An endless darkness waited for her, and in its depths the tiny flame of a blue-smoke dagger. That dagger waited for Eurydice,somewhere in this wide world. And together, we would find it. I would cut down anyone in her way.
If I didn’t stand at her side when she faced the deep dark, no one would. So I had chosen to be herveyre. Not her slayer… her protector. Wherever there was autumn magic to be found, I had rein to use it.
Before its antlers left my chest, the stag had spoken one sentence into my mind:She will give her the key.That was all, and then its light had passed off me and its voice faded with it.
Whowould give whomwhichkey?
In the throne room, Haskel set a hand on my shoulder as Eurydice passed up the staircase.
“Don’t,” I said.
“Eh?”
“Whatever ancient adage you’re about to say, I don’t want to hear it.”
His hand remained where it was. “Wasn’t about to say anything.”
Around us, the fae in the throne room had fallen back as though I had stepped in straight from the winter court. The spot on my chest still stung, though the light had dissipated.
My hand still remained there, over the dagger.Herdagger. “I need to talk to her.”
“Wouldn’t recommend that.” Haskel’s hand dropped away. “Choose your moment, young buck. This isn’t it.”
My gaze was still on the landing, though she no longer stood there. “And what would you know about moments?”
“I was married once, you know.”
“Married once in eight hundred years?”
“For two hundred of them. Till she got sick of me.” He cleared his throat. “I did pretty good the first hundred years. Point is, now isn’t the time,veyre.”
“When will be the time?”
“When she’s ready.”
I forced my gaze over to the old fae. “And how will I know when that is?”
He turned away. “You’ll know.”
“Where are you going?”
He didn’t glance back. “To talk to her.”
“Why doyouget to talk to her?”
“I’m her master-at-arms.” He got to the first step, set his hand on the bannister. “And she likes me.”
With Haskel’s departure, the throne room seemed to deflate. The other fae dispersed; none spoke to me. What would they have to say, anyway? Nothing good.
I was the firstveyrein centuries. The last one had killed the greatest queen to ever live.
I needed Eurydice to know that wouldn’t be her fate.Ourfate.
I lasted twenty minutes before I was climbing the stairs, striding down the hallway to her chamber door—the one I knew she’d insist on, no matter that the queen’s chambers were four times as large.
It hadn’t taken me long to feel like I knew her. It had taken even less time to care about her.
With every step toward her, the hookpull eased. Somehow, the longing didn’t.