I held my hand up. “I know.” And I did, but we didn’t have time for this.
One moment, I was looking at my brother, and the next I’d swiped a dagger from the table and sent it sailing across the room. A slender hand emerged from the shadows, deftly catching it by the hilt. A woman dressed all in black separated from the darkness. The only spark of color in her outfit was the silver laces in her black boots. She spun the dagger through her fingers before bowing low and deep, one hand sweeping behind her and the other crossed over her waist. The tall male who had followed her into the room did the same, their long dark cloaks fluttering behind them.
“We pledge our blade and loyalty to the one true queen,” the female said, both of them keeping their heads down.
“Stand,” I demanded, command resonating in my voice.
They rose in unison, and my senses prickled. Their movements were more than fluid, almost like smoke, but the thing that set me on edge was their absolute silence. Unless they were speaking, you wouldn’t know they were even in the room. These were the famed assassins of Sumaril.
“You show your face now?” Lights flickered in the room, struggling under the weight of my power. I had no control when it came to Dianna, not in love or power.
“We’ve watched you. We feared you’d return and be the same, just like the others, but then we heard that you’d wed the Ig’Morruthen.”
“She has a name.” The words left my lips on a low growl.
“I know. She is the reason we are here and why we gave you the location to the first Ig’Morruthen’s resting place. She had a chance to kill me and my brother.” The woman nodded toward the man on her right. “But she didn’t. Nismera would have done so, or much worse, just on principle. Dianna is the only queen we’ll follow. No other.”
“Because she spared you?” I asked dubiously.
“No,” her brother said. “Because she’s proven repeatedly that she is not the same.”
I folded my arms across my chest. “And I am supposed to believe that you will help me get her? We have already asked you to find it, and you left a note saying no one knows where Nismera’s palace is.”
“They will now,” she said, her smile slow and smug. “We all will.”
She flicked her fingers, and an envelope appeared, the writing on the front fine and pristine. I reached for it, but she tossed it back to the shadows.
“First, I have someone who may be able to help. I just need to ensure we are all on the same team, because we will need all the help we can get. Call it a safety clause. Nismera has made this realm bleed. It cowers beneath her brutality and betrayal. With this gift, I hope to secure a permanent holding within your queen’s reign.”
She smiled and let out a low whistle. Black smoke filled the room, and I heard Cameron and Isaiah let out low curses. I felt Kaden shift, but before any of us could react further, it dissipated, and my sight returned. My entire body went still as the room cleared to reveal that we were surrounded by faceless assassins.
Cameron cleared his throat. “Cool party trick,” he said.
She winked at Cameron and said, “You haven’t seen anything yet.” She pulled a pendant from inside her cloak and gripped it in her fist, squeezing it. A portal appeared to my left, whirring softly as Camilla and Vincent stepped through.
The room blurred, but not from the shock of what the assassin queen had brought, but from how quickly I moved.
“Five minutes is all you’ll get before I finish what my wife started,” I growled into Vincent’s face. I held him pressed against the wall, holding my blade against his throat as he panted, trying to catch his breath. “Camilla, if I even feel your magic behind me, I will cut out his traitorous heart.”
The power I’d felt growing dissipated immediately.
“We are here to help,” Camilla begged. I could see from the corner of my eye that Isaiah and Kaden had her in their grip.
“Help?” I scoffed. “Like you helped to craft that medallion? Or like when you tossed Dianna and me through buildings?”
“You attacked us first,” she countered.
I pressed the blade harder against Vincent’s throat. “And why wouldn’t we attack you both on sight, Camilla? Give me one good reason. In case you forgot, he is the reason I nearly died, and our family’s minds are imprisoned while her people used them as weapons. He chose his family, and it wasn’t us.”
“To be fair,” Vincent choked out, “Kaden spoke the words.”
My arm pressed harder into him. “Kaden is a monster, but he never lied about it.” Kaden made a noise of agreement. “He never pretended to be friends with us, love us, laugh with us, or fight with us. He didn’t lie to our faces daily as he worked and connived with her. He never betrayed us!”
“I had no choice,” Vincent gasped, each word making his throat work against the knife.
“It’s the truth, Samkiel. He had no control over what he did.”
I tipped my head, but never took my eyes off Vincent. “Excuses,” I snarled.
