Crown of Moonlight (Court of Midnight and Deception #2) - K.M. Shea Page 0,103

Linus made a wheezing sound, and I’m pretty sure the only reason Skye wasn’t emptying her entire antacid tin in her mouth was because she was still processing the shock.

I held one finger up to them. “Hold that thought, I’ll be right back.”

I hurried through the gate with Eclipse trotting along behind me and walked straight into the Autumn Realm.

Dazzling with massive trees dropping colored leaves the size of my head, and a white castle that was decorated with splashes of crimson red, flaming orange, and shining yellows, the Autumn Realm was a place of beauty.

And it was crawling with fae so frenzied, they didn’t even notice our arrival.

A bunch of fae rushed around, carrying bottles of potions that they handed out to the injured. Others were trying to lift or dispose of some of the colossal trees that had toppled over.

In my second inspection of the area, I realized it looked like something had torn a path of carnage through the realm.

Besides the fallen trees, there were huge gaps and holes in the ground where it looked like entire trees had been turned to ash. Something enormous had raked its claws across one side of the castle, slicing deep gashes in the stone walls and destroying a dozen windows.

On the second inspection, I also noticed a few spots on the outer walls of the white castle that were distinctly singed, and the wispy feeling of fae magic remained in the air. Previously I’d assumed it came from the fae using their magic to handle the trees, but if I concentrated, I could feel it ripple out from the castle as well.

I looked from the castle to the trees. “Rigel?” I stepped closer to my consort. “Do you think…?”

Someone—a black-haired fae—finally caught sight of their monarch dangling from Rigel’s grasp. “King Fell,” she said, seemingly in shock.

She looked from Fell to us, and while her expression didn’t change she took a step back. “Queen Leila, Consort Rigel.” She bowed her head to Rigel, but didn’t do anything to me.

Seems like the Autumn fae are just as charming as their king.

“What happened here?” I asked.

“That is the business of the Autumn Court,” the fae said. “I should think it would be rude of us to burden you with such information.”

I thoughtfully studied the claw marks on the castle and watched as a stone loosened and dropped from the wall. “I don’t think Fell just stumbled on the monster. It looks like it attacked the Autumn Court first. Where did it come from?”

“Your question is rather vague—I can’t answer you for certain,” the fae said.

I rolled my eyes. “Can we stop playing around? Fell dropped the monster in the Night Realm and announced his presence. I know the monster was in this realm and he brought it to us. So, where did the monster come from?”

The fae folded her hands in front of her—which made me think her response was going to be useless. “I still cannot say for certain I know to which monster you are referring.”

Yep. Useless.

Rigel twitched the collar of Fell’s tunic, and the sagging king groaned. “It came from the south,” Rigel said. “And moved toward the castle.”

“How can you tell?” I asked.

Rigel pointed at the fallen trees with his free hand. “The pattern the trees fell in. They indicate the direction the monster moved in—it was clearly heading to the castle. There are signs of a fight by the castle—that’s likely where Fell opened a gate to the Night Court.”

Huh. Does that mean Fell didn’t spawn the creature, but someone dropped it here instead?

“Was Fell in the castle when the monster attacked?” I asked the unhelpful fae.

She lifted her chin. “My king’s movements do not concern such a small and disrespected Court as yours.”

The thin string of patience I had with the Autumn Court snapped. “Okay, let’s start over from the top—and this time I want some serious answers.” I kept my voice pleasant even though I activated my staff, and I let my purple magic wrap around me. “I just summoned a giant hydra to deal with the monster drudged up by your still unconscious king, so I’m not in the greatest of moods. What. Happened. Here?”

I wasn’t a huge fan of intimidation, but I didn’t believe in letting people push you around just because they’re rude, snotty, and malicious—which seemed to be the exact description of my small sample of the Autumn Court.

I didn’t know if it was my comment about the hydra, my magic,