“I noticed.” I rubbed my forehead with the back of my hand. “Those werewolves we met were not glad to see us.”
The echo of their pounding footsteps crunching through the forest resounded in my memory. That was only one species encounter. I knew about some of the others, but I was sure it was only a fraction of what was truly out there. Tyran was right. I had to start with learning control.
“I want to start learning now,” I said with as much conviction as I could push into my words.
“You’ve slept for weeks, the best thing is—”
“The best thing for me right now is to get started,” I interrupted him, straightening my back. It was as if the sleep had completely restored any mental fatigue.
The look in his steady gaze was admiring as he led me out of the room and down the halls, toward a large oak door that mirrored the others. A tall Fae dressed identically to how Roark and Sabine had been dressed strode down the hall. I tensed, waiting for an attack.
But it never came. The Fae inclined his head to Tyran and me before disappearing down the hall.
I let out a stream of air I’d held in, swallowing back my nerves. The Fae Guard uniform was going to bring some unpleasant thoughts to my head.
“Are only the Fae Guard allowed to use that clothing?”
“Yes.”
I looked down at my black t-shirt and jeans. They were the same ones I’d bought with the money Rian stole. “Can I get clothing?”
“I’ll notify the weaver that you’d like some clothing.”
“Where do they get it from?”
“They make if from cerulyl. You may know it as cotton. But they also use a different material only found in Faerie that makes our Fae-made clothing stronger and more durable.”
I managed to stutter to a stop when he suddenly halted. He waved at the short staircase leading into darkness, and I couldn’t help but give him a suspicious look. Smiling, he didn’t move. I’d been under the impression I was at the highest point of the castle already.
The stillness throughout his body was eerie, and I knew he’d settled into the Fae version of waiting. With a sigh and an untrusting glance, I stepped through the darkened hall.
He stepped in behind me as darkness flooded the area. A thrill shot through me, and my heart picked up pace, pounding against my ribcage like a caged animal. It brought me back to the dungeon in the dark fortress. Of the chains and metal holding me and my friends in that godawful place.
My muscles tensed, but before I could take off at Fae speed, my sight got blurry. I blinked and rubbed my eyes. The shadow of the walls to the side of me slowly came into focus as light filtered though a cracked door.
Whirling, I faced Tyran. He stood still staring at me with his head tilted, watching me curiously. “Were you trying to scare me?”
The side of his lip tilted, and he shook his head. I scoffed in disbelief as the panicked survival mode my body had kicked into slowly seeped away. I’d changed so much in the last months, I barely recognized myself. I rubbed my wrist where the iron scar circled.
He chuckled, running his eyes down my body. I felt their touch, and there must have been a misfire in my system because my neck prickled with awareness. I narrowed my eyes at him, not liking the sensation akin to desire that shot through me.
My spine straightened as I realized something… This was the first time I’d gone longer than a minute without thinking about him in some way or another. Hope coursed through me. Maybe I would be able to forget…
“Are you ready to get started?”
“Sure.” I tried for flippancy.
Expression puzzled, he stared at me as if he could sense the negativity that slipped through my veins. “Well, let’s see how you do.” He waved out a hand so I could move into the room before him.
The smug look in his eyes annoyed me. He definitely didn’t think I could handle myself. In the face of the condescending expression, the desire to prove myself rose like a tidal wave.
Tyran wasn’t a jerk, which went against my overall initial experience with the Fae. My lips pursed, and I pushed that thought away. I needed to stop that. There was no need to remind myself of those thoughts, and all it did was make me feel crappy. This was my new reality—all Fae weren’t bad. Now I just had to believe it.
I observed the room as I stepped through, and the only object in sight was a large square mat in the middle of the floor. Another aspect—the walls were glass. I could see everything. I gaped and walked to the edge of the room and looked down from the highest point of the castle. My feet tingled at the drop. I gazed at my surroundings. This glass room was an extension and barely higher than the floor my bedroom was on.
I pressed my palm against the fogged glass. The rain had softened to a drizzle, but the sky remained dark. I couldn’t see anything more than the grey clouds.
Turning to Tyran, I found him sitting in the middle of the room, his legs crossed. The material of his loose shirt creased with his movement. He motioned me to do the same in front of him. “As a fully matured Fae, you are going to be heightened. You must learn how to concentrate. Sometimes, the very smell, the very sound of something will make you want to fall to your knees. That’s not taking into account the strength you will have in your fingertips. One wrong move and you could break a human’s
