enough to help us win against our enemies.” I turned to stare up at the dragons regarding the tragedy unfolding below the battlements with sorrow. If I wasn’t certain Eris was in chains somewhere in Lucian’s kinky as shit basement, I’d think she was here, creating havoc. “Destiny, I need you. The Mórrígan, or Erie, if you can hear me, I need you too.”
I stared up at the stars, watching as the night swallowed them into velvety darkness while I fought to contain the need to scream and cry, to rage against the reality of what had just happened.
Bodies were being piled up against the outer walls, while our parents’ corpses were brought in and placed on rough stones. The warriors I’d sent had covered their bodies with the colors of their kingdoms, placing their crowns on their chests, identifying each caste they represented. By the time they finished, the entire courtyard was covered in shrouded corpses.
I silently stood in front of my parents’ bodies, tears trailing down my cheeks as the wind howled around us. My hand lifted, touching Lasair’s lifeless body as Liam stood opposite of me, placing his hand over mine in reassurance and comfort. I wasn’t sure which I needed more. Madisyn’s tiny form lay beside him in death, and a soft sob escaped my lips past the hold I thought I had on my emotions.
“This isn’t right,” Liam whispered through tears, his words choked with sorrow.
“Nothing is right about this,” Adam agreed as he stepped behind me, wrapping his arms around me, seeking comfort. Liam lifted his matching azure-blue gaze to lock with mine, and I frowned. “Syn is the only family I have, other than one brother who may not live to see the sun rise.”
“She’s also the Queen of the Horde, and they’re looking at her for strength. You’re a king now, Adam. The people are looking to each of us for guidance, and leadership.”
“Doesn’t change who we are or who we were,” Adam stated, releasing me as he moved to stand over Keir and Moira’s bodies.
“This is just beginning,” I whispered, standing between the newly appointed Blood King and Dark King, “and we’re losing.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
I stared at the bodies covering the courtyard, glimpsing Abiageal’s tiny form among the sea of others. Cailean and Sevrin had gone into the palace of the Light Kingdom, only to discover it hadn’t been spared from treachery.
The remains of the deceased had been placed in the courtyard on slabs of marble to honor them. We’d skipped over the fae rule of piling servants into a mass grave. Instead, we positioned them upon the stones as well. I called in druids from Faery to come and bless the dead for their journey into the next life.
Liam held my hand while Adam sat silently beside me. There was certain solidarity in loss that bonded people who lived through mass casualties, but that didn’t lessen the grief we felt. I knew both the men who stood beside me were numb, riddled with the same guilt that washed over me.
The somber mood that had fallen over the stronghold was one of deafening terror, even though we prepared to defend it against our enemies. No one spoke or whispered as we stood there, taking in the atrocities that had befallen the high courts of the fae. It was unreal. It was something we’d assumed couldn’t happen, and we’d been proven wrong in a big way.
I’d moved the women into the tower, and Destiny had spent hours helping me place wards to protect against the mages. As we worked, she told me how the children enjoyed the sights in the City of the Gods. She admitted they had already grown in the few days they’d been there. Time moved differently in the City of Gods. My children had been there for months, even though only a few days had passed in Faery. The news of their accelerated aging didn’t help my emotions with everything unfolding here, but it did make me feel as if we’d done the right thing by sending our children away.
Thanatos watched me from the shadows as if he didn’t know how to approach