“H-Humans?” stuttered Frey as she took a startled step away from Locke. “Wait…” A horrified expression crossed her face. “You don’t think they’re the ones who killed King Jazrec, do you?” Her wide green gaze swiped from Katia to Geralda like she expected them to have all the answers.
Katia sighed heavily. “No, they can’t be. Everyone knows Queen Izla cursed the humans who killed her father. They must have come from somewhere else. But that doesn’t mean they’re not dangerous.”
Frey shook her head in disbelief. “Are you sure they aren’t fae using glamours?”
“And who would glamour themselves to look human here? Being human is a death sentence,” Katia said harshly. “No, we must send word to the king.”
At that moment, Locke’s finger twitched.Wait, was that—?Kade shifted slightly, and his dark brows lowered, his eyes moving beneath his eyelids. Thankfully, Katia and the other fae didn’t seem to notice. If the males came to, I was sure the five of us could take on the three fae. The fae had magic on their side, but I hoped the element of surprise would work for us.Even Darian and Asher were showing subtle signs that they were regaining consciousness, the small twitches of their bodies signaling that they would soon wake.
Frey walked between the sleeping males, seemingly too distracted with her thoughts to notice what was happening. She frowned as her gaze slid to something a short distance away, and I knew the exact moment she’d spotted the prince. Her face contorted with surprise, her eyes widening to resemble small moons and her jaw falling open. “It can’t be,” she squeaked as she scurried away. I realized then that Kade must have dropped the prince a little before he’d blacked out.
Geralda and Katia gasped as they followed Frey’s line of sight, and they sprang forward, following after the smaller female.
“The crown prince!” Geralda wailed a moment later.
I couldn’t see what they were doing now that they were out of my line of sight, and I tensed, ready to dart to my feet.C’mon, guys. Wake up,I mentally willed Kade and the others.
“He’s still alive. Thank the gods!” Katia exclaimed with a relieved sigh. “Oh, this is much worse than I thought.”
“What have they done to you?” Geralda asked with a shaky sob, and I could only guess her comment was directed at the prince. A beat passed, and her voice was cold when she added, “He’s been brutalized.”
“No,” Katia replied darkly. “He’s been tortured.”
“Tortured?” Frey squeaked.
“Come on, my Prince. You need to wake,” Geralda said, and my heart began to race. If they went to attack me or the others, I’d have to act, but I didn’t have a weapon. My gaze flicked to where the fae had taken our weapons and collected them into a pile a few yards away. Too far. They were too damn far.
I clenched my fists even tighter.
“That one’s awake!” Geralda shrieked abruptly, and my heart leaped to my throat as her green gaze collided with mine. She lifted her hands, and magic prickled through the air.
Oh fuck.
I rolled to my side a split second before a tree speared out of the ground right where I’d just been, growing upward until it resembled the other massive trees around us. If I’d remained there, the plant would have pierced through my chest and carried me upward with it.
Trying not to dwell on the fact that I’d almost just died, I jumped to my feet.
“This isn’t what it looks like,” I said, trying to defuse the situation.
Geralda’s green eyes glistened with anger, and her hands remained outstretched in front of her.
“Geralda, what are you doing!” Frey said in a panicked whisper.
“Humans took our King Jazrec and Queen Izla, and now they’re trying to take our crown prince. Well, I won’t let them,” Geralda seethed. Gone was the playful demeanor of the fae I’d first seen when I’d awoken. Now hatred made her top lip curl, and she puffed out her chest as she glared at me.
“We didn’t torture him!” I said, my eyes pleading with them to believe me. “We saved him!”
Geralda’s expression hardened, and she flicked her hand. More magic prickled in the air, and a muscled chest slammed into me from the side, pushing me out of the way.
Locke kept his arms wrapped around me protectively as we fell to the ground, and his strong scent of cedarwood, ash, and spice helped calm my shaking hands. I gaped at the giant tree that now grew in the space where I’d just been standing. It had grown so fast that if Locke hadn’t pushed me out of the way, I would have been speared by the damn thing.
“They know the prince is with us. They’re going to tell the king,” I gasped, and Locke clenched his jaw so tightly it twitched.
“No, they’re not,” Asher said with a casual grin that didn’t meet his eyes. Kade and Darian were also awake, and the three of them moved in front of Locke and me as we climbed to our feet.
“We won’t let you hurt him anymore!” Geralda screamed, angry tears welling in her eyes.
Asher lifted his hands with his palms out in a placating gesture. “Now, now, we weren’t the ones who did that. Well, maybe Kade here gave your prince a few bumps on the head, but—“ His words were cut off as he dodged a wooden arrow that Katia had seemingly created out of thin air and launched at him. Fury glistened in Katia’s eyes, rivaling the hatred emanating from Geralda.
