Chapter 27 #3
“I cannot dispute that her blood is part seelie, and I would not dispute it, nor punish her for it. In fact, I intend to do quite the opposite.” I kept my tone even, but forceful, showing these males that I was the law in this land, the king who ruled it, and I would be their reaper should they flinch.
“Upon her return from her mission to spy on the Summer Court per my orders to her and uncover the truth about the attack on Belkarthen that ended with the murder of my parents and abduction of my brother…”
I paused, letting my words hang in the air, watching their faces as they waited, as several of them exchanged glances as they absorbed my revelation that Saphira was acting as my spy.
And then I brought the axe down.
My voice unwavering, my heart filled with the devotion she demanded from me, as I declared war.
“I will name Saphira Harper my queen.”
I watched them all like the predator I was, gauging their reactions, eyes darting to anyone who reacted, whether it was mere hesitation or a blatant withdrawal, or even aligning themselves more firmly with me by nodding in agreement with my decision.
Four males failed to hide their reaction to the news their future queen would be seelie, and I noted who they were, along with those who appeared uncertain. I marked them all for my spies to follow, and should they whisper about her behind my back, I would see to their deaths personally.
I would weed out any who would be against Saphira before she ever reached the Shadow Court.
I would pave the way for my love, reshaping my court to better suit her, because I knew she would view her blood as an obstacle between us, and I did not want her to feel that way, and I certainly would not allow her to feel as if my people—her people—disapproved of her.
One male moved himself to the top of my list.
“How can you place a seelie on the throne of this great court after what was done in Belkarthen?” The burly dark-haired male I knew to be one of the highborn from that region shoved to his feet with enough force that it pushed the pew he had been sitting on with others back, filling the great hall with the screeching of wood on stone.
He made the grave mistake of sneering at me and saying, “The Shadow Court does not need a half-blood whore on the throne, one who is likely a spy for the Summer Court… or more likely an assassin welcomed into our midst to slaughter us while we sleep.”
I would not tolerate my little wolf being spoken about so harshly, would not allow anyone to speak of her or treat her as I had been as a boy, sneered at and whispered about, called terrible things.
The air thickened and trembled as darkness poured through me, sweet and beautiful, and the shadows snaked from their hiding places as I stared the male down, watching him pale as he seemed to realise what he had done.
I would not allow it.
And so I made my choice.
This male would become an example of the consequences of speaking against his queen.
I was gone in a flash, in a swirl of shadow flecked with starlight that exploded from me to blanket the room, plunging it into darkness.
My claws found the male’s throat.
I loomed over him as I let the shadows fall, baring my jagged fangs in his face as my claws pierced his throat, poised to rip it open.
I snarled, “No one speaks of my queen in such a manner and lives to tell the tale.”
In one swift and brutal yank of my hand, I tore his throat out. I let him drop to the floor, sneering down at him before I turned on the rest of my council.
“No rule in this land forbids me from marrying someone of my choosing, regardless of her blood.”
Most of the males were quick to nod in agreement—the same males who had looked to be on my side before. The ones I had already marked as suspicious? They backed away, their faces pale and drawn, but somehow held their tongues.
The identities of several of them did not surprise me. I had suspected they would be against my decision because they had revealed more than once that they were obsessed with the matter of purity of bloodlines, with their highborn status and the rights they felt it should give them.
My test completed, I lifted my left hand.
Dismissing them.
Oberon was first to leave, sliding out the side door unseen as the males stared at the body sprawled on the floor behind me. By the time these males filed from the great hall, Oberon would have completed his task, and every traitor among them would have a spy tailing them.
I stepped through them, retaking my place on the dais, and growled, “Leave me.”
They obeyed this time, and I watched them go, dark hunger gnawing at me, keeping my claws sharp beneath my gauntlets as I battled my rising impatience for night to fall.
Those who had withdrawn from me, or looked as if they were against me and my queen, would each be getting a visit from me in the dead of night if my spies reported they had spoken out against Saphira.
They would join this male.
I stalked to the body and seized hold of it, and teleported with it to the courtyard, where I carefully strung him up as I had Elanaluvyr after she had attacked my little wolf.
Sending a message to my court.