through my veins, splintering my fear. How many people was she going to ruin to get those princes? “That fucking Lady Gala!”

“No,” she croaked. “The father.”

McVittie and I exchanged puzzled glances. Why would the Duke of Nevermore hurt a humble hag when everyone already knew the secret of how Lady Gala and her friends stole Helen’s magic?

I gulped. “Mistress Cath—”

“He is the darkest practitioner of all. He used his mate’s magic…” She coughed.

My mouth dropped open. “He killed the Duchess of Nevermore?”

The hag nodded. “To power a spell of absolute loyalty.”

“What?”

“He wants his daughter to become the queen.” Harsh, hacking coughs burst from her lips. “Then, he will rule the Island from behind the curtain.”

My heart pounded in time with my frantic pulse. This was no longer a rivalry between two girls over four handsome princes. Even though Lady Gala had stolen Helen’s magic, she had left the other faerie alive. But the duke had no such mercy and was willing to sacrifice his own mate to fulfill his ambitions.

“You’re in the worst trouble of your life,” said McVittie, as though coming to the same conclusion.

“How do I defeat him and his daughter?” I asked the hag.

Her lips parted into a dry chuckle. “Be there when nature takes its course.”

I glanced at McVittie, who raised an upturned paw in the cat equivalent of a shrug. Then I turned to Mistress Catha to ask what she meant, but the hag had already stopped breathing.

McVittie lowered his head. “The poor thing clung to life to pass on that vital information. At least we know who else is in this battle for the throne.”