Ambrosia (Frost and Nectar Book 2)

A chill rippled through me. She was trying to get under my skin, but I wasn’t going to give her a single detail about him. “Don’t really know him.”

“And who, exactly, are you?” she murmured.

There was that question again. “Ava Jones.”

“A human name.”

I shrugged. “I was raised among them.”

“Why? How did you end up leaving this kingdom?”

I shrugged again. “I have no idea. Someone brought me to the human realm and left me there. I thought you knew who I was.”

She stared into my eyes, and I felt as if she was examining my soul. Reading me. “I see the humans taught you to be weak and lazy, as they are, that they raised you to bury your own great Unseelie power, so you don’t even know it exists.” She turned her head back to Morgant. “You can relax. She’s hardly a threat. This wretch has been thoroughly defanged. I’m surprised you couldn’t see that right away. Maybe that’s what happens when an Unseelie can’t even speak her own language.”

Curiosity sparked. What was this Unseelie power I allegedly possessed?

My mind whirled, and I rubbed my wrists where I’d been bound with rope. The skin was chafed and raw.

She gestured to the table. “Join me for dinner. We do not get many foreign guests here.”

Weird. Maybe people didn’t like being beaten in a dungeon or something.

Morgant pulled out her chair at the head of the table, and she gestured for me to sit next to her.

I took a seat. My stomach rumbled, and hunger ripped through me. The pheasant had been delicious, but I’d hardly eaten a thing today.

She raised one of her hands. “Morgant, have the servants bring us food and ambrosia.” She turned back to me and rested her elbows on the table, her chin propped in her hands.

It seemed a very casual posture for a brutal queen.

I licked my lips. I had no idea what ambrosia was, but my mouth was already watering. The only thing ruining the moment was the knot of guilt in my chest. Wherever Torin was now, I doubted he was about to eat.

The queen narrowed her eyes at me. “I imagine King Torin is still upset that I killed his parents. It was a slow and nasty curse.” She smiled at me and fluttered her eyelashes. “And perhaps he’s angry about his curse. Did he tell you how it works?”

I swallowed hard. I didn’t want to answer a single question about him. My strategy right now was simple: say as little as possible.

Mab lifted her eyes to the moon, and they darkened to a deep forest green. “It was fated, though. All of this is written in the stars. For a while, I had lost faith in my destiny. Now, I can see it written once more.” The corners of her lips curled, and she dragged her gaze back to me. “And when I am through with the Seelie king, I will have what I want. My heirs will sit on the throne of Faerie for the rest of time, turning it into the realm of the Unseelie once more. It was our land from the start, you know. At least we shared it.”

A shudder rippled up my spine. Gods, Torin needed to get out of here fast, and I could only hope he’d already learned the key to our escape. There was something particularly fanatical about the way her eyes shone as she spoke of destiny.

The door creaked open, and female servants in black gowns began bringing out a feast fit for a queen: steaming earthenware bowls filled with broad beans, carrots, peas, and sauces that smelled of spices. A woman with black braids carried out a wooden tray with tiny roasted skewers of cheese and tomatoes and a large bowl of rice. A third woman brought a fresh salad garnished with flower petals and a loaf of flat, buttery bread.

“I hope you like the food. Unlike in Faerie, we do not eat corpses in my kingdom.”

It took me a moment to realize she was referring to animal meat. I would not mention the pheasant I’d eaten last night, then.

I had a vague sense that you were supposed to wait for a queen to eat, but it really was her fault I was ravenous, so I started with the bread. When you are truly starving, nothing seems better than bread and butter. As I ate, someone filled our glasses with a pale blue liquid that shimmered under the moonlight—the ambrosia, I assumed.

I scooped the sauces and beans onto the bread, shoveling it into my mouth. Every moment here felt like it could be my last, so why not fill my stomach? The spicy food left a delicious burn on my tongue, and I washed it down with ambrosia.

Gods, what I would do to kill this queen and replace her with Torin instead. He deserved to be here with us, eating the roasted cheese. Oh, gods. The flavor of the cheese was extraordinary, rubbed with ginger and coconut and something delicious that made my tongue burn. I don’t know if it was ghost chilies or a spice unique to the Unseelie realm, but the burning grew increasingly intense.

I sipped the ambrosia again. It was cold and fresh and flavored like berries. Immediately, the burning sensation in my mouth faded. Except the queen wasn’t drinking the ambrosia, which made me wonder if I was about to get hammered.

I licked my lips. “Might I request some water instead of this ambrosia?”

She pinned me with her gaze. “It’s only concentrated black orchid nectar.”

“And what does that do to someone who’s not used to it?” I speared a lettuce leaf because that wasn’t spicy at all.

“Maybe it will loosen your tongue. What does the Seelie king have planned for us? An invasion? Is that what this spy mission is about?”

“My companion and I only want to go home, and if you could help us with that, you will never need to speak to us again.” The ambrosia had gone to my head. My body felt warm and tingly, and my cheeks had gone hot.

She drummed her fingers on the aged wood of the table. “Your companion is in chains right now.” She sipped her drink, eying me over the rim of her cup. “And if you are wondering if I am lying, I would like to remind you that we don’t lie.” She raised her hand again. “Morgant! Bring out the shattered king.”

My stomach dropped, and my breath went shallow.

I turned to the door, and the air left my lungs as Morgant and an Unseelie with fiery hair dragged out Torin. Blood poured down his chest, and he struggled to keep his head raised.

Darkness flickered inside me, and for a moment, I wondered what would happen if I ripped off the queen’s wings and threw her over the side of the tower.

She was testing us, and the best thing I could do now was to keep my mouth shut, my expression blank. She was showing him to me for a reason, trying to see how I’d react.

Torin lifted his head. “Ah. Queen Mab. How lovely to see you again.” His tone sounded surprisingly bland. Almost bored. “The last time I saw you, I suppose you were cursing my entire family.”

I swallowed hard. Seems we were done pretending he was a common fae named Alan.

“Is that why you came here with this Unseelie? Revenge?” Her gaze flicked between Torin and me, her amber eyes narrowing. “One of you will die first. I haven’t yet decided who it will be. Morgant, do you think either of them can fly?”

Morgant, clearly intuiting it was a rhetorical question, merely raised an eyebrow.

With a sharp movement, Torin managed to rip his arms free. “Are you really this desperate for company, Mab? You don’t have any friends, do you?” His gaze flicked up to the skies, and I knew he’d seen the archers.

Moonlight shone from her skin. She inhaled deeply. “I suppose I do need to be entertained. If I were a purely practical person, you’d be dead by now. But I have dreams and visions I’d like to indulge.”

Mab was like a cat toying with her prey.

“Listen, Your Highness.” My jaw was clenched tight, but I tried to keep my tone friendly. “Why don’t you let the Seelie go, and I’ll stay here. I’m one of you, but clearly, he doesn’t belong here. I’ll stay, and everything will be in its right place. Otherwise, I’m afraid you might have the entire Seelie army descending on you to burn everything to the ground.”

She let out a hiss, the sound like water dousing a fire. “But there’s no queen on the throne of Faerie, is there? It must be in quite a state now. Freezing over. Dragons circling like vultures, waiting to feast on the icy dead. Did you know that they collect corpses?” Her expression changed as she seemed to warm to this idea, and she beamed at me with a radiant smile. “I think we will keep you both for fun. Won’t that be nice, Morgant?”

My fingers tightened into fists. “Let him go.”

“Ava,” Torin said quietly, like he was trying to calm a wild beast.

A thorny silence spread between us until Queen Mab lifted a finger to her lips. “I think she really cares for him.” Her voice was an icy gale that sent a shiver up my spine. “A truly lost Unseelie, so sweet and sad at the same time.” Her gaze slid down Torin’s body. “I can see why she likes him. I may be twice your age, but I’m not blind.”

Torin stepped closer to her, and despite his brutalized state, his movements were fluid and graceful. “My dear queen. You really are lonely.”

Was he flirting with her?

Despite the blood running down his chest, he was still so beautiful that it made my heart stop. Maybe he could charm his way out of this?

She put a finger to her lips. “It is lonely at the top, as they say. Are you offering yourself up to me? I’ve never been with Seelie, nor have I been with a male as beautiful as you are.”

Oh, gods. The food in my stomach was starting to curdle.

“Your Highness,” Morgant started. “There are security—”

Mab lifted her hand. “When I want to hear from you, I will ask. But I could use your strength, Morgant.” She turned to me. “I am still thinking of throwing this wretch off the tower to see if she can fly. Do we think she can?”

“I’d advise you not to do that.” Torin’s deep, smooth voice cut through the night air, a sharp blade of warning in his tone.

“And once she is out of the way, Torin, what would happen if I took you to my bedroom to see if you could prove yourself to a queen?”

Torin’s jaw tightened. “If you go anywhere near Ava,” he said smoothly, his tone laced with violence, “I will rip out your spine, Your Highness.”

My gaze flicked back to the archers circling overhead, their white wings pounding the air. One more arrow in the right place, and he’d be dead.

The queen’s eyes widened. “So you do care for her after all. How interesting. A Seelie king cares for his little Unseelie friend.” She folded her arms. “Well, if you’re going to make threats, you won’t be able to stay in my bedroom unchained. Don’t you think it would be better if your hands were free?”

What the fuck was she playing at? I bit my lip. She seemed to phrase a lot of things as questions, which had me wondering if she really couldn’t lie, and the questions were some sort of workaround.

She sashayed closer to him and traced a finger over his collarbone. “Torin, darling. When you first arrived, I thought I knew how I wanted to kill you.” Her finger brushed down his chest. “I thought I’d beat you unconscious and seal you up inside a tree so that when you woke, you’d find yourself entombed in oak, and you’d slowly starve to death over a few weeks, feasted on by bugs. Here, we give back to the forest.”

Bony fingers of dread wrapped around my heart.

“What is wrong with you?” I whispered to myself, no longer able to restrain myself.

“Oh, don’t worry.” Her finger was moving down over his abs. “That was before.” She whirled to look at me. “But you know what? I have never wanted to be with a weak man. Don’t you think a corpse-eater should prove his worth? Should we see his skill on the battlefield?” Her cheeks glowed with a radiant silver light. “Here is my magnanimous offer. I will let one of you leave the kingdom.” She fluttered her long, black eyelashes. “But only after a duel between the two of you. Torin, darling.” She slipped behind him, stroking a hand down his muscular shoulders. “Tomorrow, your job is to fight this Lost One before a crowd of my subjects and run your sword through her. If you prove yourself to me in the way that I require, I will let you return to your sad, withering kingdom.”

My chest tightened. “You need him to kill me?”

“Don’t worry, my little wretch,’” she said soothingly. “If you should stab him, I will allow you to leave. If you want. And I don’t even need any extra favors from you. Really, you are a lucky girl.” Her amber gaze slid between Torin and me. “Do you know what? My subjects have been bored lately, and I’d love to entertain them. They will be thrilled. They don’t have all the frost and starvation to contend with that you do in Faerie, and their lives are so comfortable, it gets tedious.” She smiled. “They need bloodshed. So, tomorrow, you will both fight. And one of you must skewer the other for it to end.”

She bit her lip coquettishly and fluttered her eyelashes at Torin. “But I have never liked to share. When I see something I want, I don’t like anyone else to have it. Torin, darling, if I catch you going anywhere near the Lost Unseelie, there will be consequences. Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be castrated? To be ripped apart by horses pulling your limbs in every direction? Would you like to find out?”

Torin wasn’t responding anymore. He just stared at her, his eyes darkening to a midnight blue.

The queen gingerly stepped away from him and drummed her fingertips together. She turned to Morgant. “Before you bring them to their quarters, heal the Seelie king. I want him to be healthy before they fight. And since someone will be impaled tomorrow, let them stay in a tower room this evening. Separately, of course.” She cut Torin a sharp look. “I have made myself very clear on that point, haven’t I? I am commanding you not to go anywhere near each other.”

I felt dizzy, short of breath. “And if we refuse to kill each other tomorrow?”

“Lost One.” She cocked her head, and her expression was almost maternal. “I plan to throw you off the tower. I think it’s merciful, really. You are a traitor, but you are Unseelie. But Torin? As an enemy of our kingdom invading our lands, I believe most of my subjects would say he deserves a very slow, humiliating, and excruciating death. And Lost One, wouldn’t it hurt you to watch it before you plunged from the tower walls? Love can hurt more than the worst tortures we can devise.”

Her softly spoken words hung in the air like a death knell.