Princess of Shadows: A Dark Fae Fantasy Romance Read online

  Then he stopped moving, just letting his breath run over me. I could feel the antsy feeling course through me. I wanted his touch, and I wanted those lips on me. Those brutally beautiful lips.

  “I guess that you’re a slut just like Sasha,” he whispered in my ear and pulled away, gliding backward inhumanly fast on boots coated in mist. As soon as he was away from me, I felt all of my old emotions racing back to me, and it was good that he was further away than he had been.

  “You used magic on me!” I screamed.

  He chuckled and threw his cloak back on. “No,” he said as he pulled the hood down, letting it hang behind him, “there was no magic. You would have been begging me to do less than appropriate things if I’d used magic on you at all.”

  I couldn’t prove it, but I knew that he’d used some kind of weird fairy magic on me. That was the only reason that I could have felt like that. I’d never felt so… so slutty in my life. And there was no way that it was just because he was big and sexy.

  “You’re a liar, Sebastian. Now I know that I can’t trust anything you say.” I stomped away from him, infuriated with how vulnerable I’d been to him, but even more angry at the fact that he might have been telling the truth.

  I glanced at Sebastian out of the corner of my eye, and he was sitting with his back against the tree again, looking at the spot where we’d come out of the warren. I started walking, hoping that simply getting some distance from that obnoxious fairy man would help soothe the feelings that still coursed through me.

  They didn’t make any sense. I was pissed at him. More pissed than I’d been in a long time, yet my body seemed to thrum with the need for his hands on me. At least my breathing wasn’t coming out like some panting puppy anymore.

  I began to run. Running had always helped to clear my mind, and this place, although it was different than anything I was used to, was still the wild. The weird springy grass felt like a wonderful carpet under my bare feet, and for some reason, I felt like I was home.

  Even then, I couldn’t help but look back at Sebastian against the tree. His eyes had turned towards me, but he didn’t get up. He knew that there was nowhere for me to run. It wasn’t like I could hop on a bus bound for humanland. At least not that I knew of.

  I was so lost in this world. So lost about myself and about that damned man. Somehow, even knowing there was an assassin who was supposedly going to try to kill me just didn’t compare to the feeling of lost.

  I closed my eyes before I even turned away from Sebastian and let my other senses open up. I heard the soft buzzing of some kind of insect. They had insects in fairyland? The scent of cinnamon floated in the air. Where did that come from?

  Then there was a very loud snort. I opened my eyes immediately and saw just how close I was to the unicorn. I stopped abruptly, almost falling as I realized that I’d come within fifty feet of the massive creature. I’d been wrong. This wasn’t a horse with a horn on its head. It was a Clydesdale with a horn on its head. My head wouldn’t even reach its back.

  The unicorns that humans had memories of must have been foals. Normal sized and nice. I’d been around horses a time or two, and I knew the pawing at the ground and snorting for what it was. A warning.

  I wouldn’t be able to pet the thing much less come even an inch closer. He, and I was sure it was a he, was extremely unhappy about my proximity. I turned around and ran back the way I’d come. Back towards Sebastian. For all his frustrating attitude, Sebastian was the closest thing to a protector that I had in this place.

  And if that unicorn decided to charge me, he would be my only hope of escape in a field this large. I didn’t want to think about what that horn could do even ignoring the fact that he was a beast that every human knew would have powerful magic.

  I looked behind me and saw him barreling towards me, hooves pounding the ground and throwing up a cloud of sparkling dust behind him.

  “Help!” I screamed as I looked at Sebastian who was still sitting against the tree several hundred yards away.

  The unicorn was getting closer and closer by the second, and Sebastian wasn’t even moving. He just stared at me, his head resting against the trunk and his hands flat on the ground.

  My lungs felt like they were going to give out at any moment, but I kept sprinting away from that terribly sharp horn that I was sure would pierce my back at any moment.

  And then a fog began to rise around me. I didn’t stop running, but I changed direction as soon as it covered my vision. And I felt hands wrap me in an embrace, one arm around my chest, and the other around my mouth, silencing the scream that instinctively tried to escape my mouth.

  “Silence, Rose.” Sebastian’s voice. I listened, hearing a trumpeting and snorting as the unicorn searched in vain for me. Hooves pounded the ground again, and I knew that Sebastian had saved me from yet another brush with death.

  His hand moved from my mouth, and I felt it wrap around my hand. It was strangely cold. Maybe that was what happened when you used magic? I was blinded by the fog that was so thick that I wouldn’t have been able to see my hand in front of my face. Yet, the light seemed to pass through the mists easily enough because it wasn’t dark.

  Sebastian tugged on my hand, and I followed him. How had he gotten to me so quickly? I didn’t trust this man, but I trusted myself even less at this point. How was I supposed to know that a unicorn would be so aggressive? I hadn’t tried to hurt it. I hadn’t even really gotten that close to it.

  A horse would never have acted like that, even a wild one. It may have rushed me, but it wouldn’t have pursued me like that. Then again, a horse didn’t have a giant horn on its head to gore people that annoyed it.

  The fog began to fade, and I found myself back at the tree that Sebastian had been sitting in front of. He was still sitting there. The hand that had held me was fading just like the fog, and I blinked.

  He’d seemed so real, but he’d been just another copy. Like the ones in the tunnel. “Why didn’t you tell me that unicorns were so aggressive?” I asked accusingly, my hands on my hips even though I was still shaking from my brush with death.

  “You didn’t ask?” he said with a shrug. “It’s generally a good idea to expect everything in the Immortal Realm to be aggressive. Then you’ll be pleasantly surprised when something isn’t. But, unicorns are one the worst since they don’t die easily, but they’re easy to aggravate.”

  I blinked a few times trying to register what he’d said. “Have you killed a unicorn?”

  “No. As I said, they’re tough creatures to kill. Especially when they’re in a herd, and they’re almost always in a herd. He’s young, and it’s mating season, so he’s probably trying to find a mare to breed. The older males in his herd wouldn’t have let a young stallion like him anywhere near their mares.”

  “I never would have stopped here if there’d been a herd, but I’m not worried about a solitary young male. They haven’t learned enough magic to deal with mine.”

  He stood up and smiled, and his eyes seemed even mistier now, as though there were almost transparent clouds beginning to cover his pupil.

  “Your eyes change color,” I said softly, completely ignoring the comments about unicorn mating. My mind wasn’t ready to think about things like that.

  “So do yours. It’s a Fae thing. But it’s been long enough. Time to go. There’s another warren just a short walk away from here that will lead to a safehouse where we can spend the night. Tomorrow, we need to make you smell like another woman.”

  He grinned and glanced down at me before chuckling to himself, “And maybe pick up some clothes that don’t make you look so terribly human.” I glanced at my clothes and realized that being in the mists had made all of my clothes damp. Especially my shirt where his copy had held me.

  I’d felt at least a little embarrassed because of them before, but now I felt more humiliated than when I’d had to wear that skank outfit to the club.

  “Some clothes and shoes would be nice,” I said
in agreement. “Though, the grass is nicer here.”

  He nodded and began to walk away from the pond we’d sat down by. Into the woods. I glanced at the unicorn who was still grazing in the same area as he had been. He looked up and watched me as though he was trying to decide whether or not he should pursue me again.

  After a second, he put his mouth to the grass, and I felt just a little bit better. Who knew that a freaking unicorn would be the first thing to try to kill me?

  Then I realized that it wasn’t. Sebastian was. He’d come to kill me, and I still wasn’t completely sure he wasn’t going to. All I knew about him was that he’d stolen me away from my life and brought me to a world where, according to him, everything was going to try to kill me. Even unicorns.

  Everything else was based on what he’d told me. The assassin could be trying to rescue me. I had no proof that I was anything other than human. All I knew was that everything had turned insane the moment that I’d seen him.

  I followed him anyway. What else was I supposed to do?

  Chapter 9

  Sebastian

  I was not a fan of this woman. Queen or not. She talked incessantly. Every moment that we finally had a moment of silence, she began jabbering. I’d never met another fairy who could manage to annoy me as much as her. Except maybe Seraphina. Maybe. At least I had never had to travel with Seraphina.

  “So, can all fairies do this whole mist thing? Or is that just a Tinkerbell thing?”

  I pulled my hood up trying to keep from showing her just how annoying she was. If, on the very unlikely chance, she was a Queen, the last thing I wanted was for her to realize that I disliked her this much.

  “My name is Sebastian. Please stop referring to me as Tinkerbell if you want me to answer any more of your idiotic human questions.”

  I gave her a moment to respond, and she seemed to consider it before nodding. I’d saved her life while putting mine in jeopardy, and she struggled to say my name. This is why I didn’t deal with the Mortal Realm or humans.

  “All fairies have powers, but they differ based on bloodlines and other things. Most of them tend to have power over a specific element or piece of the world. Some are natural gardeners because they can help the plants grow more quickly or more distinctly. They’ll build entire homes out of living plants.”

  “Others can command water and tend to work on or around the water, creating currents where there aren’t any or sensing fish hiding far below the surface.”

  “The mists are mine. It’s an uncommon power, but that’s probably for the best. There aren’t a lot of ways for the Fae to make use of the mists other than for murder.”

  “Interesting. So, what’s mine?” she asked like I was some kind of seer capable of reading the soul.

  “I have no clue. You’ll have to figure that out yourself or maybe with the help of a seer. Maybe we could just be quiet for a little bit? The warren is close, but I have to sense it, and it’s a lot easier without all the talking.”

  She finally shut her mouth for more than two seconds, and I was grateful that she believed that fairy truth. As with all fairy truths, it wasn’t a lie. It was easier to feel the warrens hidden beneath the surface of this Realm if I was able to concentrate. Once upon a time, a thousand years ago when I was learning how to shadow walk with Nyx at my side, I would have needed quiet. Now it was nearly as easy as running.

  Rose continued to look around us as we passed through the forest. The trees were different than her human ones. Little berries hung from the limbs in small rings. Half were poisonous and half were delicious. If you saw only the berries, you’d never be able to tell the difference, but underneath the berries, the leaves of the poisonous rings were edged in white. The edible ones had leaves edged in black.

  A blue-skinned pixie sat on one of the trees picking berries out of a ring and shoving them into its mouth. It began to scream at us as we passed, and Rose jumped, her body brushing against mine.

  I inhaled sharply as my body reacted instinctively, catching her before she fell over me. The touch of her skin sent sharp reminders of what she could be. Dark and light mixed in a weaving, twisting blend of powers that was intoxicating to a being such as me.

  She jerked away from me, and I knew that she felt the attraction to me that all Fae felt. Somehow, the only time that she’d ever shown me anything even close to what other Fae had shown me, she had been angry at feeling those emotions. No one else had ever been angry that they’d lusted after me.

  The memory of how she’d reacted was burned into my mind because unlike the thousands of other partners I’d had throughout my life, when I pulled away, she didn’t beg me to keep going. Instead, she’d turned away as well.

  Maybe it was just because she didn’t know my reputation. Maybe it was because I hadn’t used magic. Maybe it was because she had that twisted bloodline. It had been a very long time since I’d had any interactions with someone from both sides.

  I found the warren and stopped. Rose waited patiently as I took her hand and made the transition into the tunnel. When I stepped into the tunnel and pulled her along, she managed to stay upright, a surprising feat from someone not used to shadow walking.

  She quickly gave me a smile to cover up the discomfort of sliding between realms. It wasn’t like using a portal. Portals were permanent bridges between the worlds. There were no gaps like there were when using the shadows to cross over. Many people believed that the space between the worlds and the warrens was where people went when they died.

  I listened, letting the mists enhance any sounds. Warrens were excellent places to stage an ambush, though the number of people capable of shadow walking made it difficult to overwhelm an enemy. Slipping in and out took almost no energy, and unless the traveler was extremely wary, it was easy to be caught from behind.

  Luckily, we didn’t have far to go. I didn’t relish the idea of carrying Rose again. If I hadn’t been so focused on fleeing, it would have been difficult to touch her like that without becoming inflamed with hunger with no possibility of sating it.

  Thinking about that forced me to realize that I’d used far more magic than I should have. Normally, I’d have enjoyed a relaxing night with one of the many female Fae who would welcome me. They were always more than willing to let me feed on them in return for giving them a night they’d never forget. For some reason, I didn’t feel like I could do that with Rose near me.

  I turned around and began walking. A small squeak came from Rose, and she covered her mouth. She already understood the dangers of these tunnels which was slightly impressive. Humans, and half-bloods who had grown up as humans were notoriously stupid. She pointed at her feet, and I nodded. Mists coated her bare feet, cushioning her footfalls and protecting them from any jagged points in the stone.

  I hadn’t told her that I would do that, and it must have surprised her. I made a mental note to explain what I was going to do. I rarely traveled with other people, so I wasn’t used to having to explain each and every thing that I did. It would be much better once I could get her stashed somewhere so I could deal with the real problem of what to do about Nyx and Seraphina.

  She recovered well enough at least, falling into step behind me. My fingers trailed the rock, sensing picture after picture of the shadow that I would step through if I slid between the realms.

  Some went to the Mortal Realm, but the vast majority went to the Immortal Realm. These tunnels were connected to both, but the warrens were closer to the Fae.

  After only a few minutes, I took Rose’s hand silently, and I made the transition. We stepped out of the shadow of a tree, appearing from the ground as though we were floating out of a hole. This time, Rose stumbled slightly, but I caught her, my hood slipping off my head in the process.

  “You did well,” I said softly. Her eyes stared into mine, and her green eyes slowly turned a bright amber. I felt her desires stirring inside her as my hands held her bare arms.

  Lightning bolts of power began to flood my hand
s, and I felt the hunger growing. That power teased me, tempting me to push her into something she would regret. The hunger of an incubus was not like an earthly hunger. There was no growling stomach, no hunger pains.

  Instead, it was a slowing of the body. A slowing of the mind. Pains in the extremities.

  I wasn’t there yet, but I needed to be careful. My body knew it. I’d spent the majority of my life with a topped-off tank of power, and I’d become careless. I shouldn’t have made the replica yesterday. I should have simply run and caught her. Even a unicorn would have retreated from me. He would have smelled my power and backed off if I had made no aggressive moves toward him.

  I’d been showy, and now I was feeling the hunger returning. It would be many days before I would be able to feed again. I glanced down at Rose, and the thought flashed through my mind. Unless she were willing…

  No. She was too inexperienced. Regardless of how annoying she was, no one’s first time should be with an incubus. It would ruin their experiences for the rest of their lives. And there was no way that an incubus could be monogamous.

  I pulled away from her and pointed at a cottage in the distance. Simple and small, no one would expect a man of my power and prestige to stay in a place like this, much less own it. I’d even told the gardener to let the flowers that grew inside the cobblestone wall stay a little overgrown.

  “That’s beautiful,” Rose said, her voice more chipper than I’d expected. “Is it yours?”

  “One of many, but I happen to like this one more than most of the others. It’s where I would choose to live if I had the option.”

  She nodded, surprisingly quiet as we began to walk towards the cottage. The wooden gate squeaked as I opened it. Rose glanced around the front of the house, smiling at the flowers that grew along the wall and the statuaries that had been placed throughout the flowers.

  The statuaries were simple stones that had been carved by a local stoneworker into the shapes of various animals from both Realms. A small rabbit sat amongst the vines of a honeysuckle and a boggart was perched in the split of a rose bush.