Free Rise of the Darklings by Paul Crilley Page B

themselves.
    “Corrigan. What news?”
    Emily blinked and saw that Corrigan was down on his knees before the Queen. Emily hastily did the same, even though she hadn’t intended to. It seemed right, somehow.
    “Good news, Queen Kelindria.”
    There was a rustle of excitement among the courtiers. The Queen said nothing.
    “We infiltrated the Dagda’s island. It was difficult going, my Queen. It took us many nights. But we regained the parchment.”
    A murmur rippled through the room. The Queen smiled at Corrigan and held out her hand. Corrigan stood and quickly took the satchel from his back, removing the blank piece of parchment. The Queen took it with trembling fingers and held it up to the light, her eyes shining with excitement.
    “You have done well, Corrigan.” The Queen focused her attention away from the parchment. “Am I right in assuming that this girl helped you?”
    “She did, my Queen. But she also led the Invisible Order to Merrian’s shop. Ravenhill, of all people.”
    The courtiers muttered angrily, some of them glaring at Emily. What had Corrigan said that for? That hadn’t been her fault. Why was he trying to get her into trouble?
    “Is Merrian well?”
    “I do not know. He held off the Order while we escaped to bring you the parchment.”
    The Queen nodded, then turned to Emily. But before she could say anything, there was a commotion from somewhere behind her. Emily glanced over her shoulder to see what was going on.
    Most of the courtiers had gathered behind Emily as she stood before the Queen. Now they quickly fell back as
darkness
flowed through their midst. It was the only way Emily could describe it. A dark form moved forward. Tendrils of shadow branched off from the heart of the blackness,touching, feeling, probing anyone and anything that was unlucky enough to be close by. Emily stumbled aside, banging up against a pillar. She felt something against her leg and saw Corrigan standing behind her, watching the shadow with fearful eyes.
    He looked up at Emily. “The Dark Man,” he whispered.
    Emily’s eyes were drawn back to the shadowy mass as it stopped before the throne. The tendrils drew back toward the figure, receding to form a cloak and hood that totally enclosed his form, lending him human shape. At the Dark Man’s feet was a wretched-looking creature. He was about the size of a human male but looked vaguely elflike, with sharp features and pointed ears, and so skinny Emily thought he was in danger of snapping in two.
    “Well met, Lieutenant,” said the Queen. “I see you found our traitor. Where was he hiding?”
    The Dark Man spoke, but it seemed to Emily that his words entered her brain without going through her ears.
    He was sheltering amongst our brethren on the continent
.
    Queen Kelindria seemed surprised. “Really? I take it they did not know he had fallen from Our favor?”
    They did not. I questioned them most carefully
.
    The Queen’s mouth quirked in a smile. “I’m sure you did.” She waved a hand. “Take him away.”
    The Dark Man nodded. The shadows spread out fromhis body once again and enveloped both himself and his prisoner. When the elflike creature saw the tendrils creeping toward him, he cried out in fear. The shadows crawled across his face and over his mouth, muffling his scream.
    A second later, the space before the Queen was empty. Emily looked around and saw shadows pool beneath a pillar, then the shadow crawled across the wall and slipped through the doorway.
    The Queen turned her attention back to Emily. “Do not concern yourself with that. The elf was a traitor. He deserves everything he will get. But come. You will walk with me now, Emily Snow.”

    You will walk with me
didn’t mean, as Emily thought it did, that she and the Queen would go for a walk on their own. Rather, it meant that the Queen and Emily would walk, and the whole court would trail along behind them, a long line of fey jostling for a position close to the front. The fey