Forged by Malice (Beasts of the Briar, #3)

by Elizabeth Helen

“I’m leaving for Spring tomorrow,” Ezryn says. He turns to Farron and ruffles his hair. “Meet me in the training grounds this afternoon. We’ve got time for one more lesson. Let’s see if you can be as quick a learner at magic as you are at pleasuring our girl.”

Caspian’s words from the battlefield come roaring back to me: Those princes are ever foolish; they should have taught you to defend yourself.

“Anon caria mirel baelorin. Yavanthy caeotin. Darisfeli em onore. Ezryn.” The words are choppy, labored. But I’d know them anywhere. “That is a language of Spring,” I tell her. She places her palm flat on my chest plate and stares at her spread fingers. “I know. You said that to me down in Cryptgarden.” “You remembered?” She reaches up to caress my helm. Her brown eyes shine as she holds my gaze. “The mountains told me your name. The forest sang your song. My heart has been searching for you since the first dawn.”

would do upon hearing a new language is find a way to translate it. I can picture her in the library, poring over a dictionary. My chest tenses. Those were words I meant to keep secret … “My heart searches for you, too, Ez,” she whispers. “Let me find you.” As much as I wish I could sweep her into my arms and tell her again and again and again that I’m right here, the mirror beckons me forward. “I’ll be back soon.” “I’ll be waiting for you,” Rose says and lets me go. “I promise.” With her promise giving me the strength I need, I take one step forward and enter Spring.

“Just playing by the same set of rules you are, Cas,” she says. “Besides, why would I want to fulfill it and let you take away my thorns?” “You’re a fae, but you still don’t understand me.” We begin to circle each other. “Why don’t you give me a kiss and see if I let you keep your little trinkets?” “I’m not kissing you,” she says, then narrows her gaze. “You knew I was fae, didn’t you?” “From the moment I first laid eyes on you.” Though the Fates had shown her with pointed ears in their prophecy, so I can’t exactly take credit for that one.

I can still hear her voice in my mind from the party when I was fucking the fae on the dais: Stop or I’ll die. I’m not even sure if she realized the gravity of her words. And now even the brief relief I’d found in the Below is lost to me. I shake my head, angry. She doesn’t control me. I am at no one’s mercy, I remind myself. But the longer I spend around her, the harder and harder it is to believe.

“What do you want to know, Rosalina?” I whisper. She blinks up at me then gently guides my hand behind her to touch the brambles snaking up the wall. “Your thorns,” she says softly. “They’re not sapping Castletree’s magic, are they? They’re keeping it standing.”

“I’m right, I know I am. From my first day in this place, I always knew these briars weren’t evil. So why are you letting everyone believe you’re taking the magic? If anything, it’s taking your magic.”

“Caspian, why are you letting everyone believe you’re the villain?” “Who says I’m not?” he snarls. “Because!” I spread my arms wide. “These thorns—you—are the only thing stopping Castletree from falling.” The flash in his eyes confirms my suspicions. The briars aren’t evil, yet he attacked the Autumn Realm. But then he was fighting in disguise to help it. Or at least help me.

“Caspian,” I say, cupping his cheek, and this time, he lets me touch him, “what are you afraid of?” Something sharp cuts across my vision, and a ringing reverberates in my ears. I’m no longer seeing the world through my own eyes. Flashes of moments tear through my mind. There’s a torturous sting along my back, my arms, the crack of a whip and a scream. A scream that sounds like Caspian. Then a haunting woman’s voice: My darling boy. Tall pillars of green gems, her kneeling before them, long dark hair blowing as emerald flames erupt around her. I gasp, pulling away from Caspian. And for a second, it isn’t flecks of purple dancing in his eyes, but flames of green. Did he see the same vision I did?

“I’ve seen her, those flames, before,” I stammer. “When I tried to break Lucas’s crown. But we shattered it, and Perth’s too. Is he back⁠—” “Perth was nothing but a pawn.” Caspian coughs, then wipes his mouth to reveal a line of black. He gives a little sigh, then stares at me. His eyes have returned to the deep purple. Thorns twine around his hands and form … a bow. Twisting briars curve to create a delicate bow with a taut string. He holds it out. “Yes, I’m afraid of the green flames. And you should be, too.” Gingerly, I accept the bow, never once shifting my gaze from his. And with that, the briars rise around the Prince of Thorns and take him back to the Below.

“You ended the night in the arms of your mate,” Dayton says, standing. “How’s a guy supposed to compete with that?” “Day—” He heads to the door. “Get ready, and for star’s sake, have a dip in the hot springs and wash off the Prince of Thorns’ scent.” My fork clatters to my plate. “I⁠—” “And,” Dayton growls, “you better damn well tell me what he was doing in your room last night.”

I stare up at him, silent. I don’t think I even understand the gravity of what Dayton and I discovered. But a sense of comfort rushes through me, being here, being with Ezryn. He always bears his burdens alone. Not anymore.

Call me old-fashioned, but bringing a lady to a private arboretum and eating her out like your own personal buffet kind of feels like courting. “She’s High Prince Farron’s mate,” Ezryn continues.

He shoves her out of the way and screams: “I challenge you to the⁠—” Before he can finish the words, Ezryn turns and surges at his brother. In a feat of raw strength, he lifts Kairyn up and slams him on to his back. In the same fluid movement, he draws his sword, Windscythe, and holds it to Kairyn’s neck. “Do not challenge me,” he growls, a voice more wolf than man. “Never challenge me again.” Utter silence fills the throne room. In our small space, not one of us takes a breath. Then Ezryn stands and sheathes his blade. Kairyn stays down. With staggering steps, Ezryn walks up the stairs to sit on the throne. “You will return to the monastery and await my judgment for breaking your banishment. Until my father recovers, I shall remain in Spring.” He turns to the acolytes, then gestures to the fallen Kairyn. “If anyone has an issue with that, you can take it up with your High Cleric.”

Now it’s my turn to roll my eyes. “Do you think Keldarion just leaves it lying under his bed, discarded and unprotected? It’s not so easy. I heard even Perth’s new pets couldn’t recover it.”

“I could pass a thousand seasons staring at you and never have my fill of your beauty. I want you when the cherry blossoms fall in spring, and during the balmy nights of summer. I want you on a forest floor filled with autumn leaves and shivering in winter’s snow.”

A choked cry escapes his lips. “What does it matter if you’re not mates? Why can’t I love you?” Heavy silence thunders through the room. Did he say… Ezryn looks to the side, fists clenching. “Why can’t he love you … I meant why can’t Dayton love you.”

I close my eyes, fighting back tears. “Because my love will only hold him back.” Only hold you back. Ezryn staggers to the wall, and it seems like he’s barely holding himself up. “So, what now? We pretend like none of it matters?”

“Do you trust me?” I ask. “Always.” I close my eyes. Then I reach up and put my hands on either side of his helmet. He doesn’t stop me. Slowly, I inch it off, then hold the heavy metal in one hand. And with it, I hold his trust in a single blink. Softly, carefully, I stand on my tiptoes and brush my lips against his. His warm breath caresses me. My free hand traces his jaw, rough with stubble, as our kiss grows from soft to needy. One second more, I tell myself second after second until finally I pull away. I place the helm back on his head and tug down, feeling to make sure it’s in place. Then I blink my eyes open. “You have a realm to rule and a curse to break, High Prince. And I’ll be at your side looking after you for as long as I can.”

He stays silent for a moment, reminding me of Ezryn. Then he says: “Waiting for someone else to save you is a hopeless endeavor. The Queen is renowned as loving and just. She would not want us to sit in denial. A truly selfless ruler would want a new power to rise and shepherd the Vale as she had done before.”

When Farron and I work together, I feel like we can do anything.

can’t help that the Spring dresses are so beautiful. Today, I’m dressed in an off-the-shoulder blouse with a billowing skirt, the hem embroidered with tiny flowers. My cheeks heat. Researching in a library reminds me of when we first met. He’s so gorgeous like this: vest, glasses, and floppy hair.

“Yeah, well,” I murmur, slowly sending one of my vines to creep up behind her, “I don’t really want to be besties with you either.” My briars snag her around the waist and whip her hard against a tree. Despite that, she’s standing within seconds. That playfulness gone. “I will fucking kill you!” she screams. Every maneuver Dayton taught me during our training flies from my brain. I turn and sprint, but she’s so much faster, bowling me over despite her smaller frame.

“What was it again, hmm?” Caspian drums his fingers on his arm. “It was so very long ago now.” “Rescind the bargain,” I growl. “Oh, I remember now,” he purrs. His voice takes on a dark purpose. “Let me take no other but you. If one day, my vow shall prove false and I lie with another, let them serve you in repentance until you tire of them as I did your heart. And if ever there is no love between us, let this bargain melt away like snow under rain.”

“It was you,” Rosalina breathes, but it’s Caspian she’s staring at. “You were Kel’s great love.” “Call it what you want, Flower.” Caspian smirks. “It’ll bring us together before long.”

Back then, I had no notion of Rosalina. No notion that I would ever have a mate, or that I would be cursed into needing to find one. No notion that my realm and soul would rely on her love. Every part of me had been convinced the broken and beautiful prince loved me. And that I loved him.

Caspian turns to Rosalina. “The Fates showed me you.” Rosalina doesn’t say a word, but her eyes move between us. I know that look. She’s thinking, always thinking. But there’s nothing we can do. No way out of this. Perhaps I can find a means to petition for her safety. Why would Caspian even help me save her if this was his plan all along? “What do you mean, you saw Rosalina? She wasn’t even born.” Caspian shrugs. “The Fates show threads of the future. I saw your life with her. Your mate.” “So, you crafted a bargain to trap his mate,” Farron spits out, face scrunched in agony. “You are despicable, Caspian.” I feel hollow, wrung inside out, my whole body numb. I know how it ended with him. His betrayal. But before that … The bargain… Hadn’t that been real?

“Rosalina.” He chokes out my actual name. Is this the first time he’s ever said it to me? I’m not sure. “You certainly are a lot of trouble, aren’t you?” I swallow, head spinning. I’m not sure I would even know my name if he hadn’t just said it. “Not as much trouble as you.” A thought drifts through my starlit mind. “Cas, do you have my necklace?” He tilts his head. “Yes. But they’ll only take it from you again. You don’t need it.” He places a hand over my heart. “You have everything you need right here.” “But—” “I’ll keep it safe. I’ll keep you safe.” I think I catch a smile on his face between the speckles of light. Then he’s kissing me again. And I believe him. Maybe here in this moment, in this space that doesn’t really exist, it’s okay to give in to the shadows. To submit to pure feeling and sensation and need. His fiery, desperate lips caress my neck. All sense of control is lost from both of us as I thread my fingers through his hair and writhe my body against his. He kisses me again, softer this time. A kiss I know means the end. He cups my face. “Goodbye, Princess. I think it’ll be a little while before I see you again.” “Wait,” I gasp, catching the edge of his shirt. “I have so many questions.” “And I have so many answers.” His voice fades away as the briars swallow him up. I have the tumbling sensation of falling, falling, falling. I break through the vines, gasping for air, the foggy vision of Castletree’s entrance hall swirling around me.

He raises a brow and laughs. “Would you have been upset to be mates with me if I were hideous?” I crawl on to his lap and try to ignore the iron-hard press of his length against my belly so I can be serious for a moment. Tracing my fingers along the rough line of stubble on his jaw, I hold his gaze. “I fell in love with you when I could only ever dream of the color of your eyes. I would have stayed in love with you even if you were clad in metal for the rest of my life. And I love you now because of who you are.” I bite the lobe of his ear and whisper, “You being a total hottie is just a plus.” I thought that would get another one of those glorious laughs from him, but he shifts so we’re staring at each other again. “You love me?”

“The wait is killing me.” Farron digs his hands into his hair. “Can’t we bribe Kairyn to stop this? Threaten him? I’m not above well-executed coercion.”

I reach for the bow. “Rosalina, no!” Ezryn calls. “Touch that without the Queen’s token, and it’ll burn you up!” the Nightingale hisses. “I don’t need her token,” I snarl and grab the bow. “I have her blood.”

Power rushes through me, lighting me from within. The bow ripples and changes, golden vines growing along the staff. And as I hold it, my skin lights, glowing white-gold. The Nightingale freezes, horror erupting over her features. Shock and reverence ripple in the wolf’s eyes. A string of glimmering gold appears as I draw my hand back, and an arrow of starlight rests on my sight. This may be a magic bow, but the aim is all my own.

The moment she’s gone, all the energy leaves my body, and the bow drops. I fall. Arms catch me, and I tumble against Ezryn’s bare skin. We collapse together to the ground. “Ez,” I say weakly. “I’ve got you,” he murmurs against my hair. “I’ve got you, my Queen.”

It’s healed. I look up. Ezryn keeps me rooted with the deep brown of his eyes. My racing heart still refuses to settle beneath my breast. “How did you know I was here?” A large hand gently cups my cheek. “I’ll always find you.”

Our bond alights between us, warm and welcoming. “How did you get to me?” “There is nothing—nothing—that could keep me from you. No blood nor blade nor judgment cast upon me. I would tear my bones from the grips of death and offer a thousand more in my stead if it means you await me at the end of it all.”

“It’s too dangerous. We need to escape,” Wrenley says. “He could be anywhere,” “Then I’ll look everywhere,” I snap. “Either we all leave this capital or none of us do.”

“Regardless, there’s one thing I know. One thing I’m certain of.” He looks up, reluctantly placing his palm against mine. I offer him a sad smile. “I know you will never let any harm come to Rosalina. Caspian, you have always been a worthy mate for my daughter.”