Guards stood on either side of a nondescript door—a surprise right there. Everything within this castle shouted opulence beyond anything I could imagine. Yet no paintings hung on the wall inside this small room, the tile beneath my feet was a plain tan and unadorned with patterns or creepy mosaic designs, and the walls were painted dingy white.
Not one painting with a writing creature around, either.
Urging me to walk with him with his fingers tight around mine, Vexxion strode toward the door.
Behave,he said.
Did he hear the tension coming through in his voice? I’d already sensed the king scared him but now, I wondered. Had the fear I’d felt back at his estate been directed toward the king, or was it due to his fear that the king would hurt me?
My emotions flipped from one direction to another so fast I couldn’t keep up. Could I trust Vexxion? Was he still standing beside me with the loyalty and affection I’d found at his mother’s estate, or was this yet another jaunt down a path overgrown with betrayal?
Remain silent,he said as one of the guards opened the door.Don’t fight him,he added as he swept us into the room.
My pulse sped up, a frantic thrum against my wrists. The world around me tightened like a snare, each shadow looming with unseen peril. My throat constricted from the weight of my terror hanging in the air. Icy dread clung to my bones. I felt like I was dancing between fate's jagged teeth.
The sharp contrast between the small room outside the suite and the living room where I now found myself stunned me, the grandeur of it immediately assaulting my senses. So much excess. The walls shimmered with a golden glow, veined in precious metal filigree that pulsed like living beings around paintings of more suffering creatures.
Some paused and watched us pass, the weight of their gazes a heavy drag on my spine. Others continued contorting their bodies as if we weren’t there. Or they were so lost in the craze they no longer saw the world around them.
The floor beneath my shoes was made up of tiles that reflected rainbows in the low light. Despite my terror, I was momentarily captivated.
A soft sound jerked my gaze toward the king sitting on an enormous throne mounted near the left wall on yet another dais. A tall fae man dressed in a silver robe speckled with stars hanging low enough to sweep across his feet hovered nearby,his attention focused on me like a bird of prey with an exposed mouse.
The throne itself was a masterpiece, sculpted from twisted vines encrusted with gemstones of every color imaginable, as if the king had searched the fae realm to find one of each kind. They glinted with an eerie light, haunted flowers among jagged thorns.
The guard shut the door behind us.
Vexxion brought us to a stop in the middle of the room.
The king didn’t look our way; he kept speaking in a low voice with the man dressed in stars. And behind the throne . . .
Madrood must’ve returned to the stable, though the room was big enough for him to fit.
In his place stood cloaked figures.
I swallowed back my cry of horror.
Seven Lieges clustered together, a twisted pack of brutal predators. Though none looked our way, my heart came to a shuddering halt. My fingers scrambled for the sheath and the blade I no longer wore, and stark cold fear burned through my spine.
I was facing more Lieges than I’d killed, let alone seen gathered together in one place. Only a few went on raids to control the dregs. Challenging one was something I would only do when I was at my fittest and with pure undying hatred boiling across my heart.
To take on seven all at once? They’d kill me in a flash and swipe my carcass along the floor to clean up my blood.
Vexxion squeezed my hand.I won’t leave you. I promise.
How could he infuse such certainty into his vow? Neither ofus had the power to end this, and I worried that day might never come.
Kill the king in a week’s time? We didn’t stand a chance.
I believe in you.He said it so simply that my pulpy, battered heart just . . . gave way. My walls crashed down, and I struggled to lift them once more.I believe in us, he added.
That’s when tears sprung up in my eyes.
“She’s not wearing a pretty dress.” The king’s snarl ripped across the room. “I don’t see her nipples.” He huffed. “The next time you bring her to me, make her wear something that suits her body better.”
“As you pointed out,” Vexxion drawled, “she’s a rider. These are rider’s leathers. I think they suit her quite well.”
“Put her in the chair.” Turning, he continued his conversation in a low voice with the robed man while the Lieges flanking the throne remained motionless.
