Chapter 21 #4
And the witches wanted to kill me. Rasimir’s speech at the fountain flowed back to me, his words about the witches manipulating the werewolves putting an idea in my mind.
“What if we could turn the werewolves against the witches?” I asked.
Both men looked at me as if I’d sprouted a second head.
“Absolutely not,” Lorcan said, moving to my side. His jaw was tight as he fussed with one of his shirt cuffs.
“Why?” I asked. “Rasimir said the witches are feeding them lies, making them think they’ll share power if they manage to kill him. What if we could make the werewolves see the truth? Show them the witches’ plan to betray them?”
Vander shook his head. “The werewolves would rip out your throat before you finished your first sentence. They hate vampires more than anything else in this world.”
“Don’t you think they would hate knowing they’re being used?” I asked, spreading my hands. “If we could prove the witches see them as expendable—”
“With what proof?” Lorcan cut in. “Even if we had evidence, the wolves don’t negotiate. They’re ruled by animal instincts, with short tempers and poor reasoning skills. They don’t trust easily, and they would rather savage a problem than listen to solutions for solving it.”
I lifted my chin, something inside me hardening. Resolve, maybe. I was outnumbered, but I couldn’t allow myself to be overwhelmed, not if I wanted to take my father’s crown—and his head.
“Then we find a way to make them listen,” I said.
“We need allies if we’re going to overthrow Rasimir.
The witches have an army. I don’t see another lying around.
” I looked at Vander. “We’re vampires. That means we’re good at stealing.
Why not steal this? The Resistance fights Rasimir.
If we can split their forces, and get an army for ourselves, that’s half the battle won without ever lifting a sword. ”
He looked at Lorcan, and hope fluttered in my chest. They wanted me to lead. Well, I was doing that. Vander was a soldier. He probably approved of my plan, which sounded pretty good if I had to say—
“It’s suicide,” he said, turning back to me.
The hope deflated, frustration quickly replacing it. “So is doing nothing. At least this way we’re taking action instead of just reacting to whatever Rasimir throws at us.”
“Sometimes, reaction is the safest strategy.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “You said waiting for my opponent to tire is a passive move.”
He frowned. Then his lips thinned, and stubbornness descended over his features.
I folded my arms. “You don’t remember saying that?” I jerked my head toward the grass where we’d sparred. “It was about thirty minutes ago.”
“I remember,” he rumbled. His shoulders lifted as he sighed. “We’ll think about it, Corinthe. All right?”
That didn’t sound promising. I turned to Lorcan with arguments on my lips.
“We can’t bury the witch on elven ground,” he said, walking away before I could speak. I snapped my mouth shut, anger kindling in my chest as he crossed the grass and retrieved Dark Dream. Sword in hand, he stopped a few steps away and stared down at the blade. Slowly it transformed into a shovel.
Vander slanted me a look. “It’s best if we separate anyway.
We don’t know who’s watching the forest, and we shouldn’t risk any of Rasimir’s guards seeing the three of us stroll back to the castle together.
Let Rasimir continue thinking Lorcan and I can’t tolerate each other’s company for a second longer than necessary.
I’ll move the witch outside the Everless, set a ward, and take care of the body.
You return to the Drakhold with Lorcan.”
My stomach tightened at the prospect of a long walk alone with Lorcan. He hadn’t so much as glanced at Vander since pulling on his clothes, as if he could erase what had happened between them by simply refusing to acknowledge it. And Vander seemed content to oblige him.
I couldn’t let them get away with it. Vander had called me queen .
I was no such thing, but I couldn’t be a meek observer, either.
Not when the wedding loomed and the covens kept sending witches to kill me.
Vander and Lorcan were my only allies. I needed them to tell me the truth, no matter how personal. They were both big on pretending.
But I couldn’t pretend when it came to this. Vander liked women, but Lorcan obviously didn’t share that attraction. I wouldn’t come between them. And as good as it felt to be wanted, I wouldn’t let Vander sway my actions by manipulating my desire.
In his own way, Rasimir had warned me to be cautious. Are they trustworthy, I wonder? Or will they use you for their own designs?
Vander stepped around me just as Lorcan lifted his head. Neither man spoke as Lorcan offered Vander the shovel.
“Wait,” I said. Two sets of eyes—silver and black—fixed on me.
Before my courage could flee, I dragged in a deep breath.
“You have to hide from my father. You don’t have to hide from me.
You care deeply for each other, and I’m glad for it.
Vander and I obviously had…” I swallowed.
“Well, we had an encounter, but it can’t happen again. I know Lorcan doesn’t care for women.”
Vander frowned. “Corinthe—”
“No, let me finish.”
Vander sucked in a sharp breath. He went rigid as he seemed to strain for a sound only he could hear. “Someone is too close to the Everless.”
My heart skipped a beat as I cast a wild look around. “Again?”
“Come on,” Vander said, taking my arm and hurrying me toward the statue. “Quickly.”
“Is it another witch?” I asked as Lorcan fell into step on my other side. “I thought no one could find this place.”
Vander’s expression was grim. “They can’t. And they shouldn’t be able to get this close. The doorway repels those without elven blood. But sometimes people get lucky and stumble onto the threshold.”
“Or Rasimir found a new way to spy,” Lorcan said, his face just as grim.
Vander stopped me at the statue’s base and gripped my shoulders. “The second I release the ward, I want you to go with Lorcan. I’ll take a different route back to the Drakhold. If Rasimir has knights tracking us, it’s better if we force them to split up.”
“All right,” I said.
Lorcan’s sleeve brushed mine. The three of us walked forward.
“ Rix ,” Vander said. Then he was gone, only the rustle of leaves and a swaying branch marking his departure.
Lorcan grabbed me, his eyes blazing with anger.
“What—?” Shock rendered me temporarily speechless as I fought his grip. “Let go of me!”
He yanked me against him and spoke in my ear. “Struggle.”
I froze, my mind spinning.
His lips brushed my lobe. “You are an exasperating woman, Corinthe Trevil. I’m going to kiss you. And you’re going to slap me.” He reared back, then seized my face and smashed his lips to mine.
His kiss was as thorough and aggressive as it had been at the ball, each plunge of his tongue stealing my breath.
Approaching footsteps made me push at his chest. He let me shove him away, then he grasped my chin and spoke in a tone cold enough to turn water to ice.
“I look forward to taming you, Princess.”
My chest heaved even as understanding dawned. We weren’t alone, and he’d staged a scene to make sure our observer saw what Lorcan wanted them to see.
The footsteps grew louder, and a knight with Rasimir’s serpent on his breastplate emerged from behind a cluster of trees. He stopped, his gaze going from Lorcan’s face to mine.
Lorcan’s instructions rang in my head. Jerking from his grip, I swung as hard as I could, my palm smacking against his cheek. His head snapped back, and I squashed the urge to apologize, instead shouting, “I won’t marry you!”
As Lorcan slowly recovered, shivers coursed down my spine. Grasping my chin once again, he smiled wide enough to show his fangs. “You heard your father. You’ll do as you’re told, you spoiled brat.”
The knight cleared his throat.
Lorcan kept his eyes on me. “What is it?”
“The king asked for you, Your Highness. I believe he wished to discuss the evening meal.”
If the situation hadn’t been so serious, I might have laughed. As far as I knew, Rasimir didn’t consult anyone about the castle’s dinner menu. Unless, of course, he planned on serving another Derryton villager.
My humor dried up, and I swallowed hard.
Lorcan released me. Straightening his jacket, he turned to the knight. “The princess and I—”
“What is your name?” I interrupted, my gaze on the knight.
The man blinked. My legs quivered beneath my skirts, but I squared my shoulders as I stepped around Lorcan.
If you would be a leader of men, start right now , Vander’s voice said in my memory.
Lorcan had just called me a spoiled brat in front of the knight.
If I let him speak for me now, word would inevitably travel back to the Drakhold.
My father’s men would forever view me as a child.
Maybe I couldn’t reach the werewolves—at least not yet.
But the knights were everywhere. If I could make them see me as a viable alternative to Rasimir, I could start building an army of my own.
At the very least, I could make them question their loyalty.
The knight looked from me to Lorcan. When Lorcan said nothing, the man switched his gaze back to me. “Sir Hubo, Your Highness.”
I nodded. “The prince and I were already on our way back to the castle. You’ll accompany us.
” Lifting my skirts, I moved around the knight and started through the trees.
After a second, booted footsteps followed.
After another second, Lorcan appeared beside me.
Sir Hubo followed on our heels. Lorcan kept his eyes forward, his expression hard in profile.
But when the edge of the forest gave way to the paths leading to the courtyard, he caught my eye and smiled.
My heart quickened. Because I’d spent enough time with Lorcan Balauri to know that, for once, he wasn’t pretending.
This time, his smile was real.