Night Fae (Dark Fae Kings #3) - Meg Xuemei X. Page 0,23

true name to officially summon me and get me to accept the terms of the Wild Hunt as the tithe or the prey of the hunt. I guess at this point it wouldn’t matter much to her that she admitted I was Ileana, as she was confident that I’d be killed in the hunting game—and she’d make sure of it.

“Release my kings and my brother and leave the Silver Circle in peace, and I’ll answer your call to the Wild Hunt,” I said.

“Vow it,” she demanded.

“Don’t you dare, Evie!” Baron roared. “I’ll heal!”

But the queen still had him in her vise-like grip.

“You won’t heal but die if I yank your rebellious, callous heart out right now,” Brigantia purred.

“Yeah, kill me. I don’t give a fuck,” Baron snickered, unleashing his Summer power at her, but it couldn’t penetrate her armor; nor could Rydstrom. None of us could take her down today, despite the Night King slamming into her outer shield again and again in an attempt to free Baron, who was trapped inside with her.

The Summer King trained one furious eye on the Night King, not concerned about the blood streaming down his face. “Rydstrom, take our mate and get out now!” He wasn’t giving up, repeatedly ramming his bloody fist lit with sunbeam fire into our enemy’s shield to turn her black magic away from us. His Summer fire fizzled out against the black waves pouring from the usurper queen.

Everyone was shocked to witness that she was so powerful, and it was the first time everyone had seen her black magic, which a queen of the Dawn Court should not possess. And the mortal realm couldn’t diminish her power either.

Brigantia was no longer bothering to cover her trail since she’d declared her dark goddess status.

“Vow it now, little Ileana,” she taunted, her claws tracing Baron’s good eye in a slow circle, “or would you prefer me to blind the Summer King completely before I slay him?”

“Ileana, I forbid it!” Baron shouted.

“Eve,” Rydstrom said in a broken voice.

“You’ll release King Baron, and you won’t hurt either King Baron or King Rydstrom again after I swear,” I said. “You’ll let go of my brother, Nox, and you’ll leave this place in peace immediately.”

“I accept your terms,” Brigantia said haughtily.

I vowed, my blood thundering in my ears and drowning out the kings’ roars of protest.

“It’s done, Ileana.” Brigantia laughed triumphantly and inhumanly. “You were never meant to be anything else but the prey I hunt.” She swept her gaze over the hall before settling on the Night King. “As I told you, I am the prophesied queen, a goddess. I’ll soon have you warming my bed, King Rydstrom.”

“Never.” Rydstrom spat. “I wouldn’t touch you even if you were the only woman left in any realm.”

Wrath curled Brigantia’s thin, deformed lips under her glamour.

“I can probably arrange that,” she said. “However, I’ll wait for you to change your mind, and you will. I always get what I want in the end.”

Baron and Rydstrom were about to attack Brigantia again, which wouldn’t do us any good. They’d only bring more cruelty out of her. The Fae kings didn’t care about preserving themselves, but they were everything to me.

“Summer King and Night King.” I used their official titles. “Please don’t. We’ll get through this together.”

I gazed at them with a steel will and a clear message in my eyes: we lost the battle today, but it didn’t mean we had to lose the war.

We’d endure this moment of horror and misery in order to make a comeback.

“Allow me to help you get through this, Evelina,” Brigantia said. “And make sure my kings remember the consequences of their scheming against me.”

She lashed out, faster than a sinful thought. Her claws slashed across my face: one sliced over the bridge of my nose, one split my lips, and the last one ripped across my left eye and would have blinded me if I hadn’t had the shadow fire lurking inside to shield me.

Blood gushed out of my wounds and flowed down my face. Although pain thudded in my head, I kept a firm grip on Baron and Rydstrom’s arms to prevent them from going after the vile queen. They’d stood on either side of me instantly to shield me as soon Brigantia’s black power released them.

“Bear the mark as a seal for the call of the Wild Hunt, Ileana,” Brigantia said in a singsong voice. “That’s also a reprimand for stealing my kings. Only a naïve harlot like