Curse of Thorns (Wicked Fae Book 2) Read online

  Curse of Thorns

  Wicked Fae, Volume 2

  Stacey Trombley

  Published by Stacey Trombley, 2020.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

  CURSE OF THORNS

  First edition. June 19, 2020.

  Copyright © 2020 Stacey Trombley.

  Written by Stacey Trombley.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Rev

  Caelynn

  Even the most evil of monsters can be outwitted

  Caelynn

  I sit in the darkness, rough bark under my thigh scratching uncomfortably as I peer through the second-floor window into the dorm. Soft yellow light glows within, while inky shadows swallow me outside. Alone.

  Always alone.

  Magic rushes through my lungs as I breathe. I grip the branch beneath me harder and watch a lovely human girl with raven black hair laughing with her new roommate. She pauses inside the room, her expression falling as her eyes settle on an envelope sitting on her desk.

  A gust of wind tosses my hair wildly. It twists around me, caressing my neck. Part of me longs to be inside with her, laughing and dreaming and just being. But if there is one thing I’ve learned in the last few weeks it’s that I don’t belong here.

  Ever since the trials, I haven’t been able to subdue the power roaring through my veins like I could before. Now that I’ve felt it, embraced it, the magic won’t let go of its hold on me. Before the trials I had spent so much time fighting against the darkness inside; the pain made that easy. I’d forgotten who I was. What I am.

  Now, it’s in everything. Every move I make, everything I see.

  This power is taking a life of its own, and the more attention I bring to myself, the more dangerous it is for her.

  During Raven’s orientation, I’d accidentally glamoured one of the senior boys who made an off-handed comment to her. He spent the rest of the day following us around like a puppy, carrying her books, and opening doors. It was rather annoying—though, Raven loved it. I’d also accidentally wrapped shadows around me and “disappeared” mid-conversation with a girl who asked probing questions about mine and Raven’s relationship.

  I can’t even explain our relationship to her, let alone strangers.

  I love her. In so many ways, not just friendship. But also not as a lover. Maybe it’s because she’s so young, so mortal. Maybe it’s because my life is so complicated.

  Maybe it’s Rev.

  I don’t know. But regardless of our feelings, there is one thing I know for sure that makes this as simple as breathing. The longer I stay near Raven, the more likely it is she’ll get hurt—and I don’t mean emotionally.

  Rev won’t be around to heal her this time.

  Tears well in Raven’s eyes as she reads my farewell letter. She had to know it was coming, right? I’d stayed with her for the last two months, making sure she’s set up and safe. She’s been accepted into a great private school on full scholarship—that may have been thanks to a not-so-accidental glamouring—so her last year in the system will be foster-home free. I did not apply to the same school.

  We’d talked about me going back to the fae realm soon since my banishment is still temporarily suspended. Maybe she just thought I’d leave and be back periodically. I know she’s willing to take the risk in order to see me, but it’s easier to risk yourself than to risk someone you love.

  Raven is in danger with me around, and I’m not willing to put her at risk. Case and point—the stupid fae-spy that’s lurked around campus the last week. Even right now, he’s squatting behind a bush by the front door of the dorm rooms. His shaved head practically sparkles in the darkness.

  I shake my head, watching him. Luminescent Court fae will never be as good at sleuthing as those from the Shadow Court. I’ve been watching him, waiting to see if I need to intervene.

  Let him try to touch Raven and things will escalate very quickly. As it is, he doesn’t even know I’ve noticed him. So, I’ll wait. I’ve played my part, made it clear I’m leaving. So, when I disappear, will he as well? That’s going to mean a few lonely days in the shadows, just watching.

  If he leaves, so will I.

  If he acts, I will act too.

  I lean my head against the base of the tree and close my eyes. He doesn’t move for nearly an hour—long enough for Raven to cry herself to sleep. Long enough for me to question every life choice.

  When I open my eyes, the spy and his shiny head are gone.

  Dammit.

  My magic stretches out, feeling for any disturbance. Just around the corner, there’s a flicker of magic. He didn’t get far, then.

  I slip into my own shadows, following their pull, slinking through silently, entirely invisible to all but the rare fae trained to see through the magic.

  Around the corner, there is still no sign of the spy, no trail at all. Getting a little more resourceful, are we? So if he hasn’t moved farther around the building...

  My heart pounds harder.

  He hasn’t ever gone inside the building, he’s only lurked. So, if he has now... that would change the game.

  I CLENCH MY HANDS INTO hard fists as I tiptoe down the quiet halls. It’s near midnight by now, which means all the students are in their dorms pretending to sleep. Classes don’t start for another three days. Behind a few doors, whispers and laughter can be heard. Quick breathing behind another—a couple going at it.

  My feet make no sound as I cross over the porcelain tiles, dull florescent lights buzz overhead. I feel for magic. I listen for the thud of an eager heart.

  Thump-thump. I pause.

  Raven’s door is around the next bend. The feeling and basic bodily sounds are definitely coming from that direction. Is it the spy?

  A dark chuckle greets me before I even make the final turn. “I’ve been watching you.” His low voice rumbles through the air.

  I stifle a gasp. Well, that answers that question. I pull in a long breath, hold my head high, and turn the corner. Arms crossed, I lean casually against the wall a dozen or so feet from my adversary. “Have you? I hadn’t noticed.”

  Mr. Shiny Head grips a sword in one hand and a dagger in the other. He approaches slowly, eyes pinned to me. His lips curl into a smile, but everything else tells me he’s tense. He planned for this confrontation, but he’s still anxious.

 
; “You were planning to leave, were you?” he asks. “Abandoning your little friend to fend for herself?”

  I narrow my eyes. “I’m the problem. Not her.” One part an answer to his question, and one part a threat—leave her the hell out of it.

  “That you are. Don’t worry, you won’t be for much longer.” His knees bend ever so slightly, his muscles tense, but before either of us can react, a blade presses against my jugular.

  Dammit. How had I not noticed the second spy?

  For one moment, I’m shocked; the next—I act.

  Rev

  The door to the banquet hall swings open and slams against the back wall. The monotone voices of the Luminescent Court royals are hushed in an instant.

  Some stop mid-bite to watch the intruder, wide-eyed. The whole court is frozen, even myself, as a blond fae in skinny jeans and thick black boots—our sworn enemy— stomps down the aisle toward the ruling family. Toward me.

  Admittedly, the Rev of six months ago would have stood, sword in hand, eager for the chance to remove her beautiful head from her beautiful body. Today... I still don’t know what to feel. A desire to kill her is the only thing I don’t feel.

  Excitement. Intrigue. Amusement. Fear. Pride. Concern.

  I can’t help but glance at my father’s expression—it’s a moment I suspect I’ll cherish the rest of my life. His face is red, eyes dark but wide. He’s shocked—and pissed—to see her here. I hold the image in my mind for just long enough to memorize it, then I turn back.

  As she marches forward, past fae shrinking back in fear, murmuring begins, and I’m reminded of her homeland. Whispers that bounce through the dark leaves of the shade maples. Of the expression on Caelynn’s face as she stood in the Whisperwood for the first time in a decade. For the first time since killing my brother.

  My stomach sinks as she draws close enough for me to see what’s in her hand.

  A head.

  She carries the head of a fae swinging by its white hair, crimson blood dripping onto the marble floor of our banquet hall. Caelynn’s face is impassive, her eyes harsh but glowing with golden light. Her ability to hide the brightness of her eyes long term is a talent I’ve not run across before. She uses emotional pain to hide her power when it suits her.

  Right now, she has no desire to hide the massive amounts of magic flowing through her veins.

  She’s killed another fae from my court. Jasper, I recognize. He’s been a guard since I was a child. That’s about all I know about him, but still, it’s a strange feeling.

  Caelynn stares straight ahead, straight at my father who sits at the center of the feature table, right in line of the aisle. I am only feet from him, but her focus is intense, and her eyes don’t waver from her target even once.

  Guards charge in, feet stomping loudly—a bit delayed, I’ll admit—but my father holds up his hand. He holds our intruder’s gaze warily. The guards freeze, swords still held at the ready.

  Her march ends only when she reaches our table and drops the dismembered head on my father’s still full plate. I flinch at the squishing sound it makes as flesh meets his dinner. Blood pools, dripping onto his fork. His hooded gaze regards her, his features much more controlled than mine. I wrinkle my nose. How does he block out that putrid smell?

  Caelynn leans in, three fingers pressed to the table beside the plate, her long neck stretches over the table, and her blond hair drops into the bloody mess tinging the tips of the strands in red. “Next time you send an assassin for me, make it a better one.” She smiles, eyes alight with wickedness. “Oh, that’s right, you sent two.” Her head tilts innocently. She returns to her upright position and crosses her arms.

  Sick amusement fills my belly, and I have to hold back a smirk at the spectacle. One glance down at the grey skin of the dead face on my father’s plate is sobering enough to keep my wits about me.

  My father’s eyes narrow, but he doesn’t respond. He doesn’t so much as flinch—is he breathing?

  “Don’t underestimate me again,” Caelynn says, leaning back and folding her hands behind her back casually. “Or I’ll be tempted to send the next head to the High Queen and let her know what you think of her ordinances.”

  Caelynn’s banishment was temporarily rescinded while the queen searched for a savior, someone designated to travel into fae-hell to fetch the cure for a terrible plague. As runner up, Caelynn is currently under the queen’s protection. Once the cure is secured, her banishment will be reinstated.

  If my father were to send assassins to the human world to kill Caelynn once this is all over with, no one would bat an eyelash, but right now? While the queen herself has declared Caelynn to be under her protection? It would end very badly for my father if it were made public.

  He wrinkles his nose but otherwise doesn’t speak. His eyes flit down to the head on the table for the first time.

  “Yes, the other is alive,” Caelynn says, as if answering the question he didn’t voice. “You’ll find him on edge of your iridescent forest strung up in a tree.”

  Caelynn turns on her heel, and my stomach sinks for the third time. Not because of what she did or who she is, but because while she was here, she never, not once, looked in my direction.

  WE WATCH IN AWE AS Caelynn leaves the banquet hall. I quickly grab a napkin and use magic to scrawl a note. Then, I hand it to the wide-eyed and tense guard standing behind me. “Be sure our visitor gets this before she leaves.”

  The guard blinks but then nods and stands up straight, his muscles less tense than before. Apparently relieved at his new orders. Inaction tends to be a difficult task.

  The moment the door shuts behind Caelynn, the room breaks into chaos with whispers and shouts. There are close to fifty royal Luminescent courtiers here for our weekend banquet. This was a larger show than I suspect Caelynn expected. Every Friday night, we invite every Lumi-fae of rank to join us for a meal. It’s a weekly tradition. It’s a bit pompous and annoying most of the time, but at least here, my father must keep his sharp tongue mostly to himself.

  Lucky for us, despite the number of fae that witnessed Caelynn’s show, the people in this room are privy to many court secrets, and it’s unlikely for this one to get out.

  “How did she get in here?” my father shouts.

  The captain of the guard scurries to stand before my father, armor clinking erratically. His beard is long and so lacking of color it nearly blends into his shining white armor. “It’s unclear, sir. She snuck by several on-duty guards. We’ll conduct a thorough investigation immediately.”

  “I want those guards banished,” my father announces.

  The captain winces.

  “Without a trial?” my mother whispers. She pulls at her lip anxiously.

  “Caelynn is a shadow walker, Father,” I say. “I imagine it would be quite easy for her to get around even our most astute guards.”

  “That is no excuse! She is our one and only enemy!”

  “Clearly,” I mumble, and my father shoots me a glare that could cut through ice. I raise my eyebrows, but then I sit back in my chair casually. Since I won the trials, I’ve earned more power and influence than I ever have before. More than my father is used to just yet. If I can manage to actually complete the quest I’ve been appointed, I’ll be a shoo-in for the High Court. I just have to survive the Schorchedlands first.

  And before that, I have to figure out how to enter the Schorchedlands—a feat much harder than assumed.

  But for now, the king must accept my voice, particularly in front of the entire court. “Conduct the investigation,” I tell the guard. “We will discuss their punishment in the meantime. However, you can be sure there will be no grace given if it happens a second time. Learn what you can about shadow walkers and how to use our natural abilities against shadow magic. Caelynn is particularly resourceful and powerful. Learn from this mistake and do not underestimate her again.”

  My father purses his lips, something he does when he’s considering being impres
sed. He nods his acceptance of my command to the captain of the guard. The captain nods sharply, his shoulders less tense than only moments before. Then, he marches from the hall.

  Once the whispers settle down, my father gives an impassioned speech to all in attendance. He announces that everyone in the room is duty-bound never to mention what they saw today. Together, we will defeat this great enemy. Yada yada.

  I, however, am eager to be done with dinner, so I can talk to this great enemy before I miss the chance to see her again.

  Caelynn

  The guards allow me to exit through the main gates with no more than a few sneers. I simply wink and smile, playing my part. But I do realize they may have known the guard whose head I just presented to the king in an incredibly brutal manner.

  If I could go back, I’d have found a more private way to make my point. Like maybe his bedroom in the middle of the night. I’d have loved to make the Luminescent Court King pee his sheets. My smile grows wider.

  The patter of rushed footsteps and erratic clinking of metal alerts me to someone approaching from behind. One single guard rushes toward me, and I shift into a defensive stance, but he stops a few feet from me and simply holds out a piece of paper. Wait, no, that’s a napkin.

  My eyebrows pull down as I examine the napkin and unfold it.

  I hope you don’t intend to leave without paying your old ally a visit.

  Remember Raven.

  My eyebrows rise and then lower. The strange message at the bottom aside, my lips curl into a surprising smile. It seems the prince wants to see me before I leave. It’s also a relief that he doesn’t seem to be angry with my actions. I did kill a fae from his court, after all.

  I pause to consider. I doubt I’d be welcome to just walk into the palace for a chat with the prince, even if he’d invited me.

  “Thank you,” I tell the guard then turn and continue my slow walk. I’d had other plans, but now, I suppose I’ll have to alter those slightly. The Queen of The Whisperwood can wait one more day.