White light greeted Hollis as he blinked his eyes open. Taking a moment to adjust the stars in his vision, he peered around the familiar setting. A lounging area to his left, while he rested on the massive bed upon the platform. A roaring fire kept the room warm, though he felt a chill in his bones that no number of blankets or layers could chase away.
It was his bedroom…in the Winter Court.
Hollis sat up instantly and ignored the blur of his vision as he sucked in a deep breath. There was a pressure against his head, and in his confusion, he reached up and touched his hand against the wrappings that clung to him with a furrowed brow.
Turning his head, he watched his mother pour water into a basin along with a cloth and walk toward him. She offered a soft, sad smile as she set the bowl on the side table, and though her lips moved, no sound came from her.
Hollis stared at her. Why was she being so quiet?
Viviane reached down and took his hand, squeezing lightly as her lips moved in the same form. When Hollis didn't answer, she frowned and moved her lips again.
She was speaking, he realized.
But he couldn't hear her.
There was silence in his ears as he tried to watch her lips, and fear entered her eyes as she reached forward and lightly brushed her fingers against the side of his head, where his ears were covered.
Were they too tight?
His mother held one finger up, and he slowly nodded with understanding before she disappeared from the room.
Viviane descended the stairs as fast as she could and strode into Kallias' study, where he, Cassian, and Rhysand studied numerous maps spread across various surfaces.
"He is awake," Viviane informed with a frown.
"Does he remember anything?" Kallias asked, walking toward the door immediately.
"I'm…not sure."
They furrowed their brows as Viviane continued, "He can't hear me." She swallowed the lump in her throat and forced the tears back. "We might take on your offer of Madja's help, Rhysand. I don't know how much will be reparable."
Rhys nodded and said, through a tight voice, "Of course. I'll let Feyre know, she and Az can bring her here after they've finished their current search through the forest."
Waiting until Viviane and Kallias left the study to visit Hollis, Rhysand clawed a hand down his face as he looked down at the sprawling maps. Marks of red littered the page where they'd already searched, and they were quickly running out of open land. Dread filled his belly as his eyes drifted to the gray of the open ocean.
"Hey," Cassian clasped a steady hand on his shoulder, "We will find her."
Unable to meet his eyes, Rhys nodded and stared at the maps of Prythian.
"We may have to infiltrate the Autumn Court to do so," he glanced up, "And we will not be conducting a meeting to ask for permission."
"Feyre!" Azriel called out of the whistling wind that whipped at his hair. "Down! North-East!"
Turning to look at her flying companion, her gaze followed his finger at the malformation of the earth. Narrowing her eyes, she started toward it, letting the wind's aid drift her into the center of what seemed to be a circle.
It was.
When her feet touched the ground, Feyre turned in a slow rotation. The trees had fallen in a perfect circle, but trees were not the only debris in this stamp against the earth. Fallen Autumn Court soldiers littered the area.
Azriel touched her shoulder, and Feyre turned to look at him, frowning as his lips moved, but no words came out. Furrowing her brow, she shook her head at him, pointed to her ear, and said, 'I can't hear you.'
In fact, she couldn't hear herself or the wildlife that should have been perched in the trees or scampering somewhere nearby.
Crouching on her heels, Feyre stared at the soldier's face and gritted her teeth before looking around at the rest of the motionless bodies. Please, please, please don't be amongst the soldiers.
Together, she and Azriel made quick work of dragging each body into a pile in the center, and with each uncovering, Feyre held her breath, praying her daughter wasn't among them. When Az threw the last soldier on top, she let out a silent sigh of relief.
While she was glad to know Nova hadn't fallen prey to them, where could she be? Indeed, she wouldn't be hiding still. As a child, she would have, but as an adult…a Valkyrie. She would have sought them out by now, no matter how angry she was.
She would have found Finch and been at his side with Peter.
Oh, Peter.
Rhysand's voice swept lightly over their minds, informing them about Hollis and asking them to bring Madja on their way back. Glancing at Az, she shared a curious expression with him, studied the clearing once more, and set fire to the bodies.
When the fire had smoldered to ash, they walked together out of the clearing, and as they did, Feyre counted the number of steps it took before she could hear the trilled singing of birds roosting in the trees.
"Fifty-eight."
Az glanced at her as they walked. "Fifty-eight what?"
"Fifty-eight steps until being able to hear again."
Nodding, Azriel glanced over his shoulder. "She was here."
"Yes, she was."
Focused on closing his shirt, Hollis tried to blink away the blurred edges of his vision a few times as he worked each button through their designated hole. He frowned as he missed one of the openings and couldn't find where it went.
"Hollis." Viviane scolded and frowned when he didn't look up. Setting her lips into a grim line, she moved closer with Kallias behind her. She took Hollis' hands in hers, and he quickly looked up. "You should be resting…"
With the hope that audible words came from his mouth, Hollis asked, "Where's Nova?"
Viviane took a deep breath and squeezed his hands gently as his father slid to the writing table by the window. He retrieved a quill and some parchment and scribbled out a quick message in fine script before crossing the room and offering it to Hollis. He took it without hesitation and swept over the words that brought a sour taste of bile on his tongue as his fingers trembled.
Moving forward, Kallias placed a firm hand on Hollis' shoulders. He looked up with reddened eyes, watching his lips form a clear sentence. "We will find her."
The door opened, and Madja, accompanied by Rhysand and Feyre, stepped through. Hollis had never seen them look so severe; then again, he wasn't sure of his own expression at the moment, only that his face felt unbearably hot.
Madja placed herself before Hollis. "Sit," she instructed, placing her hands on his shoulders and lightly guiding him to the edge of the bed. "You said you found him on the ground?"
Nodding, Rhysand rubbed his jaw. "He'd been thrown from the horse he was riding. He was on his way to Velaris when he must have fallen, but I don't understand how that would have damaged his hearing."
"I don't think it did," Feyre advised, and all eyes turned to her. She continued, "While we were flying, we found a circle in the forest. It was uniform, like something large had stepped down and flattened the earth." She frowned, furrowing her brow, "But when we crossed the threshold, all the sound disappeared. We couldn't hear anything, not even each other's voices. The soldiers there had no wounds. There was no blood, nothing that signified what killed them. We could only assume Nova had been the cause."
Madja frowned and turned to face Hollis again, "Do you remember anything?"
Frowning, Hollis tried to watch her lips, but only the stillness of silence filled his ears. It was like being submerged under water. Then, before he could try to ask her to repeat herself, a voice pressed against his mind.
It was Rhysand.
Hollis glanced up at him, meeting his eyes as he asked, What do you remember from last night?
Forcing himself back to when he mounted Wild and took to the forest, he recalled galloping through the trees. Then, without warning, a terrible sensation slammed him. Hollis raised his hand and pressed his palm against his chest to feel his heartbeat.
My heart stopped…I'm sure of it. Then it was black. I…thought I died.
"The power Nova used is something I've never heard happen before," Rhysand supplied, his eyes trained on Hollis as he spoke, "She stopped the hearts of everything in the path of her power." Rhys shook his head. "Hollis was close enough that it stopped his heart…"
Viviane and Kallias stiffened.
Rhysand swallowed, "He was in the wrong place at the wrong time, though we're lucky he wasn't within range, or his heart might not have started on its own again. It would explain his damaged hearing as well. If you heard nothing in the area, it's as though she scarred the land when she released the energy. I always knew Nova possessed different skills, but I assumed they were more directly related to Feyre's lineage than mine—something acquired from when she turned Fae. I've never seen a power like this. Not one that leaves permanent damage to the soundwaves themselves."
"Do you recall," Viviane asked, "At the Solstice Ball. In the stalls, she quieted the most untamed of them all, and Hollis said that when she did it, they all felt their hearts slow. I suppose she's always had that capability beneath, but I do ask…will this be permanent damage?"
Madja had already begun unwrapping Hollis' bandages to check his ears. "It's too soon to say," she frowned, "But I'll create an elixir to hopefully help the healing process and perhaps drops to relieve the ache."
Grateful to Rhysand for speaking to him, he asked, If she was there, where would she have gone after? After expelling that much energy, surely, she'd need rest.
Nodding, Rhysand grunted, "Hollis makes a good point. Even after I've used energy to that magnitude, I need time to rest. Nova would be no different. She can't have left the initial site where she'd released it."
"Are there any caves in that area?" Kallias asked. "Anywhere she may have taken refuge?"
Feyre shook her head, "There weren't any we saw, but when we first found her, she had been accustomed to hiding in the trees. Not even Azriel sensed her. When she doesn't want to be found, she won't be."
"You think she doesn't want to be found?" Viviane asked, the space between her eyes crinkling.
Rhys swallowed, "I think she's been chewed up and spit out so many times in the last twenty-four hours that she might need time to process it all."
"So, what do we do?" Feyre asked. "Wait for her to come to us? I don't know if I can wait that long. If Beron has her…" Heat flushed her skin, and the fire in her heart roared up its chimney, creating a whoosh of sweltering heat to enter the room.
"I agree," Kallias nodded. "We need to see if she's captive, but we can't do it alone—not in his domain."
Viviane frowned, "So we gather the others. There is nothing Beron can say to defend himself now. Twice, Velaris has been attacked by his soldiers."
"Tamlin still resides in the Prison." Rhysand rubbed his jaw as something peculiar gnawed on his gut. "I have a terrible feeling that we imprisoned the wrong High Lord."
Feyre shook her head. "They worked together. Tamlin and Beron. Beron will always send others to do his bidding, but Tamlin is not innocent. He was still an accomplice, and he deserves his sentence."
"Does he?"
"We lost our daughter for ten years because of it, Rhys," Feyre said, eyes filled with fire, "Hollis spent his life a prisoner in his own home because of it, because of them. We thought the hostility between Courts would end with Hybern's fall, but it hasn't, and it never will with someone like Beron in power. He assumes his age gives him the clearance to do as he wishes. That ends now. With or without the other High Lords' permission."
"What are we going to do?" Viviane asked, crossing her arms with a confused, but curious scowl. "Dethrone him?"
Feyre met her gaze with steely eyes and nodded, "That is exactly what we're going to do."
When Nova opened her eyes, she was met with moving, mossy branches. The world spun, and she closed her eyes, desperate to still her mind. Warm fingers pressed against her sides as the jostling sensation of walking roused her again. This time, she forced herself to keep her eyes open as she searched the space above her.
Under the dim forest lighting, she could only see a man's side profile. She observed his dark and shaggy hair, and when he looked down at her, she frowned at the sight of his green eyes.
"Peter?" Nova whispered in a gravelly voice.
The man frowned and slowly shook his head as he continued forward. He said nothing as he used his foot to open the door ahead with a long creak and carried her inside.
Nova curled her fingers and toes with significant effort.
"Easy does it…" He murmured, kneeling slowly and laying her down on something soft. A fur rug, Nova realized, as her fingers stroked against the surface and cringed. Nausea stung the back of her throat, but she couldn't do much else but lie there as her limbs throbbed from exertion.
"Hm," the man murmured before disappearing somewhere and reappearing with a dripping bowl. He submerged the cloth and lifted it, ringing out the excess before laying it across her forehead.
Nova sighed in relief, the cool water a balm against her raging nervous system. Now, as he crouched before her, Nova searched his face.
He was not Peter.
She blinked as her eyes grew hot and heavy, and the weight of darkness begged to overtake her again.
"Your eyes," He murmured, crouching before her. "I wondered if I'd ever see them again…"
Cassian rubbed his chilled hands together as he stood by the window overlooking the palace grounds. Beyond the gardens, the scraggly woods, what was left of them, lay dormant. Rows upon rows of trees had been cut and harvested, chopped into logs, and placed in homes to keep the cold from freezing the Winter Court and its citizens.
It was more barren than Hollis remembered from a week ago. Upon entering the room, he focused on the maps that littered the long table, rather than the Night Court members that filled the space. The staff who used to roam the halls were non-existent now, having been advised to stay indoors and do their best to keep warm.
"We can't crash through the Autumn Court gates and start searching," Azriel shook his head, "If stealth is what you wish to achieve, infiltrating could take months. We don't have that kind of time."
Ana frowned from her seat, holding her hands in her lap, "But why would Beron take her without a word? If his prerogative is to force the union, he gains nothing from keeping her secret."
"Unless he expects Hollis to enter the Autumn Court to find her," Cassian chimed as he leaned back against the window, arms crossed, and eyes narrowed.
Feyre paced before the hearth, glaring at the floor before looking up and asking, "You think he's trying to lure Hollis to him?"
With a shrug, Cassian pursed his lips. "I suspect he's been playing the long game. Ten years long."
Kallias poured himself a glass of amber liquid and sighed, "If that was his intention, why not seek him out? They did not cross into our lands nor disturb him while he lay unconscious."
"Perhaps they think they found a different solution to the prophecy?" Viviane asked.
Rhysand scowled at the wall, "If that were true…and they had no intention of telling us, then that solution would be something they know we'd try to prevent."
Exchanging glances around the room, Ana released a shaking breath, "Is…are Nova and Hollis…mates?"
All eyes fell on her.
She continued, "If, from what's been described to me of what mates are, and the biggest risk to face is finding a way to infiltrate without raising alarms, would Hollis be able to sense her somehow?"
Their gazes shifted from Ana to Hollis. He sat up a little straighter, raising his brows as he realized he must not have been doing very well reading their lips.
Feyre carefully closed the distance between herself and Hollis and entered his mind without hesitation.
When you think of Nova, can you feel anything? A sense of her? A thread that ties to her? Anything at all?
Hollis swallowed and searched for a feeling- any connection to her. Something that might feel like her. A thread? He had no idea. Thinking about her, trying to reach for her, felt like clawing at a darkened room.
Slowly, he shook his head.
Azriel nodded, "If they are meant to be Mates, the bond may not have set yet."
As his head fell into his hands, Hollis' shoulders deflated. How could he search for a connection that might not exist? A subtle nudge against his shoulder, and he glanced up to find his father offering him a glass. Offering a tight smile, Hollis shook his head.
He didn't need the alcohol.
He needed to know Nova was okay.
Clang
Nova jolted and sucked in a harsh breath that pinched her lungs. Her eyes roamed the cabin; she'd seen this before, but this time the veil of fog that clouded her was less dense. This time, she took it in. The room, though small, was warm.
Too warm.
Dew clung to her skin as the distinct sensation of sweat beaded at the base of her neck and trailed down her back. The fire in the hearth must have had a log added recently, she watched the smoke billow from the still-damp wood.
Clang.
Nova's eyes darted toward the open doorway and watched a shadow loom across the opposite wall. An arm came down, holding some object; the same resonating clang came with it.
Glancing down at herself, she furrowed her brow at the fur layers covering her body. Deer skin, she realized. Beneath the heated skin, she wiggled her toes with difficulty.
How long had she been lying here?
"I wondered when you'd wake." A man stood in the doorway to what could only be the kitchen. He leaned against the frame and smiled tightly. In his hands, he securely held a metal bowl.
"You look like you've been through hell," he said, taking a step forward, "I thought you might be hungry."
Nova stiffened and clenched her jaw as she stared at him. Watching every movement he made.
The man stopped and tilted his head. "I found you in the forest," he said, biting his lip as he tried to hide a small smile. "That's twice now."
While she remained quiet, he took another few steps and crouched down. His handsome face, set with oak eyes and dark, unruly hair that brushed above his brow, might get him into trouble in some areas.
Nova settled her gaze on his rounded ears and his nonexistent wings. "Where am I?" She croaked.
"You don't remember me?"
She didn't drop her attention from his face, studying him with a growing scowl.
"Because…" He slowly sat down, crossing his ankles before him. "I remember you."
When Nova didn't respond, he continued, "I saw you at the river. It's been years, but I know you. Your eyes. Your ears. You're a Fae…" He trailed off as she stiffened. "Don't worry," he chuckled deep in his throat, "I am not afraid of you anymore, and I will not tell anyone."
Silence grew between them as Nova secretly practiced wriggling her toes in her boots.
With a nod, he shrugged, "I'll just leave this here for you." He said, setting the bowl down, which appeared to be some stew. Of what, she wasn't sure, but the growl of her belly begged her to take it from him.
In her resolve, she kept still.
"I'm Zaylor," he pursed his lips, sighed, and stood to his feet, "You can eat it if you'd like. It's not poisoned, I promise." He said, laying a hand against his heart, and smiled, his eyelids pulled back ever so slightly.
Nova narrowed her eyes and leveled him with a stare, then asked again, "Where am I?"
Did he think he could ignore her question?
"You're in my cabin." He frowned as his dark brow knitted together. Then he smiled, "I'll get you some water."
Swallowing dryly, Nova watched him leave the room but remained stationary as she listened. There was nothing like the sound of a faucet turning on, as the subtle thud of something opening and shutting took its place.
He had left.
Nova pushed the heavy skins off her with every ounce of strength and froze. Eyes wide, she stared at her naked body. Scouting the area searching for her clothes, she grabbed hold of the tiny table to her left and pushed herself to her feet. She'd rather limp through the trees without clothes than risk another moment in here.
Stumbling, she used the wall as a crutch, pushing her trembling legs to the front door where her hand gripped the handle and turned.
Locked.
She reared back to slam her heel against the door, but as she put all her weight on her left leg, the muscles twitched and clenched, giving out as she crashed to the floor.
The back door swung open, and Nova gritted her teeth. The last weapon she'd wielded had been her blade in the blood-soaked streets of Velaris. Did she still have it? Her eyes frantically swept over the floor as Zaylor stepped into the room and tilted his head.
Frowning, he fretted, "Well, don't do that! You'll get hurt."
Nova stared at his boots as he approached her, and as he bent down to touch her bare shoulder, she snapped her teeth at him. "Don't fucking touch me!"
He immediately stepped back and sighed, "I'm not going to hurt you."
"Give me my clothes," Nova demanded, keeping her chest against the wooden floor, ignoring the cool air that drifted beneath.
Zaylor frowned, "I was just washing them. They were dirty. This is exactly the problem with women, you know."
Nova slowly lifted her gaze and tilted her head as he continued.
"You try to help and be nice, and not even a simple thank you."
Nova curled her lip, but before she could respond, he spun on his heel and drifted back through the kitchen, letting the back door close behind him with a bang.
Without hesitating, Nova pulled herself to her hands and knees. While scraping her skin against the splintered floor, she dragged herself toward the window to the fireplace's left. It was small, but if she could open it, she could wedge herself through it. The heat scalded her skin as she neared the hearth, internally groaning in her slow progress, her muscles begging to be let go as she stopped to catch her breath. Glaring at the floor, she pressed a hand to her side that ached. It was like a rib pressed against her lung every time she breathed too deeply.
The scent of something drifted toward her, and she realized it was the stew, but not from the bowl across the room. No, it was what boiled in the cauldron set upon the fire to her right.
Just keep going, it's too hot. Don't stop.
As Nova took another clawed inch forward, she paused and looked over the lip of the cauldron. Goosebumps swept over her body as she stared into the vacant, hollowed eyes of a human skull.
A scream caught in Nova's throat as a pair of boots planted before her. Looking up, she stared wide-eyed at Zaylor. He tilted his head to the side and released a sigh.
"I'm not mad, but I am disappointed you can't seem to listen."
Zaylor leaned over, picked up the iron poker against the brick, and raised it. Before Nova could duck away, he brought it down on the back of her skull.
Stars filled her vision.
Whack.
Whack.
WHACK.
Hollis stared down at the table, teeth gritted together as something aroused inside of him.
Oh, no…not now, he thought as panic crept like a spider up his spine.
He closed his eyes and breathed.
In…out…in…out. Just find the warmth again.
Met with nothing more than his cold, he slowly reopened his eyes to find everyone around the table staring at him.
"Hollis?" Viviane asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. "What is it?"
He looked down at his shaking hands as sweat dripped down his nose and onto the table's surface. It was like being plunged into a sauna.
Oh, he was going to be sick.
Before anyone could stop him, he stumbled out of the room and down the hall, where he found the first bathroom he could. Bracing his hands against the sink, tremors rolled up and down his body. He couldn't feel anything but the horrible devastation growing in his chest.
This was unlike any panic attack he'd ever felt before.
Hollis, Rhys spoke into him, What's wrong? What's happening?
He shook his head as he lifted his eyes to the mirror and met Rhys' frantic stare.
I don't know…
Nova spat blood from her teeth as she thumped down the stairs. Clawed fingers dug into her scalp as Zaylor dragged her down a set of steps, and with every jarring fall of the descent, thunder clapped through her head.
"This is why I just don't trust you females." Zaylor sighed as he hauled her into the center of the stone floor room.
Nova lay on her back, gazing up through blurred vision and puffy, slitted eyes at the gaps of light above her. She'd been up there moments ago and now… she turned her head to watch Zaylor drift across the room, as though he were gathering tools for a pleasant day of gardening.
But, instead of a trowel, he picked up a hooked blade.
"At least you kept your body in shape," he said, glancing over his shoulder at her appreciatively, "Though I'm unsurprised after what you did to my uncles by the river. Do you remember them?" He asked, crossing the space between them, but Nova could only stare at the gleaming instrument between his fingers.
Sighing, he sat down at her side on the frigid floor.
Nova twitched her fingers, blinking past the bright shocks of white that vibrated through her skull. It had only been two days since she'd crashed against the rocks in the riptide.
"I was sent away from my home, you see," he shook his head, "They didn't want me around, but my uncles did. They said I could go to them any time I didn't feel welcome in my home. My bitch of a mother and bastard of a father made it very well known when they no longer wanted me."
"You're a tough one," he crooned, gliding his wicked hook with delight across her belly, "Not like the others."
Nova swallowed, staring him down as she refused to let the tears fall, as the hook caressed her exposed breast.
"You're much prettier than they were."
"He's had these spells for a long time," Viviane murmured as she sipped her tea, "We thought removing the alcohol would help, but it never did. Sometimes I tried to approach and discuss it with him, but he shut me out."
She rubbed her temples and stared after the way Hollis, Kallias, and Rhysand had left through, "I should have done more. Made him sit down and talk or at least listen. He's always been fearful. Even as a child, he was skeptical of his own shadow."
"It's simply been too much," Feyre frowned, "All of this. Everyone handles their grief and stress differently, and it isn't something you can force. If Hollis isn't ready to be receptive, the only thing you can do is continue to try. To be there for him."
Viviane swallowed as tears brimmed her eyes, "It increased drastically after what happened when Nova last visited the palace. When the soldiers were in the forest…he was so upset with himself, for not protecting her."
Pursing his lips, Cassian nodded and sat next to her. He offered a small smile, to offer a little comfort, "Well, you know, maybe that's what makes Hollis and Nova meant to be together. They complement each other…bring out the best in the other. I mean, it wouldn't be the first time she's scared a kid," he chuckled, "That Zaylor kid, for instance."
Ana shuddered, and Azriel frowned, placing a hand on her knee.
"Oh, that name," she said as everyone turned to her, "I consider myself a very patient person and not ruffled too easily, but I knew a boy named Zaylor. I nearly quit teaching because of him."
Az frowned, taking her hand in his. "From your time in the mortal lands?"
Nodding, she pinched her brows together, "I don't say this lightly when I say he was a horrible little boy. He asked me things that…" she tightened her jaw and shook her head. "If it's the same boy, I'm glad Nova got away from him. Not that she didn't protect herself, but…he would say these things like, 'What do you think burning flesh smells like?' and 'I think a person's skin would be warm in the winter too.' I tried to push through and continued to tutor him. My mother and I needed the money, but one night I went out to the little barn to fetch the notebook I'd left behind and found him…twisting the necks of the newborn kittens." Tears flooded her eyes. "He saw me, and though he was merely seven, I looked at him and saw nothing but a little monster hiding behind his eyes. The way he smiled at me…his eyes looked frightened, yet he smiled. I went to my mother and told her immediately, but we never saw him again. He was gone. We told the people in the area, but they wanted nothing to do with it. His parents said…good riddance."
Chills swept down Feyre's back and along her neck.
"He had mentioned during a session that he had uncles nearby, and when I asked his parents, oh, the look they gave me. One uncle in particular was his mother's brother. She said her parents forced him out of the house before he was eighteen. Thinking everyone was asleep, they caught him trying to set the house on fire."
Feyre sucked in a harsh breath.
"I think I'll keep these," Zaylor breathed as he caressed the pointed tips of Nova's ears, "And your eyes are quite…unique. They shouldn't go to waste."
Clenching her jaw, Nova willed her muscles to take action.
Please, she begged the universe, let me move.
Let me do something.
"I do want to enjoy it first, of course." Zaylor purred. He reached forward, and his chilled fingers pressed into the sore bruises that littered her body.
Nova could do nothing but roll as he moved her. She'd used too much power in the forest outside of Velaris, and there was nothing left to pull from as she heard the distinct sound of a zipper behind her.
Heart pounding, Nova shuddered, raking in uneven breaths that as she lifted her head as far as she could, desperate to pull her body in any direction away from the feel of his hands on the back of her thighs. Lifting her eyes, drool dripped from the corners of her mouth as she stared with a gaping mouth at the wall ahead.
A small set of Illyrian wings was pinned to the decaying wood.
Nova released a piercing cry as he thrusted into her.
Hollis clutched his chest, terrified his heart would explode from his chest. Tears streamed down his cheeks, unable to see the blur of faces before him. Not even Rhysand's words against his mind could bring him back as he raked his nails down his throat, leaving scarlet trails behind.
"Oh no….no…no…no…."
A clawed fist gripped the back of Nova's head as she struggled to find purchase against the slick stone floor. Tears gushed down her cheeks, splattering as she sobbed through the pounding ache between her legs.
"It's almost over," Zaylor cooed as she dug her fingers and toes against the door. He lugged her across the threshold. "Don't be so dramatic," he said, rolling his eyes as he tugged hard enough that her fingers gave way and let her fall onto the bathroom floor.
Nova's burning cheek pressed against the cool tile as the sound of splashing water filled the enclosed space. Before she could take the moment to panic, hands gripped the back of her shoulders and pulled her up to her knees, forcing her back against the side of the tub."
"I never did find out your name."
Nova spat blood in his face with bared teeth and a wicked scowl.
Zaylor stared at her, wrinkling his nose as a slow smile curved his lips. Wordlessly, he wrapped his hand around her throat and bent her backward, sending her head beneath the water.
Nova flailed heavy limbs as water infiltrated her nose and throat in a stinging, aching rush. Her palm slapped against his forearms…her feet kicked against his shins. Zaylor lurched forward, and with a sickening crack and riveting pain that exploded from her core, Nova's legs went limp.
Gaping up through the blurred water, she watched the distorted shadow figure above that kept her below the surface. With a slow blink, Nova parted her lips and took in the water.
Then, he saw it in the dark abyss of his weary soul- a golden thread glimmered in the darkness like midnight snow. It pulsed and wavered, as if connected to a harp, and someone was plucking it.
It was fading.
"She's dying!" Hollis exclaimed as something primal detonated inside of him.
Before him now stood a cabin beneath misty moonlight.
Hollis rushed forward.
He didn't freeze.
He didn't hide.
Slamming through the door, he followed the thread that would guide him to her.
The man in the bathroom looked over his shoulder with widened eyes, and Hollis charged, his face crafted into one of cold-stone fury as he crashed into him. He plunged his hands into his chest, through the cavity that resided within, and in a burst of frigid energy, the man at his mercy exploded into a dust of reflecting ice crystals and fell to the floor like collective dust.
Hollis lurched to the tub, snatched Nova around her waist, and pulled her from the water.
"NOVA!" He cried out, staring at her blue lips and vacant eyes. "Please don't leave me…Please don't…"
With the remaining strains of his power, Hollis winnowed once more and fell to the floor of the main foyer in the Winter Court.
"HELP!" He screamed frantically, unaware of the hands on his shoulders prying him away from her still body. Trying to claw his way back, he roared in agony, though the pressure of more hands kept him against the ground, figures gathered around Nova.
"Breathe, Nova, breathe!" Someone shouted.
With each pulse of his heart, he watched the thread of sparkling gold fade between them. Beyond the thread, he felt the warmth that had cradled his soul so many times this past week.
It was her.
Her touch had breathed life into him when he felt like he was dying.
It had always been Nova.
Hollis, in spirit, lunged forward, wrapped his fists around the dying warmth, and held it against his chest.
You've always been a fighter, Nova.
Fight now.
Breathe.
With another downward compression against her chest, water spewed from Nova's mouth, followed by raging coughs that wracked through her body.
Relief flooded him, and he suddenly lost all control of his limbs and hung loose in Cassian and his father's arms. Hollis watched Rhysand lift Nova into his arms as she spewed residual water from her lungs while wrapped in his mother's cloak. They disappeared up the spiral staircase and out of sight within moments.
Hollis heard nothing as he stared after them with the reassuring squeezes against his shoulders as they tried to calm him.
In a soft voice, he breathed, "My mate…"
Her mother's voice brought Nova enough energy to open her eyes, though she didn't want to. Every muscle ached as her eyes burned with the effort to open them. At the foot of her bed, her parents stood with Madja, discussing something or other about a few different tonics she'd already given her.
When had Nova drunk them?
The last thing she remembered was staring at the figure from her nightmares. Then, as if in a flood of memories, everything came rushing back. She stared at Rhysand and Feyre's faces, which were skewed with concern as she recollected her time living and growing in the forest.
The first time she saw them from her tree, the same tree her baby fox had drowned in from the flood. She could call the way it pleaded with her to save it, how she couldn't climb down fast enough to swoop him into her arms before he was carried away with the swollen river.
A misty morning and a gray sky, flying above the clouds as arrows pierced her wings and burned her flesh. Each grating pull of the rusty saw as the men she'd killed on the riverbank cut through her as she screamed in agony.
"Nova…" Her parents quickly leaned down, kneeling before her bed with grief-stricken eyes. "Oh, sweetheart…" Feyre stroked her fingers against her burning cheeks, sweeping away the silent tears that fell.
With red, sleepless eyes, Rhysand took her bandaged hand and squeezed with the softest pressure. He whispered, "You're safe now."
"He," it took Nova a moment to form the words, "He made me…"
Feyre's jaw and lips trembled as new tears cascaded down. She nodded, "We know…" She sniffed and swallowed harshly. "Zaylor is dead. You need to know that."
Through shallow breathing, Nova rested back against the pillows and tried to wiggle her toes as before, but this time she froze. Staring down at her covered feet, she shook her head.
"I can't feel my legs."
Madja crept to the other side of her bed and nodded, "Nova, you have a broken spine, among other injuries."
Casting a wide-eyed glance at her, Madja squeezed her hand lightly, "You will heal, Nova. It will take time, but you will heal. I'll make you some more tonic to help you rest."
Without another word, Madja stood and left. She passed the others who waited patiently in the hall. They all raised their heads to look at her, and she addressed them with a grim line of her lips. "She's not ready for visitors. Do not enter unless she specifically asks for someone. Is that understood?" Her gaze settled on Hollis, who hadn't left the wall he occupied since she'd first been placed in recovery.
Hollis nodded.
He wouldn't enter, but he wasn't leaving.
"Very good," Madja nodded and left to gather ingredients in the kitchen's pantry.
Before Nova could become too comfortable, a blood-stained smile flashed across her memory and sent a wild kick to her pulse.
"Peter…"
Feyre tightened her grip as tears dripped onto the bed and Rhys lowered his head, closing his eyes, "Oh, Nova…I'm so sorry…"
"Where are my clothes?" Nova asked, suddenly frantic as she tried to lift herself into a sitting position. "My pants. I need my pants."
"Sweetheart, you can't get dressed right now…" Rhys murmured.
"I need them!"
Feyre stood and crossed the room with a frown as she returned, offering them to her. Anything to keep her still. "Please, Nova. Don't try to move too much."
But Nova wasn't listening as she took the still-damp pants and plunged her hands into their pockets. With each one she explored and pulled away, nothing her heart raced faster.
"Nova…" Rhysand tried, watching her chest rise and fall faster before her breathing turned into hyperventilated gasps.
"Peter's flowers," she choked on her tears, "I can't find them. I can't find them. I need them. I need Peter's flowers…I need…" Nova's face crumpled as she clutched the pants to her chest and released a shuddering sob.
Feyre didn't dare pry the fabric from her hands as she encircled her in a hug, climbing into the bed, she ignored Madja's rules and held her against her chest as sobs turned into agonized wails.
From the hallway, Nesta pinched her eyes closed as Cassian hugged her to his side. Ana hid her face against Azriel's chest, trembling as her tears stained his leathers.
Hollis stared at the closed door between his parents, who bowed their heads. He could do nothing now to block out his mate's cries of mourning.
"Beron won't get away with this." Hollis didn't realize it was his own voice that spoke with conviction.
Cassian curled his lip, chest heaving as he met Azriel's eyes that morphed from somber to enraged.
"I can't leave her," Hollis nodded to the door, "Not now. I won't."
He met their eyes, "Make sure he never takes another breath."
Nesta's eyes darkened, "With pleasure."
The doors to the palace in the Autumn Court slammed open as they entered Beron's throne room.
"And without invitation? A trifle rude, isn't it?" Beron asked with a sly smirk, tilting his head to the side as he observed them.
Eris narrowed his eyes, arms crossed, as he watched Nesta, situated between Cassian and Azriel, lead the way. Her eyes molten as she stopped before his throne. Behind them, Kallias and Viviane strolled in, their features as hard and cold as the ice in their veins.
"Hm," Beron settled a gaze on them, brow raised as he shook his head, "Rhysand and Feyre cannot bother to deliver their threats? Shameful." He was greeted with silence, and just as he parted his lips to speak again, the doors beyond opened again.
Together, Thesan, Helion, Tarquin, and Lucien entered.
Beron's complexion paled, though he continued to smile. "Come to accuse me of crimes against Velaris again?" He drifted his gaze toward Lucien. "Hm, can't seem to get rid of you, can I?"
Leveling a severe stare at his father, Lucien curled his lip in distaste.
When no words were spoken, Beron huffed and stood to his feet. "Go on then. Do tell me how your people are dying. I did warn you of the implications of going against the fate we were standing against."
"You murdered innocence," Thesan spoke in a slow, eerily calm voice.
Beron quirked a small smile, "A few sacrificed to spare the whole. That's fair, wouldn't you agree, Shadowsinger? General? You understand the difficulties of making decisions on behalf of others. It's an easy choice when you set your emotions aside."
"Is that what Tamlin did?" Tarquin asked, raising his chin. "Set his emotions aside?"
Beron rolled his eyes and chuckled, "Tamlin was as malleable as they come. Do you not remember Under the Mountain? If Amarantha could wield his will, why shouldn't I?"
Lucien's brows raised as his jaw slackened. "You…did what?"
"Honestly, I always knew you to be stupid, but this level? You've all needed to take the Fall seriously, and now that I have your attention, perhaps you will."
"You've gone too far. Even for you." Helion snarled, his eyes flashing as he said. "And you will never…speak to my son in that manner ever again."
Snorting, Beron eyed Helion. He sighed and shook his head as he said, "And the truth comes out," he looked them all over, "What will you do? I have the power Amarantha possessed in her wake. To control those who dare question my motives. So, let me ask again," he snarled and raised his voice, "What will you do?! I am the High Lord of centuries. I rule the Autumn Court. I-"
Eris stepped down from behind and, with a wide swing of his sword, disconnected Beron's head from his shoulders. Bouncing, it rolled down the steps and rested wide-eyed and mouth agape against Nestas' shoe.
She kicked it away, disgusted, and looked up as Eris cleaned the blood from his sword under his arm. He stepped through the blood that didn't cease gushing from the remainder of Beron's body.
Eris sat on the throne, crossed a leg over his knee, and rested his hands on the arms. "I am the High Lord of the Autumn Court…" He looked at them each in turn, letting his gaze linger longest on Nesta. "Are there any objections to this change of power?"
Lifting his gaze from Beron's head, Lucien and the other High Lords exchanged a weighted glance. Finally, Thesan met Eris's eyes.
"Welcome. High Lord Eris of the Autumn Court."
AUTHOR NOTE:
This concludes part 2 of A Court of Lost Stars