Chapter 22
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Ama
“You motherfuckers!” I growled as I was immediately slammed against the wall by King Roarke, my head spinning when it cracked against the stone.
I could hear the roar of chaos from the other room as the soldiers had converged on my men, and Queen Ava blasted a shield up against the door before she turned towards me, smiling at the way her husband’s elbow was against my throat, pinning me to the wall.
I gasped, desperately trying to breathe in air but unable to as pain radiated through my head and neck.
Unfortunately, while I was strong, Roarke was physically bigger than me, and both of their magics were overwhelming mine as it tried to flare to the surface but was quickly batted down.
I also had no idea what runes they possessed and couldn’t begin to form a tactical defensive plan without that knowledge.
I barely had a chance to blink before Queen Ava slapped a cuff around my wrist. My powers came to a complete halt and deflated, leaving me feeling dizzy from going from such an extreme high from the energy I had taken in during my love making with my men, to just...
nothing. Just like how I had been in Luce’s castle.
I blinked, but before I had a chance to do or say anything, Queen Ava was in my face, grabbing one of my horns and yanking on it harshly so that she could bring her lips right next to my ear. “You thought you were so smart,” she goaded, seeming almost gleeful.
“So brave. Don’t you know that bravery is a weakness?
While your men die, you will be powerless.
While we slaughter your father and their remaining families, you will be powerless.
You fell right into our trap. You are weak, Ama.
You are a weak, silly, stupid girl, and you will be the reason that everyone falls. ”
Naturally, I tried to call for my scythe so I could embed its tip into her black fucking heart, only to snarl when I remembered I couldn’t call any of my powers forward.
I tugged my horn out of her grip and narrowed my eyes at her, “You have no idea what those men out there are capable of. Those soldiers will be slaughtered in minutes. You may be able to lock me up, but I would run very fast if I were you, Ava, because once your son gets a hold of you, you’re fucked. ”
She truly was underestimating all of my men, but most of all, she was underestimating her son's hatred of her, and that would be her downfall. I just knew that in the center of my being.
She paled slightly but then looked towards the doors, where two guards stood, “Take her. Now.”
I was handed over, and the guards, whose hands were trembling slightly, led me forward through a dark hallway, the panicked whispers of the king and queen echoing slightly so that I could hear them.
I smiled at that, glad that at least I had managed to freak them out to some extent.
I considered that a win. My body was heavy and tired from the cuffs’ drain on my magic, but I knew I needed to stay vigilant.
I swallowed and kept focused up ahead, noticing a slight downward slant of the pathway, my eyes narrowing on a heavy wooden door with bars across the window.
When the doors opened, I immediately registered several things.
First, this was a holding cell area that was at least partially underground.
Second, it was old as hell, considering it still was covered in brick and had iron cages.
Third, several people I recognized were here.
“Ama?” My father’s voice was sharp and almost angry as I surged out of the guards’ arms, surprising them with the last effort of my energy, and came to stand right in front of a massive cell that contained my father, Damien’s father, and Adrien’s father—all of them looking rather worse for wear, but damn, it felt good to see them alive.
“Dad. Are you okay?” I asked, my voice raising an octave as I panicked over how he truly was. He was alive, but that didn’t mean he was unharmed.
“I’m fine,” he said evenly in a calming tone that soothed my frazzled nerves. “Are you okay? Why the hell are you back—” he was cut off as guards moved forward to take me, “Do not fucking touch her. I swear to the devil himself I will kill you.”
Oh, I think the devil would agree, Dad.
The guards paused behind me as my dad went from the scary motherfucker that was the Grim Reaper back to the loving dad only I got to see, his tone even. “Why are you here, Ama? I portaled you all out of here so that you could escape, not be captured again!”
“Looooong story,” I leveled and looked at the other two kings. “Your sons are here as well.”
Glancing back to my dad, I asked a question that had been at the top of my mind for a bit now, “Which reminds me, how did you know when to show up? I mean your timing was freakin’ accurate as hell.”
Literally.
My dad grunted, “Could have been far more accurate. As Supreme leader, despite not being here in person, I was given extra power throughout the Summit and those powers are connected directly to the summit building, so when the Dark Elves put up a ward around the place, I immediately sensed something was wrong. If I had known, Ama, I would have never sent you. I had assumed it was safe, especially because I was able to keep tabs on… the last thing I had ever expected was treason and betrayal of our realm.”
That explained a lot actually and I hated the guilt I heard in his voice.
“Well, after you transported us out, we found the Kingdom of Impurus. A kingdom of hybrids.” All three of them froze.
“Yeah, apparently they actually exist,” I huffed.
My dad exchanged a look with the other kings and my mouth popped open, “You knew.” It was an accusation, and my father ran a hand through his hair, looking a bit tense.
“Sort of.”
“You sort of knew there was an entire kingdom of people just like me?” I growled.
“We had heard rumors of it,” Adrien’s father explained, his temperament clearly as calm as his son’s.
“We had sent scouts as well,” Damien’s father offered.
“We had pretty much all the evidence that it existed, but we didn’t know where—we just continued to find proof of its existence, our scouts even coming across hybrids who continued to evade them.”
“What does that have to do with why you are here?” my dad asked.
“So, I found the kingdom, talked to the king and queen, and convinced them to bring their army here so we could take back Pura,” I explained simply.
“The Dark Elves’ forces have been nearly depleted, although there are clearly more in this building...
” I looked back at the two guards, who both avoided eye contact.
“But we’ve got it handled,” I nodded my head, still believing in my mates and all of those who’d rallied around us to fight this war.
“You allowed them to cuff you, though?” my father hedged, eyeing the shackles like he didn’t understand how the hell I thought we had this handled in my current state.
No faith.
I huffed out, “To save Adrien’s sister because they were threatening to kill her. I figured the boys could handle the soldiers and I would come back here to save you guys...which reminds me, where the hell are Queen Adira and Queen Emberleigh?”
“Next room, where they are taking you, most likely,” Damien’s father offered.
I frowned as a nervous, almost panicked look filled my father’s face, prompting me to ask, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” He shook his head and gripped my hand, “I just want you to know...well, saying I am proud of you doesn’t seem to cut it. I know I sent you to the Summit when you didn’t want to go, but you are becoming far more a leader than I could ever be—“
“Yes, yes sappy moment,” Queen Ava’s voice filled the space, and my dad let out a frustrated sound.
Instantly, the guards were on me as she walked up and offered me a sickly-sweet smile, squeezing my jaw.
“Ama, you never should have come to the Summit. It seems women in your family make the mistake of going places they don’t belong. ”
“Don’t.” My father’s voice sounded sharp as he snapped at her, and I narrowed my eyes.
“What the hell do you mean?” I demanded.
“Oh, I think you’re about to find out,” she sang happily as the guards led me into the next cell room over. Instantly, my eyes went to Adrien’s mom and Damien’s mom, sitting together on the floor with...with someone new. At the same time, I knew intuitively that this person wasn’t new at all.
I might not have remembered her, but everything about her rang as familiar, and I felt like someone had pulverized my chest, broken my knees, and rolled over me. I felt sickness roll in my stomach as tears of anger filled my eyes.
“Amare?” the traitor asked as she stood up immediately, like she thought she would welcome me with open arms.
The guards shoved me into the cell, locking it behind me, and I turned to face the one woman I had been harboring anger towards for what felt like my entire life...my mother.