Bound to the Fae king - A Whispered Desires Book

I knew my kingdom had fallen before the Fae King entered my throne room.

For three years, the palace had been filled with the sounds of war—bells, messengers, soldiers, and distant siege weapons striking the city walls.

Now there was nothing.

Smoke drifted through the shattered windows. Blood streaked the marble floor, and one of my banners lay half-burned nearby.

Three years of war had been reduced to this.

The southern gate had fallen before sunrise. The western wall followed soon after, and by midday my generals had ordered the remaining soldiers to surrender.

By midday, fae banners were flying above my capital.

Behind me stood what remained of my court: councillors, nobles and commanders unfortunate enough to still be breathing after sending thousands of men to their deaths in a war they had repeatedly promised me we would win. For months, my generals had sworn victory was within reach while the council offered opinions on a war they had no idea how to win, each suggestion shaped less by strategy than by whatever best protected their own positions and heads.

Now they stood silent.

If the fae had not killed them, I very well might for this failure.

They watched me in silence, each of them careful to reveal nothing, though I could almost feel the calculations taking shape behind their eyes. If the Fae King killed me, more than one of them would be ready to step over my body and bargain for whatever power remained.

The great doors at the far end of the hall groaned, and one collapsed inward with enough force to send dust rolling across the marble.

Fae soldiers entered first.

They were taller than most human men, armoured in dark metal that caught the light strangely, their elegant blades stained with both red and silver blood. Pale strands of magic moved around several of them, winding around wrists and fingers before vanishing beneath armour.

Then Vael Aelor walked between them.

The Fae King.

He wore black armour marked by battle, and pale hair brushed the collar at his neck. His sword hung loosely from one hand, the blade streaked with the blood of my people.

I had heard the stories about him long before the war began. Some claimed he had ruled for centuries without ageing. Others said no human weapon could kill him, that he could tear thoughts from a man’s mind or stop a heart without ever laying a hand upon the victim.

I had dismissed most of it as superstition. Humans had always exaggerated the creatures they feared. But I did not fear the fae. I respected their power, understood what it could accomplish, and wanted it for myself.

Standing there while my city burned behind him, I no longer cared which stories were true.

What mattered was that he was still standing.

And I lost.

Aelor crossed the throne room without hurry, his gaze moving over the broken windows, the bodies and the blood as though none of it interested him enough to linger. When he finally looked at me, he stopped at the foot of the dais and said nothing.

I refused to speak first.

It was a small thing, perhaps a childish one, but almost everything else had been taken from me that morning and I would keep whatever dignity remained.

Aelor seemed perfectly content to wait.

Eventually he said, “Your generals surrendered.”

“I am aware.”

“Then this sorry excuse for a war is over.”

Something bitter rose in my throat. I have lost much in this war and he spoke as though I was nothing but an inconvenience.

“You’ve won.”

Saying those words were more painful than my balls being cut off.

Aelor inclined his head. “Yes.”

There was no satisfaction in his face, no arrogance, not even the smallest hint of triumph.

I hated him for that more than I would have hated laughter.

Heat moved through my chest, but I forced it down. I would have preferred to settle this with a sword, but the corpses scattered across my city were evidence enough of how successful that approach had been.

I descended one step from the dais.

“Your terms?”

A murmur moved through the court behind me.

“You keep your throne, your title and your laws. Your nobles retain their lands, your family remains unharmed, and once order has been restored my armies withdraw from your cities.”

I almost smiled.

There was always a price behind mercy.

“And in return?”

“You have made this easier for me. Saved me the inconvenience of conquering the human lands myself, since you have already done most of the work.”

His gaze settles on me.

“All I require is your submission. You will recognise me as Emperor and relinquish your authority over the other kingdoms. You may keep your crown, but your kingdom will answer to mine. Tribute will be paid each year. Your borders will remain open to fae passage, and when the imperial armies call, your forces will answer.”

“You want a lapdog.”

“No.” His gaze sharpened. “If I wanted a lapdog, human, you would not still be wearing a crown.”

He said human as if the word itself were filthy, as if I were nothing more than a roach beneath his boot.

“That crown belonged to my family long before you crawled out of whatever forest—”

I never finished the sentence.

One moment Aelor stood at the bottom of the dais; the next, cold steel rested against my throat.

I had not seen him move.

Men shouted behind me. Fae weapons were drawn in answer, and magic flared through the hall.

I stayed perfectly still.

Aelor looked into my eyes.

“Finish it.”

My heart was pounding harder than I would ever admit.

Slowly, I smiled.

“Sensitive.”

For the briefest moment, something like amusement touched his expression. Then the sword disappeared from my throat and he stepped away.

I straightened my coat as though nothing had happened.

“An Emperor, tribute, military service and open borders,” I said. “And if I refuse?”

He tilts his head and smirks, the look on his face making it clear I do not want to know the answer.

The room went quiet again.

I looked past him toward the ruined doors. Smoke climbed over the city, and somewhere far beyond the palace I could hear soldiers calling orders. His soldiers. They were already taking control.

If I refused, he would kill me and anyone with a drop of my blood.

I was about to speak when small fingers curled around mine.

I looked down and found Elara standing beside me.

For a moment, irritation flashed through me.

She was supposed to be with her mother in the eastern wing, well away from the fighting, yet somehow the servants had failed at even that.

She was five, still wearing the pale blue dress she had been dressed in that morning, although soot darkened its hem and one ribbon had fallen from her hair.

“Elara.”

She looked up. “I couldn’t find Mama.”

A nursemaid hovered near one of the side doors, pale with fear.

Useless.

I looked back at my daughter.

“Go with Nessa.”

She tightened her grip around my hand. “I want to stay with you.”

“Elara.”

Her attention shifted past me.

Toward Aelor.

I followed her gaze and discovered that the Fae King was looking at her.

Not warmly.

Not with desire.

There was nothing personal in his expression at all.

He was assessing her in much the same way he had assessed the room, the throne and the terms of my surrender.

That interested me.

I moved slightly in front of her, enough to appear protective without completely hiding her.

Aelor noticed.

“Your daughter?”

“Yes.”

“How old?”

“Five.”

He looked at her for another moment before returning his attention to me.

“I’ve changed my terms.”

My stomach tightened.

“What?”

“Your military obligations and your recognition of my authority remain but no tribute is required. However, when your daughter reaches eighteen, she will be sent to my kingdom.”

I stared at him.

“She will marry me.”

For a heartbeat, I said nothing.

Not because I was horrified.

Because I was overjoyed.

Of all the things he could have demanded—more land, more gold, one of my sons as a hostage, direct control over my court—he had chosen Elara.

A useless girl who would have been married off eventually for the sake of some political alliance. But to the Fae King? There could be no greater match than that.

I could not allow him to see my joy in this and so I stated, “No.”

I let the word crack through the throne room.

His soldiers moved immediately, weapons lifting while pale light curled over gloved fingers.

I ignored them and drew Elara behind me.

“Papa?”

I tightened my grip on her hand, silently warning her not to speak but to others I would be seen as A frightened father would cling to his child.

“She is five years old.”

“Yes.”

“You are demanding my daughter.”

“When she reaches eighteen.”

“You expect that distinction to comfort me?”

“No.”

Good.

He was making this easy.

I let my breathing grow uneven, then looked down at Elara as though I could scarcely bear the thought of losing her.

“You said my family would remain untouched.”

“And it will.”

“You call taking my daughter untouched?”

“She remains with you for thirteen years.”

I drew her against my side.

Every person in the room was watching.

More importantly, Aelor was.

“I won’t agree to it.”

His eyes narrowed.

There.

For the first time since entering my throne room, he looked as though he believed he had found something I truly valued.

Something capable of hurting me.

Excellent.

Let him think Elara was precious.

Let him believe she was the one thing in this room I would have surrendered anything to protect.

Men handled an enemy’s treasure carefully. They preserved it because they believed its value could one day be used against him.

If Elara became valuable to Aelor, then perhaps she could become useful to me as well.

My daughter would sit beside the most powerful fae ruler alive.

She would have access to his court, his generals, his chambers and whatever weaknesses he kept hidden from the rest of the world.

Aelor believed he was placing a fae chain around the human crown.

He might instead be inviting a human blade into his own palace.

I crouched in front of Elara.

She looked at me with complete trust.

“Papa?”

I softened my expression and brushed a curl away from her cheek.

“My little girl.”

I masked the surge of satisfaction spreading through me. This was an opportunity I could never have planned for: a chance to place a spy at the very heart of my enemy’s court, and not just anywhere, but beside the Fae King himself.

He would become Emperor, and she his Empress.

With that title would come influence. Access. Power.

And whatever power she gained, I could use.

Why settle for ruling the human continent when, through her, I could reach the fae as well? Their magic. Their knowledge. Their technology.

One day, it could all be mine.

Without looking at the Fae King, I nod my agreement.

And just like that, my daughter’s life is signed away to the fae.

But so too is my path to something greater.

Not merely to rule the human lands, but one day, the fae as well.

I could hardly wait.