Chapter Eleven

Kadie

The room was still dark, and I had no idea what time it was. I sat up and rubbed my arms. My body was no longer pressed against Etienne’s. His close proximity all night, coupled with my surroundings, had made it hard to sleep, but I must have eventually passed out from sheer exhaustion.

What I wouldn’t give to be back home, in my room, in my soft bed. If I closed my eyes, I could almost imagine the smell of Dad’s infamous omelets, or the sound of my brothers arguing over video games—stuff that used to piss me off, but I longed for now. A lump lodged in my throat. I might never see any of them again.

Moments later, Etienne shifted and climbed out of bed. He lit several candles around the room then grabbed a pair of breeches from an armoire.

“Good morning.” He gestured for me to get up.

“There’s nothing good about it.” I narrowed my eyes at him. Ah. This whole trying to be nice to him thing might be harder than I thought. But I needed to stay focused.

“I see you’re in a great mood today.” He chuckled as he made his way over to a pile of clothes that’d been set next to the bedroom door.

“You try being kidnapped and forced to sleep in a castle straight out of a horror flick and then tell me how flipping happy you’d be, jerk-off.” I crawled out from under my blankets then stood. My body ached all over. It was like I’d been run over by a snowplow.

He pointed at a clean dress and undergarments. “Go change. Breakfast will be here soon.”

I took them from the floor and went behind the black screen. With a sigh, I wondered what I’d have to deal with today. Etienne mentioned last night I’d have to go back to the Bone Yard. I shuddered. Already my stomach churned at the thought. Blood. Bones. The cold. I forced myself to join Etienne at the table. Maybe I could get out of it by showing him some affection or maybe giving him some meaningless information.

“I—I don’t really have to go back to the Bone Yard do I?”

“Yes. The queen ordered it.”

An older lady scurried into the room, carrying a tray of food. She set it down then rushed back out into the hallway.

“There’s got to be a way out of it.” Desperation dripped from my words.

“Kadie,” he whispered. “There is only one way. I’ve already told you.”

I shook my head. “But I’m telling you the truth, I don’t know anything.”

He scooped some eggs out of a dish and put them on my plate, followed by a biscuit and apple slices. “I’m being sent away for a few days, so you need to be on your best behavior. The others are not as tolerant as I am.”

My mouth went dry, and I gripped the edge of the table. “Where are you going?”

He glanced at me, then grabbed a biscuit and spread jelly across it. “That is none of your business. Now, my maid Rena will retrieve you from the Bone Yard each day and make sure you are bathed. You’re free to use my bed while I’m gone—but know the room will be locked so there’s no way to escape.”

“So I’m going to be stuck in here, all by myself?”

He shrugged. “Yes, and if you listen to nothing else I tell you then at least try not to cause a stir. I won’t be here to defend you against the queen or Teodor.”

Etienne stood and went over to a cabinet near the back of the room. He pulled something out then relocked the cabinet. He handed over a small wooden box.

“What is this?”

“It’s an iron dagger.”

Startled, I shot him a wary look. “You’re giving me a weapon?”

“I’m not going to be here to protect you all the time. I want you to have some means of defending yourself should you need to. You can have Rena help you belt it beneath your dress so the guards don’t see it.”

“Wait, doesn’t iron kill faeries?” I thought back to all the fairytale stories and books Salome’s grandma had read to me over the years. Tales I never realized I’d have to use for survival.

“Yes. But if you’re caught with it on you, I will deny giving it to you, so don’t let anyone find it.”

“But this could kill you too.”

“Only if you stab me and give me a fatal wound with it, which I’m trusting you won’t do since I’m your only key to getting out of this forsaken place alive.”

Why should he care if anyone decided to hurt me? My eyes met his, and his gaze softened.

My pulse quickened. What the hell?

No way am I reacting to him. This was the douche bag that got me imprisoned here to begin with.

Damn, I had issues. But the fact that he wanted to keep me safe did earn him a few bonus points—and I now had another weapon.

Etienne left right after breakfast and his maid Rena came in. “Come along—Master said you’re to be brought to the Bone Yard.”

I followed her plump form down the winding halls. Too soon, we came to the large, blood-drenched courtyard. The stench hit me full force.

“I’ll be back this evening to retrieve you,” Rena said, her red curls springing every which way.

My gaze took in the same horrors as yesterday. Bones. Blood. Bodies. The assembly line was hard at work.

“Get moving,” one of the troll guards said. His massive frame lurched toward me, whip already drawn.

I stumbled forward then saw Demetria waving at me. Not needing any more prodding, I ran to where she stood, stacking leg bones.

“Morning,” I said.

She smiled. “Morning. I see you survived another night here.”

“Barely.” My fingers closed around a femur that’d just come out of the pot. It burned my hands. “Etienne is gone for a few days.”

Demetria frowned. “Then you need to be extra cautious. The other nobles might take notice of his absence and try to take advantage of you.”

“What?”

“Shhh…you don’t want to bring attention to yourself. Just come here, do your job, and return to his quarters.”

I shivered. “And what if they still take notice?”

“Then you need to be as cordial as possible. Don’t give them a reason to become angry.”

Oh God. I was the least docile person in the world. I didn’t put up with people’s shit.

“I’ll try.”

Another load of severed legs was dropped in front of our pot. Demetria quickly loaded them into the boiling water. As we stood there waiting for the flesh to separate, I watched my friend. She was so kind; she didn’t deserve to be here.

“How did you end up in this shit-hole?” I asked.

“I was foolish,” she said.

“Well that makes two of us.”

She smiled. “Misery loves company, and as you can see, I’ve got lots of it.” She gestured to the lines of girls. “Most of us have similar stories of how we came to be in Winter. How we were tricked or infatuated.”

“Guilty of infatuation…” I said, remembering how Etienne had caught my eye. “I should’ve known it was too good to be true with my history of picking out losers.”

Demetria wiped her hands on her apron as she walked over to help me organize my pile.

“Well, I too suffered from infatuation. My family was part of a traveling acrobatic group in Romania. We performed for royal families, nobles, commoners—whoever had money to pay us. Eventually, my father decided to book us passage to America. He said we’d have great opportunities here and could stake our own claim. It was a hard journey, but when we got here, Father managed to arrange several shows for us.”

“Shows?” I said. “What kind of shows?”

She stared into the distance as if lost in thought. “I specialized in high wire and tumbling acts, which I performed with my eldest sister. We were working one night, just outside of Boston when a man approached me. He was tall, dark, handsome—one of the most beautiful men I’d ever seen in my life. His name was Teodor, and he invited me to dinner.”

My stomach lurched. “Teodor?”

“You’ve met him?” Demetria said. Her eyes widened. “He didn’t hurt you, did he?”

“No, but he—he scares me.” I shivered, remembering the way he undressed me with his eyes, the way he threatened me with threats that I knew would become promises.

“As he should. But he wasn’t always this cruel, or at least he wasn’t when I first met him.” Demetria tucked a stray curl behind her ear. “We were attracted to one another right away. He was well traveled, elegant, and he showered me with compliments and gifts—things I wasn’t used to getting. After our first meeting, he asked if he could call on me the following night. My family of course said no, as they were afraid it’d interfere with our show. However, my eldest sister, Sonja, thought they were being too harsh and helped me sneak out to meet him.”

“Then what happened?”

She gave me a sad smile. “He brought me into the woods where he had a dinner set up near a bonfire, under a full moon. I should’ve known then that something was wrong, but I was young and infatuated. I liked him more than I’d ever liked someone before.”

How many times had I been in a similar situation—some guy trying to seduce me, me falling for it? But then again, how easy had it been for me to seduce and tempt people? There was something exhilarating about the challenge of luring someone in—getting them to fall over themselves for you, yet as I knew, it could be dangerous to.

When my gaze shifted back to Demetria, she continued on.

“Teodor told me he’d come to my performance the next night. I explained we’d be in another town, yet this didn’t deter him in the least. Instead, he promised he’d follow me. And he did. For three straight cities, he watched my show then met me after. At this point, my family was conflicted about him. My mother and eldest sister adored him. They believed I’d made quite the catch. My other two sisters, father, and brothers hated him and were convinced he was using me.”

Her eyes welled with tears. “When we got to New York, Teodor asked me to dinner again. This time he’d hired a carriage to take us into the country. We arrived in a wooded clearing, where there was a great bonfire. So many beautiful people danced around it. I should’ve known then something was wrong. Why would people be dancing in the snowy woods like that? It was here that he stole me away and brought me to Winter. He wanted my parents to believe I’d run off with him so they wouldn’t look for me. Almost as soon as we got here, he handed me over to the queen as a gift.”

“What? That asshole!”

She wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her dress. “At first, Teodor still came to see me. However, it wasn’t the same. He’d changed into someone I didn’t know or recognize. He was cruel, not the gentleman he’d pretended to be before. I was forced to perform and dance for the court. Gradually they grew bored with me, and I was sent to work in the Bone Yard.”

“Did he hurt you?” I grabbed her arm, making her look at me.

“Yes, but he’s moved on to other conquests. I’m better off out here than caged up in his quarters, forced to do things no person should have to.”

A bell at the center of the courtyard clanged. Everyone dropped what they were doing and lined up. A moment later, women dressed in white walked through and handed us each a bowl and spoon. Two trolls carried a cast iron cauldron outside and another lady scooped soup into each bowl.

When it was my turn, I watched the yellow liquid slosh into my bowl. Veggies and meat floated about as the steam rose from it. I swallowed hard, not sure if I wanted to eat it.

Demetria glanced at me. “Don’t worry, it’s safe.”

“H-how do you know it’s not human flesh?”

“Because I’ve worked in the kitchens—they use chickens.”

I took a deep breath. With trembling hands, I slurped some of the food into my mouth. It tasted just like chicken noodle soup, minus the noodles. It wasn’t bad, but that didn’t mean they hadn’t poisoned it.

Once we finished eating, we went back to sorting bones for several more hours, during which time I told Demetria how I was brought to Winter. By the time we ended our work I was exhausted. Rena led me back to Etienne’s room, where she locked me in.

I slipped out of my blood stained clothes, took a bath, then sat down to eat in front of the roaring fire. From somewhere deep in the castle, I heard screams. My body tensed, and I covered my ears.

Please. Make it stop.

But they didn’t.

So I focused on the flames. Somehow, I needed to plan my escape. The Winter Court had to have some type of weakness. Some way out. Clutching the dagger close to my chest, I laid down in the blankets, counting the moments until daylight and praying I survived another night.

With a groan, I stretched my arms above my head. My back ached from working in the Bone Yard all day. The only thing I wanted to do was eat, take a bath, then go to bed. Unfortunately, the guards told me and Demetria we had to help serve the Winter Court’s dinner tonight, which of course had me in panic mode.

Etienne was still gone. That meant I had no one to protect me if I pissed off the wrong person. Here I thought I’d be glad he was gone—so not the case. Not to mention I spent most of my time jumping at the smallest of sounds. At least when Etienne was there, I knew no one would openly attack me…Well, other than the psycho queen.

Just be on your best behavior. You can do this.

Etienne’s maid, Rena, poked her head round the door. “Come along, time for you to go to the kitchens.”

When I stepped from the safety of the room, I saw Demetria waiting, too. Some of the nervousness went away, knowing she’d be there with me.

“Hey.” I waved.

She gave me a forced smile. “Hello again.”

I wiped my sweaty hands on my apron. “So, what do we have to look forward to tonight?”

We walked down the hall and she leaned in to whisper. “I’ve been told we’ll be serving the wine. I must warn you, though, dinnertime can get gruesome.”

My gaze met hers. “What do you mean?”

“Be prepared for the worst. Some of the Fae are not very kind.”

The scent of pastries and soup wafted in the air as we approached the large kitchen. Cooks bent over stoves, stirring pans of food or preparing trays. Maids bustled back and forth refilling decanters or getting dishes ready.

“You best hurry up.” A stocky dwarf woman shoved wine decanters in our hands. “The queen is in a mood tonight.”

Demetria cast me a glance over her shoulder. “Follow my lead.”

My hands trembled as I walked behind her. Wine sloshed against the sides of the glass container. I slowed my pace. The last thing I wanted to do was spill it everywhere. Obnoxious laughter echoed as we stepped into what looked like a ballroom, with dining tables lined up around the edges.

Candlelight splayed off icicles that hung from the chandeliers. Black and white marble tiles covered the entire floor, while two monstrous fireplaces blazed like hellish infernos on each side of the room.

“I’ll take the queen’s table,” Demetria said. “Why don’t you start filling the nobles’ goblets? When you’re done stand against the wall and wait to be called on for more drinks.”

My eyes snapped to three human girls, tied up like dogs at the end of the nobles’ table. They sat on their knees, gazing up at the food as if waiting for someone to toss them a scrap. My stomach clenched. Sick bastards. How could the Fae treat people like this?

“What are you waiting for, stupid?” A Fae tossed her auburn hair, her finger pointed at me.

My eyes narrowed. I bit my lip to keep from telling her where I’d like to shove one of the icicles on the ceiling. Heart pounding in my chest, I moved forward and poured wine into her goblet.

I went around the table, filling glasses. One thing I noticed right away was that only the beautiful Fae sat to eat. Creatures like the goblins, trolls, and satyrs acted as the help. My nose wrinkled as I stared at the satyrs. They had the body and arms of a human, but the legs, hooves, and tail of a goat. Coarse hair covered them, while goat ears poked out of the side of their heads.

“Good, the entertainment’s finally here,” a tall, bronzed man said.

My gaze shifted to the doors, where several girls were roped together and led to the center of the floor. Four human men came in next, each carrying a stringed instrument, followed by servants with towels and buckets of water.

Shit. What’s going on?

The musicians sat on chairs, while the girls were forced to line up. Most wore the same mystified looks I’d seen in the Bone Yard. But there was one I couldn’t take my eyes off. Her face had lost its color. Even from here, I saw her legs shaking and the fear in her gaze.

Something bad was about to happen. And I didn’t want to witness it. One of the musicians pulled a harp in front of him. He sat at the edge of his seat. His fingers stroked the strings. At first, beautiful music flowed, and I relaxed some.

The other instruments joined in. One by one, the girls started to dance. Then the screams came. Horrified, I watched the girl who’d been freaked out grab her arms. Every time the musicians plucked or strummed a string, deep, bloody gashes appeared on the dancers’ bodies. Like an invisible whip lashed out at them. Blood sprayed across the floor, dripping down their dresses and skin. My hands trembled, and I fought to keep hold of the decanter.

My jaw clenched as the one girl fell to her knees. The others just kept twirling—dancing as if they didn’t feel a thing. The Fae laughed and cheered.

Without thinking, I rushed to the fallen girl’s side. “Hold on, it’ll be okay.” I tugged at my apron, trying to wrap it around her bloodied wrists.

“Help me,” she whispered.

“I’m trying.” But for every wound I attempted to cover up, another one sprung forth.

The Fae pointed and continued their laughter. What I wouldn’t give to shut them all up. Demetria hurried to my side.

“You have to leave her be or you’ll get in trouble.” She jerked me to my feet.

The injured girl clung to my leg. I didn’t want to leave her. At last, she released me. “Go, you cannot do anything for me.” My stomach coiled as I let Demetria lead me away. I pressed myself against the wall, my body trembling beneath me.

“What the hell are they doing?” I said to my friend.

“This is their idea of fun.” Her lips pressed into a tight line. “The music won’t stop until one of them dies. You must promise not to do something foolish like this again. If you try to save someone, they will punish you too.”

“How can I sit back and watch people be killed?”

“You have to.” Demetria’s voice cracked. “To do good here is to put a nail in your own coffin.”

I closed my eyes. No way could I watch this sadistic crap. One final yelp sounded. The music stopped. The entire hall erupted with cheers and clapping.

“They’ve taken her away now.” Demetria touched my arm.

My lids opened. Tears burned my eyes. “They’re fricken monsters,” I said. “No one deserves to be treated like this.”

“I know.”

Servants quickly cleaned up the mess, their once white towels colored crimson now. Moments later the main course was brought into the dining hall like nothing ever happened.

“Teodor is here tonight.” Demetria nodded to the queen’s table. “He’s sitting at the end.”

I glanced at him. He was definitely hot—dark hair, dark eyes, golden skin that’d make a sun god jealous—but a monster nonetheless. His arrogance practically slapped me in the face from here, and I frowned as Crazy Chick squirmed in his lap.

He nuzzled her then his gaze shifted to mine. He smiled before taking a strawberry from his plate and popping it in his mouth. When he finished chewing, he turned away, giving Crazy Chick a shove from his lap.

The queen glanced at me and beckoned me over. At first, I didn’t move. But Demetria squeezed my arm.

“You better go to her or she’ll grow angry.”

I handed Demetria my decanter and moved across the floor. When I stood in front of the queen’s table her lips turned up in a sneer.

“What’s wrong, human? Do you not enjoy our games?”

“Of course she does, your highness.” Etienne strolled into the ballroom along with another Fae man. Dark circles painted his eyes as he stared at me. “She’s merely missed her prince. But I’m here—she can have fun now.”

He pulled me against him. His lips trailed down my neck. I stiffened at the heat of his breath in my ear.

“Play along,” he whispered.

I swallowed hard and wrapped my arms around him. A brief sense of safety washed over me, but it didn’t last long when I saw the queen’s forced smile.

“Etienne—join us and tell me news of Summer.” She shoved the woman sitting to her right out of her seat and gestured for Etienne to take it.

He released me and sauntered toward the empty chair. “Soldiers from Summer visited the Ruined Court recently. I’m not sure what they were there for, but there were several of them, including the King.”

“What?” She slammed her fist down. Her plate flew through the air and shattered on the floor.

“I’m afraid that’s not all, Your Highness. I also found dead trolls in the forest near there.”

Her eyes narrowed, while her mouth twisted. “I want all the humans out of here. Now!”

Demetria hurried to my side, and we rushed out into the hall. “Go straight to your room and lock the door.”

“What’s going on?”

“Whenever she gets bad news, she takes it out on us.”

Great. And I happened to be one of her least favorite people. Not needing anymore urging than that, I found Rena, who half dragged me toward Etienne’s quarters. Once she had me inside, she locked the door. Then and only then did I sink into a chair near the fireplace. My pulse raced; my body quaked.

If Etienne hadn’t shown up tonight, I didn’t know what would’ve happened. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to forget the sight of the dancing girls.

I can’t take any more of this.

I covered my face with my hands, fighting back tears that threatened to escape. Now I owed the stupid bastard who brought me here my life. If he hadn’t walked in when he had, I was pretty sure Ms. Sadistic Bitch Queen would’ve had me dancing on top of flaming logs. Or worse, given me to Teodor.

Etienne barged into the room, followed by Rena. “Get your cloak and boots on now,” he said as he went to his armoire and scoured through it.

“Why? What’s going on?” Panic sliced through me like a machete. Did the queen want to see me again?

“I’m going to try to get you out of here. The queen’s fury is only going to worsen as Summer grows stronger. The more time you spend here, the more likely you’ll be killed.”

I stood, dumbfounded. “You’re going to help me escape?”

His blue eyes met mine. “I’m going to try. I never should’ve let Teodor get in my way at the club. I should’ve forced you to leave. But I’m going to make it right. Now do as I said.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but he held up his hand.

“Now isn’t the time to argue about me telling you what to do,” he said. “If you don’t start making some hard choices, you’re going to die here—or you can do what I say and help me get you back home. Those are your options.”

Oh God. Home. A place where I could be safe again. Wasn’t that worth a sacrifice here and there? Wasn’t that worth going against my instincts and making tough decisions?

My hands trembled as I fastened my cloak around my shoulders. I sat down in the chair and tugged my boots on. Once I finished, Rena handed Etienne some food, which he tucked into a pouch fastened across his chest like a pack.

“Rena, tell the others to lay low. I will try to come back for the rest of you as soon as possible.” He patted her shoulder.

“Be safe, milord,” she said.

“Come along.” He caught my arm. “If we’re going to make our escape, it has to be now. Grisselle normally has fewer guards posted this time of night, so we should be able to make our escape out the front. Just stay close to me.”

My heart hammered in my chest. Oh God, I was going home. No more nightmares or horrific murders. No more blood and bones. I couldn’t wait to leave this place.

I gripped tight onto Etienne as we headed out the door. I hated that I had to leave Demetria behind. She’d been such a good friend to me, keeping me safe. If she hadn’t shown me the ropes that first day in the Bone Yard, then one of the crazy girls or trolls might’ve gotten to me. But I knew we didn’t have time to go search for her. Maybe I could find some way to have Etienne come back for her. She didn’t deserve to be here. None of these girls did.

The hallways were streaked in shadows. Silence reverberated throughout the castle. But the deafening quiet unnerved me, as it made each of our footfalls that much louder. When we rounded the corner near the front door, Etienne pushed me against the wall so he could search for guards.

“Follow me,” he whispered, catching my hand in his.

The door let out a low groan as he shoved it open and I braced myself for hordes of creatures to jump out and stop us. But none came. Crisp night air took my breath away when we stepped out into the night. The blackness nearly suffocated me. There were no stars or moon, no light except for a few torches lit along the castle wall.

Snow crunched beneath our feet as we moved toward the main gate. All at once, Etienne came to a stop. He dragged me behind an ice-covered statue. “Shit.”

Shaking, I leaned against him. “What’s wrong?”

“The queen posted more guards. We can’t get out.”

“But I thought you said—”

“Listen, we have to go back in. We can’t get out this way, not tonight. She must’ve been threatened by the news of Summer and decided not to take any chances.”

My heart fell. No. I couldn’t go back in there. “Please, help me get out of here. I’ll do anything you want.”

He clutched me to his chest and hugged me. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to give you false hope. I thought this way would be safe. But it’s not. I’ll keep trying to free you, just trust me, okay? Now come along, we need to get back inside before someone notices we’re missing.”

Frigid air snaked along the neck of my cloak, and I shivered. Had the entire thing been a sick game? A way to give me hope and then snatch it away?

With reluctance, I let Etienne lead me back indoors. But as we made our way down the darkened corridor, someone stepped out in front of us.

“Well, well, well, what do we have here?” Teodor said, his voice thick with menace.

Etienne went still. “I went out for a breath of fresh air.”

“And you took your human out after curfew? Wonder what the queen would have to say about that?”

“Get the hell out of my way or I’ll tell the queen about the five human girls you took from the Bone Yard without her permission—two of which you made disappear.”

“Didn’t realize you were keeping track of what I do,” Teodor said. “You know, I could just take this one off your hands. She needs to be broken. The sooner she knows her place, the better.”

“Stay away from me and stay away from my property.” Etienne shoved around him, tugging me after.

Teodor’s gaze slid over me as if I was a last meal. The more I resisted him and Etienne fought to keep him away, the more he wanted me. And that scared the hell out of me. When we made it back to Etienne’s room, I slumped to the floor in a heap and buried my head in my hands.

“I just want to get out of here.”

“I know. And I promise to keep trying. But we need to be more careful. Teodor senses something is going on. You need to avoid him at all cost.” Etienne hefted me up in his arms and carried me over to my makeshift bed on the floor. He slid my boots from my feet then untied my cloak. Once that was done, he laid me down and covered me up.

His fingers traced my cheek, wiping away the tears that trickled down. “Please forgive me, Kadie.”

But I only nodded. No words would form. I was a fool to get my hopes up—to believe I might actually get out of here. Etienne sat with me, and my lids drifted shut as he stroked my face. I didn’t want to be comforted by him. He was the enemy. But this enemy had tried to help me, so maybe he wasn’t as bad as I’d thought.