CHAPTER 6

"Get up."

Faye jerked awake, remembering where they were. Her hand rested on the pillow near her face, the soul shard crystal clear and lifeless. She hid her hand under the covers, sitting up as she tensed. She should have insisted Sparrow recharge the ring last night, but she hadn't expected the healer to barge into the room without warning.

A woman with an annoyed expression leaned in the doorway. Faye slowed her breathing, doing her best to act natural. She smiled at the woman, hoping they'd gotten lucky, and her empty soul shard went unnoticed. That the healer's expression was due to a long shift nearing its end.

The woman didn't return Faye's smile as she dried her hands on a towel. The swirling mist around her day-blood shard shimmered with her movements. "Get dressed and leave. We don't treat Anarians."

Faye's smile fell. She heard a variation of this statement countless times since her ritual failed. Time did nothing to dull the simmering rage that lived in her. She hated the social hierarchy that weighed a person's worth solely by the shard they carried. But this was the world they lived in, and Faye held no power.

Sparrow sprawled on the chair's seat cushion, still in cat form. She slowly blinked at the woman, regarding her upside down. Rolling to her feet, Sparrow stretched her back before leaping to the floor. A brilliant light consumed her form, reshaping as she rose as a woman.

Sparrow took a threatening step toward the healer, the dark mist surrounding her soul shard gleaming with her emotions. "Check her eyes."

Faye got to her feet, thumping Sparrow in the back. "It's okay." To the healer, Faye inclined her head. "Thank you for taking me in last night."

The healer nervously looked between the two of them. Her gaze stopped on Sparrow. "You parading your pet as a dark-blood will be reported."

Sparrow closed the distance between herself and the healer. "I'm about to parade my foot in your ass."

The healer stared at Sparrow, eyes wide. Flinching when Sparrow stomped her foot, leaning toward her sharply. "Say something day-blood."

"Sparrow! You're just as bad as she is." Faye grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the healer. Her sister typically ignored a person's shards, a trait Faye once considered normal, believing it extended to the rest of the dark-bloods. Sparrow only leaned into the caste separation when Faye was mistreated, too eager to return their energy, as she put it.

"I'll leave, thank you." She glanced at the healer, then at the door, silently begging the woman to go.

Sparrow opened her mouth wide, hissing at the woman. The healer ran, her footsteps echoing down the hall.

Faye shoved Sparrow away from her, slapping her on the shoulder. "You need to calm down. I shouldn't be here." She shook her head, taking off the fake soul shard ring and slipping it into her pocket.

"Sit down before I beat your ass. I need to check your eyes."

Faye gathered her boots, pulling them on as she hopped on one foot. "I feel fine. Let's just go."

The last thing she needed was the healer returning with a dark-blood guard. Sparrow was too mouthy for her own good. They would end up before the court that ruled this city. And while Sparrow was a strong dark-blood, she wasn't trained. Wouldn't stand a chance against so many of them.

Faye didn't understand the court's internal workings or what would happen if they were arrested and taken before the court to answer to the city's queen. But she had the feeling Sparrow claiming her as a pet would explain why the two were in Necromia. However, it wouldn't excuse them from threatening a healer and offering a fake court name for billing. Not to mention Faye's false soul shard.

Sparrow shoved her as she dragged on her other boot, knocking her off balance. Faye fell on the bed, glaring at her sister.

"We don't have time for this. We need to go before they come back and arrest us." Faye glanced over the room as she spoke, focusing on things at different distances. She felt hungover, but she could see. Her vision wasn't obstructed or damaged. Her gaze returned to Sparrow as she hissed, "And you're not a healer."

"No shit." Sparrow covered Faye's eyes with her palms, splaying her fingers over her scalp. "But I can tell if you have some weird internal bleeding or blockage."

Warmth spread over Faye's eyes, into her skull. The tinges of pain eased, and Sparrow let her go.

"I don't feel anything wrong. Are you sure you're seeing fine?" Sparrow leaned forward, peering into Faye's eyes.

Faye pulled her head back, pushing Sparrow's face away. "You need to brush your teeth."

Snorting in response, Sparrow made a rude gesture.

Pulling her winter jacket on, she grabbed Sparrow's coat with one hand and her sister's wrist with the other. Faye managed to slip from the clinic before the healer returned. People bustled in the streets, going about their morning business. They walked with the crowd, blending into it.

"Want to stop and get breakfast?" Sparrow lifted her chin at a bakery down the street.

Men glanced at Faye as they walked, their smiles fading when they found her index finger empty.

Faye tucked her hair behind her ear, ignoring the crowd. As much as she claimed to not care, their dismissal hurt. "I want to get out of here. We can get breakfast in Anaria."

They made their way to the coach with quiet conversation. Faye preferred to travel manually. She couldn't phase, and Sparrow refused to dedicate the time to learn the skill. Faye had trouble trusting a stranger not to phase her to his dark court, where he could keep her as a pet.

After Sparrow purchased their tickets, the two of them entered the carriages designated for dark-bloods, which would take them to the main station. From there, they would pass through Anaria.

She leaned back in the plush seats. An ornate lantern hung from the ceiling, illuminating the cabin's dark interior. Sparrow immediately sat next to the large shelf affixed between the windows. She selected a square of dried meat from a platter of fruits, cheese, and cuts of dried meat. Faye took the pitcher next to the platter, pouring them both glasses of water.

"Do you think day-bloods get this in their carriages?" Faye took a small cluster of grapes sitting back in her seat.

Sparrow shrugged, picking through the cuts of meat. "Never been."

Faye watched the landscape pass by her window, wondering what her life would look like if Sparrow had left her to join a court.

After they'd invoked their blood, numerous courts sent invitations, requesting Sparrow to join their ranks. Faye accompanied Sparrow to a few in the beginning. Sparrow hadn't taken it well when they welcomed her and ignored Faye.

A man at one of the courts had approached them and asked, "Is this your pet, love?" Brushing Faye's hair back over her shoulder.

Sparrow had knocked him across the room with a blast of power, yelling, "Call my sister a pet again."

The court's guard advanced on them, and the interaction went downhill from there.

Faye had insisted that Sparrow should join a court. Her sister refused, claiming she would only join a court if they also took Faye and recognized her as a member. No court was willing to take Anarian.

The sunlight beamed, warm on Faye's skin. She glanced at Sparrow, who kicked her feet, watching the scenery go by as she ate her fill.

A few years ago, after Sparrow stopped answering the court invitations, she thought it would be a brilliant idea to start their own court. Just the two of them.

Until she found out, starting a court needed a minimum of five members, and it needed to be authorized by a ruler of one of the five realms. She'd snorted, proclaiming they were an unofficial court.

Faye glanced out over the rolling hills, her thoughts falling to the night before. She'd been dreaming of the man she ran into before the bitch healer woke her up.

He'd been lying on his side when she woke in the dream. He looked the way he did at the Hunter's Moon ball. Crimson so dark it looked black covered his eyes. Veined misted shadows swayed beneath them. His eyes didn't unnerve her. They were expressive, held such yearning as he gazed at her.

Faye tapped Sparrow's boot with her own. "Do you think the guy I ran into was really the Shadow Prince?"

Sparrow tilted her head. "Probably, who else would masquerade as him at the Hunter's Moon ball?"

She was probably right. The attendants didn't glamorize fangs. They had them. She imagined the Pure Bloods frowned on normal vampires masquerading as them as much as the dark-bloods hated Anarians wearing dark-blooded rings.

"Why?" Sparrow widened her eyes, silently demanding more details.

Faye glanced out her window again. "I was dreaming about his bad eyeliner."

Sparrow's squeal pulled Faye's attention. "Wait, are you talking about the Shadow Prince or the guy at the Court of Silver Leaves? Because you have a shot with Silver Leaves. Did you like him?"

Faye was definitely not dreaming of Silver Leaves. He would forget she existed the instant he found out she didn't carry a soul shard. But the Shadow Prince was worse.

He embodied everything she hated about the social hierarchy. He belonged to the darkest court. He ruled Hell. The only redeeming quality he possessed was he lumped day-bloods and Anarians together, seeing them both as little more than animals.

Which wasn't right, but it amused Faye that the day-bloods received the same ill-treatment they passed on to Anarians.

"No. I just dreamt of eyes like that."

"Pure Blood eyes? Kinky."

She curled up to him during the dream. Faye imagined him leaning down, bringing his lips a moment from hers. Waiting for a touch that would serve as an invitation to her body.

And for the first time in her life, she was tempted to offer it.

Faye shook the feeling, refusing to allow anyone that close. All a dark-blood saw when they looked at her was a pleasant evening. She understood. A life with her would diminish their social standing. The family she once dreamed of could only happen if she found a man willing to weaken his line by tying it with hers. She'd taken that pain, soothed it the only way she knew how. By covering it with an anger that constantly burned in her.

She would offer herself to no man. Her body was the only thing they wanted, the only thing she had left to give after fate stripped her of everything else. She wouldn't offer it up like a doe-eyed fool and leave herself with nothing. She wielded their desire like a weapon, letting them choke on their want.

This was the only choice fate left to her, and she defended it viciously.

"So. What were you doing with Pure Blood eyes?" Sparrow grinned.

"Nothing," Faye answered too quickly.

"That's so boring. Were his eyes up here?" Sparrow held her hand near her face. "Down here." Sparrow lowered her hand to her breasts. "Was he down here?" Sparrow moved her hand lower, spreading her legs.

Faye shook her head, turning to look out the window.

"I've heard vampires purr. It's supposed to feel amazing. You need to ride that guy's face and report back." Sparrow crossed her arms, giving Faye a stern look.

"You can research that for yourself."

Sparrow brought her hand to her chest, gasping dramatically. "I'm with Vash, you harlot." Her expression returned to normal as she raised her eyebrows. "And I know how much you love blue balling every dark-blood that happens to stumble across you. Think of riding his face as taking it to the next level."

Faye laughed. "No." She couldn't imagine straddling a man's mouth, but the logistics of it needled her. "How does he breathe?"

Sparrow snorted. "Beauty of dating immortals, it doesn't matter. Just sit. If he dies, he dies. He'll wake up in a couple hours after he regenerates."

"You haven't done that to Vash, have you?" Faye managed between giggles.

Sparrow winked. "I try to kill him anytime he gives me the opportunity."

They both broke out in laughter. When they calmed, Faye glanced out her window once more.

"I'm sure Silver Leaf would love to dress up like the Shadow Prince for you."

Sparrow teased. "He'd probably be more than willing to go to his knees for you too."

Faye's smile faded. "He was only nice because he thought I was dark-blooded." Silver Leaf didn't see her.

She was a body to him. One he'd like to warm his bed with.

The coach came to a stop, and the door clicked. They exited, and Sparrow dropped her head back dramatically.

"Look at that line." She turned to Faye. "Carry me"