A Kingdom This Cursed and Empty (Kingdom of Lies, #2)

by Stacia Stark

Men. So utterly predictable with their insistence on diminishing women to girls in an attempt to belittle us.

If she thought she could get away with it, she would kill me in a heartbeat. That thought shouldn’t make me hard.

The wildcat was mine, and I would protect her until she came to that exact realization.

While I had no problem saying no when her safety was at risk, my instinct with her was always to say yes. To see her eyes light up. To make her smile. And if she ever learned just how close she was to having the Bloodthirsty Prince wrapped around her finger, she would likely laugh until she was breathless.

Once you find that hourglass, you’ll be a true force on the battlefield.”

“Because you need me cooperative. So I’ll work with your brother. You only brought me with you because he wants me.”

“You can tell yourself whatever makes it easiest for you to hate me, wildcat. But it was real. All of it.”

I was lucky the time-stopping queen had been too soft, even at her most dangerous. But that had been before her fae lover’s betrayal. Nothing hardened a woman like betrayal from a man she’d trusted. And then men had the audacity to call us cold.

“It makes me hard when you defy me, wildcat. One day soon, I’m going to make you suffer for every snide comment you’ve said. For every moment you refused to listen.”

“Threatening torture? And you wonder why I don’t trust you?” “Oh no,” he purred. “You know I’d never torture you, wildcat.”

Lorian smiled at her. If I’d been born with Madinia’s power, I could have set her hair on fire.

When it came to men and their need to display their egos in public, it was rarely about women.

“Hate me, rage against me, refuse to admit what you feel. But don’t you dare treat me like a stranger.”

He buried his face in my neck, and I shivered as the stubble along his jaw scraped my skin. More. I wanted more. I always would when it came to this man. And that was what made him so fucking dangerous.

“This is never going to work. You and I. We’re doomed. You know that.”

“I know.” He slowly drew back. “But that doesn’t mean I won’t wish for you with every fucking breath for the rest of my life.”

“But perhaps that’s what you want. You want me to take you in anger, wildcat? To make you moan my name while you writhe beneath me…all while you loathe me for every second of pleasure? I’ll do it. But you won’t get it by taunting me. You want hate sex? You’ll have to beg.”

“I missed you.” He said it simply, unashamed. As if it were simply a fact. “Have you missed me, wildcat? Have you thought about the feel of my hands on you? My mouth on you?”

“Turn it off,” he muttered against my mouth. “Just fucking turn off that busy mind and feel me.”

“Gods, the way you look at me,”

“Mine,”

“I’ve been burning for you since we left the castle. And I’m feeling mean. You’ll beg me, Prisca.”

I watched him. I had to study these men who had ruled this continent for so long. I had to analyze their every move, understand their actions, their mistakes, their thoughts. And I had to learn how to beat them.

“The way someone worships their gods—and the gods they choose to worship—is a personal choice for most. But a clever ruler will use religion to play on their emotions. Their desires. And their fears. They will promise either eternal happiness or the avoidance of suffering—here or in the afterlife. You will find it is surprisingly easy for someone to use a population’s fear of the unknown—and their poor education—to control them with lies.”

“Don’t cry. Gods, don’t cry.” She sniffed, glowering up at me. “Why? Are my feelings too much for you?” “No. Because I want to gut anyone who made you cry. And I don’t want to have to impale myself on my own sword.”

“I don’t care, Lorian. His job was to protect you. Instead, he sent you away at just nine winters old, all alone, throwing you the occasional treat to keep you loyal. Gods, I wish someone had saved you from him.”

“That’s exactly what he did. He was your brother, and it was his job to put you first.”

To Prisca, the people she loved were everything. She couldn’t comprehend making strategic decisions that would make their lives more difficult, even if it benefited her and her people. I would do everything I could to protect her from those decisions, even as I knew, by the end of this war, she would have to make them anyway.

“Get on your knees.”

“You’re perfect. Now open your fucking mouth.”

“Eyes on me,”

“You’re so fucking perfect.”

“You make me insane,”

“I don’t think I can be who you need. I’m trying. I swear I am. But—”

“Stop. I never want you to feel like you’re not enough for me. Gods, you were enough the moment you took my hand in that dungeon while Tibris was healing me. You’re all heart. You’d die for the people you love, and in your mind, you’re helping our people more by stepping down. I understand that, even if I don’t agree with it.”

Something fluttered in my chest. Something that felt a lot like hope. But...

“I’m your brother, and I’ll always love you. I’m also your general, and that means I’m looking out for the best interests of our people. I believe you’re in our people’s best interest. But when all this ends, and our people a...

“You would make an enemy of your king?” “No. But you will listen carefully when I tell you this—if you try to keep me from Prisca again, it will become your biggest regret.”

“You ever do such a thing, and I’ll find you. Wherever you are. Even if you’re in Hubur. I’ll make my way to the underworld, and I’ll drag you back.”

I wasn’t entirely sure when this woman had become as necessary to me as the air in my lungs. Maybe it was when she finally understood how to use her power—and used it to freeze me in place so she could kick me in the balls. Perhaps it was the moment I realized she’d never gotten on that ship. And she was instead in the most dangerous place she could possibly have been as she fought to free her best friend. It might have been when I saw her dying in that fucking castle and realized I was so completely out of my mind, it might as well have been me who was poisoned. Maybe it was the way her voice had shaken with rage when she’d learned of my life in that camp when I’d only seen nine winters. Her fury that she couldn’t turn back time and rescue the boy I’d been. There were so many moments that had shown me who she was. Had demonstrated her bravery, loyalty, and cunning. I was tired of fighting it. It was time to make sure my wildcat knew I’d wanted her from the start. And I would want her until the end.

“You can raise all the walls between us that you like. I’ll knock them down one by one. In the end, it will be us, wildcat.”

“I’ve gone my whole life feeling like I’m holding my breath. Like my lungs are burning. Like I’m desperately fighting for each gasp of air. But when you’re around, I can…breathe. And I’m furious at you, because when that ends…when we’re forced apart, I don’t know how I’ll take a full breath without you.”

“So, wildcat,” he murmured against my ear. “Just how much did you miss me?” The question was a low taunt. Heat pooled in my lower belly. “A little,” I said. “Hardly at all, really. If anything, I barely noticed you weren’t here.”

“I think the true measure of someone is not how much power they have, but how they choose to wield that power.

A crown wasn’t just a title or a symbol. It was a promise. A promise that I would do whatever was necessary to protect my people.

No, I wasn’t perfect. There were many people who could likely rule far better than I could. I would stumble and fall. But each time, I would rise. I would grow stronger. I would become the queen my people deserved. And no one would fight harder for them than I would.

“Pleased is the wrong word. I’m proud, Prisca. I know you can do it. But this war will change you. You’ll lose people you love. You’ll lose parts of yourself. I could never want that for you, even as I know you will save your people.” I took a deep breath. “I’m afraid,” I admitted. His huge hand cupped my cheek. “I know. It’s how you act despite your fear that counts.”

“I do. He’s short-tempered and brutal, but I’ve never seen a man look at a woman the way he looks at you. As if you’re his entire reason for breathing.”

“Why is it that men are considered to be cunning planners, while women are usually called conniving schemers, do you think?”

“How natural you are at this.” My mouth fell open, and his eyes darkened as they dropped to my lips. But he raised his gaze once more. “Not only are you a natural-born leader, but the trauma of your past has shaped you into exactly who you need to be.” “How?” “You had to pay excruciatingly close attention to anyone and everyone. You had to know who could potentially be trusted, and you had to understand the strengths and weaknesses of those around you. Because if you were suddenly discovered, even those who might try to save you could become a liability. The terror you lived with has given you an incredible ability to evaluate people and determine where they are best used.”