Chapters (64)
- Front Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Contents
- Pronunciation Guide
- Prologue
- Part One
- One
- Two
- Three
- Four
- Five
- Six
- Seven
- Eight
- Nine
- Ten
- Eleven
- Twelve
- Thirteen
- Part Two
- Fourteen
- Fifteen
- Sixteen
- Seventeen
- Eighteen
- Nineteen
- Twenty
- Twenty-One
- Twenty-Two
- Twenty-Three
- Part Three
- Twenty-Four
- Twenty-Five
- Twenty-Six
- Twenty-Seven
- Twenty-Eight
- Twenty-Nine
- Thirty
- Thirty-One
- Thirty-Two
- Thirty-Three
- Thirty-Four
- Thirty-Five
- Part Four
- Thirty-Six
- Thirty-Seven
- Thirty-Eight
- Thirty-Nine
- Forty
- Forty-One
- Forty-Two
- Forty-Three
- Forty-Four
- Forty-Five
- Forty-Six
- Forty-Seven
- Epilogue
- Excerpt from The Sun and Its Shade
- The Night and Its Moon Playlist
- Acknowledgments
- About the Author
- Back Cover
“Grem.” A golden young man in his early twenties cut off the older. So, the eldest man was not Samael. The bearded one called Grem stopped and glared, his bovine qualities distorted when set against the muscular young man who opposed him. The one with the blond mop of hair continued speaking. “Her size is no different from the boys’ in their teens. She wouldn’t require new armor, clothing, or weapons. By the time she’d be ready for a real sword, she’d be strong enough to hold one.”
“This is no place for your grandstanding, Malik—”
Was the golden young man arguing on her behalf, or just against the bearded older?
“There are no women here,” the fae said, “because there is no one here. Look at our numbers. For hundreds of years I’ve served, as reevers from the corners of the continent overflowed these halls. Human and fae of all genders fought and lived side by side, and you know as much. Uaimh Reev has acted as the sword arm of the All Mother for a millennium. This reev was a keep for the honorable who believed in the protection of all peoples against magical imbalance long before it became today’s band of society’s discards.” He eyed the men with some irritation before amending, “Though we seem to have become Farehold’s discards.”
“Say now,” the bearded man grumbled, crossing his arms.
The fae arched a brow, but the bearded man lacked a rebuttal.
Amaris blinked slowly at the words the lovely man had spoken. The fae seated at the opposite end of the table was hundreds of years old. He didn’t just have the delicate ears and beauty of some distant fae lineage; she was looking into the face of a full-blooded fae.
“That was then,” Grem pushed back. “Womenfolk were different in your time, Samael. She’s not a warrior at our doorstep. She’s a stray cat who followed Odrin and his soft heart home. The reev is different now. Escort her back into Stone and be done with it.”
Odrin spoke, tone both defensive and resolute as he said, “She’s not a warrior by training, but she has the heart of a she-bear. The girl has no fear of the fight. See for yourself. Look at her face.”
They did once more, considering her wounds more carefully.
While the other men studied Amaris and her scabbing injuries, she couldn’t help but notice how Samael looked not at her but at Odrin. Something about Odrin’s message struck a chord within the fae.