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I tried, desperately, to remind myself I was a betrothed woman. A betrothal I was becoming less sure of with every day, but betrothed nonetheless.
back to Luther. “What do you think?” “Are you asking me to advise you?” he asked, mischief in his tone. I swatted at him. “Forget I asked.” He caught my hand and held onto it, tucking it into his. “Come to the dinner. I can’t
I scoffed. “Oh no, that won’t do at all. You nearly made my dear friend cry. That calls for some serious groveling.” I dipped my head. “Down there. On your knees.” He shot me a dark look. “With all due respect to my lovely cousin, the only person I’m getting down on my knees for is you, my Queen.”
“If a kiss is the reward, my Queen, I’ll get on my knees for you whenever you want.”
My gut felt as if I had been stabbed clean through. I reminded myself again and again that I was a betrothed woman with no right to care, but hard as I tried, I couldn’t stop the hurt that constricted my throat.
Snickers and whispers skittered around us. With lightning speed, I whipped around and slammed the point of the dagger into the table beside my wine. The crack of the blade splitting wood and the rattling of dishes from the impact silenced the room. I slid smoothly into my seat and gave a casual, one-shouldered shrug. “Just in case I need it.”
“So where do those grey eyes of yours come from?” Tyris asked. “From Blessed Mother Lumnos,” Luther answered. Everyone at the table turned to him. I had no choice but to do the same, but now it was Luther who refused to look at me. The blade he’d left in my heart twisted even further. He stared into his wine glass as he rolled it in his fingers. “Lumnos had grey eyes. She gifted her offspring with blue eyes at the Forging, but hers always remained grey.”
Luther’s expression darkened. I could feel him begging me not to give up on him, not to take Aemonn’s bait and believe the worst.
Iléana took a sip of wine and smirked like she’d won something. “Don’t look so shocked, Diem. Luther feels the same way.” She ran a hand possessively along his forearm and gave him an adoring smile. “He swore to me he’ll have his scars removed before he becomes King.”
“It’s not for me to decide, nor my father. Her Majesty is entitled to choose whatever Consort she sees fit.” I sagged with relief. It was a smart answer. A safe answer. And a kind one—a private show of support, given the secrets he knew. If only he had stopped there. “As for me, my interest lies in serving my Queen, not in marrying her.” I had no right to feel hurt.
“That Luther Corbois is a man with many secrets. And many plans.” Finally, I mustered up the courage to peer down the table toward Luther’s chair. But he was gone. And so was Iléana.
Perthe nodded. “When I returned to Lumnos and discovered that the woman who saved my life was the new Queen, I asked Prince Luther if I could serve in your guard. Others who were friends, even family, left me behind to die that night, but you risked your life to rescue me.” He clamped a fist to his chest and bowed low. “It would be my greatest honor to repay that debt.”
“I think I see now why you two work so well together. She’s miserable to be around, and you love to be miserable. It’s a perfect match.”
“Tell me then, my Queen, how would you like me to serve you?” Both palms dragged down my legs, resting low on my thighs and nudging them apart with the faintest pressure. “Shall I get back down on my knees until I earn another kiss?”
“A mouse?” He leaned in, strands of my hair swaying in the gust of his ragged breaths. “We may be vipers, but you’re no mouse. You’re a fucking dragon.”
“What must I do to prove myself to you?” he breathed, sounding as desperate as he was furious. “Break from House Corbois, if you wish. It changes nothing—I will still serve you. Appoint every soul in the realm as your advisor but me. Marry your mortal. Worse, mate yourself off to that snake Aemonn.” His gaze turned dark as a moonless night. “Exile me from the realm. I will serve you from afar.”
“I’m glad,” he said, stopping in place. “I’m glad you see that you can’t trust anyone here. It took me years to learn that lesson. And too many innocent people died in the process.”
“You told me to stay with Henri,” I shot back. “You said ‘we’ll find a way.’ Has your support dried up so quickly?” “Do not mistake my support as agreement with your choices,” he snapped. “Outside this room, I will stand by any decision you make. I will shed my blood to protect you from any threat, even my own family.” His features warped with disgust. “I’ll give my life to protect him, if that is your command.”
“Out there, I will do anything you ask of me. Anything. But here, in private, do not expect me to hold my tongue while you give your heart to a man you had to beg to keep from walking away.” His glare sharpened. “A man who only agreed to marry you when you offered him a throne.”
closed my eyes, parted my lips, leaned in, and surrendered. But his hands fell from my face. His power withdrew, and the warmth of his body vanished. A moment later, the door slammed closed. And once again, I was alone.
“You don’t believe we should have our scars healed away?” “Of course I don’t.” My expression soured at the reminder of Iléana’s nasty words. The thought of Luther without his scar tore at something in my heart. “They would have to hold me down kicking and screaming to remove mine.”
“My scars make me happy. They’re all memories.” “Aren’t they unhappy memories of being hurt?” I shrugged. “Not anymore. Time has a way of erasing the pain and leaving behind the laughter.”
“I don’t care if he’s in the afterlife. If he hurt you, I’ll find a way to make him pay.”
“Get through the Period of Challenging. Make it to the Rite of Coronation. Then I’ll tell you.” “If you’re so certain I’ll survive the Challenging, why not tell me now?” “As I said, I have many tools to ensure your coronation.” He smiled. “Motivating you to stay alive is one of them.”
“You don’t have to explain yourself to me.” He took my hand and placed it on top of his, then flashed me one of his charming grins. “You’re the Queen, and this is your show. I’m just here for the front row seat.”
My body instinctively stiffened. Something felt wrong. An unfamiliar mix of cinnamon and vanilla filled my nose, then a lock of blonde hair caught my eye. It wasn’t Luther who had walked in behind me, but Aemonn. It was his arms wrapped around me, his hands stroking my hair, his lips offering hushed words of encouragement.
“You’re really going to do it?” I asked quietly. “You’ll let them all go... for me?” He brushed his thumb along my palm in a long, slow trail. “You’re my Queen. Everything I do is for you.”
“You’re a Corbois, Diem,” he murmured into my ear. “Embrace your phoenix. Rise from the ashes, and burn bright once more.”
“When forgotten blood on heartstone falls, then shall the chains be broke,” he said in a bitter drawl. “Life for life, old debt requires, or eternal be his yoke.”
Listen close, Daughter of the Forgotten, she had warned me. Stop running from who you are. Stop hiding. And stop taking that cursed flameroot powder. Gods—the Queen of Umbros. It had been her in the alley on the day my mother went missing. If that hadn’t happened, would I have given up the flameroot and allowed my magic to manifest? Would I still be standing here as Queen? Did I have her to thank—or despise—for everything that had transpired since that terrible day?
He knows about you, your father, she’d said. He’s waiting for you.
I grabbed her arms. “Eleanor—did the King ever invite the Umbros Queen here? Perhaps around Forging Day?” “Impossible. She’s never invited to any of the realms. Everyone’s terrified of her. They say she can know the entire contents of your mind with the snap of her fingers.”
“How interesting. I have had so many conversations with Luther, and not once has he mentioned a betrothal.” Finally, my focus shifted to Iléana. “In fact, he said you were nothing to him at all.” The look on Iléana’s face...
“I’m sure you must have simply misspoken. Because if it were discovered that you had invented such a vicious lie, without even a shred of evidence to support it, in order to stir up unrest against your Queen... well, that would be treason.”
I might have survived this battle, but House Hanoverre was preparing for war.
“She is your Queen.” “You’ve been preparing for this role your entire life. You earned it. That Crown belongs to you.” “The Crown belongs to whomever Blessed Mother Lumnos chooses. She chose Diem, so Diem is who I serve.” “Not for long. She’ll never survive the Challenging.” Iléana smiled and wet her lips. “Maybe I’ll Challenge her myself and claim you as the spoils of my victory.”
“Just this once, Iléana, I’m going to ignore that you just spoke of treason in front of the Keeper of the Laws.” Eleanor’s eyes flared wide as she recognized Luther’s voice. She peeled my palm away and hurriedly nestled beside me. “Treason is putting a mortal-loving half-breed on a Descended throne,” Iléana snarled. “Tread carefully. I will not overlook it a second time.” Iléana scoffed. “You would choose her over me? Over all that we shared together? All that we planned?” “Those were your plans, not mine. Diem is my Queen. I will choose her over everything.”
“Let me make myself extremely clear. If you or anyone in your family makes a move against Diem, it will be the last thing you ever do. I will see to it personally that House Hanoverre is destroyed.” “Is that a threat?” Iléana hissed. “It’s a promise.” He paused, his voice turning dark. “And you know I always keep my promises.”
“You’ve asked me why I serve you,” he said. “This, my Queen. This is why.”
“More than any of the other Kindred, Blessed Mother Lumnos loved the mortals. She never wanted them forced into submission—she commanded her Descended to guard them from harm, not be the cause of it.” He took my face in his hands, cradling it in his palms. “Even before you had the Crown, I felt her urging me toward you. The more I see of you, the more I understand why. She wants change, and she believes you can achieve it.” His thumb brushed across my cheek. “And so do I.”
“You are my Queen, and I am your sword. Point me at your enemies, and watch them fall. Lead this world, Diem, and I will follow you—into war, into death, into the tundra of hell itself.” He took my palm and set it against his chest, just above the patch of unscarred skin that lay beneath his jacket. “You are the fate my heart was spared for. As long as it beats, you will never fight alone.”
He let out a shuddering sigh. “And I have failed. Completely, irreversibly failed. I don’t just want a piece of you—I want them all.” His thumb raked across my lower lip. “I want every breath, every laugh, every tear. Every taste of your mouth, every inch of your skin. I want to kneel at your feet, soaked in the blood of your enemies, then worship your body until you scream my name.” His hands slid to my hips and tugged me closer. “Yes, Diem, I want to serve you—in every way a man can.”
“I pledged you my loyalty, and you have it, no matter your choice. But I cannot keep lying to you or to myself. I want all of you, Diem.” His lips brushed against mine, his words breathing straight into my lungs. “You already have all of me.”
“I need you. You’re the only person I can trust.” “You’re being selfish. Stop thinking about what you want, and think about what’s best for the realm.”
“I’m sorry to be such a disappointment,” I said quietly. He shook his head. “Diem, sweetheart, that’s not what I meant.” “I accept your resignation.” “I’m only trying to help—” “Go home, Father.” I leapt out of my chair and stalked for the door without a final glance. “I’ll just have to do this alone.”
Sorae landed with a smooth gait on the front lawn, the same place where my father and I had spent hundreds of nights sparring.
There he lay, in a lake of red, his body so terribly, impossibly still. Dead. My father was dead. My father, who had taken me in when I was no one to him but someone else’s bastard child, and who had cherished me as the most precious jewel in his life.
Andrei Bellator, war hero, legendary Emarion Army Commander, Advisor to the Crown of Lumnos, beloved husband of Auralie, devoted father of Diem and Teller, was dead.
Not just a murder—a punishment. A message. For me.
A violent, poisonous darkness infected my veins. I had once believed that, as a healer, I could never take a life. That seemed laughable now. Once I found the person responsible, I would do so much more than simply take their life.
