My heart turned over heavily at the thought. “But what kind of vendetta could drive a Summer fae to these extremes? If Caden were somehow placed under the Queen’s curse again, they’d have an even bigger problem on their hands.”
“So, maybe they were hoping Aric or the Queen would kill Caden,” Ivy suggested, and my stomach dipped. “Take him out so another could become King.”
I frowned as I thought that over. “From what I understand, only he can be King since he accepted the crown…or whatever. That even if he abdicated the throne, Fabian wouldn’t become King. The Court would be without a ruler, but I have no idea what would happen if Caden died.” The last word tasted like ash on my tongue.
“That might be a good question to ask,” Ren said. “But I doubt we’ll get an answer out of Fabian. He’d probably suspect that we were plotting to murder his brother.”
“I could ask,” I volunteered.
Ivy looked over her shoulder in the direction of the side door that led to the courtyard. “I hate to even ask this, but we don’t believe that Fabian has any desire to be King, do we?”
“No. I don’t believe that he does,” I said honestly as Dixon rubbed his nose against my shoulder. “There are…certain expectations that I don’t think Fabian has any desire to fulfill.”
Neither did Caden, but that was neither here nor there.
“But why would anyone want to remove Caden as King?” Ivy asked, lips pursed. “I mean, he seems to be doing an okay job, and it isn’t like he’s unfair or cruel.”
She was right, but I didn’t think Caden wanted to be King before he took on the role. He’d felt forced, and that was before things really escalated between us. Even now, he was willing to shirk his obligations, but no one knew that while I had been held captive by Aric. And those who now knew about him ending his engagement were the only fae I one hundred percent trusted.
So maybe the traitor’s motivations had nothing to do with Caden? If so, that brought us all the way back to square one. Why would a Summer fae work with the Winter Court?
For some reason, I thought of the old leader of the Order. David Cuvillier had betrayed the Order by aiding the Winter Court and Queen. He’d done so out of fear and resignation, believing that we hadn’t stood a chance against the Winter Court. Could the traitor within the Summer Court have a similar mentality?
Fear could make some brave.
But fear could also turn others into the worst kind of cowards.
Chapter 9
“Are Fabian and Tink still out in the courtyard?” Ivy asked, drawing me from my unsettled thoughts.
Ren nodded. “Yeah, I have no idea what they’re doing. I should probably go annoy them.”
Smiling slightly, I watched him walk toward the kitchen, stopping to tip Ivy’s head back and brush a kiss across her lips.
A pang of jealousy and envy stabbed me, and I reburied my face in Dixon’s fur. He purred louder, like a little engine. After a few moments, I became aware of Ivy moving closer. I looked up, not at all surprised to see the concern in her gaze.
“I want to ask if everything is okay, but I know that’s a stupid question. So, I’ll try to refrain from asking that,” she said, coming to stand beside me. “How are you feeling being back here, though?”
“It’s…it’s good, but it is weird,” I admitted, thinking that if anyone knew what it felt like, it was Ivy. She had been through her own messed-up abduction. “Like it almost seems surreal to be here.”
She nodded in understanding. “When I was taken, there were times when I didn’t think I’d ever see my apartment again or the people I cared about. The first day home was a weird one.”
There had been many moments when I didn’t think I was going to walk out of that nightmare.
“Ren and Tink being there for me helped. If they hadn’t been, I probably would’ve eventually dealt with everything, but having them made it easier.” She scratched Dixon’s ear as she lifted her gaze to mine. “Can I give you some unsolicited advice? Don’t shut out the people who want to help.”
“I’m not.”
Her brows arched.
I sighed. “Things are complicated right now. That’s all I want to say about it.”
“You don’t have to say anything,” Ivy responded. “Just remember that I’m here when and if you do.”
“I will,” I promised.
Eventually, Ren returned inside with Tink and Fabian. It was hard to look at Caden’s brother and not see the impossible similarities in the golden hair and cut of Fabian’s jaw. After a bit, Ren and Ivy left, and Dixon found his way to Tink. Somehow, and I wasn’t even sure how, I ended up on the couch, squished between Tink and Fabian and buried under a small mountain of blankets. There were no questions about how I was feeling or what was going on. Tink turned on what had to be his favorite movie, oblivious to Fabian’s long-suffering sigh. Twilight. At this point, I’d seen it a hundred times, and I could recite those lines right alongside Tink, but I wasn’t complaining. Well, I would draw the line at Breaking Dawn. That whole plot would hit way too close to home at the moment. Pizza was ordered for lunch, and since I’d been given the all-clear to eat whatever, I might’ve gone a bit overboard and eaten half of the pies. For once, Tink didn’t comment, but I could tell he was bursting at the seams to make a comment about how I was now eating for two, though was doing his best to keep his mouth shut.
I’d relaxed between them, and by the start of Eclipse, I dozed on and off. I didn’t know what made me think of the community in Florida, but a plan formed in my mind, one that might actually work.
The moment Fabian left, I twisted toward Tink, who had been combing Dixon’s fur. “How big is the fae community in Florida? Is it like Hotel Good Fae?”
“Bigger, I think. There are several thousand there, and they don’t stay in a hotel or use glamour to hide where they live. They have several gated subdivisions that are all together, built right by a beach. Super smart what they did by gating the communities.” He dragged the small comb down Dixon’s back. “Makes the beaches sort of private since you have to come in through the gates. People just think those who live in there are super rich or something.”
“Do any humans live there?”
He nodded. “Some of the fae there are in relationships with humans.”
That was good. “Did you like it there?”
Tink shrugged as he glanced at the screen as Jacob went full wolf. “I liked it.”
“What about Fabian? He normally lives there, right? Does he plan to go back?”
“I think so, eventually.” He frowned. “Do you ever wonder why Bella couldn’t just have both Jacob and Edward?”
“What?”
“I mean, Edward has been alive for a while, so he’s gotta get bored with the same old, same old. And Jacob is a wolf. I’m sure both have seen and done stranger things,” he reasoned. “Plus, sharing is caring.”
I stared at him and then gave a shake of my head. “No, I’ve never thought about that.”
“You have boring thoughts then.”