Forever Fae

Chapter 10 - Ryder

"Did you have fun with Calista's sister, Kalen?" I asked humorously.

Chuckling, Kalen replied, "Oh yes, brother, she's an amazing girl. Her ability is for nature and animals. I told her of my pack of white wolves we have in the Winter Court and she was totally fascinated about it. We spent the whole time talking about animals. She's the only girl I've ever talked to that has loved talking about animals."

My brother loved his animals, but he'd never been fortunate enough to find a girl that had a love for them, too. I was glad he could share that with her, but I didn't want him screwing with Calista's sister.

"We need to find Warren and settle in for the night," I informed him while searching around the room.

"Sounds good to me."

Kalen cleared his throat and when I glanced over at him he had a sly grin on his face. "I saw you with the Princess. It was looking kind of hot and heavy there for a while. Is there something you're not telling me?"

I tried not to smile, but failed. "I plan to meet her tonight, but I need you to make sure that Warren doesn't find out. He's been acting strange, so I don't want him to know. I'm going to get Heylfred to check on him when we get back. I trust you to keep this a secret."

"Of course, Ryder, whatever you need me to do, I'll do," he insisted.

Clapping him on the shoulder, we then began our search for Warren. We found him talking to Avery, the counselor for the Summer Court. When they saw us approach, Warren averted his gaze quickly, like he was guilty of something.

Glaring at him suspiciously, I asked, "Are you ready to retire?"

He walked away from Avery and didn't look back. "Yes, I'm ready. It's been a long night."

"Good, Kalen will show you the way to our rooms. I have a few things I need to do first." Like finding Xylia before everyone leaves for the night, I thought to myself.

Warren pierced me with a skeptical look, but I kept my face blank. I couldn't let him know what I was doing. The outburst he had about the princess had me very cautious around him. I didn't want to have to hurt my oldest friend, but I would if I had to. Kalen and Warren both left, so I was free to find the one person I needed. Once I spotted her and got her attention, she came right over.

"Is there something I can help you with, Prince Ryder?" Xylia quipped.

"As a matter of fact, there is. Can you do me a favor?" I whispered.

"Depends," she said, smiling. "Will there be stealth involved?" Darting her eyes back and forth, she rubbed her hands together in anticipation. She reminded me of Kalen with his sense of humor and spunky personality.

Laughing, I answered, "Yes, there will be lots of stealth involved."

She winked. "Then I'm in, sweet thing."

Leaning in closer, I whispered in her ear, "I'm going to meet Calista tonight and I need you to make sure Merrick doesn't come looking for her if he suspects she's missing."

Her face fell.

"Do you realize how much he's going to hate me if he finds out? Not to mention the amount of trouble I could get into?"

"I wouldn't ask if I didn't think you could do it." I looked around quickly to make sure no one was listening, and then I glanced back at her. "Please, I really need to speak to her in private. It's very important that I talk to her."

Huffing, she bit her lip and smiled. "Okay, I'll make it happen. But if I get in trouble, I'm placing all the blame on you. Got it?"

"Deal," I agreed, holding out my palm. We shook hands and she was off.

Everything was going as planned. I had one hour to kill before it was time to meet Calista. What is there to do in this hour?