Night Fae by Meg Xuemei X.

 

Chapter 11

 

 

 

 

 

“Ileana Eve, you got this,” Rydstrom said, his arm around my shoulder. His body heat warmed me, and a throbbing need for him pulsed inside me.

“Later, little mate,” he whispered in my ear, his light laughter a rich baritone. My blood raced. With our mating bond connecting us like an unbreakable thread, the Night King could read my needs and emotions easily.

My parents watched us, and I blushed as if I had been caught in a dirty deed. I quickly pointed at a palatial mansion that stood out amid the radiant urban skyline. It curved around the entire block of the grand street of paving stones.

A garden terrace rose to the side on the second floor. Several figures, much smaller compared to the Night knights, milled around a raised fire pit. They chattered and argued loudly and laughed. The aroma of cooked meat wafted our way, making my mouth water.

Beneath the scent of delicious barbecue, the fragrance of blossoms and clean night air flowed toward us, and on top of that was the Night King’s dominant scent of nocturnal magic and sage. I inhaled and breathed out, in love with my mate’s realm at first sight.

Rydstrom squeezed my fingers, which were entwined with his.

My heart fluttered, yet we knew this moment didn’t belong to us. I was here to see my family. I’d brought my parents to be united with my siblings.

I tore my heated gaze from my king and fixed my attention on the terrace, where a small party was going on.

Squinting, I had my confirmation—the obnoxiously loud buggers were my siblings. Gods, I missed them so much. I grinned and pulled out a whistle I’d bought on eBay. My siblings knew the drill, since I’d often used it in the house when they refused to obey me.

I put the silver whistle in my mouth, covered my ears, and blew it. The shriek carried in the air, and all the nighttime sounds ceased. Even the birds stopped chirping.

The knights threw their hands to their sensitive ears with a collective grimace.

“What the hell is that?” Drake demanded as he glared at me.

“That’s how my mate disciplines her younger siblings,” explained Rydstrom proudly. “They can be a handful.”

“You stop it right now, Evelina Greene!” Mom yelled at me.

I blinked. Mom used to shout out my full name when I got myself into trouble. Damn. I’d been caught up in the moment and forgotten my parents had returned and now they were in charge instead of me. 

I pulled the whistle from between my lips, hid it, and smirked at Mom sheepishly.

Mom still stared hard at me, but Dad pressed a hand to her shoulder, trying to make Mom go easy on me. I was still Dad’s favorite. He’d always had a soft spot for me, and I loved seeing the amusement dancing in his eyes.

At that moment, it almost felt normal, like the world would be fine again with my parents holding up the fallen sky. But everything had changed, and their return hadn’t lifted the impending doom over my head.

“Uh, Mom, sorry,” I said. “It was an effective way to get their attention when you and Dad were away.”

“We’re back now, and we’ll have none of that,” Mom said sternly.

“Of course,” I said, flashing her another grin. “I’m just glad you and Dad are back.”

Mom extended a hand, palm up, and I reluctantly handed over the whistle to her.

My siblings darted to the rail of the terrace and looked down at us.

“Commander?” Cassidy squinted, the wind catching his unruly, wavy hair. Shit, I’d thought of getting him a haircut weeks ago and hadn’t gotten around to it. I hoped Mom would pay attention to his clean face rather than his hair.

“It’s Commander!” my little brother shouted with exhilaration, pumping his fist into Emmett’s arm. “What did I tell you? Commander is back!”

Emmett, my oldest brother, frowned at the punch and stepped away from him.

Dad slanted a sideways glance at me. “Commander?”

“Uh, they insisted,” I said.

“Evie!” Emmett waved his hands like an awkward maniac. He wasn’t a boy anymore, but he wasn’t a man yet.

The lone twin, Asuka, shouted my name as well, and my heart lurched in guilt and pain. Asuka still looked hollow and haunted, as he had ever since Nox had been taken.

“Do you see Dad and Mom?” Fawn asked in her usual quiet voice as Cassidy helped her stand higher to see us. “There. I told you that they’d be coming with our sister.”

Silence momentarily held my siblings in check before they bellowed, “Mom! Dad! Mom!”

“Don’t you shout,” I barked at them. “People are sleeping!”

The knights around us traded a look, and I realized that my voice carried in the air even louder than my siblings’, and I’d also blown the whistle.

Tears glinted in my parents’ eyes, and we quickened our pace toward the mansion that sheltered my siblings. The little buggers turned around and ran toward the stairs.

We met midway, laughing and crying, and strode back to the garden terrace with its ivory and ebony columns. Fae lanterns hung from the trees, illuminating the golden table. We sat on the cushioned chairs near the fire pit, the ocean breeze on our skin.

My siblings ran into my parents’ arms, weeping in joy, and the seven of us shared another tight hug.

When we broke the embrace, Rydstrom nodded at my siblings with a doting smile, and they beamed at him. The Night King wasn’t that terrifying when he was with my family.

His lips brushed over the crown of my golden hair.

“I’ll pick you up later, love,” he said, his voice low and sensual, and my body shivered in anticipation.

The Night King suppressed a smile as he dipped his head, kissing me lightly on the lips, and stalked away. He was giving my family and me some private time.

The guards and the humans who had been with my siblings also cleared away, and now only my family was left on the terrace. My senses stretched out. Rydstrom was gone, but the knights who were assigned to guard us weren’t far away, though they stayed out of sight.

“Dad, Mom,” Emmett whimpered. “Where have you been? We thought you were gone for good.”

“We’re back now,” Dad said. “We won’t leave again.”

“Commander brought Mom and Dad back, as she promised.” Cassidy grinned in admiration. He still worshiped the ground I walked on. Well, I’ll let him. That clever little bugger was often useful. “Mom, this is the king’s mansion, and it’s huge. I have my own bedroom! I also have my personal guard and servants. We’re royalty here!”

Cassidy was the vainest of all my siblings. Some things never changed.

“The humans are servants?” I asked. I’d heard the rumor that humans were at the bottom of the food chain at every court in Elfame.

“They’re the descendants of the changelings here,” Cassidy said, jerking a thumb. “My guards explained about the changelings. They’re humans who were exchanged for fairy kids.”

Then, everyone started talking at the same time, eager to inform and educate my parents and me about this new world.

“It’s always night here in the Night realm,” Emmett said.

“I like it. I have no problem with night all night long,” Cassidy said.

“We should stay here until the war ends,” Fawn chimed in. “This is the safest place for us. I’ll stay with you all until the final battle, then I’ll go with Ileana Evelina to the Court of Dawn and stomp the usurper. My sister will need me then.”

I blinked at my six-year-old sister. “You’re not fighting in any battle, Fawn. All I want is for you to be safe, and you’ll stay right here.”

My parents stared at my sister. They didn’t know about her Seer gift and the bone witch living within her.

I glanced at my parents. “It’s a long story. Fawn is—”

“It’s okay, Evie,” Fawn said. “I’ll explain to Mom and Dad.” She regarded my parents with those ancient eyes of hers. “Everyone in this family has a magical gift. I’m a Seer. All of your blood children are mages, and you’ll have to let their magic bloom. The time to hide is over. It’s time to teach and nurture them. Cassidy is also supernatural. He can shift into his animal form.”

I scanned my siblings in shock, but I shouldn’t be surprised that they all had magical potential. I had just discovered mine a couple of months ago.

Instead of training us and letting our magic flourish, my parents must have put a dampening spell on each one of us to prevent us from developing powers, because we had to throw hunters off my trail instead of catching their attention.

Guilt washed over me. To protect me, everyone, whether they knew it or not, had sacrificed something valuable. But no longer. As Fawn had said, the hiding was over. The war had come my way, and my siblings needed their training for their own safety.

“All of you will be mages except Cassidy,” I said. “Our little brother is going to be a shifter.”

I held my parents’ gaze, a promise in my eyes. I would make sure my siblings had the future they deserved, and my parents nodded. They’d paid their dues.

“We’re the X-men.” Cassidy smirked. “And I’m the wolverine.” He curled his small, soft hand into the shape of a claw.

“You can only change into a raven or possibly an owl,” Fawn said.

“No shitty way!” Cassidy bared his teeth.

“Language, Cassidy!” Mom glared at him, then turned to stare hard at me. I spread my arms. What did I have to do with my little brother’s swearing?

“I’m not a little black bird! I want to be a bear,” he declared.

“You were born a perfect spy, Cassidy,” Fawn said with a smile. “In faerie, our magic will strengthen and speed up when it’s unlocked. We need to train, and everyone can help our big sister. Cassidy should start the shift soon.”

“You all need haircuts. That’s what you need,” Mom said, turning to the mundane stuff, as if she could postpone the world coming at us with hammers.

Asuka stared into the night, a hollow expression on his face.

“They took Nox,” the twin said. “I want to leave here. I need to go find him.”

“We’ll have Nox back soon,” Dad said fiercely. “We’re sorry that we had to go away for awhile and this happened, but your mom and I are back now, and we’ll do everything in our power to keep all of you safe. And we’ll make sure Evie comes home to us.”

“But Evie is here,” Emmett said in alarm.

“She’ll leave for a little while,” Fawn said, worry in her dandelion-gray eyes.

“Where will Evie go?”

Fawn thinned her lips. “The Wild Hunt.”

“I want to go with you, Commander!” Cassidy said.

“Another time, soldier,” I said.

Mom scrutinized each of her children closely, then she asked the question I had been dreading. “Where is Safiya?”

I hadn’t told my parents about Safiya’s treachery. I hated to see their heartbreak, but none of us could afford to be spared the truth anymore.

Safiya was going on sixteen. One might argue that she was still a child. I didn’t agree. Even a twelve-year-old should take responsibility for their actions.

And not all children were innocent. Some were bullies and some were born cruel. I’d personally had the misfortune of facing down quite a few vicious ones, though I’d never backed down.

Asuka’s face screwed into a furious expression. “She’s a traitor! She worked with the bad guys. She opened the door for the monsters to take Nox because she wanted to get back at Evie, and Evie has done nothing other than provide for us and protect us.”

I sent the twin a grateful glance. I’d thought they’d all blamed me for failing to keep them safe, and now they had to leave the familiar human world.

Mom turned to me, and Dad stiffened.

“Where is Safiya now?” Dad asked softly, but his eyes were on fire.

I swallowed. “She’s in a safe house in the Summer Court, guarded by the Summer knights. The Fae treat her well there, as Baron ordered. But Rydstrom wouldn’t allow her to enter his Night realm with the others, for fear Brigantia would track the rest of us and know the exact location of his Night City. Rydstrom found Brigantia’s magical mark on Safiya. She’d been talking to the usurper queen and struck a deal with Brigantia as her informant. Rydstrom interrogated Safiya and got her confession.” At my parents’ look, I added hurriedly, “No, the Night King didn’t torture Safiya. No matter what, she’s still my sister.”

I couldn’t bear to tell my parents that Safiya had targeted me. I hadn’t believed that my sister would go so far as to harm one of us because she couldn’t get over her jealousy. My teenage sister also naively believed that if Brigantia took me away, her life would be fabulous, and she would land one of my beautiful, formidable kings.

“She didn’t behave like a sister,” Dad said, his nostrils flaring as he turned to Mom. “I don’t get that child. She was always jealous of Evie even when she was little. She had to have everything Evie had. I thought when she grew up, she’d finally get over it. I’m disappointed that my own daughter is a danger to my other children, especially to my eldest daughter.”

Dad had never been blind.

“She’ll eventually move on,” I said, sucking in a breath, grateful that Dad was full of understanding. I laid a hand on his arm. “We won’t give up on her. And she won’t see me often from now on, so that might help. Some time apart from us will do her good.”

“I know Safiya deserves punishment.” Mom rubbed her temples. “She’s always been difficult, but she’s still my daughter.”

“Safiya isn’t exactly being punished,” I said. “I’ve checked on her frequently. She isn’t lacking anything in the Summer Court, except that she isn’t free to roam the realm. She also has a tutor.”

“Commander is too good to the traitor,” Asuka shouted angrily. “Safiya should rot in Hell!”

“Asuka, do not curse your sister!” Mom ordered, and she wasn’t backing down.

“Hey,” I said, cupping the twin’s chin before he had another outburst. “Nox is coming home. One more day, and I’ll go to the Wild Hunt. When I do, the evil queen will return Nox. That’s the deal.”

“We’re still working on an angle to cancel the summons of the Wild Hunt,” said Dad.

No angle could get me out of the Wild Hunt, but I didn’t want to shatter my parents’ hope, and I didn’t want to talk about the hunt again during our precious family reunion.

“Are you going to stay here with them, Dad? Mom?” I asked. “Last I heard, Pestilence had spread to southern California. I’m afraid it’ll reach the rest of the world soon if we don’t find a cure fast enough.” I gestured at my siblings. “This is the safest place for them, and the Night knights will give their lives to protect our family. If there’s one place where Brigantia can’t reach them, it’s here.”

“I agree,” Dad said. “But we have work to do in the Silver Circle. We’ll fight this war with you. Your siblings can stay under your mate’s care.”

I blinked. This was the first time that Dad had accepted Rydstrom into the family.

Mom nodded, smiling at me. “We’ve been rude to the Night King. We weren’t prepared. Yesterday, you were still our little girl, and now you’re grown up, ready to take on the world. And you’ve found your mates.”

“Rydstrom is very rich, Mom. You should not be rude to him, or you’ll ruin it for us,” Cassidy complained. “Commander hit the jackpot, and we all need to roll with it.” Then a funny, worried expression screwed up his face. “Where’s Baron? Is he out of the picture? He has a lot of gold, too. Commander, you should have let them compete more. Baron has a castle near the beach. It’d be a shame if you let him go too soon.” He rubbed his thumb over his small chin, a calculating light glinting in his hazel eyes. “And I don’t want you to burn that bridge. When I grow up, I can work for either one of them if the pay is right.”

Emmett frowned at him. “Stop trying to pimp out our sister. Make your own fortune.”

“Cassidy, you’re being silly,” Fawn said, smiling. The two were close in age, and Cassidy always took care of Fawn first. “Evie will be the queen. You don’t need to work for any of the kings. You can work for our sister. You’re to be an excellent spy for her. Evie is actually Princess Ileana, the true queen of the Dawn Court. We’re all going to play our parts and help her take back her stolen throne.”

My parents stared at Fawn, stunned to see this new persona in their youngest, adopted daughter. Dad regarded Fawn with new interest. And they had yet to see how Fawn went full bone witch, her eyes turning milky and glassy, and started prophesying.

At the mention of me being the Dawn Queen, my siblings came alive like sharks smelling fresh blood. They gave me a new headache.

“You’re still our sister, right, Princess…Evie…Princess Ileana…Your Majesty?” Emmett asked, and my other siblings actually looked worried, as if I’d be snobbish and cast them away.

I rolled my eyes.

“Commander…uh, you…Your Majesty.” Cassidy gave a small bow, then looked at me with uncertainty, unsure if I’d approve of the bow.

Fawn giggled.

And that was my family.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, children,” Mom chided them with a smile. “Queen or not, Evie will always be your big sister, but she has a lot of work to do.”

Dad shook his head as if he couldn’t believe how we’d ended up here.

“We’ll take Safiya to Vancouver with us,” he decided. “Your mom will keep a close eye on her and teach her to do better by her family. The rest of you will stay safe in faerie until we come back for you. And we’ll come back before you know it.”