Trial by Fae (Dragon's Gift The Dark Fae #1) - Linsey Hall Page 0,11

asked, trying to play it cool. Agatha didn’t know about my mother. Only I did.

“We don’t know. Perhaps the same way they got here—a Fae helped them escape the underworld. But whatever the case, the power is growing greater. More than a hundred Fae have been mysteriously killed.”

A hundred? Holy fates. “And they’ve asked for our help?”

“No.”

“No?” I frowned. “So they’re handling it themselves?” I had no idea what kind of defenses they had there. Could they handle it?

“They aren’t even acknowledging that it exists. We sent an emissary to meet with the king. He denied it right to our faces. We could feel the energy, but he said we were mistaken.”

“He was lying,” I said. Some Fae couldn’t lie, but not all.

“We think he was.”

“Then he’s the problem,” Aeri said.

Perhaps he was in league with my mother? Who was possibly some kind of demon?

“Most likely, yes. If the energy continues to grow—which we believe it will—it could destroy their entire kingdom. Their entire realm. Once it has done that, it could spread from there to earth and throughout the world.”

Oh, shit. The rest of the world? “Where is the energy coming from? Multiple demons invading? Or just one very powerful one?”

“We don’t know. That’s a possibility. Or a demonic spell.”

“So we have no idea,” Aeri said. “Just that it’s growing and people are dying. Are the people there concerned?”

“They can’t sense it,” Agatha said. “Not the way that we can. They aren’t familiar with that type of magic and don’t easily recognize it. Whereas we are experts, keeping track all over the world.”

“What about the deaths, though? Surely they notice those.”

“They’re anxious. They don’t understand the cause, from what we’ve been able to determine. But we can’t get past the king to speak to them.”

He was a problem, definitely.

“Which raises a question,” Aeri said. “Why us? Normally we work Magic’s Bend.”

All demon slayers had a particular turf that they protected. When we’d escaped Grimrealm, which was located directly under Magic’s Bend, we’d wanted to go as far away as possible.

The Council had put us here, instead. Hence my disguise, which had become just as much a part of me as my DNA by this point.

“You’re perfect for the job, Mordaca, with your seeker sense and powerful ability to sense magical signatures. And you look a bit like the fae, which will allow you to blend in. They will hopefully trust you more easily, which will be helpful if you are spying on their king.”

Yes. I had to try. If my mother was involved with this, I had to. And perhaps I could even find the Seelie Fae and shut him up about what I was. And also break this fated mate bond. “I’ll do it, of course. But how do I get in? The Seelie Fae are notoriously secretive.”

“And that is where we have gotten a little bit lucky,” Agatha said. “This year—this week, in fact—the Seelie Fae are hosting their annual tournament. Trials open to any supernatural who wants to test their magical mettle against the rest of the world, with a fabulous prize at the end.”

“And you want me to enter.”

“It will get you into their realm. Get you close to the king, as he will be the main judge.”

It was genius. I looked at Aeri.

She nodded. “You’d do well in the trials. I can track the origin of your bracelet while you’re gone.”

“Thank you.” I’d tell her later that it might not be necessary if I could find him in his realm. I looked at Agatha. “I’ll do it.”

After Agatha left, I had only hours to prepare. She’d given me directions to the entrance of the Seelie Fae Kingdom, along with an amulet that was my invitation. I was meant to use it to get in and present it to the Fae guardian at the border.

As quickly as I could, I packed a bag full of potentially valuable potions and stashed it in the ether. I could draw it when needed. I then removed all iron weapons from the ether, leaving only the copper. Iron was strictly forbidden in the Fae realms as they were allergic to it.

Actually…

For good measure, I stuck one iron dagger back in the ether. I didn’t have to take it all the way there, after all. Maybe I could find a place to stash it just outside their realm in case I needed it.

Once I was ready, Aeri hugged me. She gripped the fire opal bracelet. “I’ll find the guy who