Summer of Frost (22 page)

“
You have nothing to worry about with
that. Trust me,” I murmured.

“
I do with my life.”

When the dream world started to fade, I did
what I wasn’t expecting myself to do. I leaned over and kissed
Drake gently on the lips, watching his eyes spring wide in the
process. His loving smile was the last thing I saw before he
disappeared from my world.

“Why do you think she couldn’t get to me in
my dreams?” Oren asked as we walked through the palace in search of
Sarette.

“I think the house they’re in is enchanted
with a spell. I told her in the dream last night that the same
thing happened with Calista when she was taken on that first night.
The house was invisible, and her magic wouldn’t work inside. She
seemed to be warming to the idea that Alston isn’t who he
seems.”

“I’m glad she’s coming around. Do you think
she’ll do something stupid when the truth comes out?” Oren asked,
even though he knew Sorcha well enough to know the answer. I gave
him an incredulous look in response and he sighed, “That’s what I
was afraid of.”

When we reached Sarette’s door, Oren
knocked. A few minutes passed by and no one answered, so I did the
only thing I could think of and barged in. Too much time had
wasted, and I refused to give Alston more time with Sorcha. Sarette
didn’t even budge when Oren and I entered her room. She sat by the
window, staring blankly at the gardens below.

Oren walked past me and knelt in front of
her. “Sarette? Talk to me,” he whispered soothingly to her.

She glanced at Oren briefly before turning
back to the window. “My own flesh and blood turned traitor,” she
cried hoarsely. “How am I going to face everyone back home? They’re
going to treat me like an outcast now.” She put her hands over her
face to hide the embarrassment and sobbed uncontrollably.

Oren took her hands away from her face and
held them in his. “It wasn’t your fault, Sarette. Alston’s
obsession with Sorcha is what drove him to this insanity. Besides,
you don’t have to worry about facing everyone at home. You can make
a new home in the Summer Court … in Sorcha’s Summer Court.”

Sarette’s eyes grew wide, flicking a nervous
glance my way before wiping away her tears. To me she asked, “Would
you approve of that, Your Highness? Letting the cousin to a traitor
being allowed to live in your court?”

Smiling briefly, I said, “Yes, I would
approve, and I know Sorcha will be glad to hear it, too.
Nevertheless, we’ve come for your help.”

She stood up slowly, determination in her
eyes, and crossed her arms across her chest. “Whatever you need me
to do I’ll do. I still can’t believe Alston would do this. All the
lies he told me. I must’ve been blind not to see the truth.”

“Well, Sorcha can’t see through it right now
either. She’s been visiting me unconsciously in her dreams, and she
started out not believing anything I said, but I think she’s coming
around. I’ve told her secrets that only she and I know of, and
she’s still skeptical. Are all you Winter women like that? When we
get her back I’m going to scold her ass for being so damn
stubborn.”

“That’s her, and unfortunately, she’s always
been like that. I’ve just gotten used to it,” Sarette laughed
half-heartedly. “What do you need from me?”

Oren and I glanced at each other, and I
nodded for him to answer. “I’ve taken Drake to all the places
Alston and Sorcha had often gone to in the mortal realm together.
We can’t get a feel for her anywhere and I’m afraid we won’t if
what Drake suspects are true.”

“What is it that you suspect?” she asked,
looking at me.

I replied, “We think she might be somewhere
that’s muted her powers. She’s not able to communicate with Oren so
I’m only assuming the place she’s in is surrounded by dark
magic.”

“And how can I help?”

“We need to know if you have any idea where
he could’ve taken her other than the places we’ve already been.”
Oren went into detail on all the places we’d been while Sarette
followed along, furrowing her brows in concentration.

Taking a deep breath, she turned her back on
me and faced the window. “I think I might know where they’re at,”
she whispered. “I don’t know for sure, but it’s worth a shot.”

“Where?” I belted out quickly.

When Sarette faced us, fresh tears stained
her cheeks. Her voice quivered when she asked, “What are you going
to do if they’re there? Are you going to kill Alston?”

Oren and I glanced at each other quickly. I
wanted to kill Alston for what he’d done, and if he didn’t hand
Sorcha over then I
would
kill him. I wasn’t sure what
Sarette was expecting me to say, but she had to know that even
though she was Sorcha’s best friend, I couldn’t let Alston live for
her sake. That might be cruel, but it was the way it had to be. No
one betrayed our people and lived.

“I’m sorry, Sarette, but it’s entirely up to
your cousin. If he hands Sorcha over willingly, I might consider
not killing him, but if he doesn’t then I will fight for her, and
he
will
die.”

She blew out a shaky breath. “Then I’m
coming with you. I can talk to him … get him to back down.”

“No!” Oren and I yelled at the same
time.

Narrowing her eyes, she pinned us with the
most stubborn stare imaginable. It made me miss Sorcha even more,
and it didn’t help matters that Sarette had the same long, black
hair and body that reminded me of her. “I’m afraid you have no
choice. If you don’t let me come then I’m not going to tell you
where they might be. There’s still a chance I’m wrong anyway. I
only know of this place because I heard Alston talking about it,
and I followed him. I figured it was his retreat when he would get
upset over Sorcha.”

“It’s too dangerous, Sarette, and if we have
to kill Alston you’re going to be right there. Is that what you
want? Do you really want to watch your cousin die?” I asked
skeptically.

She gave me a defiant stare and pursed her
lips. “No, I don’t want to watch him die. That’s why I’m hoping
he’ll give himself up when he sees me.”

If Sarette was anything like Sorcha, she’d
weasel her way into going no matter what I did or said. Huffing out
a breath, I relented and gave in. “Fine! But if you want to be
naïve enough to think Alston’s going to listen to you then that’s
your problem. If things turn for the worse, you need to stay out of
the way. Sorcha’s probably going to be pissed as hell with me for
bringing you, especially if you get hurt.”

Sarette shrugged. “She’ll just have to get
over it. She helped rescue me and now I’m going to help rescue her.
It’ll make us even.”

I couldn’t argue with that. “Let’s go,” I
told them. “I have a feeling this will be it.”

I woke up extra early with an idea in my
head. If I was surrounded by dark magic then there had to be an end
point. There was no way it could cover that much land in the mortal
realm, and not give out or have weak points. All I needed to do was
sneak out of the house and see how far it took to get my connection
to Oren open, and then hurry back once I talked to him.

Quietly stepping out of bed, I tiptoed to
the closet. My warrior gear was in there along with my spear. The
clanking sound of my armor made me cringe each time the sound
vibrated across the room. Opening the door, I glanced around
quickly before walking past what I assumed was the room Alston
slept in. The door was closed, so I glided carefully away from it,
holding my breath for emphasis.

The stairs creaked as I descended them and I
silently cursed the whole time, hoping I wasn’t screwing up my
stealthy plan. If I could only get to the door I’d be able to get
out. The front door opened silently and I was about to make a run
for it when Alston’s voice boomed out from behind me.

“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?”
he stormed angrily.

Not expecting his furious tone, I whirled
around and faced him. He had never talked to me like that, and I
definitely wasn’t going to allow him to do it again. “First off!” I
exclaimed. “Don’t you ever use that tone with me again. Second, I’m
not a prisoner, and if I want to go for a walk on my own then I’m
entitled to. I don’t need a babysitter, and you sure as hell are
not going to order me around.”

His electric blue eyes widened in panic, but
only for a second. He approached me slowly as if I were a caged
animal in need of a tranquilizer. I could recognize that maneuver
from anywhere. He was preparing to chase me if I ran. My instincts
told me to run, but with him inching closer I knew I wouldn’t get
far. My time for escape had already left.

When he was close enough, he lifted his
hands up in defeat. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have gotten overbearing
like that. You just looked like you were trying to sneak off.”

I was
, I thought to myself, but I
wasn’t going to tell him that. So instead, I said, “I was trying to
be quiet and not wake you.”

“What were you going out there to do?” he
asked, curious.

Nonchalantly, I shrugged my shoulders. “I
wanted to get some fresh air and walk around a bit, maybe even
practice with my spear. I still need to keep up with my training,
you know.”

He peered at me skeptically. “Are you sure
you weren’t trying to run away?”

“Now why would I do that? Do you have a
guilty conscience or something?” I asked, studying his
expression.

He laughed nervously and averted his eyes, a
clear sign of lying. “No,” he replied. “I just don’t want you to
leave without protection. I think you scared me more than
anything.”

I nodded, pretending to understand. “You
know I’m not helpless, right? I have been training for a while and
I have no doubt that I could kick your ass.”

Alston bit his lip and moved gracefully to
tower over me. “I think I’d like that. How about we do a little
hand on hand combat outside for a while? Maybe it’ll relieve some
of the tension.”