“Childbirth? Do the fae expect us to… havesexwith them? Akari is pale and wide-eyed at the prospect.
My mind, however, is conflicted over something else.
“Hang on, let’s go back to the whole infertile and weak thing. I know one of the women who was…culled,” I practically spit the word, “and I know for a fact that she is a mother. She also isn’t weak. The callouses on her hands prove that. Why was she rejected?”
Pity fills Anya’s face. “Some illnesses are not apparent to the human eye. That’s where the fae with medical inSight come into play. They can determine sicknesses before they’ve even formed. It is likely your friend has, or will have, some form of cancer or disease. I am sorry.”
My stomach sinks, and my eyes water. Stupid, really. There was no guarantee on any of our lives the minute we awoke in the Hotel, but it was still gut-wrenching to know for sure that Jabira would pass before her time. I notice Akari wiping away her own tears and I reach for her foot, the only body part I can touch from the position this damned bean bag has me in. I give it a firm squeeze, which earns me a brief, trembling smile.
I take a deep breath. “So what’s next, then? What can you tell us about these trials?”
Chapter Eight
Turns out there isn’t much Anya can tell us. The second trial will start tomorrow, and then the third and final the day after that. The second trial is much like the first; we stand in a line, this time on the ground in the clearing, and all the fae will get the chance to study us up close. This trial was called the Selection, though she couldn’t give us any more details than that. Just before sunset, someone summoned Anya and the other Firsts and, from the last lottery, Seconds away from the tent. They returned an hour later, bearing blankets and pillows, which they distributed amongst the Chosen. Anya snuck Akari and me an extra blanket each.
“It gets cold during the night,” she explains.
After performing her duties, Anya returned to us with her own pillow and blanket.
“They’re making you sleep here, too?” Akari asks.
Anya sets her pillow on the floor before she lies down, throwing the blanket upon herself as she does.
“Where else would we sleep?” she asks simply.
Akari and I share a glance.
“Ah, your bed, perhaps?” I suggest.
Anya laughs. “My bed is thousands of leagues away in the Dark Court.”
I shake my head and blink. “Say what now?”
“Dark Court?” Akari echoes.
Anya stares up at the canopy overhead with a serene smile on her face.
“Faezgard is divided into many courts, though Dark and Light are the ruling realms. I don’t suppose you noticed the uniforms us Firsts and Seconds wear?” At our nod, Anya continues. “Those of us from Dark wear black, while Light dons white. Autumn, Winter, Dusk, and Night courts comprise the Dark Court, while Summer, Spring, Dawn, and Day make up the Light Court. Dark and Light have been on the brink of war for eons. The Wild Hunt is the only time the Courts merge under a temporary truce… of sorts.”
I forgo the bean bag, with many thanks from my back and neck, and lie on the ground beside Anya as I try to process this new information.
“Dark and Light,” I muse. “I don’t suppose the thrones below the stage today had anything to do with the opposing Courts?”
Images of the cruel and smirking silver-haired fae jump into my thoughts. In my mind’s eye, I trace the striking points of his elongated canines, the sharp angles of his jaw, and the glittering humor in his amethyst eyes. I almost groan with frustration as I force the image of him from my head.
As my mind clears and I come back to reality, I realize Anya is nodding.
“High Lord Vellin of Dark,myHigh Lord, and High Lord Draekoh of Light. Both are extremely powerful and wicked males. If you ever have the misfortune of meeting them, donotget on their bad sides.” My stomach drops at her warning. “In fact, try to steer clear of their attentions full stop. Lord Draekoh of Light has never taken a human before, but the tales of his cruelty and brutality are known even in Dark. Lord Vellin,however, is quite fond of human pets. He has had many women. He’s killed even more.”
I gulp. I was fucked. Stay clear of their attentions? Yikes. I’d blown that to shit with my resting bitch face and flying middle finger. I was well and truly fucked, and the so-calledtrialshad barely begun. My only hope lay in the fact that Lord Draekoh had never taken a human before. Let’s hope he stuck to that rule this year.
“You mentioned the Wild Hunt before,” Akari says after a moment of silence.
“Did I?” Anya instantly pales. We’ve crested dangerous waters. I cast an urgent look at Akari, but she completely misses it.
“Yes,” she frowns. “You said that the only time Dark and Light find common ground is during the Wild Hunt. What is it?”
“I am not inclined to say,” Anya says sharply.
