Allegiance (21 page)

King Elrin called on Atara then. She rose and came forward, stepping up onto the dais and standing before her son. Carefully, Leif removed the filigree tiara from her hair and bent to drop a kiss where it had been. Atara went back to her king and Leif turned to me and placed the tiara on my head. His smile was so
warm it drew tears to my eyes. Privately, I asked God to please make me enough—to make me all I needed to be for him in his role as Prince and later King.

King Elrin spoke a blessing over us then and, when he was finished, held his hands up and released a burst of power. All else vanished. There was only his essence, that glorious warmth and joy touching every part of me, every sinew, every bone. It danced through my blood and sang to my soul—hot and tingling and consuming. Through my bliss I could hear the cries of the others—and Leif, I could hear Leif! And then I realised I could
feel
him too, and not only Leif, I could feel the others. It was like our spirits were all connected in euphoria.

I came back to find everyone but King Elrin either collapsed to the floor or slumped in their seats. No, not everyone. Jack was looking around the room, from one person to the next, one eyebrow raised. I blushed at the thought of him witnessing us all crying out and losing control. He caught my eyes and smiled. But there was nothing mocking in his expression, if anything he looked sad.

When we’d all pulled ourselves together, King Elrin spoke about what it was that kept him in the physical world despite his betrothed having long departed. He declared it to be the love of his family, the pleasure of welcoming the loved ones of five princes into the royal fold since the passing of the former Elder King, his love of history and bearing witness to the passing on of the betrothal tiara. ‘Guard it well,’ he told me. ‘It is told that the ornament you wear was crafted by the Father King himself.’ I lifted my hand to touch the tiara, running my finger around the delicate filigree. ‘And now, Marla, you are to make your mark in the book of generations.’ He beckoned me forward and after watching me sign my name beside Leif’s, pricked my finger with a tiny blade. When a bead of red had formed, he pressed my
fingertip to Leif’s blood—placed there at his birth and brown with time. And as he held me there—closing his eyes and lifting his face skyward as he asked the Father King to watch over me, and the Great Creator to grant me favour—I glanced across to the previous page to see the names and blood marking of King Telophy and Queen Atara, my heart jumping when I thought I recognised letters beneath them—just the faintest trace—like old scars worn near invisible. I peered closer still but couldn’t make out any words. Fae paper was fine but fibrous—perhaps it was only that. My attention was drawn back to King Elrin when he called everyone present forward to sign the book as witnesses. When it was done, he caught King Telophy’s eyes and said, ‘Now, grandson, your subjects have been patient, let us join with them in celebration.’

King Telophy rose and crossed the room. Throwing the door wide, he stepped onto the balcony and as he raised his arms a great cheer went up. He held his hand out to Atara who followed him through the doorway to the sound of more cheering. I watched her wave to the crowd, standing tall and proud. Then King Elrin gestured for me and Leif to join them. I couldn’t move. I was glued to the dais, heart quivering and knees trembling.

Leif touched my tiara, trailed his fingers around my face and let them rest on my neck. ‘Are you ready to meet my father’s subjects, Marla?’

Can’t your parents talk to them first?

It is tradition we go before them.

I took his hand in both of mine and held it to my chest.
I’m nervous.

He lifted his free hand to my lips, allowed his power to trickle into me.
Why, my love?

I let out a long sigh.
There’s so many of them.

Leif smiled, soft and proud.
All here to see you.

My insides twisted into knots and my knees began to shake. I glanced across to Jack. He smiled and nodded his encouragement, but I could see my anxiety reflected in his eyes. I knew he longed to rescue me. He always had before. My mind returned to when I’d won the art competition at school early in the year. From his position amongst the prefects, Jack had seen me shaking and hyperventilating as I waited just off stage to present my winning entry. He’d saved me from the embarrassment by taking my place with the excuse that I was feeling sick. More than anything I wished him to rescue me now—come and get me, run down the spiral staircase and all the way back to Caringbah.

But Leif was squeezing my hand, tugging me in the direction of the door, saying something about destiny. I took a deep breath and went with him to the balcony where we were greeted with a roar. I let go the breath I was holding with a cry. Hundreds of thousands of Fae formed a great sparkling ring in the sky around the castle.

Release your wings
, Leif told me.

After you?
I asked.

He shook his head, silently telling me I was expected to go first—more tradition. Pink twinkled behind me and the cheering became deafening.

We flew out to greet the crowd, first me and Leif, then his parents and finally King Elrin followed by a host of maids and guards. We flew just inside the sparkling circle. There were tears, grasping hands, declarations of love and adoration as well as an impossible number of flowers and gifts thrust in my direction—all of which I gathered up and passed to the waiting maids. By the time the circuit was complete and King Telophy was sending out a burst of power—a parting gift to the crowd—I was buzzing, my blood electric. I went back inside and, suddenly feeling utterly overwhelmed, had to lie down.

Long before the sun went down, the guests started to arrive for the welcoming party held in King Telophy’s private garden. Like sparkling butterflies, they flew in from every direction. The females were clothed in silky dresses or dainty skirts in colours rich and dazzling, adorned with gemstones or layers of shimmering gossamer. In their hair they wore flowers or little sprigs of green, the fragrance wafting into the air, or strings of sparkling jewels gathered from the riverbeds. The males wore fine loose pants and bands of vine or gold around a bicep, their bodies gleaming with sun and torsos decorated with swirling patterns. By sundown the gardens were full of laughter and conversation competing with music.

Leif introduced me to several of his friends who he’d owned the forests and rivers with as a boy. Laughing, they relayed childhood adventures to me—like the time they’d spent the day collecting bugs only to set them free in the great hall the moment the king arrived to open his annual Coronation Day Ball, and the time they tricked the maids into adding sap instead of syrup to King Telophy’s favourite dessert. I was still laughing when my Fae grandparents arrived with relatives I’d never met before. And then came Leif’s friends I’d met the first time I was here, Classin and Rowan. Classin was holding the hand of the most breathtakingly beautiful girl I’d ever seen. She had eyes the colour of sapphire, hair like midnight silk and the kind of body that guys lose their minds over—long and slender but curvy in all the right
places—and the only thing covering it was a teeny skirt and a whole lot of glitter.

I soon realised this stunning creature was the girl Leif had wanted me to meet—the one he’d been expecting would be at the little treehouse where Classin lived the night we went there. Rowan’s twin. What was her name again? It was on the tip of my tongue. She couldn’t take her eyes off Leif and her smile was warm and embracing. It was more than the usual, ‘have to fawn all over the prince’ thing.

When I turned to see Leif’s reaction to her attention, I felt like I’d been punched in the stomach—his smile was just as warm for her.
Haigen
, that was her name. Haigen—the wild thing they’d called her. And suddenly I knew she was the one. She was Leif’s Jack. I forced myself to smile as Leif introduced us.

She turned her smile to me and it seemed to lose a little of its sparkle. ‘Nice to know you,’ she said and, leaning down, brushed her cheek to mine. Then her attention flickered back to Leif. ‘Why have you not come to me?’ she demanded, her expression reproachful. ‘It has been too long. I feel quite neglected.’

‘You exaggerate, Haigen—it has been no more than a month.’

A month! So Leif had been seeing her while I was on Earth under his spell. My cheeks began to sizzle.

‘Just as I said—too long,’ she pouted. ‘I have missed you.’ Then she was in his arms, draped all over him like a blanket. I was going to throw up. I looked at Classin to check his reaction. He was looking in another direction. Couldn’t say I blamed him.

Leif extricated himself from the embrace. There were silver sparkles trapped in his chest hair.
And oh my God! Were they in the shape of her breasts
?
Please, God, I am imagining it!

‘So, Leif, exactly
why
have you not been to see me?’

‘I have been busy, Haigen. My time is not my own, you know this.’

‘Oh, poor thing,’ Haigen said with a fake pout. ‘I feel sad for you—living here, amongst all of this extravagance.’

‘Come, Haigen, more than anyone, you know there is much more to my life than that. There is a price for the comforts I enjoy.’

‘Ah, yes, I recall your comforts.’ Her voice was laced with innuendo. ‘Have you shown them to Marla yet?’ She blinked in my direction.

I glared at her, my blood sizzling.

Leif seemed lost for words.

She giggled and Classin looked to the sky for a moment before clutching her elbow. ‘Come, Haigen, dance with me,’ he said, pulling her away.

As soon as they were out of earshot, I turned on my betrothed. ‘You still have feelings for her!’

‘Haigen is a friend, Marla, I have told you this.’ He wound an arm around my waist and brought me against him.

‘But you have feelings for her!’ I pushed against his shoulders and he released me.

‘Of course I have feelings for her—we grew up together… We’ve shared things, Marla.’

I folded my arms and glared at his chest. ‘Silver sparkles for one thing.’ He glanced down and dusted himself off. When he looked back to me, I gave him a cold look.

He sighed. ‘Must I confuse you, Marla, so you forget what I regret confiding to you?’

‘Confuse yourself, Leif! Confuse her while you’re at it, then she might keep her massive boobs off you.’ I turned and strode away from him.

I didn’t get far before he caught up, catching my wrist.

‘Marla, you are not being reasonable. For
your
sake, I have made an effort to be Jack’s friend. Can’t you try and do the same for me? I want you and Haigen to like each other.’

I looked at him for a long moment, my mouth pressed tight. He obviously didn’t have a clue about girls. Besides, it wasn’t like Haigen had been too friendly towards me. I turned my back to him and started to walk away.

He grabbed my arm. ‘Marla I—’

I snatched it back. ‘I need some space, okay? Just leave me alone for a while.’

I knew I had double standards, but it didn’t seem to touch me. It was as though some kind of poison had been injected into my veins and it was playing havoc with my brain. I sulked through the gardens, opened my wings and flew down to the lake, drawn to the stillness and the stars reflected like gemstones on the surface. I stared across the water. I knew Leif and Jack had made a huge effort with each other—for me. And I
was
truly grateful. I couldn’t imagine how horrible it would be if they didn’t accept each other. But my heart burned at the thought of Haigen and Leif together. Her in his arms, or uggh, his bed!

Needing to clear my head, I dove into the lake and swam, focused on nothing but the chill on my skin and the movements of my arms and legs as they propelled me through the water. When I got to the other side I refused to think of anything. It was all about the senses.

The air was cool on my skin as I gazed back across the lake. The castle looked amazing from here, the snow white willa a light against the night, every window lit with sunlamps. All the colours from the firelights flickered in the sky, and sunstones strung up for the party glittered against the backdrop of darkness. I could just make out the dancing, both on the ground and in the air. The music and laughter from the party drifted across the water, spellbinding, but too distant to mask the sounds coming from the forest behind me—the lonely whistle of a bird, a breeze through the trees, something rustling across the ground. I realised then
how far away I was. Fear slid across my skin, bringing goose bumps.

I stood and released my wings to fly back, but something was clutching at my arms and legs, tugging at my shoulders and hair. Hard fingers dug into my body, dragging me backwards towards the dense forest. I screamed for Leif as a sharp pain seared my neck. But he was already there, the sight of his gleaming body illuminating the space around him, making me almost pass out with relief. Whatever had attacked me was already gone. I could hear the scuffle of leaves as it retreated into the forest so swiftly that, even though I turned immediately, I saw no sign of it.

But then I looked back towards Leif and saw that he had a creature by the ankle. Another lay dead by his feet, its head torn from its body. The live one squirmed and whimpered. I could see it clearly in the light Leif cast. It was female, creamy dull and naked—bone thin. Its eyes glowed as bright as moons in an ashen face. It struggled and moaned, then looked at me directly and let out a wail that filled the night—high pitched and piteous. I slapped my hands to my ears.

Go back to the castle, Marla.

The creature’s howling increased as it thrashed about at the end of Leif’s outstretched arm.
Quickly,
so I can watch you fly into the light.

I don’t want to leave you.

You need to go now!

I sucked in a breath, even though he spoke to my mind, the authority in his tone snapped me to action. I flew back to the party, looking back over my shoulder when I arrived to see Leif flying away, the dark creature struggling as it dangled from his hand.