Page 48 of The Ruthless Fae King
We were just tucking into dessert when the temperature plummeted suddenly. The fire sputtered and Marcelle glanced at the servant with alarm.
The poor young boy added two more logs to the fire as he rubbed his hands together. I shivered, pulling my woolen cloak tighter around my shoulders.
Marcelle drummed his fingers along the table, looking at me. “I wonder, Madelynn, could you fight a cold freeze with your wind power? Push it back?”
Even mentioning such a thing, which would lead to taking off these cuffs, nearly made me weep with relief, but I had to play it calm.
I simply nodded. “Yes. I’m sure you heard that when Lucien lost control last time, my mother and I were able to protect my realm as best we could because of our wind power. We pushed the cold back somewhat. I was younger and my powers were not fully trained at that time. If he creates snow, I can push the flakes away from Summer Court and back to him. If he drops the temperature, I can move the clouds to expose the sun.”
Marcelle nodded. “That’s what I thought.Butyou could also peel the skin from my body, as you so aptly said before.”
Hades.He remembered.
I popped a piece of chocolate in my mouth and acted nonchalant. “I could. Just as you could probably light me on fire. I guess you’ll just need to trust me at some point, Marcelle. We are stuck together forever now.”
He stared at me keenly but said nothing more on the matter. I hoped I was playing my slightly pissed but resigned-to-be-his-wife-forever role well. It felt like he was so close to letting me free and seeing me as an ally. If it got colder, if Marcelle thought the Great Freeze was coming back, surely he’d take off these cuffs and let me save everyone.
We ate the rest of the meal in silence and I prayed to the Maker that Marcelle was considering freeing me. Would I push the cold back to save his people? Absolutely. They were innocents in all of this. But not before I killed him first.
“I’m tired and cold. I think I’ll retire to my room for the night,” I told him.
“Goodnight,” he said absentmindedly, watching the fire along the far wall and then looking at the frost covering the windows.
As I walked back to my room to withdraw for the night, I wondered if maybe I should hatch a backup plan. One where in the event that Marcelle never took off these cuffs, I could just flee this place. Being queen of the realm with bright red hair, I might be spotted, but with Birdie’s help in buying food and paying for inns, I might be able to get as far as the Winter border. It was the riskier option, and involved me speaking to Birdie about my plan, so I decided to save it. If by day six of being here Marcelle had not freed me, I would flee or die trying. All I knew was I couldn’t lay with him again. It wasn’t right what he did and I’d never forget it. I’d never be able toadjusthere.
* * *
The restof the night passed slowly, and the temperature dropped. It was hovering around freezing, causing all of the flowers in the realm to wilt and look ill. The clouds had completely blotted out the sun and it was pitch black. I barely slept, tossing and turning as the chill slapped at my face and my fire attendant added log after log, waking me with the sounds of crackling wood.
By morning, I was grumpy and overtired. When I walked with Birdie to breakfast, I noticed Marcelle was gone.
“Eat with me?” I asked her, motioning that she sit down at the table. It was set for two, with a platter of food in the center, and a roaring fire.
She nodded enthusiastically and took a seat next to me. I wanted to keep my relationship with Birdie strong in case I did have to flee and needed her help. I sensed her loyalty to Marcelle wasn’t strong and she would stick by me, but I wasn’t sure.
“Where is Marcelle?” I asked. She seemed to know a lot of the ins and outs around here.
“The king was gone at sun up. Something about the war at the border,” she said.
The fact that Marcelle was now called a king bothered me greatly, but I was more focused on this war.
“Fighting each other.” I clucked my tongue in disapproval. “My grandmother would be beside herself.”
Birdie nodded, lowering her voice to a whisper even though we were alone. “My father thinks the fae should stick together. He voted against the separation.”
I felt relief at that, and wondered if now was a good time to educate Birdie on my backup plan. Looking around again to make sure we were still alone in the dining room, I leaned forward and peered right into her eyes. “Birdie, you know that Marcelle took me from Fall Court against my will and force bedded me to make our marriage legal, right?”
Her cheeks reddened. “He said your father agreed and that he paid a dowry.”
My fingers squeezed the fork I held as I tried to remain calm. “Technically yes, that is true. But he threatened to kill my mother and sister and paid the dowry to keep things legal.” I held up my cuffed hands. “I am a prisoner, Birdie. You know that, right?”
She dipped her head in shame. “I suppose so. Yes,” she finally admitted.
Good. I couldn’t have anyone in denial right now.
“I need you to know that if by the end of my ‘monthly bleeding,’I have not been freed from here, I will run away.”
The words barely left my lips and her head bolted up, looking around frantically for listeners.
