Traitor
“MATILDA!” Luka roared.
She narrowed her eyes at the trembling cook in front of her. “Pay attention. I’m asking a question. How did you manage to get these rolls so delicious?” she asked, snagging a large bite from the hot, fluffy roll.
“K-King Alesi is looking for you,” he stuttered. Matilda blew a raspberry and waved her hand dismissively.
“Screw him. He can wait.”
“My gods,” he whispered as he clutched his apron to his chest.
“I detect the obvious ingredients: butter and garlic, but what else are you putting in these?” she demanded as she stuffed a few rolls into the concealed pockets of her gown.
“Queen Matilda—”
“Matilda. I am not your queen,” she corrected swiftly.
“King Alesi demanded that we refer to you as Queen Matilda lest we end up with Dr. Blackwood.”
“King Alesi is so uptight. How have you all not formed a coup and overthrown him yet?”
“Th-that would be tr-tr-treason! How could you suggest such a thing?”
“Listen, Armando. You and your companions would be doing me a huge favor if you started a minor insurrection—nothing too big or over-the-top, but great enough that it’ll get the man off my back for a little while. What say you?”
“KING ALESI, SHE’S IN THE KITCHEN!” Armando shouted. Matilda sucked her teeth and scooped more rolls into her dress and sling before making her great escape.
“You sullied a good thing, Armando. We could’ve been best friends.”
“Being on close, familiar terms with you would have me locked up in the stocks!”
“The stocks? You give that man too much credit. He’s nothing but a stubborn, soulless, spineless, blood-sucking pus—”
Matilda was cut off when she finally noticed the horrified look on the cook’s face.
“He’s right behind me. Isn’t he?” She shivered when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
He slowly turned her around, and she braced herself for punishment.
“Roll?” she offered, holding the fluffy puff in her outstretched hand.
Luka growled and sent the pastry flying across the kitchen with a precise smack. “You are determined to undermine me at every turn,” he accused.
“My King, you should be aware that Queen Matilda suggested a coup be formed against you,” Armando tattled. Matilda gasped and placed a hand on her chest.
“I would never!”
“Thank you, Armando. Your loyalty will be handsomely rewarded.”
“It is my pleasure, King Alesi,” he replied with a slight bow.
“Come, my dearest insurrectionist. We have announcements to make to the public,” he chirped as he led her out of the kitchen toward the courtyard. He took great pleasure in her pouting. Dare he say it made his day?
Nearly a week had passed since learning his huntress was with child.
He was still in shock, and the only thing that forced him to realize he wasn’t in a twisted dream was his child’s heartbeat that fluttered from his mother’s womb.
It was now routine for him to listen to his child a minimum of three times a day—in the morning before Matilda woke and brought his daily headache, in the afternoon after boring meetings, and at night when they lay in bed and all of the stress of the day melted away.
“Your Majesty,” Matilda said, addressing him. He held back a scoff as they approached the carriage. She never addressed him so formally, and he was more than certain she was moments away from calling him a pussy earlier if he hadn’t interrupted her. She was up to something nefarious.
“Yes, Beloved?”
“I’m afraid that I cannot attend the announcement.”
“What is the matter?”
“I am feeling quite ill,” she lied.
“Is that so?”
“Unfortunately. It brings me great displeasure that I’ll have to stay behind, but wouldn’t you agree that the health and safety of your heir is a priority?”
“I am inclined to agree with you.”
Her mouth popped open in shock. “You agree?”
“Yes, I agree. That is why you’ll be attending the announcement. There is no place safer for you than by my side.”
“You bastard!” she exclaimed.
Ezra chuckled when Matilda pulled a roll from her pocket and smashed it in King Alesi’s face as payback.
This led to the two of them running around the carriage, throwing bread at each other.
They were running behind schedule; however, he didn’t want to interrupt the new couple’s happy moments.
Despite how he initially felt about Matilda, Ezra was thankful for her arrival.
He couldn’t recall the last time Luka genuinely laughed—she did that—she brought the grief-stricken king back to life—she gave him life.
He permitted them a few more minutes of fun before reminding them of their royal duties.
“King Alesi and Queen Matilda, we must be going now.”
“You owe me more rolls, vamp,” Matilda snapped at Luka as he gently assisted her into the carriage.
“You might want to lay off the bread, or you’ll be as big as the castle.”
Matilda scoffed. “That’ll never happen.”
“How can you be so sure?” Luka challenged warmly.
“Because you are a sexual deviant and would force me to sweat the pounds off.”
Luka snickered. “Perhaps you are smarter than you appear.”
“Don’t give me too much credit. I can’t be that smart if I foolishly agreed to this charade of being Queen of Night Falls.”
The carriage lurched forward.
“You are foolish, but not for that reason. We need to talk.”
Matilda sighed. “Very well. Say your piece.”
Luka shifted closer, his once easygoing expression turning serious.
“Once we leave this carriage, there will be no hiding you. Until now, you have been little more than a rumor to my people. Today, they will see you at my side.”
“Lucky them.”
“Matilda.”
“I am listening.”
“Then listen well. Stay near me.”
Her amusement faded.
“I cannot protect you if you wander beyond my reach. And no one, not my guards, not Ezra, not any soldier sworn to Night Falls, will be as devoted to your safety as I am.”
Matilda studied him. “You make it sound as though we are walking into battle.”
“In some ways, we are.” Luka’s gaze dropped briefly to her stomach before returning to her face. “You carry something extraordinarily valuable. Some would kill to possess it, and others who would kill simply to ensure it never draws breath.”
Matilda’s arms instinctively rounded around her midsection.
“Today, thousands of eyes will be upon you. Some will welcome you. Some will fear you. And some will begin plotting against you before I have finished speaking.”
“How comforting.”
Luka reached for her hand, threading his gloved fingers through hers.
“That is why you remain beside me.” He brought her hand to his mouth and pressed a kiss against her knuckles. “Promise me.”
“I will stay close.”
“How close?”
Her eyes narrowed. “Do not push your luck.”
He smiled in return.
“You know what I have learned?”
“I am afraid to ask,” Luka remarked.
“I’m fucked once I drop this baby,” she sassed, adjusting her leather gloves.
“I think a physician would recommend waiting a month or two before the fucking resumes,” Luka replied, knowing fully what she meant. She gave him the finger.
“Such queenly behavior,” Ezra teased. “Our constituents will be very pleased by your ability to display lewd behavior.”
“Your face should be considered lewd behavior.”
“How is that collarbone, Queen Matilda? That sling looks rather uncomfortable,” he taunted back.
“My sling is great. Thank you for inquiring, Lord Gustafson.”
“Great for hiding pastries,” he whispered under his breath.
“You son of a bitch.”
“Children, let’s try to focus,” Luka interrupted. “We will be approaching town shortly. Tilda, remember to stay close.”
“I will,” she promised, ignoring the knot of anxiety tightening in her stomach.
Not only was Luka announcing the official repeal of the ban on vampire and human unions, but he’d also announced his intentions of making her Queen of Night Falls.
She feared for her safety, certainly, but the thought of facing the humans unsettled her most.
Some of those faces would belong to people who had watched her grow from a rambunctious little girl into a huntress.
They knew what it meant to bear the Helsing name.
They knew how many vampires had fallen beneath her blade.
What would they think when they saw her standing beside one now, not as his prisoner or his executioner, but as his intended queen?
They would not look upon her and see a woman who had fallen in love. They would see a huntress who had abandoned her own kind for the very creature she had been born to kill.
***
Matilda swallowed around the ball in her throat when she stood shoulder-to-shoulder with Ezra as her future husband addressed the town.
Everyone was in attendance, including many familiar faces.
She noticed the look of pure shock on their faces.
Last they knew, Luka had offered a hefty bounty for her and feared she was dead.
Instead, she was dressed head-to-toe in riches, wearing jewelry that shone brighter than a full moon.
“How are you faring?” Ezra queried as Matilda edged herself behind him. He stepped to the side, exposing her to the public once again. “I know you’re afraid, but these are your people, and they need to see you as the overly confident woman you are.”
“You are correct, but that’s easier said than done.”
Ezra grunted an acknowledgment and returned his attention to Luka on the dais.