Chapter 3
Chapter
Three
ALLIE
W hy risk it?
The question hounded me as I left the tranquility of the interior garden and rushed back into the castle halls.
Instantly, the sound of crashing waves from the beach below and the rustle of servants in the kitchen scratched at my ears.
The smell of sweet wine and searing meat tickled my nose and clenched my empty stomach.
All this effort, all these resources, all these guests for nothing .
Yes, trapping the cream of the Serpent Clan on the island while we investigated was a deliciously cunning plan–one I hadn’t thought my father capable of and one I was furious I hadn’t thought of myself–but the risk was too grand.
We were already playing with the fates by hiding this wedding from every other Clan, especially the Blood Brotherhood.
The last thing we needed was more intrigue.
I rounded the corner in a huff, only to slam into the widest chest in the Protectorate.
“Whoa, there, Huntress,” Orion “The Mountain” Brawd rumbled and reached out for me as I lost my balance. “Stormin’ through like that, you’ll bowl me over one day. Your cousins were asking where you were.”
I might’ve been tall, but nothing short of an unnatural force could ever bowl over Orion.
“Don’t worry about it.” I ran a hand down my curls–still intact and bouncing. For once, I’d managed to tame my wild dark hair and it had taken a Morgana Clan potion to achieve it. “Nosy as ever, those cousins of mine. Where are they?”
“This way.” He jerked his chin toward the other corridor, leading toward the courtyard balconies. “They’ve already staked out the best view, of course.”
“How’s your wife?” I asked as our hurried steps echoed against the marble. “Did she get the baby basket I sent?”
Orion was one of the best warriors in our entire Clan. He’d overseen my training and watched me fire my first arrow. In turn, I doted over his children. His many, many children. But though he was known for his size and mighty fists, I knew he had a soft heart.
“She loves that little blue blanket, already in the nursery.” He looked around us with a grin so wide, it almost made his small eyes sparkle with glee. “You didn’t hear it from me, but the midwives said we might be having twins.”
“Twins,” I whispered, heart leaping with joy. Even the worry fainted for the briefest moment. “Congratulations! Oh, Dax and Dara are going to love hearing that.”
“Shh, it’s still a secret for now.” He looked up at the ceiling, grin widening. “Thank the gods for this blessing–and may they bless us more, because we’ll have double the trouble. And I need to build another room.”
“With those hands, you’ll be done in no time.”
He chuckled. “If only the power matched the brawn.”
“Hey, we each have our strengths and we should be proud of them.” Orion had plenty of magic, he’d just preferred to train his muscles. “When’s the birth, in two months right?”
“On the full moon.” He puffed up his chest, proud as ever. “You’ll be there?”
“I always am.” I winked at him. Two months was plenty of time to deal with whatever havoc this wedding would cause.
We marched through the hall my ancestors had built long before our Protectorate powers had evolved enough to make the continent quake. Back then, we’d been more concerned with surviving wars.
But survive we did, and we’d thrived in the centuries since then.
Soon, the Clan’s legacy and future would rest on my shoulders, and I could only hope my training had been enough to bear the weight of them. I’d hoped to have someone by my side to share the burden of rule, but that dream had ended in betrayal and a sea of tears.
All of that turmoil could wait.
Had to wait.
Right now, I needed to help Evie.
This entire so-called relationship with Fabrian felt off. Like a chill I couldn’t shake. One that slid down my spine and overtook the entire island as well. I’d tried talking her out of this madness, but she’d kept saying Fabrian was hers.
“See you in the courtyard.” Orion gave my shoulder a squeeze. “The missus asked for some refreshments, she’s been parched since this morning.”
“Give her a hug from me,” I called after him before I stepped out of the corridor and joined my cousins on the widest balcony.
They stood there in all their Vegheara glory, dressed to the heavens in silver and blue hues, our Clan colors. They watched over the courtyard with the focus of birds of prey. Guests were still trickling to their seats, but the ceremony would begin soon.
Too soon.
A makeshift altar had been placed at the end of the courtyard, flanked by vases filled with myrtle and hydrangea flowers–to bring good luck and passion in the marriage. The sycamore trees stood tall and proud just beyond it, creating the perfect little romantic setting.
The Protectorate maze spread out behind them, the perfectly-trimmed hedges guarding the olive tree at its center–and the entrance to the castle terrace, the most beautiful part of the island, reserved only for the First Family.
My parents and I had spent many nights in the maze and on that terrace, as my father pointed to each star and told its story.
Now, when I stood on my own bedroom balcony, I looked at those same stars, asking for guidance.
But nobody needed to know that.
“Well?” Dax turned to me, somehow sounding eager and concerned all at once. He’d worn the same shade of blue on his coat as my father, but the silver lapels made his dark skin glow in a way Alaric could never hope to achieve.
His blue eyes–the ones people said he stole from the sky itself when he’d come into this world–tracked me until I stopped between him and his twin sister, Dara. Clara stood next to her, one hand holding tight onto a glass of sweet wine, the other playing with her golden hair.
I splayed my hands on the stone banister, looking down at the dozens of guests which had already sat down in their glittering best. One man’s green velvet cape was so long, he took up three seats with it.
And gods help whoever would be standing behind the woman who’d braided her hair in a tall helmet similar to the ones worn by the Protectorate sentinels marching on top of the castle walls.
Everyone and their great-aunt from the Protectorate and Serpent Clans had gathered here today. Wouldn’t want to miss the first inter-Clan wedding in almost a century, now would they?
“The wedding will go on,” I muttered, not meeting my cousins’ curious gazes.
Dax swore. Dara, in her endless patience, only sighed.
Clara set down her own glass of perfumed wine and handed me one, the golden bracelets on her arms clinking. “You’re going to need this.”
“I need the whole damn barrel after having to deal with your father’s ego,” I said.
Clara lowered her gaze, narrowing it on the back of Silas’ balding head as he took his seat in the front row. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault. All that Vegheara blood’s gotten to his head.” I managed a small smile for Clara. Sweet Clara, who had the patience of a goddess to deal with her lump of a father. “It’s still a wonder you turned out like you did.”
“It’s a wonder for all of us. Vegheara parents are…a lot,” Dara said, making her twin scoff. She swatted her hand at him, her silver rings catching the sun’s light. “Except you, perhaps. Alaric was always the most level-headed of the bunch.”
Perhaps too level-headed. Detached was a better description. Too calm, too slow to take action, too focused on walking by himself to clear his thoughts, day in and day out.
But I couldn’t say that, not when Dax and Dara’s parents were gone, Evie’s had been killed, and Clara had been raised by Silas.
I brought the glass to my lips and didn’t lower it until I’d gulped down half of the wine. It was tangier than I’d expected, but didn’t manage to wash away the bitter taste of the discussion with my father.
How could he think of offering Evie the throne without at least consulting me?
“Come on now.” Dax stilled my hand, even as he held an equally half-empty glass. “You don’t want to give Fabrian a run for his drunken ways, do you?”
“I don’t think that’s possible even if you lock me inside the cellar for a month.” My eyes narrowed on the sorry excuse of a groom.
He stood near the altar, snakeskin lapels glistening in the sun as he barked senseless orders at his men. I’d never met a man more in love with his own miserable voice–and I’d grown up around Silas.
“So we proceed with this farce. I can’t tell if this is a tragedy, a comedy, or a cautionary tale,” Dax said. “The bards will argue over this day for generations to come.”
“If Fabrian doesn’t cut out their tongues in a fit of boredom.” Dara grimaced.
“He really is a dung of a human.” I pinched the bridge of my nose. “What is Evie thinking?”
As all horrid Clan heirs who’d inherited rather than earned their crown, Fabrian’s awful reputation preceded him. A lot of heirs and royals were debauched, indulged in too much wine and too many bets, and had eyes that strayed toward all the wrong people.
Pathetic, but not uncommon–as I’d learned all too painfully.
But Fabrian had a mean streak to him.
Vicious.
He’d sliced throats over games of cards.
Worst of all, he was a selfish leader. The Serpent Clan had thousands of souls which needed Fabrian’s protection and guidance.
He’d guide all of them into an early grave if left to his own devices.
Not even that fearsome advisor of his–who was curiously missing today–had managed to stave off Fabrian’s most violent proclivities.
“Where’s Varen?” I asked. For a Serpent, the advisor seemed decent enough and had a quick mind to match.
“I’ve only heard rumors,” Dax said hesitantly.
“I’d like to hear them, too.”
“Varen’s sister is apparently pregnant and not too happy people know it. She’s hidden on some island and her brother went along to protect her.”
“Against what?” I asked, my stomach churning, because I already knew the answer.
Dax hesitated.