Queen of Night

4. Tricky Rules

"I told you I didn't have a wish." Iyan's hand tightened around the hilt of one of her daggers. She took a step back as the Faerie inched closer to her. "I only wanted to find out what happened to my friend."

His eyes flashed mischievously and one of his palms glowed silver. Her basket, filled with mushrooms and rope, went flying into the forest. The Faerie's wings flared outwards, the silver spirals almost glowing as he used his magic.

"There are always rules when it comes to using spells," he said. "If you break a rule, there are consequences."

Iyan continued to move away from him. Her back pressed against a tree. "I didn't break any rules."

"You did," he insisted. His wings folded around them, cutting off the moonlight. Iyan clutched at her dagger, her mouth going dry. "You freed me without making a wish. Now, you are the one who is trapped."

"What are you talking about?" She forced herself not to whimper as he tilted his head and stared her down.

"You are now mine. You will come to the Faerie Lands with me and spend the rest of your days trying to capture me once more. When you succeed and make your wish, you will be free once more. If you try to leave the Faerie Lands, you will be killed before you even see the Vetiti."

Her heart dropped and anger took hold of her. "You lying filthy Faerie bastard! You do know what happened to Lucille. You tricked me!" She jerked her blade free of its sheath and slashed it towards his face.

He caught her wrist and twisted. The blade fell from her grasp. With a flick of his finger, her belt fell off, ridding her of the other dagger as well. Thinking quickly, Iyan pulled her wrist free and slammed her iron bracelet against his wing.

The Faerie gave a howl of pain and dropped to his knees. Iyan wasted no time. She jumped past him and sprinted towards Sparrowhaven. Her own heartbeat thundered in her ears as she ran.

Stupid! Stupid! How could I have missed that? She ran on, jumping over tree roots and shrubs. I just have to get to the brothel and I'll be safe. If she wasn't so terrified, Iyan would've laughed at the irony. She forced herself to run faster.

Silver lit up the path ahead of her and a tree root burst from the ground. Iyan cried out as she went careening over it. She hit the ground and rolled. Iyan gasped for breath and attempted to crawl on. Wings flapped overhead. She flipped onto her back as the Faerie landed before her.

His mouth twisted into a feral sneer and he stormed towards her. Iyan's eyes widened in terror as he raised a hand. She flinched, anticipating a strike. It never came. Her eyelids became oddly heavy. She fought the urge to close them, but finally gave in. She was aware of strong arms grabbing her before sleep pulled her under.

✦❘༻✦༺❘✦

Iyan bolted awake with a scream. She looked around for Asena, but her sister was nowhere to be seen. She shook her head, realizing that none of her surroundings were familiar. She was in a large bedroom, filled to the brim with exquisite furnishings.

Her gaze flickered to the nearest window. It was sunny out. Where am I? Iyan lifted a hand to her head. How long was I out? The memory of last night's incident resurfaced and for a moment, she wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer to her questions.

The door flew open and another Faerie traipsed in. "Ah, the human lives!" The woman leaned over the bed frame, watching her curiously. "I'll admit, you looked pretty dead last night. Of course, I'd look dead too if I had to put up with Arius by myself for an entire flight."