Free Rise of the Seven by Melissa Wright

trust Junnie. I wanted to take
her endearment and hold it in my heart, keep the last of my family,
but I couldn’t stop myself from questioning her words, couldn’t
keep from wondering who had told her of the guard, what she’d meant
by imposing presence.
    A silence hung in the air and then Anvil
stepped forward, bowing slightly in greeting. “Juniper.”
    “ Ah, Reed. Forgive me, it is
simply such a shock to see Freya restored.” She tilted her head to
return his salutation and then smiled. “Alone for mere weeks and
I’ve lost all trace of civilization.” But she still didn’t invite
us in.
    “ Though I am certain Frey
has been eager to see you,” Anvil said, clearly struggling with the
dictates of etiquette himself, “that is not the reason we have
come.”
    Junnie straightened.
    “ She has been
attacked.”
    Junnie’s eyes flicked to mine, and I could
tell she was concerned, but that ugly voice in the back of my mind
wondered if she was worried for me or herself. I took a deep breath
against the tight lacings of my vest and moved closer. “Twice
actually.”
    She stared at me, waiting for more
information. Or maybe an accusation.
    “ A boy entered the castle
through the kitchens. Pulled silver from the air and formed a
blade.” I purposefully left off the fact that he’d managed to slice
my arm and the details of his coloring. “And then a second, outside
the castle. It in the form of an ice shard.”
    “ Fey?” she asked,
incredulous.
    Ruby spoke up then. “There was a toxin within
the crystal. I have been unable to identify its makeup, but it
doesn’t appear to be plant-based.”
    I started to turn back to
Junnie, but Steed caught my eye. With the smallest glance, he
conveyed his suspicion. By the time my eyes fell again on Junnie, I
was just as wary. She was troubled, there was no doubt about that.
But that wasn’t what was bothering me. Why
hasn’t she invited us in? As they continued
to discuss the attempts, I let my mind wander, trying to figure out
what she could possibly be hiding. She should have wanted this
meeting under cover.
    And that was when I felt it. A human.

     
     

Chapter Ten
    Betrayal
     
    Before I could stop myself, I was past
Junnie, pushing through the door. I could hear them all on my
heels, but I didn’t look back. I followed that strange feeling,
that connection, through her house. Just before I threw open the
last door, Junnie spoke my name. It was a cross between a plea and
a command, and I ignored it.
    On the back wall of a small, clean room was a
crib.
    I did look at her then. Her face held a hint
of an apology, but not regret.
    I opened my mouth, a thousand thoughts
fighting for issue, but all that came out was, “Why?”
    Junnie shook her head, what might have been
sadness playing in her eyes. “I could do nothing else.”
    “ You could do nothing else?”
Anger and incredulity warred for my tone.
    She sighed. “He chose this one above all
others.”
    I stared at her silently for a long moment,
her words repeating in my head. And then understanding came. A
burst of power escaped in my fury as I turned back for the
child.
    “ Hold!”
    The words brought me up short, Rhys had never
spoke anything but gently to me. This had been nothing short of an
order. He stepped forward and tilted his staff past me. Where the
grip touched, mere inches from us, the air rippled. There was a
ward protecting the crib.
    My teeth gritted as I glared at Junnie.
    She was unrepentant. “I did not create this
child, Freya. But she will not be destroyed.”
    My hand came forward, but Junnie was too
fast. She stepped through the ward, cradled the babe against her
chest, and burst through the back wall of the lodge.
    Rage tore through me and the other walls
surrounding us exploded into bits of kindling. My guard flinched,
though most of the shards had flown outward. I took a breath. We
could go after her, but we’d have to kill her to stop her.
    I glanced at the others, and saw