Night Fae (Dark Fae Kings #3) - Meg Xuemei X. Page 0,31

my siblings. I endangered all of them, and in the end, I let them take Nox.”

“Don’t you dare blame yourself, Evie,” Mom had said. For twenty years, she’d sacrificed silently, playing a supportive role to Dad and me. “You’ve taken care of them well, more than I expected. You’re in the center of the war now. Some things couldn’t be avoided. We’ll get your brother back together.”

Mom was heartbroken and scared, for one of her twins had been taken and none of us knew about his fate yet, but the evil queen would have to keep my brother safe. She’d sworn to return my brother safely as soon as I entered the Wild Hunt.

“I’ll do everything in my power to bring Nox back to you and to Asuka,” I’d said.

“Be the queen you are, daughter,” Dad had said. “Make the realms safer for everyone. Make the future better for your siblings. But first, you must survive the Wild Hunt.”

“If the prophesy said our Evie is the one who’ll save both worlds,” Mom said, putting a hand in Dad’s and the other in mine, “then she’ll come out of the hunt alive. We’ve held onto faith all these years. We’re not going to lose it now.”

“Sometimes I hate oracles,” I’d said.

What if the prophesy was wrong? Or worse, what if the oracles used their “visions” to alter events and manipulate everyone? That piece of prophecy about the rise of a new faerie queen had dictated my parents’ path for decades, and their entire lives had pivoted around it.

I hoped that I was worth it. I’d try damn hard to make sure I was worth it.

In the Realm of Night and Dreams, under the starry sky, I hugged my parents.

Chapter 11

“Ileana Eve, you got this,” Rydstrom said, his arm around my shoulder. His body heat warmed me, and a throbbing need for him pulsed inside me.

“Later, little mate,” he whispered in my ear, his light laughter a rich baritone. My blood raced. With our mating bond connecting us like an unbreakable thread, the Night King could read my needs and emotions easily.

My parents watched us, and I blushed as if I had been caught in a dirty deed. I quickly pointed at a palatial mansion that stood out amid the radiant urban skyline. It curved around the entire block of the grand street of paving stones.

A garden terrace rose to the side on the second floor. Several figures, much smaller compared to the Night knights, milled around a raised fire pit. They chattered and argued loudly and laughed. The aroma of cooked meat wafted our way, making my mouth water.

Beneath the scent of delicious barbecue, the fragrance of blossoms and clean night air flowed toward us, and on top of that was the Night King’s dominant scent of nocturnal magic and sage. I inhaled and breathed out, in love with my mate’s realm at first sight.

Rydstrom squeezed my fingers, which were entwined with his.

My heart fluttered, yet we knew this moment didn’t belong to us. I was here to see my family. I’d brought my parents to be united with my siblings.

I tore my heated gaze from my king and fixed my attention on the terrace, where a small party was going on.

Squinting, I had my confirmation—the obnoxiously loud buggers were my siblings. Gods, I missed them so much. I grinned and pulled out a whistle I’d bought on eBay. My siblings knew the drill, since I’d often used it in the house when they refused to obey me.

I put the silver whistle in my mouth, covered my ears, and blew it. The shriek carried in the air, and all the nighttime sounds ceased. Even the birds stopped chirping.

The knights threw their hands to their sensitive ears with a collective grimace.

“What the hell is that?” Drake demanded as he glared at me.

“That’s how my mate disciplines her younger siblings,” explained Rydstrom proudly. “They can be a handful.”

“You stop it right now, Evelina Greene!” Mom yelled at me.

I blinked. Mom used to shout out my full name when I got myself into trouble. Damn. I’d been caught up in the moment and forgotten my parents had returned and now they were in charge instead of me.

I pulled the whistle from between my lips, hid it, and smirked at Mom sheepishly.

Mom still stared hard at me, but Dad pressed a hand to her shoulder, trying to make Mom go easy on me. I was still Dad’s favorite. He’d always had a soft spot for