“Know what?”
“Not to fuck with me again. They’re not going to take me down.”
Lexi gulped, but she didn’t know if she was afraid for him or what he was about to face. She retreated to the chair and lifted the short sword she wore onto the battlefield. She’d kept the larger sword in hand, but the smaller one had remained by her side. Unfortunately, she had no stars left.
“I’m coming with you,” she said as she strapped the sword on and returned to his side.
He didn’t argue as he held his arm out to her, and she slid her arm through his.
“When this is over, you’re going to sleep,” he said.
“So are you.”
He smiled at her. Lexi tried not to let her apprehension show as he strode toward the door with far surer steps than she would have believed possible.
She hoped he could keep this portrayal of strength up as he unlocked the door and opened it. Niall turned toward them; he froze when he spotted Cole.
“Milord!” he blurted.
His eyes ran over Cole as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. His mouth opened and then closed again.
“Niall,” Cole greeted.
“You’re… you’re up.”
“I am. Thank you for protecting her.”
“Of course, milord.”
Niall broke into a smile before bowing his head. He stepped aside as Cole exited the room. Lexi kept her arm locked through Cole’s. She watched his every move and felt for every vibration as she searched for any sign he was weakening.
Lexi tried to imitate Cole’s air of nonchalance as they strolled down the hall. Shocked by Cole’s emergence and the fact he was walking after he’d been stabbed through the heart with fae metal just yesterday, Niall didn’t follow them at first.
Then, he rushed to catch up.
“How many did we lose?” Cole inquired.
“I got the full report at sunrise. So far, we have lost twenty of the king’s guards, but five more are still seriously injured. Ten citizens also perished as they tried to escape the approaching rebellion.”
“Far too many,” Cole murmured.
“Yes, milord.”
“Did you send men to hunt down the rest of the rebels?”
“Yes. They went out this morning. I only sent ten of them. I thought you would prefer if most of the guards remained here. I can send more if you’d like.”
“How many rebels do you think are left?”
“Best guess? I’d say thirty survived. The craz chased a lot of them across the field and took them down.”
Lexi glanced up at Cole when he became quiet. She could practically see the wheels spinning in his mind as he considered Niall’s words.
“Ten should suffice for now,” Cole finally said. “I’ll decide if there should be more after we go outside.”
“Yes, milord.”
“You’ve called me Cole for our whole lives, Niall. Please continue to do so.”
“Yes, mil—Cole.”
“How many displaced fae are in the courtyard?”
“The last report I received said there were a few hundred fae seeking safety within the courtyard.”
Cole nodded, and Lexi tried not to glance nervously at him as they descended the stairs. He walked with confidence and grace, but he was still healing and weak from blood loss. He hadn’t had the chance to feed or eat.
Her fingers tightened on his arm as they reached the bottom of the stairs and stepped into the hall. A few helots were in the hallway, and when they saw Cole, their mouths fell open. One of them let go of the supplies they held.
Glass shattered across the floor, and the woman who’d dropped the stuff jumped back to avoid the scattered debris. Amaris appeared in the hallway and froze when she saw them. Her hand flew to her mouth.
“Mi-mi-milord?” she stammered.
Cole bowed his head to her as he strolled past. Amaris looked like she was staring at a ghost, and maybe, in some ways, she was. She’d believed he was dead, so, to her, he did return to the land of the living.
“Was it not fae metal?” one of the women whispered after they passed.
“It was,” another whispered. “You saw it. We all saw it.”
Following Cole’s lead, Lexi didn’t look back at them as Cole opened the doors. The courtyard looked worse under the sun than it had beneath the moons’ rays.
Dark fae were scattered everywhere. The injured lay sprawled across the ground as others tended to their injuries. Their moans and weeping intermingled with the barked commands of those trying to return order to the realm.
It was all so horrible, but they were alive and would hopefully remain that way.
Lexi searched the sky for the hideous birds but didn’t see them anywhere. “Where are the craz?”
“When they finished with their meals, the fire eventually drove them off,” Niall said.
Lexi gulped at the term “meals” and tried not to picture those birds pulling the flesh from their victims.
“Once they were gone, and we were able to regroup enough, the fae used their powers to smother the fires,” Niall continued.
Lexi shifted her attention to the land beyond. It had once been so beautiful and vibrant, but now all the green grass and homes were gone. The scorched earth looked like something out of an apocalyptic movie as giant chunks of torn-up earth, ashes, and dead craz remained.
It would take a long time for this realm and its inhabitants to recover from this, and while she’d always been a little intimidated by the dark fae, her heart ached for them. Though, most of them would probably prefer to see her leave this realm and never return.
More bodies lay outside the gates, but no one tended them. It was far too late to save them.
Chapter Twenty-One
Cole descended the stairs so swiftly Lexi almost had to run to keep up. She scowled at him before composing her face into something more neutral. He was trying to project an aura of strength and confidence, but he would weaken himself further if he didn’t take it easy.
As they walked through the crowd of injured and displaced, they drew the attention of the fae helping with the wounded. They also attracted the attention of the ones huddled together, standing in doorways or in the middle of the courtyard with dazed expressions on their faces.
Etched onto all their dirt and blood-streaked faces was the trauma of losing their homes and land. Cole’s presence broke through their disbelief, and though it took a couple of seconds to register on some of their faces, none of them could hide their astonishment once they saw him.
They stopped helping the wounded, they stood taller in the doorways, and they turned to follow him as he walked through the bailey. They rested their hands against their chests, pulled their children closer, and a couple openly wept.
And then they started going to one knee. At first, the movement was slow as they were too stunned, but eventually, they all started going down. They bowed their heads and pressed a fist to their foreheads in acknowledgment of their king.
She was so amazed by what she saw that it took a few minutes to realize they were also staring at her with open curiosity and admiration. Shifting uncomfortably, she inched closer to Cole before focusing straight ahead.
Cole bent and whispered in her ear, “You risked your life to save their king. You’ve earned their respect, and that is not an easy thing to earn from a dark fae.”