Lainule looked at Wrath, who let out a long sigh.

“No, you are not my daughter,” he said.

“Then who was my father?” Rhia looked like she might cry. She’d waited all her life to know who her father had been, and when Heather died, it looked like there was no chance of finding out.

Lainule looked at her. “You are my niece,” she said. “My brother sired you—you are his child. He was killed during the battle with Myst. You are part Cambyra like your cousin. And as my closest female heir, you, my dear, will be the next Queen of Summer, even as Cicely becomes the new mistress of Winter.”

And with that, our world shifted forever.

Chapter 20

The silence was deafening. Rhiannon and I stared at her, as if she’d suddenly said we were turning into Martians. Ulean swirled around me.

I’m so glad you finally know. I have had such a hard time not telling you over the years. You will be my Queen, even as Lainule was until she gave me to you. I could feel the swish of her tailwind as she danced.

Rhia stammered, seeking words, unable to speak.

But I found my tongue. “I will not become Myst!”

“I did not say you were to become Myst, my child. You are Cambyra Fae, not Indigo Court. You will become the next Queen of the Snow and Ice, even as Rhiannon will be Queen of Rivers and Rushes. There has been no true Queen of Winter here since Myst killed her long ago and took her place.”

“Tabera. The Unseelie Queen.”

“Yes, I see your father has been giving you history lessons.” She smiled at Wrath, then looked back at the two of us. “Myst knows nothing of balance, of give-and-take. She must be destroyed and the proper equilibrium returned. This will also negate your contract with Lannan, though he might still enforce it as an allegiance, but that is acceptable.” Lainule smiled softly at me. “You were born to the waning year, as Rhiannon was born to the waxing. You are two of a kind, born on the cusp. Cousins, who mirror one another.”

Rhiannon stammered. “Your brother was my father? Did our mothers know all of this?”

Wrath shook his head. “They knew some of it. They were chosen from the beginning. Your family has long held the Veil House and land—they have an interwoven history with the Golden Wood.”

“Then what is my animal form, or like Chatter, do I carry Fire as my Elemental form?” She licked her lips, and the eagerness in her voice was tinged with fear.

I turned to her. “Snake. I dreamed it.”

Wrath shook his head. “You and your dreams. But Cicely is correct. You are of the snake people. But for now, leave that be. You do not have time to master the form and it would be too cold for you outside.”

He sighed. “We chose your mothers to bear the two of you when we realized that Myst was rising again. Before she ever made a move, we knew we had to ensure that there would be a summer and winter queen to come, should the unthinkable happen.”

“Why didn’t you stop Myst back then? Before she destroyed your Court?” I shook my head. “Why not prevent a problem before it started?”

“We could not. We only knew she was here, not where she was hiding. Geoffrey thought it was the vampire court she was after, but that was only a part of her plan. He was shortsighted and arrogant. And the prophecy of the Blood Oracle is partially true—she is out to diminish their control.”

Ysandra moved forward. “We knew all of this, but the Court of Rivers and Rushes turned their back on our help. But we’ve been working on our own, in other towns where the Indigo Court has been making inroads. There have been battles waged that no one will ever hear of—behind the scenes, bloody and costly to the Consortium but also costly to Myst’s domain. You have no clue of how powerful she is and how vast an empire the Vampiric Fae have bred over the years.”

“We chose not to ask for your help because we believed this to be a matter for the Seelie and Unseelie Courts. We were mistaken.” Wrath looked pained, as if he’d swallowed something bitter.

“All well and good, but look at the cost your isolationism has caused. And it’s not just here, it’s in other small towns like this, around the world. But it is not just you…the vampires were of no help, either, believing the war was theirs alone.” Ysandra shrugged. “Arguing is useless now. There is no blame any longer. We must work together. Join forces against our common enemy.”

Lainule nodded. “She speaks the truth. And this is why you must take reign as the Queen of Snow and Ice, with Grieve as your consort. Once Myst is routed, the Indigo Court will seek another queen. You will have to hold the winter against them, until our combined forces have managed to destroy them all.” She smiled softly. “I can hold my position only awhile longer. Through the coming war. Then Wrath and I must leave the Golden Wood. Rhiannon and Chatter will take our places as Lord and Lady of Summer.”

“But why? What happened?” I didn’t understand. Losing them seemed a huge blow and I still hadn’t managed to grasp the significance of what they were saying. It was too overwhelming.

“When Myst neared my heartstone, you saved my life. Do you remember when I told you that by doing so, you would set into motion something that would forever change the future for you and Rhiannon?”

I nodded, still not understanding the exact nature of how things had shifted. “Yes.”

“When a Fae Queen reabsorbs her heartstone, when the energy returns to her body, she forfeits her crown. The heartstone, once hidden and separate from the Queen, will forever hold her realm until it is either destroyed or returned to her. By saving my life, you destroyed my reign. But it was my choice to make. I could have died a queen, but I chose to live, to battle Myst and fade into history.”

Tears clogged my throat and I wasn’t sure why I was crying. “I don’t understand…”

Chatter stepped up to Wrath. “You will go with your Lady, then?”

Wrath nodded. “It is the way. Once we have routed Myst and reclaimed the Golden Wood, Lainule and I will turn over the reign to the four of you. The Golden Wood will be divided between you. Summer will reign over it during the waxing year, then retreat to her realm for the winter. And Winter will guard it during the waning year.”

I gasped. “My dream…we met on the solstices…but then that means…”

“Yes…you will be divided, at odds and yet in alliance. Summer and Winter can only mingle on the days they make the exchange. You and your cousin will forever live separate. This is your sacrifice. This is the way it’s always been.”

Rhiannon burst into tears. “I’m not ready for that.”

“This is your destiny. There is no turning away.” Lainule stepped forward and embraced her. “Long have I wished to welcome you into the family, to tell you who you were, but like Wrath and Cicely, I could not do so until the right time. I wish we could have prepared you both for this, but there was no way. War does not give us an easy route, nor does it make allowance for fear.”

A knock at the door startled all of us. I stepped forward, my mind reeling. The changes over the past few weeks had been intense and confusing. Now to find out that Rhia and I had been born to a destiny neither of us had dared even dream of sent me reeling. I had so many questions, but as I opened the door, I knew they’d have to wait.

A group of magic-born from the Consortium waited. Ysandra stepped forward. “Reinforcements are here.” She turned to Rhiannon, Grieve, Chatter, and me. “Do you see now why you cannot chance being killed in this battle? Why you must lead the battle and yet, let others take on the brunt of the fighting? You are the heirs to the thrones. You cannot let yourselves be hurt.”

I bit my lip. Once again, we were pawns of destiny, but I had the feeling that would shift once we took the reins of power. Then we would be forming the future rather than reacting to it. We weren’t ready for this, but then…would we ever be? We were being tested, and fate had a way of shoving people into situations in order to strengthen them.

“We’re being tempered. Fire and Ice.” I turned to Lainule. “When do we march against Myst? Your warriors are here. The witches and mages are here.” And then—a whisper caught my attention.

We are here, outside the gates. It is time for two witches to lead their people into battle.

I turned to Wrath. “I just received a message from the snow hag. The Wilding Fae are ready. We cannot wait for the vampires to wake—when they rise, so will the Indigo Court.”

“Then we will go to battle. We will do what Myst did to us, and once again, the barrows will run red with blood, but not from the Cambyra Fae this time.” He stood, then added, “Do you understand why you cannot carry the obsidian blade?”

I licked my lips. As much as I wanted it in my hand—it gave me comfort—I nodded. “I’m too impulsive when in the grips of its energy. It forces me to act rashly. I have the dagger you gave me, I will content myself with that and with the force of the wind.”

And so we instructed Lannan’s servants to sweep up the ring of salt and sulfur and silver—no use having him pissed at us because of the mess and the metal barrier—and prepared for battle. Lainule and Ysandra instructed their brigades to meet us in front of the Veil House—four dozen Fae warriors, and two dozen magic-born, including three healers.

As for the Wilding Fae, I sent a message through the slipstream for them to meet us at the Veil House. I received a riddle in return that told me they would.

We drove through the streets, taking Lannan’s limousine. Along the way, we saw scattered remnants of the bloody battle from the night before. The streets were filled with cars making their way out of town, frightened faces pressed against the windows. I felt a sense of loss, gazing over the exodus. With hope, we could make it safe for them to return—but would they? Would they brave coming back to a town that was so full of blood and bones?

As we pulled into the driveway, the warriors were there, along with the members of the Consortium. The Wilding Fae appeared as we spilled out of the car and cast our gazes over the assembled army.

“Be cautious.” Wrath’s voice echoed over the yard as we gathered in front of the burned shell of the Veil House. “While Myst and the Vampiric Fae will be asleep, you can rest assured they will wake when we attack, and the light-rage will make them strong and deadly. We go in with the element of surprise, but do not be complacent. We will not retain that edge for long. Kill all of the Vampiric Fae you see—but do not mistake and harm Prince Grieve, whatever you do. Are you ready?”

The warriors let out a loud cry and turned to the Golden Wood.

Grieve, Rhiannon, Chatter, and I stood apart, surrounded by Kaylin, Luna, Peyton, as well as Zoey, who had opted to join us. We stared at the woodland. While the others were focused on finding all the Shadow Hunters they could, it was our goal to find Myst’s personal nest. And Grieve knew where she was.

“There will likely be creatures guarding the woods,” he warned everyone. “Goblin dogs and other ill-fortuned Fae. Do not be deceived by the seeming weakness of some—they are all dangerous.”

The Wilding Fae nodded. They weren’t speaking much, but I could see the glimmer in their eyes. They seemed to anticipate the battle and I wondered just what I’d gotten myself into, aligning with them. Kaylin had thought to bring the snow hag’s meat with us, and he set it on the ground in front of her, neatly wrapped. She gave him a snaggletooth smile and motioned to the car.

“One might store this, if one had a thought, until after a skirmish is complete. Otherwise, beasties might snag the meat and be off with it and then both parties would be out meat and money.”

Kaylin let out a chuckle. “One might be wise to listen to such advice.” He put the meat back in the car until we were done.

And then, with nothing to hold us any longer, and the afternoon upon us, we marched across the backyard toward the Golden Wood. Toward our destiny.

The warriors went first, stretching through the undergrowth. Following them were the members of the Consortium, as the Wilding Fae spread out to the sides. We followed, taking the path with a group of eight guards to the front, and I was surprised to see Lainule waiting at the trail mouth. She answered my questioning look with a gentle smile.

“This was my home. This was my kingdom. I will fight to regain it for you and your cousin. I will not go easily into the fading mists.” She stepped into the formation beside Wrath, and leading the rest of us, they swept into the woods, and we followed.

The woodland seemed hushed. Neither bird nor beast made a noise, and I began to think that the Shadow Hunters had killed them all. We silently moved through the bushes, doing our best to keep from setting off any traps. Webs glistened between the trees, huge and filled with the giant fat snow spiders that were Myst’s pets and sentinels. Gold and white, they were as beautiful as they were deadly, and I kept my eyes overhead, making sure we weren’t being trapped from above.

As we approached a web stretching across the path, the warriors went first, shooting them with gleaming arrows. The spiders chattered, scuttling away, but one dropped, and soon a second and third. One of the guards stepped up to tear down the web that crossed the trail, but another spider that had been hiding in the trees lashed out, catching him in its mandibles. He let out a shout that was cut short as the creature injected him with its venom and he went limp. Three others who were at the front of the trail sent arrows into the spider, and it tried to run but then stumbled and fell, jerking spasmodically.

Two men brought the fallen guard back, but it was too late. The poison had worked quickly and he was stone dead. Laying him gently to the side, we moved on, cautious as the snow thickened and the woodland grew darker.