Mina waited, and when he didn’t say anything else, she assumed it mean she was free to go. She moved away, and he called her name.
She stopped and took in his profile, his dark hair, and deep blue eyes. “Yes?”
“If you ever try to run away…” He pointed across the bridge and waved his hand. One of the Reapers appeared in the middle of the bridge. “You won’t get far.”
Every time she thought she might be gaining ground and earning his trust and understanding, he would resort to his insecurities and threaten her. She so longed for him to see that she wouldn’t lie to him. She only wanted him to be happy and her family and friends to be safe. If that meant staying, then she didn’t want to escape.
His warning sent chills down her spine but irritated her just as much. She held her head high and leveled her gaze at Teague. “I won’t.”
She wasn’t sure, but she thought he looked relieved by her promise. This time, he let her go without stopping her, and she went back into the palace. Annalora stood on the top step.
“You’re still here? I thought you got scared of little old me and ran away.”
“I’m not scared of you.”
“You should be,” Annalora answered.
“Is that a threat?”
“It doesn’t have to be if you just leave.”
“Not happening.”
“Then I’ll just have to get rid of you.”
“Good luck with that.” Mina tossed the words over her shoulder and headed back to her room.
This time when she got to her cell, she closed the door and pushed a table in front of it. She could put up a big front with Annalora, but she really was scared the girl would try and murder her in her sleep.
The next day, Mina worked in the library. This room had been relatively untouched from the trauma of the war. Only dust showed that no one had disturbed it for years. Mina found solace in the quietness, knowing Annalora would never be caught dead in here. Today more Fae lights swirled and danced around the room, carrying feathers. Mina laughed as they dusted the top shelves and it rained down on her. Though it did make her sneeze.
The sound entertained the Fae lights, so more and more of them brushed the dust toward her. In a bout of silliness, Mina threw her hands up in the air and danced as she tried to avoid the falling dust motes. Until she bumped into a shelf and knocked over a few precariously stacked books.
“One day you’re cleaning the kitchen and redecorating my throne room, and the next you’re destroying my library. What did books and Stories ever do to you?” Teague teased.
Mina threw him a disgusted look.
“Oh wait, never mind,” Teague caught himself in his own joke and started laughing hard.
Mina couldn’t help but crack a smile. But she laughed even harder when the Fae lights accidentally swept a pile of accumulated dust off the shelves and right onto his head.
Teague reached up to brush it off and looked at his dirty hands. “What the…?” He glared up at the lights, who scattered and hid within the bookshelves.
“Don’t get mad. They’ve been trying so hard to help.”
“They’d be a better help if they just obeyed my order.”
An abandoned dusting feather rocked softly down. Mina tried to catch it, but it landed on her head. Teague reached up and gently pulled the feather off. The feather—larger than any she had seen in her world—was dark black with a bright gold tip.
“Hmm, a griffin feather.” He held it out to her, and she twirled it in a ray of sunshine and watched as the gold moved subtly with the light.
“It means the Fae lights been up in the aerie.”
“The aerie?”
“The griffins’ nesting grounds are the mountain behind the castle. It’s dangerous for anyone to be up there because of the newly hatched kitlings.”
“Kitlings, as in babies? Can I see them?” she asked excitedly.
Teague looked at her as if she had grown two heads. “No, the mother would kill anyone who trespassed. I wouldn’t dare take on an angry griffin for no reason.”
“Oh.” She tried to keep her disappointment at bay. After a few awkwardly silent moments passed, Mina decided to pick up the books she’d knocked over and put them where they belong. Teague moved over to a chair, sat down, and picked up a book. He began reading.
The system of books had no order, nothing like the Dewey decimal system of her library. She really had no idea where to put the book on the creation of the Fates. She turned and tried to find a spot on the shelf she’d dislodged the book from, but the section housed a genealogy of the Fae families. She had to wonder at the books that were left out if Teague had been searching for answers to heal the Fae world.
“Nope, not there,” Teague said without looking as he flipped a page in his book.
She gave him an irritated look and moved over to the next shelf. This shelf was filled with books on the Great Siren War. She wanted to hold onto a few and tuck them away to read up on her heritage, but she didn’t want Teague to see her take them. Since obviously he had been researching her lineage. She reached up to put it away.
“Not there either.”
She turned and caught the barest smile quickly disappear under his stoic façade.
Finally, she came to a shelf which looked like it was full of love sonnets. Frustrated, she quickly shoved the book there and turned, hands on her hips, to wait for his smug look, but the chair was empty. He was already next to her, pulling the book back down off the shelf. He gave her a wry smile that would have melted her heart if she wasn’t sure another snide comment was coming.
“Menlo.” He shook the book in the air. “Belongs next to Menlay.” He switched hands and gently reached over her shoulder to shelve the book, bringing him within inches of her. Mina quickly handed him the next, hoping it belonged on the other side of the room.
He briefly glanced at the book and smiled again as he leaned closer and reached just above her head to put the book away. When he came back down on the balls of his feet, he was so close, she could hardly take a breath. Her head bumped into the wood shelf. She heard a wobble and looked up just as a decorative vase fell from above.
Teague grabbed her shoulders and pulled her into him as he jerked a few steps back. The vase crashed to the ground, barely missing her. Mina was flush against his body, her head resting against his chest, and she froze, unable to move. She could hear frantic beating, and it took her a second to realize she was hearing Teague’s heart. She glanced up at him, and he stared at her wide-eyed, his expression utterly confused.
As if he couldn’t comprehend his own racing heart.
“Thanks,” she whispered, unwilling to be the one to pull away.
“You’re welcome.” His arms held on too.
“I’ll clean that up,” Mina said softly.
“Leave it,” he demanded and moved his head lower.
“Prince Teague, are you in here?” Annalora called in an overly sweet voice.
She thought Teague cursed softly in Fae under his breath, but he pushed her away and took large steps toward the door to cut off Annalora.
Mina retreated behind the tall stacks of books as Annalora came to him and smiled brightly.
“Annalora, you’re looking for me?”