Free Dark Waters by Liia Ann White Page B

enter the mind. And Princess Adora was strong.
    He closed his eyes and saw her mind. The barrier her magic
formed was thick and strong. Surging forward with his own power, he opened his
mind to hers, melding the two of them together. The moment he pushed through
the mental barrier, he felt a sharp pain in his stomach.
    Shit . He’d been stabbed.
    Hostility and triumph rang through to him from the princess’s
mind. Then it weakened before she completely blacked out.
     
    ****
     
    Adora awoke lying on a cold, hard,
stone floor. Her head ached and throbbed. What happened to her? She left the
feast, headed for her quarters and…nothing. Her mind was completely blank.
    So what was she doing on a floor? Sitting up, Adora rubbed her head and found she was shackled. Both her
wrists and ankles were bound in iron cuffs. The metal shimmered with green
energy. They’d been charmed, no doubt with a captivity spell.
    Good gods, what am I supposed
to do?
    It was no use trying to free herself .
Captivity spells were almost impossible to break without the proper words. Wait,
could she pull the chains out of the wall?
    Jumping to her feet, Adora stepped
back until the chains were tight. They were attached by one hook embedded into
the wall.
    This should be easy .
    Grasping the cold iron chains, she gave a mighty yank. The
instant she did, pain shot up her arms. Adora hunched
and winced as the cuffs around her wrists tightened, digging into her skin.
    “The more you struggle, the tighter they become.” A deep
male voice cut the silence around her.
    She spun to find a man she didn’t recognise standing at the
door of her small cell. He was tall and lean with muscle that she didn’t doubt
held immense strength. His sky blue eyes shone in contrast with his tanned skin
and brown hair. While this man was obviously Fae ,
there was something different about him. Something else emitted through his
aura.
    A smirk spread across his full lips as he took a step toward
her.
    Refusing to back away, she straightened and stood still. She
was Princess Adora , first in line for the throne the
Seelie Court
and fearless warrior in the Seelie army. People
feared her. She feared nothing.
    “So, Princess,” he spoke as he continued to slowly approach
her. “I’m supposed to deliver you to the Unseelie queen.”
    Adora’s breath caught in her throat.
The Unseelie queen had tried, many times, to invade
the kingdom. But her soldiers never made it past the gates.
    “But,” the stranger continued, “I think I’ll keep her
waiting. Just for a little while.”
    Adora cocked her head. What kind of
soldier disobeyed his queen? “Who are you?”
    “Forgive my rudeness.” He approached her and bowed his head.
“My name is Randor , The Assassin. Former
leader of the Unseelie army.”
    “Former?” To her recognition, soldiers weren’t granted leave
from the army. The only way out was death. It was the same with the Seelie army.
    “It’s a long story, Princess.”
    Frustration built in her chest. “Apparently I’ve got a lot
of time.” She gestured to her cuffs.
    His brows furrowed and Randor’s eyes showed a flicker of regret. “I apologise for the shackles. I didn’t want
you to wake and run.”
    With a wave of his hand, the chains detached from the cuffs
and the ankle manacles disappeared. Though the wrist cuffs loosened slightly,
they remained. She looked at him with a questioning glance.
    “I don’t trust anyone enough to leave them un-cuffed in my
residence. Even beautiful princesses.”
    Heat rose to Adora’s cheeks. He
thought she was beautiful. As ridiculous as it was, she couldn’t help but be
flattered by that remark. She was called beautiful on a daily basis, but Randor’s words held an intensity she hadn’t heard in…well,
ever.
    Randor closed the gap between them
and raised his hand to her cheek, brushing it gently with his knuckles. “If you
try to harm me or yourself, you’ll be struck down by a pain so strong you’ll
wish