CHAPTER 4
Lexi absently clapped along with all the immortalsand tried to keep her mouth shut while she examined the exquisiteballroom and all the beautifully dressed immortals. She wasn’t usedto seeing immortals dressed like this. In the human realm, theyalways wore human clothes to blend in.
Even now that the humans knew about theirexistence, most immortals still wore the clothing of the mortal’s.She didn’t know if it was from habit or because the immortalspreferred to blend in.
She had noticed the dark fae stoppedconcealing the pointed tips of their ears in shadows, the pixiesstopped hiding, the lycan sometimes transformed, and the vampireswould transport in public, but for the most part, the immortalscontinued to blend in with the mortals while on Earth.
And they were about as far from Earth as itgot in this place. The end of the line was so far outside of theroom that she had to stand on tiptoe to see inside, but what shesaw awed her.
The roof and walls of the dome-shaped roomwere black. Sconces holding torches of wavering flames hung on thewalls. The shadows their glow cast swelled and danced as if theywere a living entity—and in the Gloaming, they very well couldbe.
This was the dark fae land—the land of theimmortals who were one with shadows. There could be dozens of darkfae standing in those shadows, and she wouldn’t see any ofthem.
She glanced uneasily around but didn’t seeanyone. Then the stars illuminating the ceiling moved, and sheforgot her unease as she went back to trying not to gawk.
Some of the stars were constellations fromEarth; there was the Little and the Big Dipper and Orion, butothers looked utterly unfamiliar. A rising purple moon was followedby a large, red planet that slid across the top of the dome.
As the familiar constellations shifted out ofview, new stars rose to replace them. These were three times biggerand the color of a flamingo as they floated overhead.
She had no idea what realm they were from,but their beauty stole her breath. She could stand here and watchthis ever-changing display for the rest of her life and probablystill not see everything it offered.
Around her, the applause increased beforeabruptly ceasing. She kept her attention focused on the dome whileshe tried to ignore the oppressive heat of the bodies surroundingher. The main hall was gigantic, but the fae king must have invitedevery immortal who had supported the war as at least a thousand ofthem filled the room and spilled out the doorways.
She tugged at the collar of her dress as abead of sweat slid down her neck. It was a beautiful gown, butshe’d never worn anything like it before, and she found the copiousamounts of material uncomfortable.
When the line started moving, she tore herattention away from the ceiling to follow the others. Beside her,Sahira practically danced as she shifted from foot to foot andtwisted her hands before her.
“This is so exciting,” she murmured.
This is awful. But Lexi didn’t expressher feelings; she imagined there were ears everywhere in thisrealm.
Finally, the crowd moved forward enough forthem to enter the main part of the room. Her eyes instantly settledon the golden dais at the far end of the room and the three thronesthere.
Strange carvings etched the gold dais; Lexihad no idea what those carvings represented, but she suspected theyrepresented something to the dark fae. Ten steps led to the top ofthe dais, which meant the king and his sons looked down on the roomfrom their lofty positions.
In the center of the stage, the dark fae kingsat higher than his sons and surveyed the room with an air ofcasual indifference. The crown perched on his head was larger thanthe ones his sons wore and possessed three of the black stones,while his sons’ crowns only had one stone each.
The king’s pointed ears poked out frombeneath his shoulder-length, black hair. He was handsome with hisblack eyes and high cheekbones, but the coldness surrounding himmade her pull at her dress again as a clammy sensation crept overher skin.
She didn’t know how he could appear soindifferent to so many immortals, but it wouldn’t surprise her ifhe yawned. That nonchalance spoke of his power as much as the blackciphers covering the fingers resting on the curved ends of histhrone.
Lexi gulped when she saw the two skullsbehind his shoulders. The skulls were black, but she had theunsettling feeling eyes once filled the empty sockets.
To the king’s left sat a handsome, slenderman with disheveled blond hair that almost covered the tips of hispointed ears. The blank expression on his face didn’t change as theShadow Realms’ members climbed the dais to greet him and hisfamily.
When she looked to the king’s right, shecouldn’t keep her jaw from dropping.
She’d heard stories about the king’s eldestson. She didn’t think there was anyone who hadn’t heardabout him, including the humans who now knew immortals existed.
His ruthlessness was legendary. His abilityto kill was becoming mythological. The troubadours already sangabout his feats on the battlefield. The few songs she’d heard inthe marketplace told of his power, his size, and the way women fellat his feet.
Not only did the women swoon for him, but hisenemies cowered, and there were rumors some had killed themselvesrather than face his wrath.
Lexi was sure there was some truth to thesongs and just as sure there were many exaggerations too. However,looking at him now, she didn’t think any of it was anexaggeration.
Unlike most of the dark fae—who usually stuckto and bred with their kind—the king had spread out to otherimmortal species and produced nine children. His oldest son’smother was a lycan, and it showed in the man.
His shoulders were broad, and the thickmuscles bulging beneath his black tunic differentiated him from thelean builds of the dark fae. He looked like he could tear the headfrom a bull and bash his enemies to death with it.
Gold edged the sleeves, neckline, and hem ofhis formfitting black tunic. Beneath it, he wore a pair of blackpants. The tunic and pants were the standard garments for the darkfae, but somehow, he made the clothing stand out in a room full
