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“But. . . ?” Kenzie prodded.
“But look at the ground beneath them. The branches. Do you see anything else eating them? Birds, deer, even insects?”
“No,” I muttered, casting another glance toward the lines of fruit trees. He was right; the apples hung full and untouched on the branches or rotting on the ground. The orchard was still, with no birds pecking at the fruit, no signs of deer, raccoons, rodents or anything. Except for the bees hovering around the flowers, nothing moved out here except us.
“The trees are guarded,” Keirran said, confirming my suspicions. “Nothing is allowed to eat the fruit here. The owners chase off anything that comes through the orchard. If they catch someone poaching their apples, they grind their bones—”
“To make their bread?” Kenzie joked. I snorted a laugh despite myself. Keirran rolled his eyes.
“To fertilize the trees,” he finished. “The point is, we don’t want to let them catch us trespassing, and we really don’t want to steal their fruit. They’re quite protective of it. Puck and I found that out the hard way. ”
“Humans. ” Grimalkin’s furry head poked out of the grass, tail twitching in annoyance. “Are you coming? Or are you going to stand there and talk until the guardians return and crush your bones to powder? And at the expense of repeating myself—do not touch any of the apples as we are making our way through the orchard. Do not even look at them. Please attempt to have some semblance of self-control, as small as it might be. ”
Razor made a disgusted noise on Keirran’s shoulder as we followed after the cat. “Yuck,” he stated, curling his lip. “Nasty apples. Bleh!”
Well, at least we didn’t have to worry about the gremlin.
* * *
The rows of trees seemed to stretch on forever, marching up and down the lazy hills like soldiers in a line. They were all massive, ancient things, with thick trunks and gnarled branches overly full of bright red fruit. Plump apples dangled enticingly from the limbs or were scattered everywhere in the grass, not even a nibble taken from the skin. The scent was intoxicating, and I breathed as shallowly as I could to avoid being tempted by the sight and smells of the orchard.
“These guardians seem awfully greedy,” Kenzie remarked when we were deep between rows of trees. “I mean, they obviously have far too many to eat. What’s a few apples to them?”
“It’s the nature of the fey, sadly,” Keirran said. “We’re not really known for sharing. ” On his shoulder, Razor had buried his face in his shirt and hadn’t come up since we’d entered the orchard. Kenzie gave the prince a puzzled look.
“You say ‘we,’” she observed, “but you don’t think of yourself as fey, do you?”
Keirran paused. “It’s hard to explain,” he said at last. “Would it be confusing if I told you I’ve been raised to be both? Human and faery, I mean. Dad taught me everything I know about fighting and magic and the Nevernever, and how to work the politics of the courts. But Mom. . . the queen. . . she made certain I understood that I was human, too. That I didn’t get so caught up in magic and glamour and faery politics that I forgot I wasn’t one of them. ”
“Was it hard?” Kenzie asked, looking sympathetic. “Growing up human, being the only non-faery in the Nevernever besides your parents?”
“Not as bad as you might think. ” Keirran smiled. “My parents were always there for me, no matter what happened, so I can’t complain about that. And growing up with gremlins and hacker elves and gliders, well, let’s just say I drove Glitch and the guard pretty crazy. But yes. . . ” His smile faded, and he looked away, over the hills. “Sometimes, it did get. . . kind of lonely. ”
As they talked, I continued to scan the orchard, trying to keep an eye out for these mysterious guardians and not to stare at the apples at the same time. From what Keirran had said, I guessed they were giants of some sort, but unless they were hiding behind a tree, I couldn’t see them.
A raven cawed somewhere overhead.
Normally, this wouldn’t have caught my attention. Except that the orchard was so very quiet that the sound of a bird’s call in the absolute stillness made me jerk my head up, searching the branches.
A dark shadow swooped overhead and alighted on a branch, making my stomach jump. Bright green eyes peered down from the raven’s dark, intelligent face as it ruffled its feathers and gave a chiding caw.
“Oh, great,” Keirran said as the raven shook itself once more. . . and exploded in a cloud of black feathers and dust. I blinked, taking my eyes off the bird for a split second, watching the feathers spiral to the ground. When I looked back, a figure stood on the branch with his arms crossed, smirking down at us. The sunlight streaming through the leaves caught in his red hair, making it glow like an ember.
“Hey, kiddies,” Robin Goodfellow greeted with his usual nonchalant flair. “We meet yet again. What are the odds?”
What the hell. First Grimalkin, now Puck? Did everyone know we’d entered the Nevernever? I wondered if Meghan realized we were here and had sent Puck after us. I wondered how long it would be before Ash showed up. That wasn’t a pleasant thought.
As if reading my mind, Puck grinned at me. “Don’t worry, kid. Your sister didn’t send me to drag you home by the ear. I was just in the area and heard the rumors drifting through Arcadia. Can’t keep dryads from gossiping, I’m afraid. ” His gaze slid to Keirran, and he shook his head. “Princeling, you are in soooooo much trouble,” he announced. “Your dad has been looking everywhere for you. ”
Keirran’s gaze narrowed, and Razor flattened his ears at Puck and hissed. “You’re not going to tell him, are you?”
“Well, that depends. ” The Summer jester leaned back against the trunk, regarding us with a smirk. “What are you three planning now? I seem to remember the last time we met, you told me you wouldn’t get into trouble. And then you did. So, you tell me. ” He shrugged, though his gaze never left me and Keirran. “I could go find ice-boy and point him in your direction, and trust me when I say he is not happy at the moment, or you can tell me what you’re doing right now. But hey, it’s your call. ”
“We’re going to see Titania,” Keirran answered. “We came to Arcadia to seek an audience with the Summer Queen, to request a favor. I would use the regular channels, but Oberon isn’t at court right now and. . . ”
“And our lovely Summer monarch might deny you entrance to the court,” Puck finished, nodding thoughtfully. “So, you’re planning to sneak in, I take it. That’s why Furball is here. ”
Grimalkin looked up from washing his paws on a nearby rock, where nothing had been a moment before. “Please. As if they could have found a way in themselves. ”
Puck rolled his eyes, then turned a serious gaze on Keirran. “Why do you want to see Titania?” he asked, his tone suspicious beneath the cheerful demeanor. “No offense, princeling, but the only other person she dislikes more than you is. . . well, me. And maybe Mab. If you’re going to be requesting any kind of favor, it’s not going to go well for you. ”
“I know,” Keirran replied.
“And you’d be putting the queen’s brother in danger,” Puck went on relentlessly. “Meghan’s not going to be happy if Scowly over there gets turned into a gerbil. ”
“I’m right here,” I announced, tired of being ignored, “listening to everything you say. You can talk to me like I’m a real person, you know. ”
Puck’s amused gaze flicked to me, though I still saw the shadow of concern in his eyes. “Why are you here, Ethan Chase?” he asked, his emerald stare suddenly piercing. “You should go home—there’s no need for you to be tromping all over the Nevernever with the princeling. I can take him to Arcadia from here. ”
My skin prickled. That secret again. The one about me and Keirran. The reason Meghan had disappeared, cut herself off from our family and never told us she had a son. The vision of me dead on the ground, a horrified Keirran standing over my b
ody, came back in a rush, and I shivered. Everyone in Faery had known, it seemed. Everyone. . . except Keirran and me.
Kenzie spoke up before I could answer, putting her hands on her hips and frowning up at the Summer prankster. “Why are you so eager to ship us home?” she demanded, and Puck’s eyebrows rose. “We’re fine. We’re here to help Keirran and we’re not going back until it’s finished. So everyone can stop telling us to stay out of it. ”
Puck grinned at her. “Wow, don’t you remind me of someone I know,” he exclaimed, and Kenzie blinked. “Okay, fine. You’re not going back to the safe, boring mortal world where you belong. Point taken. That doesn’t really answer my question, princeling. ” He eyed Keirran again. “Why are you trying to get an audience with the Harpy Queen? You might as well tear out your heart and offer it to her on a silver platter. With sprinkles. ”
“It’s for Annwyl,” Keirran said firmly. “She’s Fading, and the only way to stop it is if she returns to the Summer Court. I want to ask Titania to raise her exile. It wasn’t fair, how she was banished. I just want to be able to send her home. ”
“Ah. ” Puck sighed, shaking his head. “I was afraid it was something like that. Well, then. ” He straightened on the branch, briskly rubbing his hands together. “I guess I’ll just have to come with you. ”
Startled, I gave him a wary look. “What? You’re not going to tell Ash or Meghan where we are?”
“What can I say?” Puck shrugged and walked along the branch, balanced perfectly on the slender limb. “I’m a sucker for forbidden love. Besides, you’ll need someone watching your back when you’re talking with our lovely Summer Queen. Spread the loathing around a little bit. . . Whoa. ”
At that moment, the ground vibrated, making the limbs of the trees rustle and shake. Puck jerked, catching himself on the branch as a single apple fell from a cluster above him, bounced off his head and dropped with a thump to the grass.