Quicksilver (Fae & Alchemy, #1)

by Callie Hart

meant, what are you doing here? In my room?” “I’m not allowed to eat in the library, apparently. And, unlike Layne, I don’t have my own assigned wing of the court. After seeing how nice your rooms were yesterday, I figured I’d come and eat breakfast here. Don’t worry. I brought you some cheese.”

“Today has rules, human.” He started counting them off on his hand, a finger for each. “Do not shout. Do not throw any punches. Do not make me do any physical exercise. Do not—”

“What did you do to her?” She glowered hotly at Fisher. “For the love of every god that has ever been or ever will be, could you please lower your voice?” he groaned. “She’s choking to death, Fisher. Did you poison her? Breathe, Saeris. That’s it. Slowly in. Slowly out.” She demonstrated breathing in through her nose. “And… and why does it smell like a brothel in here? If you’re going to spend the night out whoring and drinking, the least you could do is wash the smell of sex off you before showing up for breakfast.”

I jerked when he snapped his fingers in front of my face. “You could at least say hello before you start eye-fucking me.”

You creatures can lie whenever you want. You do it all of the time. And yet you’re all so fucking bad at it.”

His eyes danced with mirth. It was criminal that such astonishing eyes belonged to such a bastard. They were like nothing I’d ever seen before. So bright, the most unique and startling shade of green. And while the quicksilver trapped in his right iris freaked me the hell out, there was no denying that it made him look remarkable.

“It isn’t practical, learning the names of humans,” he said. “You come and go so quickly. I only bother to learn the names of creatures who live longer than a heartbeat.”

“What was I wearing when you found me?” “A whole lot of blood.” Fisher pondered. Frowned. “Wait. I seem to recall that your intestines might have been a part of your ensemble.” “Pants and a shirt,” I said dryly. “And a pair of boots with really good soles. Do you have any idea what those boots cost me?” “Let me guess. Your virginity.” “Fuck you, Fisher.” “Sure.” He smirked. “But I’m afraid I don’t have any new boots to trade you for your time.”

“You could slice your own throat wide open with a knife like that if you forget to think, Osha.”

“Our Fae hearts rarely betray us. We’re calm creatures. But you, Osha? You’re a ball of chaos. Your heart betrays you at every turn.”

don’t hate your kind. I’m just disappointed by how breakable you are. If I held you down and fucked you the way I’m imagining fucking you right now, I doubt that you’d survive it.” I was burning alive. I was a living torch, blazing out of control. “I wouldn’t fuck you—if you were the last living—” “Don’t bother.” The words held bite. “Lying is pointless with your heart betraying you so loudly.”

“Rule number three. Do not make me do any physical activity,” he snarled. “What part of ‘I am hungover’ did you not fucking understand!”

“Sure you can. Keep your ass in the saddle. Keep your mouth shut. It’s easy.”

“I taught you a valuable lesson that will serve you well for the rest of your very short human life in this realm. Always pay attention to the fine print. The devil’s in the details. Now go.”

“It’s not kidnapping if you come willingly,” Kingfisher said in a calculating tone.

“You’ve been a persistent pain in my ass since we met. Now the universe has seen fit to make your ass smart. I’d call that justice.”

“I don’t enjoy hurting people. I don’t like it at all. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t necessary. To avoid far more serious pain, sometimes we have to endure a little sting. Sometimes, some of us have to inflict it. You say it so mockingly, but I do care about your well-being. You’re important. Without you, I can’t end this war or protect my people. I have to keep you safe so I can accomplish my goals. So yes, I’ll hurt you if it means I keep you safe. I’ll force you to follow me to the ends of this realm, because that is the only way I can make sure you stay alive. Now drink your beer.” He made it all sound so reasonable. That he was doing what was right and just for the greater good, but there were other ways of going about it. Softer, kinder ways. He clearly knew nothing about that. The world had been cruel to him, so he was cruel back. I didn’t need babying. I was used to dealing in harsh facts. I’d lost track of the number of times I’d been manhandled or had the shit kicked out of me, but that didn’t mean that Fisher needed to be such an asshole about all of this.

“Urgh! Do you have to be so difficult?” His eyes danced. “It isn’t mandatory, but I do enjoy it.”

To me, Kingfisher was a surly, foul-mouthed bastard who I wouldn’t piss on even if he was on fire. To everyone inside this tavern, he was a living fucking god.

“You shouldn’t make… excuses… for him.” “They aren’t excuses, Saeris. I’ve known him my whole life. We were born to different parents, but we’re brothers in every other way that counts. I know him better than I know myself. The first time Belikon forced him to travel without a relic, the silver infected him so badly that I thought we’d lost him altogether. His mind was so fractured. Let’s just say, it took a long time for him to recover. The healers did their best, but the piece that remains in his eye torments him night and day. His mother’s relic doesn’t seem to be as effective anymore.

You’re just one of hundreds of thousands of people who live in your city. Why shoulder the responsibility of saving them when they refuse to save themselves?” He already knew the answer to his question. He wasn’t stupid. I said it out loud for him anyway, because he clearly needed to hear it. “Because it’s the right thing to do, Fisher.”

“The doorway is enchanted. Bound to the entrance of the forge, which is located outside of the house. Much safer than having highly explosive compounds and chemicals inside the house itself. When we walk through the doorway in the house, it transports us here. Simple.”

“He’s twenty-six years old. He’s hardly a boy,” I muttered. “He’s an infant with a smart mouth, as far as I’m concerned.

“Mm. You’re right. I don’t think you will invite me. When the time comes, I think you’ll beg—” I let out an infuriated scream.

Ren smiled weakly. “He’s also my best friend. I have to believe that he’s still in there somewhere. The person I once knew.

“You shouldn’t do it because it’s wrong. You can’t go around forcing people to do things they don’t want to do.”

“Have you paused to consider that I might want to stay alive? That I’d do whatever it was you wanted me to do if you just explained why it was important to my well-being?”

‘Never forget. Monsters thrive best in the dark.

“Because she is moonlight. The mist that shrouds the mountains. The bite of electricity in the air before a storm. The smoke that rolls across a battlefield before the killing starts. You have no idea what she is. What she could be. You should call her Majesty.”

“She has a mind and a mouth of her own. I am the keeper of neither.”

“Impossible. He’s an Oath Bound Fae.” “And?” “And we can’t lie.”

“When we turn twenty-one, we kneel before the Firinn Stone and make our decision. Every one of us. We have a choice. Bleed on the stone and make our vow. To always be truthful. To always be bound by our word, no matter what it costs us.”

If I die first, the piece of Fisher’s soul returns to him. He becomes whole again. Everybody has a big party. The end. But if he dies first, he’s condemned to wait here for me to die before he can move on. He’d be trapped here, in a non-corporeal state, unable to touch anything or anyone. Unable to be heard.

“Fisher says he’s not worried about what happens to him if he dies first,” Lorreth said. “And I’m not worried, either. Truth is, I plan on dying first, anyway. But if the fates guide the stars in a different direction and our better angels claim him first, I won’t permit a single breath into my body beyond the last one Kingfisher takes. By my own hand, I’ll make sure the piece of soul he loaned to me finds its way back to him. And if the fates consider it just, and I’ve done enough to earn a place at his side, I’ll go quietly and happily with my brother into whatever lies beyond.”

Fisher laughed. Really laughed. The sound was rich and deep, and made something inside me sit up straight. When I’d picked up a pitcher at the Winter Palace and filled a glass for myself for the first time, I’d thought the sound of that rushing, free water would be my favorite sound until the day I died. I was wrong. The sound of Fisher’s genuine laughter was rarer than water had ever been back in Zilvaren; it almost brought tears to my eyes to hear it.

“I don’t want bright and happy,” he whispered roughly. “I want real.”

“Because the punishment for carrying a weapon in the Third is death,” Fisher whispered.

“When I imagine you, Little Osha, you’re very rarely wearing clothes.”

“Though, if it seems like your mind’s being sucked out of your body, or you’re in excruciating pain and can’t let go of the quicksilver sword murder spikes, do I have your permission to tackle you to the ground?” That actually seemed like a prudent plan. “You do.” “Excellent.”

It’s time for you to rest, too, Osha. That voice. Gods alive. It made me jump when I heard it in my mind, though I had been waiting for it. Not until I’m done, I answered. I’m nearly there. Fisher was close.

How long have you been out there? I asked. Only a few hours, came his reply. Why didn’t you come in? There was a long pause. And then he said, I didn’t know if you’d want me to. Come in from the cold, Kingfisher. I will. Soon. I’ll sit here a little longer, I think.

By righteous hands, deliverance of the unrighteous dead.

Outside, the sky was lit up with an explosion of green and pink light. My breath caught at the sight of it. “What is that?” “The aurora,” Fisher answered softly. “A blessing.” “Holy fuck.” Lorreth dropped to his knees in the snow, staring up at the sky, his mouth wide open. “It’s… beautiful. The aurora hasn’t been seen in… in…” “Well over a thousand years,” Fisher said. “It’s been there all night. I was going to tell you both to come and look, but I had a feeling it’d still be here when you were done.”

He thought for a moment, appearing to decide whether he’d answer the question. Then he said, “I was wrong, y’know. You are a good thief.” “What have I stolen?” But he smiled a small, sad smile, slowly shaking his head. “Sleep a little. The water will stay warm. I’ll be back as soon as I’ve spoken to Ren.”

But humans still make promises to each other, even though they can be broken, don’t they? Because they trust the other to honor their word.”

“Be unrelenting and unmerciful in the face of the wicked dead,” Fisher said. Ren laid a steadying hand on my shoulder. “And if you should find soul sundered from flesh, order a drink for us at the first tavern you come across in the afterlife. We’ll settle the tab when we get there.”

“Don’t you dare die on my watch, Saeris Fane! Fisher will never forgive me if his sole reason for living is torn to pieces on her first fucking battlefield.”

“We don’t let things like this wait. We’re at war. There’s no guarantee any of us wake up tomorrow. We celebrate our wins as they come. And we damn well make sure our warriors know their worth.”

I’ve known for centuries that you were coming. That you were just going to show up one day and change everything. You’re the chink in my armor, Saeris. The soft spot where the knife slides in. You are the thing that Malcolm will hurt in order to hurt me, and I couldn’t… couldn’t fucking bear it!”

“All names hold power in this place. Every name means something. We have true names that we don’t share with anyone. Not our friends. Not our families.