I dropped the ring into her palm, just as the prickling sensation of passing over the Dagda’s wards ran over my skin. I glanced out of the window, into the darkness, and braced myself for an attack.
The carriage lurched forward, making us both stumble to the side. A howl reached my ears, but Enbarr moved at such an impressive speed that the sound quickly dimmed. Heartbeats later, we moved from darkness to shadow, and back to the field of mud and pigs.
Nessa and I exhaled long breaths. I slid my hand down Drayce’s cheekbone. His skin felt cooler than usual, and his breaths were shallower and less frequent.
I turned my gaze to Nessa, who stood against the wall. “Can you tell me anything about the ring?”
She nodded and closed her eyes again. “The magic in the ring is slippery and ancient. It’s used by those who wish to steal power from others.”
My throat spasmed. “Why would the Dagda say it created a mating bond?”
Her amethyst eye opened but the eye of smoke remained shut. “He wasn’t lying about that. Mating bonds are the only way most faeries can exchange thoughts and power. This ring can create the bond, but if you put it on the finger of a person who doesn’t love you, they can steal your power and leave you a husk.”
I stared down at Drayce. “If I slipped it on his finger, would I be sucked into his dream?”
“Your Majesty.” Nessa’s voice was sharp. “If King Drayce doesn’t love you—”
“He does,” I said.
Nessa turned her gaze to Rosalind, who stood at the foot of the bed, her head bowed. They were probably worried about Bresail being ruled by Death and the resurgence of the Shadow Court, but they didn’t know Drayce.
“Tread carefully, Your Majesty,” said Nessa.
I held out my hand. “When we reach the palace, I’ll decide what to do next.”
She inclined her head, dropped the ring into my palm, and retreated back to the other end of the coach with Rosalind at her side.
Leaning down to Drayce, I pressed a kiss on his cool brow. “Enbarr found us.” I smoothed down his hair. “He’s worried about you, and so am I. If you can hear me, you need to fight what’s happening. I’ll do what I can to help.”
An echo of his voice reached my ears, reminding me to stick a dagger in his heart. I squeezed my eyes shut.
Stabbing wasn’t an option. Not yet. Not while I wasn’t his bonded mate. Not until we had exhausted every magical means of rousing Drayce.
I rose to my feet and turned away, my heart clenching at the thought of causing him pain. Again. Outside, we passed through a meadow of tall wildflowers. A pair of emerald eyes stared out at me belonging to a yellow-eared doe with a matching tail.
My mouth fell open, and a gasp escaped my lungs. I had met that creature before—the last time I entered Drayce’s dreamscape, the doe had rested her head on the lap of that dark figure.
I rushed through the royal suite, bumping into the dining chairs left by the table, through the narrow hallway that linked both compartments, and flung open the door that led to the others.
Rosalind, Aengus, and Cliach stood. In the large window behind them, Enbarr galloped several feet above the meadow and toward a copse of gnarled oaks that stretched toward the wall of black on our right. The morning sun rose from behind us, casting the woodland bordering the meadow in shadow.
“Stop the carriage,” I said. “We need to capture a doe.”
Chapter 15
Someone in front must have heard my instructions because the carriage turned around, facing the wildflower meadow and the mountains beyond. The sun emerged from behind the clouds, illuminating the sprinkling of poppies like drops of blood.
I glanced from left to right, looking for signs of yellow ears or a mustard-colored tail, but the doe had either lain flat or had already disappeared into the shadows.
“Where’s the deer?” Aengus stood at the front window and glanced from left to right.
Nessa emerged from behind the counter, clutching a pot of steaming porridge. “What’s so special about it, Your Majesty?”
“I think it’s linked to the curse on King Drayce.” Still keeping my eye on the front window for signs of the doe, I turned to Rosalind. “How fast can you fly?”
“Not as fast as a deer.” She raised her head. “Aengus, can you—”
“Ready the capall to give chase?” He pressed his palm on the window. A door swung open, and he stepped inside.
Rosalind pursed her lips but didn’t comment on his interruption. I hurried after Aengus with my companion on my heels and stepped into the front carriage.
The scent of leather and hay and horses filled my nostrils as I took in my surroundings. This compartment was twice the size of the royal suite, with wooden stalls running down one length and an enclosure that I assumed contained the living area of the driver and soldiers on the other. A pair of males in silver I recognized from the stables opened one of the enclosures and eased out an ivory capall with a braided mane.
On my immediate left, four of the guards sat around a table for eight, playing cards. They rose to their feet and bent into low bows. Up ahead and through the window, Enbarr raced toward the doe, who froze in place, her emerald eyes wide.
Aengus already sat atop a white capall whose cream-colored wings folded behind his back. One of the soldiers slid open the hatch with a groan of wood, then Aengus and the capall leaped out.
Rosalind rushed to the ivory capall, mounted without a saddle, and turned to me with her hand outstretched.
“Your Majesty?” asked a green-haired soldier with eyes as bright as copper coins.
I climbed up behind Rosalind and glanced down at the soldier. “We need to capture that doe.”
Rosalind’s capall trotted across the sawdust to the exit and raced six feet
