27. Ye of Little Faith
Ye of Little Faith
Matilda sat beside Luka with a pleasant smile on her face as Alaria Marquis sneered at her from across the war room table.
She was beautiful with long raven hair that fell to her lower back.
It was a stark contrast against flawless, almost translucent skin.
She had high, sharpened cheekbones, while her full lips remained pressed into a thin line of disapproval.
Her emerald eyes were perhaps her most striking feature—bright, calculating, and fixed upon Matilda with enough contempt to make her intentions unmistakable.
Alaria was slender but not delicate. The fitted leather beneath her cloak revealed lean muscle in her arms and shoulders, and the sword at her hip looked well-worn rather than decorative.
Matilda knew the woman wanted her head on a platter with an apple shoved into her mouth, and she’d be a liar if she said she didn’t feel the same.
“I formally reject the challenge,” Luka said firmly.
“According to our ancient texts drafted by no other than Reynard Alesi, you cannot reject the challenge. The rejection of the challenge falls on the huntress,” Lawrence Marquis informed spitefully.
Matilda tore her eyes away from Alaria when she felt a nudge at her side. “Yes, my King?”
“Reject the challenge so we can go on with our lives.”
“You’d ask me to give up my right to the throne so easily? What will become of me?”
“That’s a fair inquiry. What will become of her, King Alesi? I refuse to share,” Alaria interrupted with a taunting smirk.
“Hold your tongue. You are a guest and should act accordingly,” Ezra growled. He was incensed by the sheer disrespect the Marquises displayed. He knew their interest in King Alesi was solely to prevent him from marrying a human and avoiding shame. Their bloodline didn’t deserve to grace the throne.
Lawrence Marquis’s fist slammed onto the table, sending a jagged splinter down the middle. “You will not speak to my daughter in such a manner!” he shouted in defense.
“Teach your daughter basic respect, and there would be no need. The irony of risking your life to be Queen of Night Falls while having no better tact than a drunken troll is astounding.”
“A drunken troll! I take offense!” Alaria exclaimed.
“May you choke on your offense,” Ezra snapped.
“Enough!” Matilda shouted, standing from the table.
Her distinguished robes gathered around her, and she caught the hint of jealousy that festered in Alaria.
Her heart beat wildly, and she hoped it boomed loud enough to cover the fluttering heartbeat of the child that grew inside of her.
They couldn’t discover she was with child because she wouldn’t put it past them to make it their personal mission to end her before the baby could take their first breath. “May I pose a question, Alaria?”
“That’s Duchess Marquis to you, you filthy human,” she shrieked, standing to look down on Matilda from across the table.
“Alaria,” Matilda continued, not giving a damn about her challenger’s request for honorifics and civility.
“Queen Anastasia has been deceased for over a century, yet no one has shown interest in King Alesi until now. I mean, I don’t blame you.
He has a face only a blind person could love, and his personality leaves much to be desired—”
“Get on with it, Tilda,” Luka sighed, eager to get this ambush of a meeting over with.
Alaria gasped. “You will allow her to belittle you in such a manner?”
“Better her than you. Stay silent while your future queen addresses you.”
“She will never be my queen!”
“By all means, please continue with your blatant disrespect. You might find you and your household in a precarious situation,” Luka threatened, making Matilda boil with need for him. She loved it when he behaved villainously.
“As I was saying, is King Alesi grotesque and undesirable? Without question; however, I simply cannot let him go. Therefore—”
“Don’t do it, Matilda,” Luka pleaded.
“—I, Matilda Helsing, accept your challenge for the throne and title of Queen of Night Falls.”
Alaria grinned eerily at Matilda as Luka stormed out of the room. She leaned across the table and whispered, “I’ll wallow in your blood, huntress,” she threatened.
Matilda smiled brightly, confusing everyone in the room. “I expect nothing less from a blood-sucking pig.”
***
“You are foolish, Matilda.”
“What was I to do, Ezra?” she asked, heading to the cookery.
She required sweets to tamp down her anxiety.
She had three days to prepare for the challenge in the city center for Night Falls to bear witness.
She was confident in her ability, but nothing in life was certain, and she’d bet her favorite dagger Duchess Marquis wouldn’t fight honorably.
“Oh, I don’t know. Not agree to fight to the death and break his fucking heart!” Ezra snapped, frustrated with her selfishness. She had no idea what her death would do to Luka, and he didn’t know if he could watch his friend suffer in agony for another century.
Matilda whirled around and confronted him. “And what would you have me to do? Settle for me to be his concubine?”
“It’s not as bad as you make it sound. He wouldn’t love her. She’d be his wife in name only.”
“And how long would Queen Alaria Alesi allow that to go on?” Ezra glanced away, but she wouldn’t let him off that easily. She chased his eyes with her own and begged the question again. “Huh? How long would it be until she had me assassinated? A night? A fortnight if I’m lucky?”
“We could keep you safe.”
Matilda scoffed. “Send me and our child to live secretly in some faraway land?”
Ezra registered the pain in her voice, but some things couldn’t be helped. “Tilda… you have to think about the baby,” he whispered. “Sometimes being a parent comes with sacrifices.”
“What would you know?” she spoke quietly.
“My mother sacrificed herself for me on the battlefield so that I may live to fight another day.”
Matilda discreetly wiped away a tear before continuing her journey to the galley. “Luka said you are quite a formidable opponent.”
“I suppose.”
Matilda nearly groaned when she caught sight of the blueberry muffins cooling on the sill. She took the largest and ripped the cap off before shoving it into her mouth. “He mentioned something about a war hammer and what else?”
“Spear.”
“Wonderful. You will train me on the spear.”
Ezra balked at her reckless suggestion. “I will do no such thing.”
“It’s my best option. It’s lightweight and easier to wield than a sword. Plus, I can force her to keep her distance. I will meet you in the courtyard for training. I must change out of these diabolical robes.”
“Wait! I didn’t agree to this!” he called after she abandoned him in the cookery.
Matilda searched for her lover, high and low, until she found him in the throne room.
“My goodness. You’re a tough vamp to find,” she said pleasantly as she approached the morose man who sat on his jeweled and gilded throne.
“I didn’t want to be found. Where is Ezra? He should be with you.”
“He is preparing for our training.”
He snorted. “You’re going through with it,” he said accusingly.
It wasn’t a question but an obvious statement.
“What would you do if you were in my place?”
“Not be so cruel and selfish.”
“Did you stop to think for a moment that perhaps you’re the cruel and selfish one?”
“Don’t twist this on me, huntress,” he spat.
“Oh, I’m huntress now? Just last night, you loved me, and I was yours. I see that your love is conditional.”
“Stop. Just stop,” he demanded, frustration growing.
Matilda blew out her cheeks and slowly approached her king. “Tell me what you want me to do.”
“There is no point. You wouldn’t listen.”
“I might surprise you.”
Luka chuckled grimly, leaving his throne.
“Stay.” She wanted to argue that she wasn’t a dog; however, she realized she was in enough trouble as it was and chose to remain silent.
She was surprised when he returned holding a black chest. He opened it, and she gasped.
“I had the jeweler working on this non-stop while we were in Garden Ridge. You’re not supposed to wear it until your official coronation, but there is a likelihood that you won’t see that day. ”
“Oh, ye of little faith,” she whispered as her fingers grazed the silver crown that dripped with jewels.
It was a breathtaking design with six spikes inlaid with rubies and diamonds.
The middle spike was the largest and boasted the grandest ruby.
The base was decorated with intricate flowers with rubies imitating the flower discs.
“Tilda, it’s not about faith; it’s about common sense.
The Marquises are nobles. All nobles and highborns fight at a level that sadly surpasses your own.
Do I believe you’re formidable in your own right?
I do; however, you’re used to chasing vampires through the woods who have no formal training.
This… this is different. Nobles are stronger and faster, and you’re with child—our child. Your odds aren’t favorable.”
Matilda felt her heart slowly tear in two. “So, that’s it, hm? You get to sell me this fantasy that I’m loved—that I’m something greater than I’ve ever been, and I’m expected to walk away?”
“You loved Garden Ridge. I-I think you could be happy there,” he whispered, grazing her cheek with his thumb, catching a tear.
“It’s true. You plan to send me away.”
“I’d rather live knowing that you and our child are alive and well than dead.”
She sniffed and wiped the tears away on the sleeve of her tunic. “I see,” she mumbled, closing the lid to the luxurious crown that would never grace her curls.
“What are you doing? I want you to wear it,” he said, opening the box again.
“I do not seek to wear the crown of a king who has no faith in his queen. You can keep it. In fact, give it to Alaria so she thinks of me every time she wears it on her head.”
Their hearts thundered in their chests in sync as the angered words poured out of Matilda’s mouth.
“Don’t be ridiculous, Tilda. I love you! Don’t you see? I’m doing this for you and our child!”
“You’re doing it for yourself!” she snapped.
Luka waved his hand. “I wish not to argue with you another second. The official announcement of the challenge will be made today, and you are expected to concede the challenge before combat commences. Do you understand me?”
Matilda stepped closer to him, leaving no room for confusion. “If you wanted Duchess Alaria Marquis to be your queen, then that’s all you needed to say. Thank you for showing me that you aren’t worthy to fight for.”