A Queen This Fierce and Deadly (Kingdom of Lies, #4)

by Stacia Stark

I caught a single glimpse of Vynthar as he wound between two trees, and then he was gone. The Drakoryx came and went as he pleased. His favorite game was to frighten any sentries who seemed close to falling asleep on their shift.

“Listen to me, wildcat. Our story doesn’t end when this life does. You’ll be mine in the next life––and the life after that. If you hadn’t wielded time, I would have waited as long as it took to see you again.”

“Like the ancient trees surrounding us, your love will endure times of storm and serenity, weathering the fiercest winds of adversity, and enjoying the gentle breezes of peace,” Galon said. “Your love will prevail through times of sun and frost, basking in our warmest, brightest days, and enduring the icy touches of our hardest nights. “And your love will stand strong through drought and abundance, through parched summers and bountiful springs, growing deeper with each passing year.” Galon handed the marriage bracelet to Lorian. “And so you shall vow.” Lorian took my hand, and the feel of the warm strength of his palm beneath mine seemed to settle something deep within me. He stared intently into my eyes. “I vow to be the roots that ground you, the branches that help you reach for your dreams, and the shelter that forever keeps you safe. I will love you in every life.”

He frowned. “You say that now. Titles aren’t meaningless, Lorian.” I shrugged. “I was a fae prince, and now I’m Prisca’s mate and husband. I know which titles mean more to me. Which titles I wear with pride and will until the day I die.

“Today, we’re creating memories,” I said around the lump in my throat. “Memories we can hide away and cherish. Memories we can take out and examine as we march toward battle. Memories that might briefly keep us warm on the loneliest, coldest nights if we lose all of this.” Lorian’s gaze burrowed into me, and I shrugged self-consciously. “I’ve heard… I’ve heard that when you die, your memories make the dying a little easier. That those memories play through your mind and give you some comfort. If that’s true, and the fates decide it is my time, I hope those memories include this day.”

I know it’s a human custom, but…it means something to be your husband as well. Mates don’t often marry. They don’t need to. A mating is for eternity, and none would disrespect it. But our wedding wasn’t just so you could feel we were bonded together in your culture as well as mine.” “Is that so?” He angled his head, watching me closely. “It was another way to tie you to me. Another way to make it clear to everyone that you’re mine.”

“Bravery is a choice. However, you can’t wait until the moment you need to be brave to reach for that bravery. Because if you haven’t been purposefully tending to it, building it up, you may find that it is not there when you need it. You must stoke the fires of courage little by little, day by day, so they are burning bright long before you ever need them. And you fuel or douse those fires—fanning the flames or snuffing them out—with the words you say to yourself. And with the words you allow others to say about you in your presence.”

“I think that has to be the worst part about dying. Leaving the people you love and regretting.”

“I don’t think it’s the memories of your life that you see when you die. I think it’s the people you’ll miss the most. The people who made your life worth living. And sometimes, if you’re lucky, you see the one person you would defy the fates and stay for—if you could.”

I’d once believed there was nothing heroic about war. Now, I knew it brought out the best and worst in everyone.