Chapter 400

Elain held her breath, feeling the point of the blade at her throat. She looked down at Lucien who stood as if frozen, his own eyes on her throat, and she could feel his panic. His eyes, both russet and gold, were wide, and she could see how quickly he was breathing. He didn't know what to do, or he had not yet decided. That golden eye clicked and whirred as he quickly looked around and Elain knew that he was taking in every detail of what was going on around them. He would think of something, she knew. He would get her out of this. The comforting beat of Lucien's heart told her that. He was here, he was with her. That had been the promise of that sound since she had come out of the Cauldron and heard it for the first time. They were together now, and it was going to be okay.

"What is it that you want me to do?" Lucien asked, his eyes on Rian now. "For you to let Elain go?"

Elain tried to shake her head, but Rian pushed the point of the blade into her just a little. It was enough to get the message. Keep still.

"Hmm…?" Rian mused, making a show out of his thought. "Well…"

"Just tell me." Lucien growled.

Elain did not want him making any deals with Rian. The dark-haired male was unlikely to even honour any agreement he had made, and she did not want Lucien to end up paying for it. She doubted her mate would even trust him, though. Still, Elain tried to catch Lucien's eyes, wanting to warn him not to trust anything Rian said or did.

"Isn't it obvious?" Colm put in, and Elain shuddered at the apparent excitement in the older faerie's voice, "Renounce your claim on the Throne."

Elain's eyes were trained on Lucien's face then, wanting to see his reactions, and wondering how he would take that. As she had expected she felt the blow the words dealt him. He had renounced his claim to the Autumn Court twice now, but he felt this. She understood that. This was going to be his home. This was where he had found his father, and he had seen the possibilities here. He had grown to accept the idea of belonging here, of being needed and appreciated. He had wanted the family they could have here, and these faeries wanted him to renounce his claim to all of that. Lucien paled, and Elain felt herself growing angry.

"He's not going to do that." She announced, wincing a little when Rian's hand tightened in her hair and he yanked her head back, sticking the tip of his blade into her skin enough to hurt.

"Shut up." He warned her, and Elain felt a trickle of blood slide from her throat down her chest and into her dress. Her breath hitched in fear, but she was not going to stand there while these two forced her mate to renounce his claim to their future.

"No." she replied. "If you kill me, he will not do what you want…"

"Then we will kill him too." Rian growled in her ear, "That works just as well."

"Helion should have never named you Heir." Colm said, and Elain felt the anger from Lucien in response to those words.

Around the Throne Room, the fighting seemed to be coming to a close. Most of Colm's soldiers appeared to have been defeated or killed, and Helion's guards were moving all over the place, checking on this or that. There was only a small group still battling, and Elain could clearly see Helion at the centre of it, resplendent and golden.

"Do it now." Rian said to Colm, evidently having taken in the room as well. "Make him say the words."

Something had changed in Lucien; Elain could feel it. His eyes looked a little unfocused and his head was tilted as he watched them all up on the dais. Reaching for the bond, Elain shivered a little at the coldness she felt there. There was something almost predatory in the way Lucien's eyes followed Rian's hands, and she understood then what was about to happen.

Elain went still for a moment, straightening herself and making sure that Rian was not prepared for what happened next, and then she exploded in a burst of fingernails and violence, turning on him and scratching every part of the male she could reach. She yanked his hand from her hair as he took a startled step away from her, but Elain followed him, nails still aiming for flesh. If this horrible male thought that he was going to force her mate to give up everything he had always wanted, then he had another thing coming.

She was kind of impressed with herself. Elain and only a moment or two in which to consider her surprise at actually being able to catch Rian off guard, to marvel at the fact that she was no longer being held at knife point, and that she had actually gotten herself free, when his surprise wore off. Rian moved quickly and, before Elain could even try to defend herself, he had grabbed her and punched her twice in the face. She was aware of a crack, and she knew that her nose was broken when blood flooded her mouth. Gagging, she tried to stagger away before he could hit her again, but his hands tightened on her arms and he was pulling her along. Elain's feet slid along the floor, and she tried to blink rapidly to see through the tears of pain which were blurring her vision.

Rian had dragged her to the top of the stairs. Elain could barely make out the flame coloured blur she knew to be Lucien, when Rian pulled her up straight. "I guess death it is, then." He said, before pushing Elain forward. With no balance, no clear vison, throbbing pain in her face, and a mouthful of blood, Elain didn't know which way was up. She panicked at the sudden sensation of falling, and then she tumbled gracelessly down the stairs to land in a shuddering heap at the bottom.