The bear shifter took my other hand, his palms rough and warm. But he didn’t say anything.
“What’s going on?” I asked, staring around the room, taking in my mates. “You guys look as if someone died.”
Maeve pressed her lips into a firm line. She, Elias, Rhadamanthus, and Orion were seated at one end of the table like they were conducting a war council. Laid out in front of them was a map of Avalon made from illusions; it detailed the large island—that was more like a small continent once you looked at it long enough—in vivid, clear detail. The mountains bordering the palace and the small city on the other side of it that fed Oberon Academy. Pack lands were marked with dottedlines, revealing the largest pack surrounded by the smaller ones. Hidden in the north were the fortresses that housed vampires, scattered throughout thick forests and amongst more mountains.
The other smaller academies in Avalon were marked, the large cities a burning orange, smaller towns an ice blue. The islands we hid amongst were checked in yellow, our own hidden even on the map. That should have brought me some relief.
The rest of my mates were scattered; Hawk leaning against the fireplace, which sat empty and cold; Rowan at the other end of the table with his feet kicked up on a chair; Xerxes at the window, arms crossed, leaning against it as his gaze flickered between the table and the darkening sky.
My heart pounded as I moved towards the table, eyeing the map. As I approached, it appeared like there were flickers of light scattered across it. My earlier question went completely unanswered.
“What’s happening?” I asked quietly, staring at the flickering lights. “Are those attacks?”
The hesitation made me nauseous. But Elias nodded, releasing a harsh breath. “These are reported attacks on officials who haven’t sided with Dante,” he replied, pointing to the twelve dots. They were red, and each time the light flickered, I flinched. “The Alpha of the second largest wolf pack. The Orianna witch coven of the south. The Hargrove vampires. The Vesper Bear pack and their council leader. He’s trying to pull as many of your supporters to his side.”
“And is he succeeding?” I asked quietly, bile rising in my throat.
“Yes,” Maeve replied. “Without you there, he is winning.”
I collapsed into one of the chairs, heart thundering. A ringing started in my ears as I stared at the map. “They’re changing sides because I’m not there fighting for them.”
“Yes.” Damon sat back, and when I met his stare, he shook his head. “He knows you aren’t in the Underworld. He is trying to draw you out.”
“But he isn’t going to win them all,” Orion growled. “This is a ploy. He doesn’t want them—he doesn’t need them. Not for the new world he’s imagining. He’ll just kill them, so their shifting of alliance is weak.”
I shook my head slowly. “It doesn’t matter to them,” I replied. “They don’t know Dante’s true intentions. Right now,he’sout there. He’s making promises, he’s attacking and protecting. He’s showing himself. And I’m…”Hiding.
My words hung in the air for a long moment, but the silence only made me feel worse. I was hiding, not ruling.
I knew I’d be a terrible Queen, but I didn’t think it would be so obviousbeforeI could ascend the throne and take the crown.
Dropping the hands of Thor and Adrian, I ran my fingers through my hair, pulling the dark strands back in frustration. “He is doing everything he promised and more,” I murmured, watching as one of the lights in the north flickered out completely. The nausea swirling in my stomach became even worse. “Even if we somehow do succeed in taking him down and getting the skull back, who’s to say they’ll evenwantme as Queen?”
“Ivy…” Adrian murmured, hand resting on my shoulder. “They will.”
“Out of obligation,” I glanced up at him, at the uncertainty playing in his green eyes. “Just like Pandora.”
“Pandora spent years getting the creatures of Nyx to respect her,” Damon said, drawing my attention back to him. “And I watched it all from Elysian. But she had it far easier than you did.”
“How? Before her, there were no Queens. No unified leaders. Right?” I dropped my head into my hands and groaned. “This isn’t helpful.”
“Pandora didn’t have an all-out war happening around her. That is the difference,” my mate said, his voice sharp. “Emris never got so far as to actually starting a war. He rallied troops, but once he was dead, Asael and Eryx went to Faery themselves and ensured they were disbanded.”
“Dante barely has much of an army, anyway,” Rowan added, speaking up for the first time. I looked over at him, watching as he dropped his feet from the chair and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table, no sign of the amused male I was used to. “We know that much. For starters, we have a lot of his ranks in the dungeon of Elysian, and with our agents getting cleared of the poison, they’re going out more with other Elysian demons to capture his teams and are putting them away.”
“Is that even going to work long term?” I asked. “Or are we just playing right into his hands?”
My mage pressed his lips together, the answer clear in his hazel eyes:he didn’t know. There was no way to be sure. Nyx and Sable had ensured we would always second guess every step because of their premonitions and vague warnings.
My hands trembled, stomach churning. “There are two things we need to do,” I started, staring at the hardwood table. “We need to get the collar off, and we need to find the skull.”
“Neither of those things we’ve made much progress on,” Elias said darkly, a growl deepening his voice.
“We’ve had a dozen or so agents try to get close to the palace now that he’s there, but they’ve all come back empty,” Maeve added, almost hesitant. “They can’t get close.”
Of course they had. Dante could be hiding it anywhere. A skull was a skull—it would be hard to explain away if he had it on him, but then again…
Then again, it was the source of his madness. He wouldn’t risk leaving it just anywhere, and the only place he would actually trust to keep it would be on himself.
