Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 117167 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 586(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117167 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 586(@200wpm)___ 469(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
He permitted himself a moment to stare in wonder at the strange place. His family would love to see this, to hear about it. They would never believe him.
An old ache echoed through his chest. Gods, he missed his clan. The pain felt worse than it had been while he was being held captive. Now he was free and yet not. So close to them…but he still couldn’t reach out to them.
“Yiyi?”
Rei’s soft voice prodded him forward, breaking him from his dark thoughts. He hurried down the long, winding stairs into a cozy parlor with a flickering fire in a stone fireplace. The scent of dirt, roots, old wood, worn leather, and pipe tobacco permeated the space.
Olag dropped into an overstuffed chair so big his feet didn’t touch the ground. Odds and ends covered every nook, cranny, and surface. Paintings of landscapes and other gnomes covered the walls. Colorful patchwork-quilts of dizzying quality covered furniture, and stacks of books that looked as if they were in danger of tumbling over stood in every corner.
“Why have you sought Olag?” the gnome inquired.
“We need your help,” Rei began, his tone incredibly respectful. The only time Yichen had ever heard Rei use that tone was when he was addressing his parents. “While the king and queen held Wu Yichen within the fae realm, a blood bond formed between us. He had no choice but to feed on my blood in order to remain alive. Now he’s unable to take blood from anyone else. Human blood makes him ill.”
Olag extended an arm and shook it until one hand with five stubby fingers appeared. He used that hand to stroke his beard. Bushy eyebrows lowered and met over his nose, almost completely obscuring his eyes. “I don’t understand. If you fed him, he’s now yours. Why would you wish to allow him to be free of you? If you want to gift him to another of your kind, he needs to feed from that person.”
Yichen made a scoffing noise and held in a few choice scathing words when Rei briefly placed a hand on his elbow. The elf stepped forward and dropped to one knee so he was at eye level with the gnome. “You’re not amusing, Young Master Olag. You might prefer to stay underground, away from politics, but you’re not unaware of what happened in the Silver Court. Wu Yichen has saved my life countless times over the years, and I have saved his life. We are not beholden to each other. He has a right to his freedom, and I need to stop the king and queen from accomplishing their insane plan. But none of that can happen if, against his will, he is tied to me.”
The gnome slouched in his chair with a huff. He pulled on his beard and emitted a growling noise. “Why does the king want to leave our home at all? It is beyond my understanding. It’s madness.” Olag shook his fist at Rei until his overly long sleeve devoured it again. “Madness!”
That was the truth. King Ash and Queen Belladonna wished to keep the door between the fae realm and human realm open indefinitely, pouring all the magic of the fae world into the human one, allowing them to take over.
“I don’t argue with you. The king’s plans will not only destroy our home, but they will ultimately destroy this world as well.”
“So, you’re going to what? Defeat the king and queen, then close the doors? Seal all the fae back in our realm?”
“That is my hope. But if I do that, what becomes of Wu Yichen? A slow death of starvation? That’s too cruel to do to someone who was drawn into this mess through no fault of his own. I cannot survive in the human realm after the door is shut, and he belongs with his family here. He can’t return to the fae realm.”
“He needs to take the throne if the fae people are to survive,” Yichen snarled as a fist tried to tighten around his heart. “Do you have the magic to help us or not?”
“No,” Olag replied instantly.
“I don’t believe you,” Rei countered. “Olag, you are older than any of us, born of the mountains. How can you not know how to free him from me?”
“Because breaking bonds is not my specialty. My people are in the business of forging things that last for an eternity.”
Yichen narrowed his eyes on the gnome. “But even rocks break. The rush of water can wear them away.”
The gnome stared at him, his dark eyes seeming to soak in the faint flickering light in the small room. Yichen didn’t flinch as he returned his gaze. His master was Jiang Chong. The vampire had taught all of them what it meant to break and be reforged into something unyielding.