Before Rae could ask, the other said, “She has gone to the kitchens.”
“I need to go for help.” Rae wished she could take the mortal with her or promise her that things would get better, but she had no words of comfort.
Sleep soon, Devlin. I need you.
“She doesn’t wake.” The mortal rested a hand on the darkening blue glass. She caught and held Rae’s gaze as she asked, “Where will we go if Faerie vanishes? Will we fade away with it?”
“Faerie won’t disappear. Neither will you.” But even as Rae spoke those words, she wasn’t sure if they were truth or lie. Without the High Queen to direct the world, Rae suspected that Faerie would unravel—and she had no idea what that meant for the faeries and mortals living there.
CHAPTER 23
Devlin slid the key into the door of the motel room with a gratitude that he felt almost embarrassed to admit. It wasn’t that Ani’s driving was bad. There is appeal in chaos. The car, however, had periodically slid the passenger seat so far forward that he was forced to sit with his legs folded into uncomfortable positions. When it wasn’t cramming him into too-tight spaces, it was dropping the seat back so that he was lying completely prone.
Ani, of course, smiled each time—which was probably the only reason the car needed to repeat it over the past several days’ drive at illegal speeds. Neither the Hound nor her steed understood the concept of avoiding attention.
“You speaking to me yet?” Ani’s tone was confrontational, as was her posture. She leaned against the wall next to the doorway. One hand clutched the strap of the bag slung over her shoulder, and the other hand rested on her hip. “Or are you still pretending you’re alone?”
He stared at the angry tilt of her chin. “What do you mean?”
“You haven’t said a word in at least eight hours.” She walked past him and dropped her bag on the bed.
“Eight hours?”
“Yeah.” She spun and glared at him. “Eight silent hours.”
“I was contemplating our situation.”
“Short version? It sucks.” Ani folded her arms.
“I…” He watched her with an affection he needed to quash. All of his High Court traits seemed to vanish in her presence.
And I like it.
She turned her back to him, unzipped her bag, and then added, “You are caught between Banan—”
“No.” He was beside her with a hand over her mouth before the next syllable could be spoken. “Don’t name her or the other one anymore. For safety. Do you understand?”
Ani nodded, and he lowered his hand from over her mouth.
“Why?” She resumed sorting through her bag as if nothing had transpired. Perhaps for a daughter of the Hounds, it wasn’t odd.
“Not only Hounds hear well. We were already found once. They will carry news to her, and there are others who want what she wants.”
“Which ‘she’?”
“Both have their followers. And I’d rather not kill anyone tonight. I could enjoy a fight but…” He glanced at the closed curtains and then back at her.
“Me too.” She smiled at him as if he was something amazing.
It was unnerving to have anyone look at him with such intensity. Devlin forced himself to lift his gaze to meet hers. “I’ll keep you as safe as I can.”
“And?”
“And nothing.” Devlin turned the lock on the door. It wouldn’t stop faeries, but it would keep any wandering mortals out. “If you go nearer my sister without doing her bidding, you’ll die by her hand. If you do that sister’s bidding, you’ll die
by order of the other sister. I’ll be the one ordered to kill you… and for some reason I dislike the idea of your death.”
He kept his distance, staying close to the door, out of her reach.