Chapter 29

Every moment I spent here was a moment spent not reaching Lorelei and Adrius before they crossed into the Glades of Oakenwylde. Once they reached the protective magic of the High Order of Wizards, there would be no finding them. I had no idea if the Wizards would be able to devise a counter-means for reopening the veil, but they most certainly would not know that the Shades had.

Yet even knowing this, I still felt unable to leave. There remained one thing more that needed my attention. And I would find it in only one place. Keelian's office. The Shades had plans and now those plans involved me. Were they plotting to attack the Faerie realm…the Winter Court perhaps, or maybe the Summer Court? Of course I would not play a part in either deed. But I needed to know what they were up to now, before they called upon me, so I could be prepared for whatever disaster they had orchestrated with my father.

****

It had been some time since I'd used charms and flirtations to gather information. But I went with what the situation called for. One smile and the Shade charged with overseeing Keelian's private quarters seemed willing to hand over anything I desired. Which in this case, was access to Keelian's hidden office. A place not meant for prying eyes or outside visits. The map I'd gleaned from the Shade was more than useful. It was enchanted and led to all sorts of secret places, highlighting which beings were in them.

Waiting for Keelian to take leave and head back to other parts of their compound left me with wide open access to his room. I slipped in unnoticed and found the pages of their plans spread carefully across the stone table—diagrams and ledgers, random markings in foreign languages. Some of which I'd never seen before, but much of it I was able to decipher due to my previous connections with their scripts.

I read over the page Keelian himself had been working on not a day before. They were planning an attack—in that I'd been right. But it wasn't the Faerie realm they were after. Nor the Elssarian realm either. The target of their attack was one I'd never even considered. And it was one that curdled my stomach where I stood. I glanced at the words scrawled on the page, reading and rereading to be certain what I'd understood was true. I slumped back against the chair as the realization hit me. They were controlling the veil. It all made sense now. The human realm. They were planning to attack the mortals.

I lifted another page, one outlining their exact plans of attack—Drearyton Cove…Lorelei’s home town—when the map lit up.

Keelian. He was returning. I leapt to my feet, shoved the map into my pocket, and darted for the window. It was dark, and difficult to determine how far the drop was, but with this being the only way out, I had no choice. The compound was surrounded by water, so I would have to take my chances that if the fall didn't kill me, the sea creatures wouldn't either. The door opened, and Keelian breezed in just as I leapt from the window ledge into the unknown darkness.

I landed hard, in swampy mud. The fall jarred one bone into the next, but I managed to climb back onto my feet. It took me some time to get free, with the sticky ooze determined to keep me there, but when I did, I made for the forest trod that led to Sylos, without looking back.

****

Of course. It made complete sense, and I was an idiot not to have realized it sooner. That was the reason behind their need to control the veil. I'd foolishly believed it was their gluttonous hunger for power. But they had something far more devious in mind. Attacking the world of humans. Lorelei's world.

I raced back to the Dwarf's hovel to find Sylos. With each step, my feet pummeling the forest floor, I tried to figure out what to do about it.

I burst into the cottage to find Sylos poring over maps of his own. He folded them quickly and stowed them beneath his coat. I might have found his hasty actions odd were I not already so preoccupied.

"There you are, mate. I was wondering if you planned on returning alive this night." He winked. "So how did you make out?"

"Too well," I muttered.

He frowned. "And what does that mean? Did you find answers?"

"I found answers." I found more than I could ever have imagined finding. My father's plan had been to invade the human world. Without seeing his name on a single parchment, I knew it reeked of the sort of tyranny he was infamous for. He'd convinced the Shades to undertake this attack, and offered the aid of his only son to seal the deal. Promising them what? And to what end? They could scarcely withstand the sunlight. Promising them anything of fortune in the human world was akin to promising a drowning man water. What could they possibly want with a world they could not survive in?

"I’d rather not get into the details right now. We’ve other more important matters at hand."

Sylos tapped his heel against the wood, studying me with a knowing gleam in his eye. "Tell me you will reconsider your plan."

Taking a seat across from him, I glanced up. "What plan?"

"Whatever plan has you so lost in your own thoughts. I know you, and I know you have a plan."

"If you insist. But I feel I have to tell you, paranoia isn't your most attractive quality."

"If it is the Shades who are thwarting us, then it is doomed to failure." He grabbed my forearm abruptly. "Listen to me, mate, I have my own plan. I know what I'm doing, and I've worked this out so the outcome is the best for everyone involved."

I leaned back, thrumming my fingers on the table in slow motion. "How is it you think you have any clue what outcome I want?"

"You want the girl, yes?" He didn't wait for me to answer. "I know what I'm talking about, Zanthiel. Reconsider your plan, and do this my way. We get the girl, take her to Oberon as requested, and eventually she will be yours again. You have to trust me." His eyes were wild with fervor. "Do you?"

I repressed a heavy sigh. "Do I?" I repeated idly. His words floated around my head, while my attention was drawn to the shadowy brush beyond the window. I swear I saw movement.

"Zanthiel?" His voice rose louder. "Are you hearing me?"

"Yes," I said darkly, "I am hearing you. Those without ears are hearing you. And you have nothing to worry about, Sylos. I have things under control. It is you, who needs to trust me."

Sylos had no knowledge of my full intent. I'd believed it was safer for him that way. He could plausibly deny having any knowledge of my actions. But perhaps the time had come to reveal what I planning, at least as much of the plan as I'd worked out. Oberon would be enraged, but he, like all monarchs, was only serving his own interests. Faery Royals dealt with their offspring as if they were trading sacks of flour…commodities to be traded and used at will. Everyone in this realm wanted Lorelei dead. Even in her own world they were hunting her. Her magic made her a threat and a target for so many. I realized in that moment if her life were to come to an end, many would mourn her loss. But only one being would be damaged beyond repair by her demise.

Me.

Her death would be my ruin.