“Yeah, I know.” Rhyland’s brows furrow as he sinks into silence.
“Is everything okay?” I ask worriedly.
Rhyland may be a bit more serious than Kingsley, but he rarely looks worried. He has a lot lately, but that might have to do with the fact that he’s about to be responsible for an entire kingdom and become my sister’s husband.
Rhyland’s frown vanishes as he plasters on a smile. “Of course everything’s fine. I’m here with you, aren’t I?”
I shake my head, my lips threatening to turn upward. “You two are such flirts. One day, it’s going to get you into trouble.”
Kingsley snorts a laugh. “Going to? Try have … many, many times.” He smiles wistfully. “Just last week, I got chased through town by one of the Mystic Willow Bay vampire mobsters, just because I was caught having sex with a very pretty vampire. Granted, it was his girlfriend, but still, he could’ve at least given me a chance to put on some pants.”
A giggle slips from my lips. “You ran through town in your underwear?”
“Underwear?” Kingsley’s brow arches. “Here’s a tip, beautiful little virgin, if the guy doesn’t take off his underwear the first time you have sex, then he’s probably doing it wrong.” As warmth floods my cheeks, he chuckles. “You know, watching you blush never gets old.”
“I’m not blushing. I’m just …” I become more flustered. “I don’t know why you’re always giving me shit about being a virgin when Rhyland’s one, too.”
“Oh, I give Rhyland shit about it all the time.” Smirking, Kingsley pats Rhyland’s arm. “I keep telling him it’s time to make a move before he gets tied up to the queen of bitches and it’s too late, but apparently, my brother is too much of a coward.”
“I’m not a coward.” Rhyland sighs almost sadly. “I just don’t want anyone getting hurt, which would happen if Nadine ever found out. That vampire is batshit crazy. Which was okay when she was a normal vampire, but now she’s going to be queen.” He grimaces.
“There are ways of keeping it a secret,” Kingsley tells him. “Nadine isn’t the queen yet, and until then, she’s not a threat. Just an average vampire who puts too much bleach in her hair.”
Rhyland stares over my shoulder into empty space. “It’s more complicated than that.”
Kingsley pats Rhyland’s shoulder. “Then uncomplicate it.” When Rhyland just shakes his head, Kingsley sighs and looks at me. “Raven, tell him I’m right.”
Normally, I wouldn’t ever admit Kingsley was right, but Rhyland seems so torn up and sad. I don’t ever want him to feel that way.
“He’s probably right. If you want to, you know, have … sex with someone before you have to seal the deal with my bitchy sister, I’m sure we can find a way for Nadine to never find out.” For the love of all blushing vampires, my cheeks are as hot as the pits of Hell. Not to mention nausea is painfully twisting my stomach at the idea of him having sex with anyone, let alone Nadine.
Why is this bothering me so much? Because I hate Nadine?
Yeah, quit lying to yourself, Raven. You know why. You just don’t want to admit it.
“We?” Rhyland’s brow teases upward as he meets my gaze. “I didn’t realize you wanted to be part of this disastrous losing-my-virginity plan. But if you want to, then I’d much rather you play a different role.” He winks.
I playfully swat his arm, my blush deepening. “You two are really on a roll today.”
“You’re the one who offered to help me lose my virginity. I was merely putting my two blood drops in over what role you should play.” Rhyland grins impishly at me. When I narrow my eyes at him, he chuckles, places a kiss on my forehead, then drapes an arm around my shoulders. “Okay, no more talking about Nadine or my virginity. All I want to do until the moon rises is spend some quality time with my best friend.”
“Hey, what about me?” Kingsley fakes a pout.
Rhyland rolls his eyes. “You can do whatever you want, just as long as it’s not driving Raven and I crazy.”
Kingsley gives him a pressing look. “You’re the one who invited me here to keep an eye on things and make sure you don’t do anything stupid. Remember?”
“Yeah, I know,” he mutters with a heavy, almost defeated sigh.
“Well, for that and so I could scare the living nightlights out of pretty, little raven eyes over here.” Kingsley throws a smirk in my direction.
I glare at him, but it’s a playful move. “Just so you know, I’m going to pay you back for that.”
Kingsley rubs his hands together in delight. “I can’t wait.”
I sigh exhaustedly. When Rhyland does the same thing, Kingsley chuckles.
Shaking his head, Rhyland steers me toward the edge of the rock to climb down. As we near the ledge, I spot traces of a purplish glitter on some of the flowers on the ground below, reminding me of the giggle I heard right before Rhyland scared the crazy bats out of me.
“How did you do it, anyway?” I ask Kingsley as I crouch, preparing to climb down.
He stares at me in confusion. “Do what?”
“Make a giggling noise that sounded an awful lot like a sprite.” I point over my shoulder at the glittery purplish residue. “I can’t believe you went so far as to put faerie dust on the flowers just to pull off a prank.” I raise my hand. “No, I take that back. I can believe it.”
The crinkle between Kingsley’s brows deepens as his gaze sweeps over the dirt, trees, and flowers below. “I didn’t make that noise or put that faerie dust down there.” He stiffens, his gaze snapping to mine. “You said you heard a giggle?”
I nod. “Right after you disappeared and right before Rhyland scared the bats out of me.”
Kingsley worriedly glances at Rhyland. “Did someone follow you in?”
Rhyland shakes his head, squatting beside me and tracing his fingers up and down my back. “My king’s powers have been accelerating, so I would’ve known if someone did.”
Kingsley’s expression plummets as his fangs snap out from his gums and he draws a dagger from the leather holster strapped around his shoulders. “Wait here.” He steps toward the ledge of the rock, bending his knees in preparation to jump down. But as laughter floats through the air, the three of us freeze.
“Fuck.” Kingsley poises his dagger in front of him. “Someone or something knows we’re here.”
“Maybe we’ll be okay,” I say, though I really don’t believe my own words. “I mean, just because someone or something knows we’re hanging out here, doesn’t mean they’re going to tell Nadine. And we didn’t do anything wrong. We’re just three friends hanging out.”
Kingsley gives me a really look. “Yes, because Nadine always sees things for what they really are.”
I crinkle my nose. “Yeah, I get your point.”
Rhyland hugs me against his side and kisses the top of my head. “I won’t let anything happen to you. Nadine’s powers haven’t kicked in yet, so really, what could she do?”
“Um, lock me up in a dungeon. Sentence me to death. Feed me to forest demons.” I blow out a tense breath. “She may not have her magical powers yet, but she has the power of ruling, which might be the greatest power of all.”
“I’m a ruler, too.” Rhyland fixes his finger under my chin and turns my head toward him. His eyes blaze intensely as he promises, “I won’t let anything happen to you, no matter what I have to do.”
I swallow the lump in my throat and nod. “Okay. Just as long as you don’t get hurt.”
“As beautiful as this little promising moment is, you guys are forgetting one thing,” Kingsley interrupts. “There’s still something down there.” He points at a cluster of trees. “See that shadow?”
Rhyland and I both nod as he moves his arm protectively in front of me.
“What is it?” he hisses, maneuvering me behind him.
“I’m not sure, but we’re about to find out.” Without warning, Kingsley leaps over the side of the rock and lands on the dirt below.
; Laughter floods the forest again as he takes off toward the figure.
“Don’t worry,” a female voice echoes across the forest. “I’m not going to hurt the girl or your future king. No, they’re going to hurt each other.”
More laughter, and then purplish smoke starts billowing through the trees and clouding the air.
“Get Raven out of here,” Kingsley shouts as he pulls the collar of his shirt over his nose and jogs into the smoke.
Rhyland snatches ahold of my hand and drags me toward the opposite side of the rock. Then he scoops me up and jumps to the ground, landing softly in the dirt. After he carefully sets me down, we dash into the trees, the smoke nipping at our heels.
“Will Kingsley be okay?” I ask, clutching Rhyland’s hand.
Rhyland tensely nods, quickening his pace. “You know he’s the best emperor there is.”
“Yeah, but …” I throw a glance over my shoulder. The smoke has thickened, nearly taking over the forest. “We shouldn’t leave him.”
Rhyland tugs on my arm as he zips through the trees, leaving me stumbling to keep up with him. “When I get you to safety, I’ll come back for him. I need to get you out of here first … I can’t …” He swallows, his fingers constricting around my hand. “I can’t think straight when I’m worried about you.”
I want to argue—I do—but I understand where he’s coming from. Every time he does something even mildly dangerous, worry consumes my mind. But I still don’t feel right about leaving Kingsley behind. Somehow, I need to convince Rhyland that I’ll be okay and that he should go back to help his twin brother.
My lips part. “I think—”
A blur zooms by us and screeches to a halt, causing Rhyland and I to grind to a stop. Rhyland immediately reaches for the knife in his shoulder holster, but then he drops his hand as the figure comes into focus.
Kingsley.
“What happened?” Rhyland asks, pulling me close to his side.
Kingsley’s jaw sets tight. “I’m not positive, but I think the fey queen is out here. Or was, anyway.” He crosses his arms. “Whoever it was took off right after they set off that smoke.”
“But if it was the fey queen, why would she be hanging out in the enchanted forest?” I ask. “And why was she watching us?”
“I don’t know, but it has me nervous,” Rhyland mutters. “If it’s one thing the fey are known for, it’s stirring up trouble.”
“And the queen has a vendetta against vampires,” Kingsley adds with a frown. “Has for centuries.”
I scratch my forehead with my free hand. “Then why in the crazy bats does she come to Mystic Willow Bay every year to dine with the current king and queen?”
“Ever heard the term: keep your friends close and your enemies closer?” Rhyland says, reaching out to tuck a loose strand of hair behind my ear.
I nod, though it was more of a rhetorical question. “That makes sense, I guess. But … still … her being out here seems strange. And then that whole thing about Rhyland and I hurting each other; why would she say that?”
“I have no idea.” Rhyland’s gaze welds with mine. “Don’t worry; that’ll never happen because I’d never, ever hurt you.”
“I’d never hurt you, either,” I promise.
Silence chokes the air as the three of us throw panicked glances around the trees.
Finally, Kingsley breaks the silence. “For now, I think we should keep this to ourselves. But I’m going to ask around; see if maybe a few of my fey friends know something.”
Nodding, we hike out of the trees, separating when we reach the outskirts of my neighborhood. As I sneak back into my home and climb into bed, the fey queen’s words echo through my mind.
“Don’t worry; I’m not going to hurt the girl or your future king. No, they’re going to hurt each other.”
No, I could never hurt Rhyland, and he would never hurt me. I know that truth with my whole heart.
However, as I begin to drift off to dreamland, a strange, aching sensation prods inside my chest. And for the briefest blood drop of a second, I swear I can feel an ominous cloud hovering in my future, filled with chaos, pain, and a hatred for Rhyland.
Rhyland
No matter how many life cycles we suffer through, I enjoy watching Raven sleep. And yeah, I get that makes me sound like a fucking creeper, especially since I’m the one who put her to sleep to begin with, but I promise it’s not as bad as it sounds Yes, I occasionally watch her sleep, but only because she looks so peaceful. Whenever she’s awake, especially after Fate has deemed her queen, she appears tense and nervous. She also carries a deep hatred for me.
Every single lifetime.
It’s a consistent factor in this wretched curse. Raven hates me, sometimes more, sometimes less, but for good reasons. And that’s how the curse is supposed to go. She’s supposed to hate me. Just like I’m supposed to make her hate me by torturing her, casting spells on her, and confusing her to no extent. I’m a puppet. Plain and simple. And only Raven can cut the strings.
I sink down on the edge of her bed and brush strands of hair out of her face. She’s resting on her side with her lips slightly parted, her raven black hair a veil around her head, her snow-white skin pale against the moonlight trickling in through the window. She’s so calm and relaxed, the opposite of when she’s awake.
“I hate this,” I admit the truth aloud, only because she’s sleeping. If she weren’t, the words couldn’t pass my lips, thanks to this goddamn curse. “Hate that we’re in this mess—that I got us into this mess.”
“Aw, Rhyland, is that discouragement I sense? Such a shame.”
The voice in my head makes the muscles in my jaw tick. She rarely contacts me unless she wants to torture me. Well, either that or to demand a visit.
“No. No discouragement here,” I say calmly. “In fact, I think she might break it this time.”
The voice in my head laughs. “On the contrary. She seems to hate you more each life cycle.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” The kiss Raven and I shared after I gave her the lilywolf tiger replays in my mind.
That kiss only happened because Raven instigated it, yet I took advantage of the situation, kissing her like I did before, back before every good thing between us was destroyed. Back before we all made stupid decisions that led to an endless amount of repetitive madness and heartache.
“I always know what I’m talking about,” she snaps. “I’m the one who created this. I’m the one who can end this. I’m the one who controls this.”
I graze my knuckles across Raven’s cheek and smile when her eyelashes flutter. “No, Raven’s going to be the one to end it.”
“Oh, Rhyland, how naive you are.” Laughter echoes throughout my head. “Besides, even if she does manage to break the curse, you’ll all still lose.”
Tension ripples through my body. “What the hell does that mean?”
“Now, why would I tell you when I could have so much more fun watching you find out?”
“That wasn’t part of the deal,” I growl. “When she breaks the curse, everything is supposed to go back to normal.”
“Maybe you should’ve thought about that before you made a deal with a creature like me,” she says. “We always win, no matter what.”
“No,” I whisper. “Not this time. I won’t let you.”
My only response is silence.
Painfully haunting silence.
Raven
I attempt to open my eyes, but heavy exhaustion blankets over me. I’m exhausted, beyond worn out, and can’t quite figure out why or how I even ended up falling asleep.
After I read that journal that revealed my life is set on repeat, that it’ll start over the second I die, which will be soon, my brain had been wired with adrenaline. I planned on reading the journal from cover to cover, then ransacking the room for more clues. But suddenly, I was asleep and dreaming about Rhyland, Kingsley, and I as if we were friends once, a long, long time ago …
My eyes pop open as reality smacks me across the face. What I saw while my eyes were closed wasn’t a dream. It was a memory. I can feel the realness in my chest, in my heart, soul, and mind. Rhyland, Kingsley, and I used to be friends. Nadine was going to be queen once. And the fey queen had been out in the woods that day, spying on us. But I can’t remember why. Can’t remember if we ever found out the truth. Can’t remember anything past that point. The journal did mention something about the fey queen being part of the curse, so that memory had to have taken place before I was cursed.
Why am I even remembering anything at all? I don’t remember the journal mentioning sudden memory bursts of past lives.
My thoughts drift back to something I overheard Rhyland say yesterday—that this time things were happening differently. That I was different. Could that possibly be why memories are resurfacing?
Whatever the reason, I hope I continue to see the past, not only because it might be the key to saving my future, but because it was kind of nice to see myself so happy, even if I was with Kingsley and Rhyland.
“I still can’t believe we used to be friends,” I mutter as I slowly sit up in the four-poster bed.
Aeribella, my lilywolf tiger, is curled up at the bottom of the bed, fast asleep, wiggling a bit when I sit up.
I scoot forward and pet her bluish-black fur, her cat-shaped ears, and the tiny silver pixie wings sprouting from her back, twitching in response.
“You can stay asleep, if you want,” I tell her as she starts to stir. “I’m not even sure what time it is, anyway.”
After she relaxes, I kick off the purple velvet blanket, drag my ass out of bed, and wander over to the table where I left the journal before I fell asleep. Or well, thought I left it, but apparently not.
Trying not to panic, I start ransacking the room, searching the bookshelves and the secret compartment. When I come up empty-handed, I dig through dressers, the armoire, and then the closet. At least half an hour later, the journal is still missing and I start to suspect someone took it while I slept.