13. Diana
CHAPTER 13
Diana
I inched closer to the fireplace, seeking the warmth as I ran through the day’s events for the umpteenth time. Despite countless hours of preparation, our meeting had been a near total failure. The fae queen hadn’t seemed the least bit interested, and given her childish demeanor, it was hard to imagine what would change her mind. She believed so fully in her own abilities and that of her people to keep themselves safe that she saw no need for anyone else.
To make matters worse, I could no longer rely on the support of my own people. An image of those flickering flames rolled through my mind like a movie, and I shoved it aside. The opposition was clearly growing, and I needed to make a move. Quickly.
“I’m headed to bed.”
Mav’s sulky voice broke the silence, and I turned to see him standing from his chair with his fingers glued to his temples. “That mindfuck stuff leaves you with a hell of a hangover. My head is pounding.”
“You’re telling me,” Nicholas chimed in, striding past him. “Using it is even worse. I only just woke up.” He had gone to his rooms as soon as we returned, and his haggard expression told me that the five-hour nap had done little to reinvigorate him. The vampire slumped into an armchair across from Raven, Theo, and Myrr, eyeing the enormous leg of mutton the Oracle was digging into.
I dipped my head in farewell, still feeling conflicted as Mav exited the room. Things had been chilly between us since he’d brought his concerns to me—and his not so subtle offer—but it wasn’t like he’d been entirely off base. The future of my reign was not looking good, and no matter how many scenarios I ran through, there was only one way to stabilize it.
If only I could buy myself a few months, maybe I’d be able to solidify the cross-species alliance and get us on the right path, but at the rate things were going, it was hard to imagine making it a few weeks. Still, passing the torch in the midst of this shitshow felt like I was setting the next leader up for failure…
My fingernails dug into my palm, and I let out a sigh as I turned my chair to face the room. More or less everyone of note was here besides Mav, and it’d be easier to get this over with in a single conversation. I waited for the door to shut behind him, the click my signal to dig into the unpleasant truth.
“Things have come to a head with my people, and we have no time to wait around and see how far they’re willing to go. I guess I should start by telling you all—,” I sucked in a long breath, steeling myself for what came next. “I’m going to be stepping down as queen, as soon as I can.”
The room erupted with a dozen voices at once, with Lochlin’s loudest of all, despite being the one to help me pick my heir. His eyes and voice pleaded. “Diana, wait just a little longer and see if?—”
I faced him. “I won’t sit around and wait for a full-on civil war to erupt, Loch. Our options are to move now, installing someone sane as my replacement, or risk letting this fester into something far worse. They’re emboldened enough to poison our food. To come to my home and set the ground ablaze with threats. Who knows what comes next?”
“Then we root out the traitors and make an example of them,” Raven interjected.
I shook my head. “Our people respect strength and loyalty, above all.” It was a truth that Lycan had reminded me of countless times. “The loyalty of the majority of the clans will only get me so far. How long will they bend the knee to a struggling queen that can’t even keep her own kingdom from infighting? Not long enough.”
He opened his mouth to protest, then snapped it shut, a sour look on his face. “Treacherous bastards.”
“Some are that.” Evangeline’s stern voice cut through the room. “But what Diana said is true, no matter how much you may hate it. And right now, the fact that they have a vampire queen is just speculation. Rumor. There are many clans who don’t believe it. Once they find out the truth…”
“They will come for me again, only this time it will be all of them,” I agreed, the memories of my fight with Gavin out in the woods replaying in my mind. He’d only been a single wolf, yet I doubted that I could’ve beaten him without using any of my vampire strengths. The goddess only knew what would happen if they sent an assassin, or worse, a team of them.
“When?” Nicholas asked.
“Within the next few days,” I said. “If I could do it sooner, I would; my position here is growing increasingly unstable. We have a lot of things to wrap up in that time.”
I glanced to the side as Sienna’s hand shot up, and I cocked my head.
“How do the werewolves even go about selecting a new leader? There’s no one in line for the throne, right?”
“The king or queen selects their heir, though there are ways for the clan to stop such things…” I sucked in a breath, my gaze settling back on Lochlin. “Loch and I have discussed it, and I’ve already made my selection. We need strength and fair mindedness, in equal parts, and if it is someone they love and respect, even better.” My stomach twisted at the gravity of the decision. The choice I made here could well be the difference between defeating Lilis and being wiped out along with the rest of the world. And, worse yet, it was the kind of decision I couldn’t undo. Once I stepped down, I would be powerless. I just had to choose a successor and pray that things unfolded the way I hoped they would.
“And what will your role be once you resign?” Will asked, speaking up for the first time. “Will you be tied up with the training of your successor?”
“I think it makes the most sense for me to take on a role coordinating the alliance and trying to find the other keys.” If we were able to form a full alliance, and that was a big ‘if’. “We need someone with leadership experience to coordinate the search for the other keys. And for my successor, I’m hoping Loch will stay on as an advisor.”
He bowed his head toward me. “I will, of course.”
“The two of us have discussed it, and I’ll be asking Elka to step in and take my place.”
The name hung for a moment, and I waited, knowing that at least one person would know exactly who she was.
“Elka?” Sienna gasped, eyes wide. “Jordan’s sister? She’s so young…”
Lochlin nodded. “While that may be true, her performance in our battle against Malach earned her the respect of many. Her clan is well-liked and known to be loyal and kind. She was strong enough to withstand being possessed by Lilis–while she attacked you, Sienna, she also was able to survive the possession, unlike Malach. More importantly, she has a charisma about her. A way of getting people on her side without manipulation or artifice–she has the heart of a leader. She also has her father behind her. As much as it burns my ass, there are those who need to see a male figure in the keep. Hopefully this will assuage even those misogynistic bastards, and help her form a united Territory.”
Something that, as a natural born half-vampire, half-human, zero werewolf, I had never truly been able to do. “I’d like you to set up a meeting between her and I, as soon as possible, Loch.”
“Consider it done.”
I shot a sympathetic glance at Sienna, who had tears dripping down her cheeks as she whispered with Bee. Jordan had been like a brother to her, and she’d done her best to form a friendship with Elka after his untimely death. It had been a rocky relationship from the start. But I could not dwell on that–we had more to consider. Something Raven wasted no time digging into.
“Next point of business that we can’t forget about. We still need to find the person or persons who poisoned the food and get a bead on Teeter and his squad,” Raven said, clenching a fist at his side. “They cannot be allowed to think they can come for you without consequence.”
I gave him a quick nod. “I agree. If we don’t set a strong precedent here, we may embolden them and put our next queen at risk, as well. For the time being, that’s our number one priority. We’ll give it a couple of days for tempers to cool and then get in touch with Rabia and get back to work on finding the keys once we’ve put the fires in our own house out. In the interim…” I glanced over at a grumpy-looking Myrr, who had stripped her mutton down to the bone. “I’d like to ask Myrr, Theo, Nicholas, and Bee to do some research into Cleona.”
Bee leaned forward in her seat and nodded. “What exactly are we looking for?”
“Any and all potential weaknesses. Look into her personal life, political rivals, juicy secrets, all of it. When the stakes are this high, we can’t afford to be precious about the means, so long as we meet our ends. Give me anything I can leverage against her, no matter how small.”
Bee grinned; her smile fierce. Of course, she’d heard about Cleona’s reaction to her husband. “I’ll get right on it. That bitch won’t hide so much as a fart gone bad from me.”
Will grunted and Sienna covered a smile. Bee was if nothing else, unashamedly herself.
“I’ll contact my mother. She has a close friend in the Fae Territory who might be able to help,” Nicholas added.
“I’ll take to the library and hit the history books. Maybe there’s something there we can use,” the Oracle said, smacking her gums as she jabbed an elbow into Theo’s side. “Theo can be my assistant.”
“Excellent. Keep me posted on your progress.”
The fae queen’s immature nature had been the cause of this grief, but I had a feeling it wouldn’t be the last time she’d be difficult, and we needed all the ammo we could get. Someone so impulsive and shortsighted surely had skeletons in her closet or weaknesses she didn’t want exposed. I just had to find them and jab my thumbs in deep.
“The rest of us will be focusing on Teeter and anyone with him who might’ve been responsible for the bloodworms and that burning sign. I want clan leaders interviewed, and the kitchen staff, too. Where did they purchase everything, down to the fucking salt, who prepared each piece of the meal, the whole nine yards.”
“Looking forward to assisting,” Raven said, a glimmer of fang flashing between his lips. “How can we be sure they don’t strike again in the meantime?”
“I’ve already spoken with my guards. We’ll be ramping up precautions significantly, for all of us. We can’t afford to lose anyone in this room at such a delicate time.”
Raven dipped his head in approval. “When we find the bastards, I also would like to toss my hat in for judge, jury, and executioner…or just the last, if I’m being honest.”
Heat coiled in my belly at the protective rage in his eyes as he met my gaze, and it took a second to regain my composure. “We’ll see about that. For now, let’s agree to have a daily meeting to discuss our progress on all fronts. And, to the best of your ability, keep things discrete about my stepping down and my successor until we’ve spoken to Elka. We don’t want to tip our hand before we’ve secured her as the successor to the crown.”
“What of Maverick?” Dom interjected, speaking for the first time since we’d started our meeting.
“For Mav—” I paused for a long moment, considering. “Your discretion extends to him as well. I have some concerns on that front, and I need to do some thinking. For now, don’t discuss my stepping down in his presence. I’ll reassess in a few days.”
“Good call, Frostbite,” Raven said, rising from his seat. “I’m going to go get started with the interviews, assuming we’re done here?”
“All good,” I managed, waving him off as the true magnitude of what I’d just done fully set in.
A wave of anger rolled through me, and I spun back toward the fire to prevent it from showing on my face. Anger at Raven, at myself, at Teeter, and at my wolf, for leaving me when I needed her most. And, most of all, at Lilis, for putting me in this situation to begin with.
But I’d spent the past week wavering, and at least now, the course was finally set. Soon, I would no longer be queen of the werewolves. Given that I wasn’t a wolf at all anymore, it was only right…
So why did it still feel so fucking wrong?