Chapter Twenty-Eight
Vanessa
“The Test of the God-King,” Vil said solemnly as he sat up, the sheet pulling free of his body as he did.
Enough, I snapped at my hormones. This is important. We have to focus.
“That sounds more than a little ominous,” I pointed out, also sitting up until my back was against the headboard. I kept the sheet pulled tight above my chest. “What is it? Why do we have to take it? And why haven’t I heard about it before now?”
“To answer the last question first,” Vil said, “because there was no point until you’d made up your mind to give us a chance. If you decided that no, you wanted no part of my world and what fate had set out for you, for us, then it wouldn’t have mattered.”
I chewed on my lip. There was a flaw in that logic.
“Except, knowing about the Test might have influenced my decision to, as you say, give us a chance. So you deliberately omitted it because you knew I would potentially have an issue with it. Which means I’m not going to like it.
What is this Test about, Vil? Why did you hide any mention of it? ”
“The Test is set by the God-King,” he explained. “To sit on the throne of any of the four dragon clans, a prince must have his Eternal Mate. Only she can become a Princess of Dragons. That is the law, and it must be obeyed.”
“Please tell me you’re joking,” I said. “I have to take a personality test to be allowed to be with you? What is this? A stupid online job interview? Do I have to hand you my resume, then fill out a form that has me write down everything that’s already on my resume?”
“Vanessa,” he pleaded.
“Come on. You have to realize how stupid this sounds.”
“It’s to prevent those who should not be allowed to rule from sitting on the throne. The God-King judges those who approach and ensures they are fit to be a prince or princess. Ensuring that the dragon clans never descend into tyranny or worse.”
“Assuming, of course, that your God-King is himself a good person. If he has absolute power and is immortal, then I have my doubts.”
“What do you mean?” Vil asked sharply.
I didn’t back down. “Have you never heard the phrase ‘absolute power corrupts absolutely’? It’s pretty much a staple of any study about unlimited power. Which it sounds like your God-King has.”
Instead of angrily denying my insult to his religion or whatever they called their beliefs of the God-King, Vil fell silent, pondering my point.
I let him mull it over, curious about what he’d say in response.
Maybe he would show some independent analysis of the situation instead of fervent belief in his God-King.
“On one hand,” he said after several minutes had passed, “I see your point. I can’t deny it. It makes sense, and it’s probably quite true. You’ve seen it play out on Earth many times before, so why wouldn’t you believe it.”
“Exactly.”
“But we’re not humans,” he countered. “We don’t work the same or think the same. We have virtually zero petty crime. It’s just not our way to do things like rob someone or vandalize property, etc.”
“What’s your point?”
“That, as far as I can see, while maybe the power will corrupt eventually, I have no evidence that the God-King has strayed from the path of good. Those who have ruled before me, in all clans, were universally loved and considered good princes. They took care of their clans and did well by their people. The God-King himself has never vied to rule directly. He never leaves his home atop Mount Drakonus. Only those who are called to him to either take the Test or at the end of their rule have ever even seen him. To most, he’s just ‘there.’ Who am I to call that evil? ”
All fair points, I had to admit.
“I still don’t like the idea of having to submit to some sort of compatibility test,” I grumbled. “I mean, it’s not like I’m signing up for e-dating or anything.”
“It’s our way,” Vil said with a shrug. “The God-King decides if we’re truly Eternal Mates or not. But I wouldn’t worry. The other princes who found their mates via the Watching Mirror have both passed.”
“And what if we fail?” I wanted to know. “What happens then? Do I just go back to my life on Earth, and you look in the mirror for someone new?”
Vil shook his head. “No.”
There was something about his tone ... “What does happen, Vil? If we don’t pass?”
“We don’t return,” he said heavily. “Nobody knows, but those who have tried and failed don’t come back down the mountain.”
I gaped at him. “Are you serious?! If he doesn’t like the way we fit together, we die? And you didn’t think to tell me this, I don’t know, at the very start?”
“Vanessa,” he said, holding up his hands to try to placate me. “You don’t have to worry.”
“You’re damn right I don’t have to worry,” I said, shaking my head. “Because I’m not taking that test. I’m not going to let someone else judge how I feel about a person and kill me if they don’t approve of my emotions. Nobody should have that power, Vil. Absolutely nobody!”
“Vanessa, I—”
“Nope,” I said, shaking my head and pointing at the door. “Get out.”
“What?”
“Get out,” I repeated, gesturing toward the door.
“You’re not sleeping with me tonight, Vil.
If ever again. I can’t believe you would hide something like that from me.
You’ve known all this time, and you purposefully didn’t bring it up.
That’s the same as lying, and I won’t have it. I can’t. So leave.”
“These are my—our quarters, though,” he protested.
“Not tonight, they aren’t. It’s your house. You can find another place to stay. But not in here. And in the morning, I’m going home,” I stated firmly, shaking my head in disbelief.
I knew that leaving Vil might be condemning myself to jail.
He would, of course, not pay for Sheila to continue working with me, meaning I’d have to try my luck with a different lawyer.
But I had hope after the stern talking to from Candy that my situation might not be as bleak as I’d thought.
That maybe I was in the right to protect myself.
But there was always that “if” that never quite went away. By ending things with Vil, I’d be subjecting myself to that “if,” and that was enough to leave me uncertain of the outcome. It was not, however, enough to make me take back my decision to end things with him. Regardless of my true feelings.
Not that I had any idea what those were, either.
“Vanessa, please,” Vil said, pleading with me.
“No. Just no,” I said tiredly. I didn’t have the energy to argue. I’d been duped, and something else began to set in. Something he’d said at the start. “Vil, you aren’t even the prince yet, are you?”
“I’m Prince-Assumptive,” he said, but there was no fire in his defiance.
“But not yet the prince proper.”
He sighed. “No. Not until I take the Test. That’s why the Nine is doing what they’re doing now, causing trouble.
Because they know that once we pass the Test and sit on the throne, there’ll be no room for them to maneuver.
I’ll be the acclaimed ruler of the Iron Clan, and that will be that for them. So they must act now.”
“Unbelievable,” I said, rubbing my face. “Go away, Vil.”
“But—”
“Now,” I said heavily, closing my eyes, so I didn’t have to watch as he left the bed.
My mind was closed to him, but I’d never been able to control my body around him, and I doubted now would be any different.
Unfortunately, I needed it to be. I had to cut things off.
Before I let myself fall any further into his web.
All that time and he’d used me. I was nothing but a pawn to help him pass the Test so that he could sit on his fancy throne and deal with his rivals.
Vil hesitated as he pulled on his clothes, but in the end, he remained silent, departing the room and leaving me to myself and my ruinous thoughts.
“How could I have been so blind?” I said bitterly to the empty room, sliding down until I was lying flat, staring up at the ceiling.
Had I really been so desperate for a man that I’d let myself be blinded by his looks, money, and the magic of him being a dragon? I should have seen all this from the very start. But I hadn’t.
Was it that which had kept me from seeing the truth? Or had I actually fallen for him?
I didn’t know.
Reaching over, I grabbed the landline phone on the bedside—because, of course, dragons would still have that—and dialed a number I’d long ago memorized.
It took three rings to be picked up. “Hello?”
“Hey, Liv,” I said, unable to keep defeat from my voice. “I need a huge favor.”
“Van? What is it? Are you okay?” my older sister asked, worry coloring her voice.
“I’m fine,” I said. “I’m just … I made a bad decision. Is there any way you can come pick me up in the morning?”
“Of course. From where?”
“You might regret saying that,” I told her, explaining where I was.
“How bad is the jam you’re in?” she wanted to know.
“Not that bad,” I had to admit. I wasn’t in danger or anything. I just needed to go home. “I made a mistake, and I need out, and it’s not like I can walk or call a cab.”
I didn’t have to say there wasn’t anyone else I could call. She already knew that.
“I’ll be there by ten,” she said, not hesitating. “I have to help Bryce with the kids first.”
“Of course. I’ll be ready and waiting,” I told her. “And Liv?”
“Yes?”
“Thank you.”
“That’s what family’s for. But you owe me lunch.”
I laughed. “I can certainly do that much. I appreciate it.”
We hung up, and I returned to staring morosely at the ceiling.
Well, it was a fun adventure while it lasted. I guess it’s time to get back to reality, though.