“Or we were,” Kane mutters, “until King Oberon decided he’d seduce the Seelie princess to destroy their court from the inside.”
My head snaps up. “What? I thought he loved her.”
Kane barks out a laugh. “You think the king of the Court of the Moon just happened to fall in love with his greatest enemy’s daughter and impregnate her?”
“I . . .” I don’t know what I thought. “That’s the story.”
Finn hangs his head. “The Great Fae War had raged on for years,” he says. “Arya was part of my father’s plan to destroy the Seelie kingdom from the inside, but he didn’t count on her parents locking him in the human realm. And he didn’t count on his own brother trying to steal the throne.”
He never loved her. “Gods,” I mutter. “At least now I understand why she’s so angry.” And I hate it. I hate the similarities between me and Arya. We were both betrayed by males we thought loved us, both romantically manipulated for political gain. Both bitter and angry.
Finn’s watching me carefully, and I’m as grateful as ever that he can’t read my pathetic thoughts.
“Were the gods not angry for being tricked?” I ask, if only to get my mind off the differences between myself and the vile golden queen. “Did they hold it against Mab? Against her court?”
“Oh, yes,” Finn says, “and like in all things, the gods value balance. That’s why they created the fire gems and the bloodstones to represent her choices, if in lesser measure. The fire gems would amplify the magic of any fae, Seelie or Unseelie, and though their users would never be as powerful as Mab, they could do great and terrible things with the aid of those gems.”
“Are these the same fire gems that are used today? Like the one I wear?” I ask, pressing my hand to the gem between my breasts.
Finn nods.
“What about the bloodstones?”
Finn’s face goes solemn. “The bloodstones were the real punishment for Mab’s trickery. They allowed their user to steal the magic and immortality from one with Unseelie blood and funnel its power into something else. Those stones made Mab and her entire court vulnerable, as they allowed the Seelie to steal our power without any of the consequence that Arya’s court suffered when she cursed our people.”
I swallow hard. “Do people use them?”
Kane rolls his eyes. “Are you asking if we have a magic stone that could turn you mortal again?
No, Abriella, we do not. Mab destroyed them so they could never be used against her or her court.”
I wait for the disappointment to hit. My only chance to be a mortal again was lost thousands of years before I was even born. And maybe . . . maybe I was never meant to live out my days as a human. Maybe I was meant to be something different, meant to find another way to help those who’ve been exploited the way Jas and I were as children.
I feel Finn staring at me and lift my head to meet his eyes. There are countless questions in those silver eyes, and I wonder if he thinks I’m wishing for a bloodstone for myself.
The sound of hoofbeats pulls our attention to the rocky path. Pretha draws back on her horse’s reins as she nears the clearing, then dismounts in once smooth motion. “You found shade,” she says, fanning herself. “I’ll take some of that.”
Kane guzzles from his canteen before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “I suppose we should head back then.”
“Do you mind if we take a little break first?” Pretha asks. She ties her horse to a tree near the others and collapses on a log. She yanks at the top of her dress. “I’m overheated, and I need to cool off or I’ll be an unbearable grump tonight.”
“How’s that different from usual?” Kane asks.
Pretha glares at him, then turns to me. “Would you mind waiting a bit, Brie? I promise I won’t make us late for the festivities.”
I shrug. “It’s fine. If we can’t see the priestess until tomorrow, there’s no reason to rush.” I don’t mind at all, actually. I’m not eager to get back on that horse with Finn, and the hot afternoon is only part of the reason.
“We don’t have to be back for a few hours,” Finn says. “If we’re all in agreement, there’s no rush.”
“Thank the gods,” Pretha says, hiking up her skirt and unzipping her boots. “I swear, I’m melting. I take back everything I said about it being too cold this morning.”
Kane waves toward the trees. “Go cool off in the lake. I can hear the waterfall from here.”