Without another word, she teleported to the place where she had made the doorway to get to Taraeth’s throne room. Balladyn had sealed it up, but she was queen. She could get through.
Three hours later, Usaeil finally gave up trying to bust down the seal Balladyn had put up and teleported straight to the Dark Palace. She arrived outside the door. There were few places that she had been inside the palace, and she didn’t want to just walk in.
Her gaze moved to the top floor, where Balladyn’s quarters had been. No doubt they were warded. Or had been. He was no longer alive, which meant that there was a good chance the spells were down.
Usaeil tried to teleport in, but found her way blocked. “Damn it,” she muttered.
She hurriedly glanced around to make sure no one had seen her. With no other choice, she used glamour to alter her face—but left her red eyes and black and silver hair so no one would recognize her, then she walked to the door of the palace.
The guards looked at her, but they didn’t stop her. No one said anything to her as she made her way up the stairs. It took her a moment to realize that the entire vibe of the place was off. When she reached the doors to Balladyn’s chamber, there was no one guarding it.
Usaeil walked in and headed straight for the books. Oddly enough, the rooms hadn’t been touched. It felt weird to be there, but she shook it off and began to scan the titles of the tomes, looking for any that might hold what she looked for.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
No matter how long Cain looked on the Fae Realm, he could find no sign of another person. And yet he knew without a doubt that someone had made this section as well as ensured that the shield continued to grow and repair the realm.
It might take thousands of years, but it would happen.
“You don’t seem upset about what I told you.”
Cain turned his head to Noreen, thinking about the plans that the Others had made against the Kings and mates and their friends. “I’m no’ surprised by any of it. Upset? Perhaps a little, but it doesna do any good. I need to focus on other things.”
“Like finding whoever did this?” Noreen asked with a knowing grin.
Cain chuckled. “I’m sorry. It’s just bothering me, and I can no’ figure out why. I am listening to all you’re saying, I promise.”
“I know. We also both know there’s a 99.9% chance Moreann and the group won’t continue with the plans since she knows I’ll tell you about them.”
“It doesna diminish the fact that she intended to continue hitting at us. Though, I have to admit, these upcoming plans you’ve told me about doona have the same,”—he paused, trying to come up with the right word—“punch.”
Noreen nodded, her lips twisting. “I thought the same thing. For a while, I just assumed that she used all her really good plans at first.”
“But?” Cain pushed when she didn’t continue.
“I can’t place my finger on what’s bothering me.”
Cain lifted a brow briefly. “Kinda like what’s going on with me and this place.”
“Exactly.” Noreen scratched her earlobe. “This may sound stupid, but I studied all the traps that had been set for the Kings. From taking V’s sword to hiding it in Iceland, and then spelling the place so that one of you would have to kill the other just to get it. The planning of it was amazing.”
Cain watched her face as her eyes widened, and her speech quickened the more she spoke. It was obvious that she had done a lot of studying regarding what the Others had done to the Kings. And that could come in handy.
“All the bases had been covered,” Noreen continued.
He gave a shake of his head. “Most of them. Had everything been covered, then V would’ve had to kill Roman, but that didna happen.”
“Because of Sabina.”
“Because of Sabina,” he replied. “Same with Dmitri and the bones of the White dragon on Fair Isle. If the Others’ plan had come to fruition, the wooden dragon Faith found would’ve worked, and she would’ve tried to kill a Dragon King.”
“Which we both know wouldn’t have happened since you can’t die except by another Dragon King.”
“Correct. However, I still believe that the Others didna care who found the wooden dragon—Faith or a Dragon King. Regardless, the effect was for the dragons to attack mankind again and start another war.”
Noreen grinned before stepping on a fallen tree and jumping to the other side. “Once more, the Kings thwarted the Others.”
“We’ve done so several times, just scraping by, by the skin of our teeth.”
Her smile faltered as she caught his eye. “There is one question that no one would ever answer, not even Moreann. But each time I asked it, she smiled like she knew something I didn’t.”
“How she intends to kill us?”
“Yes,” Noreen replied. “If only a Dragon King can kill another King, then how in the world can the Others do it?”
Cain blew out a breath. “I’m guessing the same way they were able to block V’s memories and hold Roman in that prison in Iceland. The same way they’ve been able to hide from us, not to mention staying one step ahead at all times. The combined magic.”
“Are you scared?”
“On our realm, we’ve been the strongest, the ones with the greatest magic. That has kept us on top from the verra beginning. It’s also allowed us to protect our realm. However, the price of that is enemies.”
Noreen’s nose wrinkled. “You Kings certainly have your share.”
“It’s something we’ve accepted. And while we are the strongest, trust me, we’ve been keenly aware that it was only a matter of time before someone else came that was stronger, faster, more powerful. Someone that could knock us down.”
“The Others might have more powerful magic when it’s combined, but even I realized that once the Kings were defeated, Moreann was going to take over. If even one of you could survive, then you could defeat her.”
“Do you really think she’d stop? She would continue using the Others to come after us until each and every one of us was dead.”
Noreen looked away.
Cain briefly closed his eyes and sighed. “You’re saying things that we’ve already spoken about as a group. Con is nothing if not prepared. He looks at every angle so we can come up with a plan, even if that angle is one in which we’re losing.”
“Do you think it’s possible that all of you can defeat the Others?”
“Aye. Just as I think it’s possible that they can defeat us.”
There was a long pause before Noreen asked, “You don’t still think I’m a ploy to get you to drop your guard, do you?”
“Nay, lass.”
“Good.” She still didn’t look at him. She kept her gaze forward, but her body was tense.
Cain decided to change the topic a bit. “Was it only Moreann who planned everything against us? V’s sword and all that?”
“Yes.”
“No one else helped?”
Noreen gave a small shrug. “She didn’t give them a chance. She came to them and told them what they were going to do, but I don’t know how she did it.”