They’re... green?
I blink, just to make sure I’m seeing things right. Oh, yeah. Even from my place across the room, I can tell that he has the most striking green eyes I’ve ever seen.
From behind me, Dain clears his throat. “As requested, my king.”
“Leave them. Return to your duties, Dain.”
Dain clicks his heels, then retreats.
I have this insane urge to run after him. Anything except approach the imposing Seelie perched on the throne.
So, of course, he calls out a command that I’d give almost anything to be able to ignore.
“Come closer.”
Oh, I really don’t want to. There’s some about him that screams at me to run away. He’s like a predator in a pretty costume, a true wolf in sheep’s clothing. The row of armed Seelie guards standing along his throne doesn’t make him appear any less dangerous, though I’m not fooled. Oberon is by far the biggest threat.
Rys takes my hand. His thumb rubs a circle against my palm, reminding me that we’re in this together.
Okay. Okay.
I follow his lead as he guides us toward the throne.
Oberon gives us an appraising look. I know he sees the gentle way that Rys held my hand as well as the final squeeze before he lets me go, shifting his body so that he’s standing in front of me. But the Summer King doesn’t mention it.
Instead, he says, “Rysdan? And Elle, is it?”
Rys nods, answering for both of us. “Yes, your majesty.”
“Good. Now, before we go any further, I must ask. Rysdan, you were a guard during the Reign of the Damned. I know my former consort had you placed in Siúcra, and Helix spared your head when he raided the prisons. Still, I’d like to hear it for myself. Who has your loyalty?”
“I’m loyal to the Seelie Court, of course. I served Melisandre when she wore the crown. Now that you’ve returned, I’d lay my life down in your name.”
Oberon smiles. I don’t see pointed teeth, not like the imps, but it reminds me of a shark all the same. “Such a pretty way with words. But I’m not asking for your life. Not even that of the human you stand before. I have another way for you to prove your loyalty.”
Rys straightens, and though I didn’t even notice how carefully he shielded my body with his own, I had thought it had something to do with some kind of Faerie law. Now it’s obvious. He’s trying to protect me from the king.
Even as he falls back, moving to my side after Oberon pointed it out, I can tell from the way he leans in that, if he has to, he’s ready to move.
I appreciate it. I’m in way over my head, and while Oberon seems like a good guy, I learned shortly after my arrival that, in Faerie, nobody is a good guy.
“I’ll do whatever you ask of me,” vows Rys.
“I’d expect no less from one of mine. But first—”
Oberon lifts his hand, a regal wave as he gestures toward one of the guards at his back. The Seelie nods, then marches out of the room, disappearing through the same door that Dain led us through.
When the door opens again, it’s Helix who walks back into the throne room. He’s leading two others with him, too. As soon as the Unseelie male and the strange female follow him in, Helix bows his head in Oberon’s dir
ection, clicks his heels, and disappears out through the door again. At another gesture, the rest of the guards all file out, leaving the five of us alone.
Oberon waits until the door has slammed shut again before his grin widens. “Are introductions necessary? I think you might already know each other.”
Huh? I’ve never seen either one of them before.
A moment later, I realize it wasn’t me that Oberon was directing that comment at.
At my side, Rys goes immeasurably still. I glance over at him. His attention is riveted on the pair.