Enchanted Frost (Frost Series #8) (A YA Romantic Fantasy Adventure) (8 page)

Chapter 9

Kian

         
I
stood aghast,
utterly in shock. “What do you mean?” I stammered as the shadow puppets flitted
into the distance, their dark shades passing over the hills of Feyland,
vanishing into the night sky. They seemed to laugh with their silent mouths,
the light-colored holes in their shadowy forms widening and revealed jagged,
grinning teeth. “What plan?”

          “What
a fool you are, my dear boy.” Gail leaned in and stretched out a single finger,
which she used to lightly caress my cheek. “Do you really think that I would
give up that easily? No, I've been trying for centuries to gain access to
Feyland again, ever since my banishment.

          “Your
banishment?” I felt panic rise up in my throat. My cheeks were flushed with
fear. “What banishment?”

          “Never
you mind that, my dear boy,” said Gail, grinning wildly. Her teeth too were as
jagged and sharp as those of her puppets. Vaguely, confusedly, I wondered why I
had never noticed this before. But it was too late now. “All that matters is
that the spell is broken. I was formally invited to enter Feyland by one who
has the power to do so – one who holds the secret of great ancient magic. And
now no power in all the magic kingdoms, nor any under the two twin suns of
Feyland, can ever stop me. That is my will.” She threw back her head and
laughed – a violent, vicious laugh that sent shivers up and down my spine.
“Now, my Kian, King of Feyland, I will keep my promise. Never you mind about that.
I will destroy your love for Breena. But as you knew – nothing comes free in
Feyland. I have my price. Your desire for peace has its cost. You will cease to
love Breena – and so will everybody else. I will squeeze ever last drop of love
from Feyland, wringing it dry. Those who care for Breena will begin to hate
her. Those who think only of her beauty will find her ugly. Those who find her
intelligent will see her stupidity. Those who praise her kindness will see the
cruelty within. And not just for Breena, either. Those couples who have
polluted Feyland with their talk of that forbidden thing, love, will be ripped
asunder. Marriages will fail; lovers with quarrel. And all affection will turn
swiftly to hate.”

          “No...”
I whispered, feeling my heart quicken within my chest. “No!”

          “Yes,”
she said, smiling. “Isn't this what you wanted, Kian? To be cured of that
sickening affliction, love? Isn't that what you came to me for – so that I
could rid you of the symptoms of that festering disease? Surely you do not wish
to deny others the same opportunity to free themselves? Surely you do not wish
to condemn your countrymen to suffering...”

          “But
it isn't only suffering!” I found myself protesting. “It's beautiful, too! And
good – and exhilarating, and wonderful...”

          “And
soon it will be gone forever.” Gail batted her eyelashes sweetly at me. “And
then you will forget what it felt like to feel your pulse race with love, to
feel your breath grow shallow, to feel your heart expand with the greatest joy
that you will ever know....”

          “No,
I don't want that...”

          “But
you want to be free of your love of Breena?”

          I
found myself stammering. “I did! I mean, I do! But...”

          “But
what? Are you afraid?”

          “The
others – they didn't choose this! Some of them are happy the way they are.”

          “The
way they are?” Gail sneered at me. “The way – you mean – that their minds turn
to jelly because of these ridiculous infatuations? It's sickening – the way
when people fall in love they forget about power, they forget about control,
they forget about the things that really matter in the world! No, let me tell
you something, Kian – they are better off without love. I am doing them a
favor.”

          “But
if you're making them all hate Breena...that's not love, is it?”

          “From
what you say,” Gail's face contorted into a cold, cruel smile, “it seems that
Breena deserves it, don't you think? After all, didn't she lead you on while
she was consorting with another man, promising you a love and a happiness she
never had any intent of giving you? Is that really what you want to support?
Doesn't she deserve a bit of comeuppance for her actions? She's been beloved
for so long – she's gotten lazy, used to being adored by those around her.
Won't it be good for her to experience the other side of the story?”

          “No!”
I cried. Fear took hold of me – what had I done? I'd been so desperate to stop
my weakness, stop my pain, that I'd given into the greatest  weakness of all:
instead of trusting Breena, trusting our love, trusting us, I'd invited this
evil sorceress into our midst, a sorceress who evidently had been banished from
Feyland once before. What a fool I had been! I didn't even know why Gail had
been banished from Feyland – but I knew that whatever she had planned for me
and for Breena, it wasn't good.

          “Don't
you want to see what I'm up to?” Gail smiled as she held up her magic mirror to
my face. I gasped as I saw the image revealed to me within. Gail's Shadow
Puppets were sneaking into villages, house by house, and casting their darkness
upon the inhabitants within. I saw wives beginning to quarrel with their
husbands; I saw husbands throwing their wives into the street. I saw anger and
recriminations and bitter tears; I saw lovers who had previously been skipping
hand in hand down the street or in a glen slapping one another furiously,
screaming and wailing with pain. Couples by the hundreds were lining up at the
local Town Halls to get divorces; they shouted and made riotous, raucous noise
as each raced to be the first to dissolve their union. I saw gossip and rumors spread
throughout villages, towns, and provinces – hints of impropriety, jealous
accusations of infidelity and dishonesty, gossip that turned to bitterness the
way milk curdles.

          “What
are you doing?” I cried. “Why are you doing this?” My own shame seemed to choke
me with the force of my regret. “Why?”

          And
then the rumors, buzzing through towns, grew louder and more frequent, as
hatred seemed to concentrate on one name in particular.
Breena.

            We
trusted her,
the
rumors began.
We thought we could trust her. We thought we could rely on
her. But she's been anything but a good leader. All she cares about her love
life, her romances, the two men she dangles from her dainty little fingertips.
Our national stability is dependent upon whether or not she and Prince Kian are
on the outs this week. Is that really what we want in a leader? Someone who is
willing to break apart treaties for an infatuation? I heard she's already moved
on to Logan – or to another! She's not interested in Kian anymore. And then
what is the plan for a United Feyland? Ruined, I tell you, ruined! We'll be
back to the War between Summer and Winter in no time without an alliance, mark
my words. We cannot trust Breena to run the land. She doesn't understand our
ways. And she is ambitious, overly ambitious. She soon won't be satisfied with
what she has. She'll want to take our land, our homes, our properties. She'll
raise taxes, command us to attend the Summer Court; she'll lay claim to
everything we own as if it were hers. We cannot trust her. We cannot rely on
her any longer. We must do something – yes, we must do something! Something big
– something that shows us that we won't stand for being taken for granted any
longer.

            Show
her that we won't be lied to, and that we won't be betrayed.

            We
plan revolution. We plan revolt. We plan to fight for freedom.

           
“No!” I cried,
my face growing pale with terror. “No!” Now Gail's plan was all too clear to
me. Now that she controlled the hearts and minds of the people of Feyland, for
the Shadow Puppets had done their nefarious work, she was unstoppable. She
could convince the populace that they hated their beloved Breena, that she was
the source of all their problems. And then, once they were well and truly set
on deposing her from the throne, she could lead the attempt at revolution – and
once the Summer Court had lost their Queen, she could very easily step into
Breena's place.

          And
then Gail would be unstoppable. She would rule Feyland. She would win the love
of the people.
And there was nothing we could do to make it not so. We were
trapped.

            She
has banished the Winter Prince – that's why he hasn't been seen around lately.
Or maybe she murdered him – murdered him in his sleep like the deceitful
creature she is! I wouldn't be surprised if she did it in cold blood, after
all. Not after what I know of her...

          “You
must understand, Kian,” Gail was trying to coax me now, to caress me, running
her hands up and down my body. “This is the only way to cure you of your love.
To show you – and the world – Breena as she really is. In all her true
ugliness. Now you can see her with the eyes of truth – that's all I'm doing!
That's all the shadow puppets are doing. We are revealing the truth!”

          “By
spreading lies?”

          “By
showing the world who this Breena really is.” She smiled. “The old White Witch
believed Breena was a good thing for Feyland. But I knew better. I knew that
deceitful half-breed would bring only disrepute upon the name of Feyland.”

          “The...old...White
Witch?”

          “Yes,”
Gail said blithely. “The one who ruled the Ancient Lands before I came along.
Killed her with my bare hands, I did. Easy, too. Far easier than I expected.
And now I am the White Witch. And soon, I will be Queen of Summer, too.”

          “It'll
never work!” I shouted. “It's not possible. You'll never get away with it!”

          Gail
raised an eyebrow. “Won't I?”

          And
with that, a crowd of dark shadows rushed me, holding me down, attacking me
with invisible teeth and claws.

          “Hm....”
Gail considered. “We'll have to see about that!”

Chapter 10

Breena

W
e
had to find Kian. From the second that I'd woken up from that terrifying dream
in a cold sweat, convinced that Kian was being held by a mysterious woman in a
prison somewhere, forgetting about me, forgetting even his own name, his mind
clouded over by a spell of deceit, I knew that I had to do something. I had to
save him. I began to pore over maps of Feyland, maps of the Winter lands,
trying to figure out where Kian might have gone, whom he might have met there.

         
Kian...
The telepathy I always used to use had failed me now. I had gotten so used to
being able to contact Kian whenever I wanted, to being able to reach out to him
when I was lonely or afraid. But now, I knew, that road was blocked to me. Kian
had shut me out, the way I'd always feared he would do, and all my
protestations could not reach him.
Kian, please, I'm so sorry. I'm so
scared. I don't know what to do. I miss you. And I'm afraid for you. I think
you might be in danger – just tell me where you are. Tell me how to protect
you.

           
Of
course, there was no answer. But his silence galled me, and made me realize how
much I missed him. Made me realize how I'd grown accustomed to his low, sweet,
melodious voice in my ear, in my head, echoing around in my brain.

          Logan
took my hand. “We'll find him, Breena,” he whispered. “Don't worry. My priority
in life is keeping you safe – and if that means keeping Kian safe as well, then
I swear to you, I'll do it with all my heart. I would give my life for you,
Breena, you know that. And so I would give my life for him as well, as much as
it hurts me to say this. I can't let you be unhappy a moment longer. It kills
me, watching you suffer like this. I used to wish Kian out of the way – but now
I wish he were here, if only to see you smile again.”

          I
did smile – albeit a bitter one. I smiled through my tears as I looked into
Logan's steadfast, loyal eyes. Even through my misery I couldn't deny that I
was happy to have Logan here by my side. I'd missed him – and now that Kian was
gone I couldn't deny that our friendship was stronger than ever. Just having
Logan near me – to talk to, to confide in, to hold me when the world seemed too
wide and too strange for me ever to find a place in it – was good enough for
me. I hadn't realized until now just how much his earlier absence had left a
hole in my life. Logan brought out a different side of me than Kian did. He
didn't bring out the Fairy Queen, the beautiful and unattainable woman that
Kian seemed to see in me. Instead he brought out something calmer, quieter,
more natural. The human girl I used to be. The girl who laughed and joked; the
girl who had
fun.
The girl who could – for a few seconds of the day –
forget the passionate drama of her engagement, forget the wars and battles that
characterized her rule as queen – and just be...herself. I felt like
me
again
– for the first time- like the human Breena from Gregory.