The Darkling Lord: Court of the Banished book 1 (Annwyn Series 4) (6 page)

He didn’t move and he didn’t respond. She couldn’t tell if she was getting to him or not. But if he couldn’t kiss a human without them losing their soul…perhaps there was a way to get close without needing to be in his inner circle. Pillow talk could be more useful than what was said in a strategy meeting.

Her fingers traced up the front of his shirt. “And now that I am here, I find myself even more intrigued. The ambition of a fairy with heart of a human…it is an interesting combination.” Those words were all truth. Seducing Henry would be a delight.

“Ambition is not just a fairy trait.” He covered her hand with his. His skin was cool. His fingers and the back of his hand were covered in fine white scars.

“Maybe not, but it’s one we admire.” She took another step closer. Now they were toe to toe, with their hands trapped between their bodies. “One I admire.”

Would he break the contact first? Would he realize that she was playing him or be drawn in? It would be no hardship to kiss him. Her heart was beating too fast, but she was too experienced to let desire show. This certainly wouldn’t be the first time she’d used sex to either seal a deal or gain a favor. Did he realize how hard fairies gambled? Or what he had to lose?

She leaned a little closer, her nose almost brushing his. He didn’t smell like a fairy. Fairy men tended to smell of leaves and summer…or cold and winter, depending on the season. Darah inhaled. Henry smelled of something different. Skin and something spicier.

Something that made her heart a little erratic. She wasn’t supposed to feel attraction. This was about trapping him and learning more about his plans. He wasn’t fairy and he could be lying. Humans lied. Greys probably lied. His lineage was dubious at best, deplorable at worst.

“You like my plans?”

“I like the size of your plans,” she whispered against his lips.

He laughed, soft and deep. “I can tell when I’m being taken for a ride, Darah.”

His words were like a slap. It was all she could do not to flinch and pull away. He was a darkling. He was mortal and afflicted with a soul; he shouldn’t be immune to her.

Henry’s fingers brushed her cheek. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy it anyway.”

His lips touched hers. It was barely a kiss, as if he were afraid that he’d somehow kill her in that delicate moment. Her heart clenched. Would he? No, he only killed humans because they had souls.

He drew back a fraction. “I’m not used to kissing unless it involves stealing and killing.”

When was the last time she had kissed someone for reasons other than to gain an advantage? She couldn’t remember, and kissing Henry would be no different. That was almost a pity.

Almost.

But she didn’t let herself dwell on it. He was a darkling, beneath her consideration, and she was there just to gather information and report back to Felan before claiming her rightful place on his Council. There was a lot riding on this kiss. Henry had to want more. As he’d said, he had to enjoy the ride enough that he didn’t realize what her true goal was.

She closed the small gap between their lips and kissed him properly, her mouth learning the shape and feel of his. At first his lips were unyielding, betraying his lack of experience. When her tongue brushed his lips, his mouth softened and he let her take control. His grip on her hand loosened and she let it glide over his chest to his shoulder and then his neck. His hair tickled her fingers.

With the sun on her back and his hand moving delicately over her hip, it was all too easy to sink into the moment and let herself enjoy the kiss for what it was. A promise that there could be more.

And she wanted more.

All she had to do was forget about the reason why.

She knew how to enjoy each encounter for what it was as well as what it was worth.

It would be no effort to enjoy her time with Henry. She’d expected this job to be less than pleasant and she was finding the opposite to be true. Perhaps the mortal world did have a certain allure.

Gradually the kiss ended, a last taste, a last touch, but neither of them stepped away.

He sighed. Because it had ended or because he’d realized what he’d been missing? “We should get back. I have plans to make.”

“What plans?” As soon as the words left her mouth she knew that her question had been too bold.

His body tensed and his expression once again became guarded. “Are you interested in my plans or interested in helping?”

There was only one correct answer even if it wasn’t really true. “Helping, of course.”

It wasn’t a total lie either. She was interested in where his ambition would take him and how far he’d push things before he started breaking the immutable laws of Annwyn.

F
or the rest
of the first day, pretty much all the Greys avoided her, even if they didn’t hide their interest. She, however, had no interest in them. The only fairies she cared about were the ones close to Henry: Penn, Kaid and Marlis.

But she couldn’t insinuate herself with them without it being both obvious and insincere. So she was forced to bide her time, which felt a lot like sitting around and doing nothing except watching the many televisions, in what had once been a sports bar. It appeared that humans would bet on anything, though they only gambled with money and not with anything of consequence.

What was the point of gambling if not to win favors and status?

From the shadows she was watched. She ignored the Grey. Henry was avoiding her, but he hadn’t forgotten about her. She grudgingly admitted that he was playing smart and safe, which probably meant that he was hiding something.

There had been no TVs the last time she was in the mortal world. While many things had changed, many were still the same. Of course she also remembered what the world was like after the Black Plague when the old and King and Queen had been fighting. This was very similar, except this time it was global and on the news.

Maybe it had been global last time and she hadn’t realized. She’d been so young the last time, barely sixty in human years, little more than a child in Annwyn terms. A fairy living at Court could live for thousands of mortal years. Not immortal but close enough for humans to not know the difference.

Humans moved on with their lives doing the best they could. Like last time there were empty towns and full churches. Darah was considering leaving the casino and seeing what she could find out about the Mayor—it paid to know as much as possible about all the players in a game—when Marlis glided over.

The woman moved as though the casino was hers. It was no wonder Eyra had banished Marlis. She was too confident and in control even for a fairy. The Grey that had been supervising Darah left the bar, so it was just her and Marlis.

Darah swallowed, but resisted the urge to stand and display her discomfort at being cornered. Perhaps this could work in her favor. Although from the grim look on the Grey’s face this wasn’t an offer of friendship, or even a welcome.

“Darah, recently removed from Court.” Marlis tilted her head. “I understand your slippery words better than most. I was like you once, with a place at Court. I know you want to go back at any cost. We’d all like that.” She smiled. It was brittle and looked painful, but beneath the unhealthy pallor and the jutting bones there was an echo of beauty. While her hair had thinned and become fragile, her mind was as sharp as the day she’d been forced from Annwyn. Marlis was perhaps the most dangerous fairy here. And she knew it. “All except Henry, that is. He isn’t like us.”

Darah was nothing like the rest of them either, but she wasn’t going to point that out. “True. He has a soul.”

Marlis made a small noise that could’ve been agreement or disdain at Darah for stating the obvious. “You swanned in here and turned his head.”

“That wasn’t my intention.” At least not at first.

“Maybe not and yet it has happened.” Marlis reached into her silk gown and withdrew a metal key. She placed it on the bar next to Darah. “He has invited you to stay here more permanently.”

That was an offer Darah wasn’t going to turn down. She reached for the key to the casino, but Marlis placed her hand over Darah’s. Her skin was cool and dry. And while Darah had no doubt she could pull free, there was something in Marlis’s eyes that made her hesitate.

Was it pain? Jealousy? What exactly was Henry’s relationship with this woman?

“I too turned heads before the lack of magic in my blood did this to me.” Marlis lifted her hand, but the chill remained on Darah’s skin. No fairy lived forever, and banishment could happen to anyone.

“Did you turn his?” The idea that Henry would sleep with a Grey was both repulsive and… was that disquiet in her gut? Was it pity? He couldn’t kiss a human without killing them so he’d taken up with a Grey…and now her?

Marlis laughed as though she knew exactly what Darah was thinking. “I will not let you derail him now he has found purpose.”

She turned and walked away.

Darah gritted her teeth, torn between letting the exchange pass and letting Marlis have the last word.

“Is that a threat?”

Marlis glanced over a boney shoulder. “I am well past idle threats. Sleep with him, get what you need to report back to Annwyn, but consider the impact of your words on Henry, on the banished that seek his protection and the mortals of this city.” She turned to face Darah. “And if none of that matters to you, which I doubt it does, remember what it’s like to be betrayed.”

Darah drew in a breath. Marlis knew far more about her than she’d let on.

“I’m sure you are a better fairy and a better player than the banished Shea ap Greely ever was. I hear he’s dead. Should I offer condolences or congratulations?”

For a moment Darah couldn’t breathe at all. The burn of betrayal swallowed up every rational thought. She’d buried the pain under smug satisfaction that he’d gotten what he’d deserved…and yet for a time they had been happy, even if love had never been part of their marriage. He had betrayed her and wounded her and set her on this path. And while it had played in her favor that didn’t change what had happened or the way people had looked at her when they’d realized what was going on. He might have broken his word, but she hadn’t seen it coming. He had been a better player than her.

Marlis knew all of that. Had she seen Shea after he was banished or simply heard about him? Darah couldn’t bring herself to ask. Nor could she give her word that she wouldn’t betray Henry. Her vow to Felan carried much more weight and consequence.

“Neither.” She didn’t want to think of her husband or her marriage anymore. Being with Henry would be the perfect distraction, and like any fairy she always mixed business and pleasure.

“Mmm.” Marlis gave a small nod. “Fairies aren’t nearly as heartless as we like to think. I liked the young Felan…I’d hate to think his mother corrupted him the way she did so many.” She strode out of the room before Darah could come up with a suitable response.

Maybe there was none. Marlis already knew far too much. But if she already knew, there was no need for Darah to be delicate in her pursuit of Henry.

W
hile Henry knew
he shouldn’t have kissed Darah, it hadn’t stopped him from reliving and enjoying the experience. It had occurred to him before that the only person he could kiss was a fairy.

Being with Marlis had confirmed that. Since her, he hadn’t had another Grey lover. They were worse off than him and he knew how it would end. He always knew how his affairs would end. However, Darah was different. She excited him in all the right places. Unfortunately Court fairies usually wanted nothing to do with a darkling bastard who didn’t even know his real name.

Except Darah, which had made him instantly suspicious.

That she hadn’t denied playing him only added weight to his paranoia. For the past three days he’d had a Court fairy wandering around his casino, his city, poking her rather lovely nose into all of his business. And he kept on inviting her to get closer. He liked to think it was because that was the smart thing to do, but he wasn’t very good at lying even to himself.

He wanted her. He was tired of being lonely and she was offering. One night or ten, he didn’t really care. The knowledge that she might stab him in the back as soon as he took her to bed was all that was slowing him down.

Every time he looked at her all he wanted to do was kiss her again. If she caught him looking, she smiled as if thinking about exactly what they could be doing after they’d finished kissing.

He ignored the lust pulsing through his body. He’d told no one, not even Kaid, Penn or Marlis the truth—that Darah wasn’t exiled. He should, but they’d want her to leave straight away because she was a security risk.

He walked with Kaid toward the river. Neither man spoke, both taking in every change in the city. It had become a bit of ritual come evening. By morning, Kaid would be back at the casino, once again a man. The kelpie needed to spend time as a horse and in water. As long as Henry had Kaid’s bridle he wasn’t free to leave, but a kelpie could never be tamed either. The bridle was the sore point between them, and Henry was sure it was the only the thing that stopped Kaid from killing him for fun.

He trusted the fairy horse less than he trusted fairies.

Today’s route took them past what had once been the vibrant downtown area. Even now it was trying. There were a few restaurants, and the other casino was open. Bastard. How much of a fee had the owners paid the mayor? Was it more or less than the deal offered to him?

Was Darah a security risk, or had that ship sailed the moment she’d found him and seen what was going on?

He bit back the sigh. The thing was, this whole place was a security risk in Annwyn’s eyes. If Darah was here to investigate and make a report—which he was sure she was—then he at least wanted a good report to go back. Something that said he was no threat to Annwyn and that his work was beneficial to the humans. If other Court fairies were wandering around the mortal world helping out, there was no harm in him and his Greys doing the same.

He caught himself. They weren’t his Greys. They were here by choice.

Why, he had no idea.

Well, that wasn’t entirely true. After Sulia had blackmailed Greys in her failed quest for the throne, everyone seemed to be of the opinion that safety in numbers mattered. They thought he could help them because he’d helped free Sulia’s hostages. He’d owed Verden and in assisting he’d cleared that debt. Being indebted to a Court fairy was never a good thing. Though Verden had never abused that debt and Henry had been happy to help.

“More Greys arrived today.” Kaid broke the silence. His gaze slid to the three teenage boys loitering on the opposite footpath.

One of the boys flashed a gun. Kaid smiled and did the same.

As a man Kaid had the grin and eyes of an ice cold killer, when he changed into a horse he was just as deadly. Henry had had the misfortune of witnessing both first hand. Had Kaid been like that before his years of servitude for the mob in New York, or since fleeing Annwyn on four feet before discovering he could also have two? Henry had never asked, even though they’d become friends before Henry had saved Kaid from the mobster. Friends may not be the right word…but they weren’t enemies.

“I know.” Every time he turned around there were more Greys…and now a man in exile who’d fought against the King on Sulia’s side. He was still angry with Felan and swearing retribution. Most of the Greys had laughed. Henry hoped it was true laughter, not false designed for his ears. That kind of talk would bring Annwyn down on them, him, hard. What would happen to Kaid then?

He had no idea what Annwyn thought of escaped fairy horses.

“You should be careful of Darah.”

Kaid laughed. “All fairies know what I am.”

“I don’t think she does.” She hadn’t said anything, but she hadn’t asked any questions either.

Kaid grunted. “I am what I am, I do not hide. You should be the one watching her. Her plans for you are clear.”

Great.
How many others had noticed the attraction? Henry changed the topic. “Do you hunt tonight?”

Once a fairy animal left Annwyn there was a craving that couldn’t be filled except by blood. And once blood had been tasted they could never return. It was why the Hunter must be careful with the hounds. Human blood had given Kaid the ability to change form. It was easy to forget that he wasn’t a man who could become a horse, but a horse that could become a man. Humans had vampires all wrong as Kaid never hunted in human form.

Kaid considered for a moment. “Only for blood, not for meat. Others will hunt for meat tonight though.”

“What do you mean?”

“Some of your Greys that pass for humans have been consorting.”

Sometimes Kaid spoke more like a Court fairy than he realized. “You mean having sex?”

“Yes.”

Damn it. Were they trying to make a bunch of baby darklings? They were obviously willing to use some magic to be seen, and to make themselves look passable—shortening their life for a few minutes of fun that could create a lifetime of trouble.

While fairies needed humans to procreate, a banished fairy getting a human pregnant would only create darklings. Only children born in Annwyn would be soulless fairies. He was always careful in his liaisons with humans because he didn’t know if the child would be mortal or darkling and he didn’t want to find out.

He’d have to have words with them, and make sure there was consent. Greys tended to be a little loose when it came to honesty and fairness with humans…fairies tended to play loose with humans in general.

However, when it came to Greys, Henry thought that it was simply because they had no one to make them accountable this side of the veil. In Annwyn, they’d answer to the King, but here Annwyn had forgotten them. Of course, other fairies said it was because they were naturally evil. No one was naturally evil.

No one, not even Kaid. And Henry had seen and experienced a lot of evil over the decades—most of it done by humans.

“I’ll deal with it.” Or they’d answer to him. He was becoming their default leader, something that didn’t sit well, as he knew that making deals with Greys was punishable in Annwyn. Was he dealing or making deals…was he classified as a Grey, or as a freakish changeling? He had no idea. He’d never really stopped to consider the finer points of this idea. He’d just wanted to rebuild and give back to clear his conscience…and make some money.

“When will you deal with the spy in our midst?” Kaid grinned, the expression no less cold than when he’d smiled at the thugs. Kaid’s mask of humanity was only skin deep.

While Henry knew a little about Kaid’s past, it was enough to make him not ask questions, and make damn sure that the bridle remained hidden. Kaid had killed and eaten the mobster who’d previously held his bridle. Henry had seen the whole thing. It still gave him the occasional nightmare…which was exactly what Kaid was. Night mare, kelpie…assassin. He fed on blood and human flesh. It must have been a brave or desperate man who’d first captured Kaid and put the bridle on to gain control of the kelpie.