The royal gardens blur; my gaze darts, swifter than a hawk diving for prey.
There, the markets. Distance hums of songs and cheer stretch across the grounds to reach my ears. Stalls overflow with goods now that the borders have been reopened. Even the lower markets, too far to be seen from my vantage point, share in the festivities.
That is why my husband doesn’t want me to leave the inner walls. The hatred between vampires and fae still lingers.
Sex with a vampire can only cure contempt for so long. Galen and I are not enemies-to-lovers; we are enemies-and-lovers. The ‘and’ is like a valley that keeps two mountains separated. It will never be filled. Mountains don’t cross paths overnight; it takes centuries to inch closer.
That’s a very long time. I’m willing to bet one of us will kill the other before then.
And after what my husband is about to do, his death is imminent.
No matter how many times I let Galen thrust into me, he still wants the attention of his people over the respect of his queen. So, I have no choice but to move on with my new plan.
Destroying the one thing he adores. His public image.
‘It’s what the people want,’ he claimed.
It’s been only one year since the vampires and fae declared peace. The era of The King’s War was finally over. It’s as if the soil of this world were mere fabric we assumed we could grab and sew into a quilt of our own desires.
Do those men who stole the land consider the plight women had to endure when sewing it back together? How mothers grieve sons and daughters who died in battle, how we are forced to be maidens again, who are hostesses that bring cheer to their guests, regardless of who the guests are?
That’s why men are such great rulers. They take, they don’t care. They lack the empathy that women possess. Women think and consider what we want, but by then, it’s gone. We are left with nothing.
I did consider my marriage to Galen. Yes, we are enemies, but maybe if he saw how strong I was, that could change.
Galen was shocked at my demand.
What do men do when they face someone as strong as they are?
They test them and plunge a knife in their back. They get rid of them, or if they are truly tyrannical kings, they keep them, make them feel less than, force them to heel, like you would a dog.
As Galen meets with his council, he thinks I have bowed down and accepted his rejection.
“Think again,” I whisper as I laugh bitterly under my breath.
“Queen Selene.” My lady’s maid steps out onto the balcony with a red velvet box in hand.
I don’t know her name, and yes, that makes me a bitch, but she’s also a spy for my husband, so that makes her a bitch, too.
I was not allowed to choose my ladies, but I was granted the choice of decorating my chambers, so there’s that. That should make me happy and agreeable, right?
My chest sinks.Don’t be a spoiled brat. Smile. Wider, yes, show your teeth.
It hurts my cheeks to smile this widely.
Too bad.
My eyes lock on the box she has in her hands. “Another gift from the king?” I ask.
I don’t want his gifts. I want him to do one thing formeand not the crown!
This marriage isn’t an alliance!
Don’t let the termalliancetrick you. It’s always a precursor to war. Every other kingdom out there knows it, and they are preparing because kings like only two things. No, it’s not women and ale, jewels and crowns.
They like armies and land.
And now that my husband has my father’s backing, no other vampire king will dare challenge him.In fact, Galen will make it a point to march on our neighboring kingdoms to claim more land.
