“Father, you cannot believe this. He is clearly grasping for anything to keep his little pet.” Daneiris sneered back at Cyrus. Who merely raised a brow back at her.
“Is that so? Why don’t we bring in your ladies in waiting? Before the king, they’ll surely speak the truth, and if not, well—I canencouragethem.” Cyrus replied, a glint in his eyes that spoke of his excitement. It was moments like this that reminded me how despicable he was, anxious to force innocent women to admit to treason. I couldn’t imagine they would leave here intact. Either by Cyrus’s hand, or the king’s when he found out their involvement in this plan.
“By all means, if you can bring me proof, do so now.” King Astraeus leaned forward, looking between his two children facing off across the throne room.
“Sister? Which lady would you like to sacrifice in an attempt to save your own hide?” Cyrus smiled gleefully, raising a brow at her.
Daneiris was fuming. Her hands formed fists by her side as she glared at Cyrus. Lightning crackled around her hands as she set her shoulders back, and instead of giving up one of her loyal ladies—she sent a bolt of lightning barreling toward me. I gasped and jumped back to avoid being fried to death, but Cyrus merely waved a hand and caught the bolt mid-air, sending it back at her.
Princess Daneiris shrieked and ducked, letting the lightning hit the wall behind her. She stood in a fury and began stomping toward us. Cyrus moved to protect me, standing as a barrier between his sister and me, his own hands beginning to spark with lightning. The two began to face off, and my breath caught in my throat as I tried to think of a way to not get caught in the middle. I had no wish to die because I got stuck between Fae siblings fighting over a throne.
“Halt!” Queen Stelara shouted, and I nearly breathed a sigh of relief as both Cyrus and Princess Daneiris stopped and turned toward their mother. “Is this true, my daughter?” Her unnerving glare was locked on the princess, waiting for verbal confirmation. Princess Daneiris opened her mouth for amoment only to promptly close it as she bowed her head. Her fists shook with impotent rage as her lightning faded away.
“How dare you?” King Astraeus seethed, as he stood up, wrath lining his own expression. “You sought to weaken this court? My rule?!”
“No!” Princess Daneiris insisted. “No, Father, never. I sought only what I am owed! Respect. Authority. Power. A seat at your table as you—”
“Enough!” King Astraeus bellowed, his face turning red as he cut off her explanation. I almost felt bad for her. Was I not doing the same as she? I sought freedom, power over my own life. Princess Daneiris may seek to rise in power, but she was refusing to let men keep her down just because she was a woman. It wasn’t so different, and the thought unnerved me greatly. And now, Daneiris stood before her father, shaking and with tears forming in her eyes.
“You are owed nothing.Nothing! You take only what I give you and you should thank Shalim I deigned to grant you anything at all. You have more than proven you are not worthy of it with your actions.” The king told her disdainfully.
Princess Daneiris looked at her father with mute shock, his condescension and scorn hitting her like a physical blow. As much as I loathed this woman, even I felt sympathy at this moment. The king made it clear his children were nothing to him but another piece of his own power to use as he saw fit. Cyrus, Weylin, Daneiris—none of them met the impossible standard he set, and all of them internalized their father’s words and set their sights on tearing each other apart instead. Trying desperately to claw their way to the top of the hierarchy, anything to feel like they had a bit of control in their lives, as if they could potentially measure up in their father’s eyes if they just kept trying.
Daneiris looked around, her eyes sharp as she calculated her next steps. The others were focused on King Astraeus, leaving me the only one watching her for a moment. Meaning I was the only one who saw her lips twitch into a slight smirk before she let loose a scream as she fell to the floor, crying and screeching as we all stared in shock.
What in the Otherworld was she doing?
I couldn’t believe it. The normally composed eldest Princess of the Dusk Kingdom, on the floor like a child having a hissy fit. This—this was her plan? What could this possibly accomplish?
“Get up.” The queen hissed through the hysterics. “Now, Daneiris!” She shouted, breaking through the commotion. “That is enough. You are a damn princess of Dusk Kingdom! Act like it.”
The princess slowly stood, shaky and unkempt for once. Cyrus looked incredibly pleased with himself. I wasn’t sure exactly what was going on here, but I felt sick nonetheless, hating all of it. As much as I had hoped to not be transferred into her service, this wasn’t what I’d wanted at all. I understood her ambition, I just didn’t appreciate being targeted by it.
“Go to your room. We will discuss this later.” Queen Stelara told her daughter, her voice glacially cold. Princess Daneiris lowered her head and quickly walked away. She slunk past us on her way out of the throne room, glaring at Cyrus and me both. Like this was somehow our fault.
“As much as it pains me to thank you for bringing this to my attention, I must do so.” King Astraeus reluctantly nodded his gratitude. That alone was quite the accomplishment. Still, he narrowed his gaze on Cyrus, knowing full well that his son wouldn’t act without further calculation.
“Think nothing of it, my King.” Cyrus bowed his head to his father.
“There is still the matter of your human.” King Astraeus smirked, and my heart sank. Why did I think Princess Daneiris’s plan would take the attention off me?Of course not. My luck never worked that way.
“Oh, I’ll be keeping her, I think.” Cyrus’s eyes danced as smug certainty radiated from him. “I have one more piece of information, if that wasn’t good enough for you to allow such.” I stiffened. Was he really holding information over the king’s head—for me?
“What is that?” King Astraeus replied, stiffening just as I had, his glare focused on Cyrus.
The prince walked over to a Fae guard standing along the wall. The guard nodded at whatever it was Cyrus told him and left the room. Cyrus clearly had some plan in mind, and I ground my teeth in frustration at being unaware of it. The king, it seemed, was also frustrated with his son at the delay Cyrus was causing. I exhaled quietly enough that no one would hear it. The prince was treading a fine line here.
“Well?” The king snapped at him.
“One moment, Father.” Cyrus responded smoothly. “I’m having the guilty parties brought forward to see judgment carried out.”
Old Gods…I had a really bad feeling about this. Queen Stelara sat forward slightly on her throne, eagerly anticipating whatever was to come. King Astraeus tapped his fingers impatiently on the arm of his throne, his gaze staring daggers at me while he waited. I struggled not to shift from foot to foot from the unease filling me. Cyrus merely stood and waited, the picture of calm.
The doors to the throne room slammed open. Guards burst in, dragging along two people in chains. I gasped lightly. They were human slaves, a man and a woman. What in the Otherworld was Cyrus up to? Fear filled me for the humans, knowing this couldn’t end well for them.
“What is the meaning of this?” King Astraeus demanded as he stood from his throne and walked down the dais. His face showed more emotion than I’d seen from him before. From the furrow of his brow to the crinkle around his eyes and the purse of his lips, his worry seemed to be real and true. Thekingwas worried about a human slave. It was such a contradiction to what he’d just said about me. He stood before the crying female, crouching down and running a hand through her hair, so lightly and gently that I exhaled a breath in surprise. The hypocrisy when he was just berating Cyrus for treating me the same nearly made me laugh out loud. If the situation wasn’t so awful, I probably wouldn’t have been able to contain it.
I shifted my gaze around the room to note the expressions of the others present. No one was surprised by this show of care from the king, which told me they were all well aware of his feelings for her. Something Cyrus was surely about to use against him. I waited to see where Cyrus was directing this little play of his, and how I might be able to twist it to help myself.
