Frey whimpered and dropped down to clutch at the prince. Reaching into her pocket, she lifted something and waved it under his nose. “My prince, you must wake!” she cried.
“We just need to make them understand,” I insisted, but Locke’s black eyes were unkind as he glared at the fae females.
Two more trees sprouted out of the ground, and this time, it was Darian and Kade who narrowly avoided being speared. Asher darted to the right, dropping low to avoid another arrow from Katia and only stopping when he reached the pile of weapons.
“Catch,” he barked and tossed weapons to the rest of us.
Frey whimpered again, and Geralda snarled with anger.
Soon a dozen trees were sprouting out of the ground courtesy of Geralda’s wrath and accompanied by Katia’s arrows.
We all sprang into action, the scene turning to chaos as we defended ourselves against the fae. Locke sliced his sword through an arrow that was aimed at his face. “We need to shut this down,” he said coldly as if we’d all simply been playing this whole time.
Kade cracked his neck. “Couldn’t agree more,” he growled, his teeth bared even though he had no fangs.
Like the males had danced the same dance a thousand times, they moved fluidly and efficiently, circling around the fae females and dodging the arrows and trees. Within moments, Kade had Geralda kneeling before him, her hands gripped behind her back. Asher had Katia in a similar position, and Frey had let go of Prince Azaren and was backing away from Darian, fear shining in her green eyes.
“We’re not the enemy,” Locke said as we approached the fae females.
Katia kept her lips tightly pressed together, but Geralda snarled, “King Chalir will have your soul for this. You will see.”
“You don’t understand. We came here to return the prince—“ I started, but Geralda wasn’t listening.
Katia’s head tilted to the side, and her mouth opened and began moving, though I couldn’t hear her speak any words. The trees around us began to sway as though affected by some unnatural wind, and the faintest sound of whispers carried through the forest, fluttering the leaves and making the hairs stand up on my arms.
“Kill our prince if you must, but know that retribution will be ours,” Katia seethed. “We fight another day, narelas,” she added, and this time, as if those last words were a command, all three fae females closed their eyes and bowed their heads.
Kade, Asher, and Darian moved back as the fae transformed, their bodies hardening and growing into silver-white trees that rose high into the air. Thin branches burst from their trunks, and vibrant green leaves sprouted in bushy patches. The females’ faces molded into the wood, forming into the same faces we’d seen on the tree trunks not too long ago.
“Well, that’s not something you see every day,” Darian mused.
CHAPTER 10
~ Raine ~
“So I’m guessin’ that didn’t go well for us,” Asher said as he craned his neck to look at the top of the tree Katia had transformed into. “Do you think they can still hear us?”
“Anything’s possible in this place,” Kade growled, circling the tree that used to be Geralda.
Darian ran a hand over his silver hair, smoothing the long, tousled locks back into place. “One thing is certain: the fae king now knows we have Prince Azaren. Or if he doesn’t know yet, he will soon.” Darian moved to grab the remainder of his weapons which were still on the ground, and I did the same.
Locke’s dark gaze landed on Prince Azaren, who was starting to stir, likely roused by whatever Frey had waved under his nose. “I think it’s about time we extracted some information from our guest. If he is telling the truth about the effects of the dazra’s venom, he should be without his power for a while yet.”
“Just because he doesn’t have access to his magic doesn’t mean he can’t cause trouble,” Kade growled, clearly not impressed with the idea of talking to the fae.
Asher’s gaze swiped from Kade to Locke, but he moved to crouch next to Prince Azaren. Gripping the front of the prince’s shirt, he yanked the fae up and delivered a sharp slap to his cheek. “Wakey, wakey, sunshine.”
When Prince Azaren’s eyes blinked open, Asher let go of the prince’s shirt and let him drop to the grass. Groaning, Prince Azaren slowly lifted onto his elbows. He squinted against the sunlight and lifted a hand in front of his face before focusing his attention on Asher, who was still squatting close by. “Water,” he rasped, wincing when he tried to swallow.
Locke dug into his satchel and tossed a canteen at the prince. It hit Prince Azaren’s chest, and he snatched it up and pulled off the lid before drinking greedily. Water dripped down the fae’s slender chin, and when he’d drained the last of it, he let out an appreciative sigh. “Gods, how long have I been out?” He passed the canteen to Asher. “And was that really necessary?” he added indignantly, his attention going back to Locke.
Locke stepped closer to the prince, and his hand rested on the hilt of his sword at his side. “If you so much as look like you’re concentrating too hard and trying to access your magic, I won’t hesitate to end you.” His words were cold and harsh, and I had no doubt Locke would uphold his word.
I wasn’t sure if the prince assumed Locke was bluffing or if he was simply too concussed to care what came out of Locke’s mouth, but he didn’t seem the least bit fearful when he nodded his head in an exaggerated manner. “Yes, yes, I’m dead if I use my magic. You needn’t worry, as I still feel the dazra’s venom in me suppressing my powers. Besides, I’m an enoram. Now, if you’ll kindly help me up.” He directed the last part at Asher, who looked a little baffled by the request.
When Asher didn’t move to help him, Prince Azaren twisted onto his side and slowly lifted to his feet. His legs wobbled unsteadily, his knees almost knocking together, but when he remained standing, he grinned proudly and straightened. Even with the cuts and bruises over his body, somehow the male still had an air of importance about him. “I see you were able to leave the cave without another incident with the dazra,” he commented as his emerald gaze raked over us, then he turned his attention to the clearing we were standing in. Undoubtedly, he was trying to determine our location in the forest.
“What is an enoram?” I asked, genuinely curious as to why he thought explaining such would help convince us he wasn’t a threat.
