Serefin nodded.
“But you look…”
“Glamour,” he replied. “His Majesty did not want to frighten you on your wedding day. He suggested we use glamour to keep our appearances…human-like.”
“He doesn’t want to scare me, huh?” I continued. “Very hypocritical coming from a man who is rumored to kill all of his human wives.”
“You’ll be safe, Jade,” Serefin said, losing his calm and collected composure. “Your husband…well, let’s just say that he doesn’t like it when people touch his things. You will be safe. Please do not worry yourself with believing anything other than that.”
A certain edge to his voice caused me to reconsider any argument I might have had. I had no idea what I was walking into, and the things Serefin said were not helping that situation.
My husband, one of the cruel and ruthless fae Princes of Rewyth, was going to protect me?
I nearly laughed out loud.
“I hate to do this, Lady Farrow, but His Majesty insists that you are asleep for the trip to Rewyth. Would you mind?” he asked politely, handing me a small vile of liquid.
“Is this going to kill me?” I asked skeptically.
Serefin laughed. “I sure hope not. A lot of people are looking forward to this wedding of yours.”
I closed my eyes and dumped the vile of liquid into my mouth, swallowing it all. “It wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if it did though, would it?” I asked him, passing the empty vile back. “If it killed me?” I didn’t care if I sounded weak or pitiful. I was dreading whatever came next. To die in my sleep would be merciful compared to what was going to happen next.
It might have been the sudden sluggishness I felt in my senses, but I could have sworn I saw his brows furrowed in concern as my own eyes drifted shut, the sound of the horse’s hooves pounding repeatedly on the ground lulling me back to sleep.
I was in a bed when I woke up. Correction, I was in the biggest damn bed I had ever seen in my entire life.
“Oh good!” A woman, not much older than me, sat in a chair opposite of the bed. “You’re awake! Good thing, because we have a lot of work to do. No offense, of course.”
“Where are we?” I asked, rubbing my pounding temple. “How long was I out?”
“Just a couple of hours. The wedding starts soon, though, so up up!” she chirped, clapping her hands and pulling the blanket away from my body. “I’m Adeline, by the way. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
I shook the small hand she held out for me. Adeline was beautiful, perhaps the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. She had bright red hair that cascaded in perfect curls to her waist, contrasting against her porcelain white skin.
“You’re…”
“Fae, yes,” she said, already knowing my question. “I’m also your soon-to-be sister-in-law. I insisted on helping you get ready today, mostly because these maids have no sense of style. But also because you and I are going to be best friends!”
I smiled as best I could to be polite, but this was all too much. Adeline was fae, too? So far, none of the fae I had met were monstrous, evil creatures. Serefin and Adeline were both kind to me. Unless of course this was all a facade.
“I’m marrying your brother?” I asked as she pulled me into the bathroom. “Please tell me everything I’ve heard about the fae princes isn’t true.”
Adeline didn’t even try to hide the pity she felt for me. “Sweetie, there’s a lot to learn about my brothers. If I told you everything, we would be here for weeks on end. But I’ll tell you this much,” she said, guiding me to a chair and sitting me in front of a large mirror. “My brother isn’t everything he seems on the surface. Give him a chance. He really might surprise you.”
“Great,” I mumbled. “I can’t wait.”
She grabbed a brush and picked up my long, black hair, running it through her fingers. “He’ll love this too, you know.”
I scoffed. “No offense, but I hardly care about whether or not my new captor likes the way I look.”
“Captor?” she repeated. “Rewyth has to be a step up from the human lands at least, no?”
I shook my head slowly, fighting the sudden urge to cry. “I left my sister behind. She’ll die without me. She’ll starve.”
“My brother will take care of your family. The fae aren’t as cruel as the humans might have told you, you know.”
She spoke matter-of-factly, but I wasn’t entirely sure I could trust her. I wasn’t sure I could trust any of them.