Chapter Thirty-Four #2
Before anyone else can say anything, the vehicle pulls up in front of a lavish palace, and it’s at least the size of the one I now reside in.
Steps lead up to double doors with guards standing on either side who are also fully armed.
Neither of them move a muscle as the vehicle comes to a stop and the driver jumps out and opens the door for us.
We climb out, and once again, we find ourselves surrounded by the rest of Titus’s team, who have piled out of the other vehicles.
“Is this all really necessary?” I ask, waving my hand at them. “We came along peacefully.” I narrow my eyes on the assassin. “And if you know what creature I am, you know I could have shifted and killed every one of you within seconds.”
“But could you have? You are still new to all this, and I’m sure you haven’t had a lot of opportunities to practice shifting.
We could have put bullets through all of you in the time it would have taken you to change.
” He stares at me, his gaze calculating, and I have the urge to rip that fucking mask off his face so I can see it.
“Maybe, but I guess we will never know,” I taunt him.
“Unless you’re scared that you don’t actually have a chance against us, which is why you need all of this backup.
The great Chaos assassin is scared of a bunch of shifters and their new, inexperienced queen.
” I smile widely, and his body stiffens as he clenches his fists.
Typical male. Have a go at their skills, and their pride overshadows any common sense.
He waves a hand, and his team stops in their tracks.
“But, sir,” one of the females starts to argue.
His head swings toward her, tearing his gaze from me, and she blanches at whatever she sees.
Nobody says another word, and they make themselves scarce.
I’m sure there is a barracks around here somewhere just like at the palace in Aramis.
“Come,” he snaps, and the two guards open the double doors as he approaches, giving him a head nod as he passes. Titus doesn’t even wait to see if we follow, and the seven of us exchange a glance.
“We could make a run for it now. I could shift and fly us out of here,” Hunter suggests, but I shake my head.
“No, let’s just get this over with so we can find Nox.
The last thing we need is to have to avoid the Chaos king’s assassins and guards while we look for him, and I don’t doubt he’d send them after us if we ran.
He obviously knew we were coming, and it won’t hurt for me to meet him,” I reply quietly.
“I agree,” Gryffin says, his eyes staying on the assassin’s back. “My father trusts him, so I say we do too. Dad is rarely wrong.”
“How does he explain his council then?” Liam says dryly.
“Inexperienced and the shock of being the shifter king,” Gryffin growls at his teammate.
“Fair,” Brodie agrees as we follow the assassin into the palace.
Unlike the shifter palace, there are people everywhere in this one.
We pass many parlors filled with beautiful people who are talking and laughing, drinks in hand.
None of them pay any attention to us. Staff members dressed in uniforms stop and move aside whenever they see the assassin approaching, their eyes wary and postures tense.
“Not winning any friends here, are you?” I call out, trying to get a rise out of him, annoyed at how blasé this man is. He doesn’t consider us a threat at all, and that has my creatures gnashing their teeth, wanting to bite him just to prove they can.
We pass a fountain that makes me pause.
“Now that is much nicer than the abomination in the front of the Aramis castle,” Gem says, stopping with me.
It’s of four ladies, all with their backs to each other in a circle.
Each one is slightly different. One has fangs, talons for nails, and almond-shaped eyes, while another has wings coming from her back.
A third has a book and a potion bottle in her hand, and I recognize the final one, except she has clawed fingers, her eyes have elongated pupils, and she has the tail of a wolf.
“That’s Aramis.” I point her out to Gem. “Or I think it is. She didn’t have those animal features when I saw her.”
“The others are Eryx, Shayla, and Tanith.” He points to each of them. “The four goddesses of the realms. It seems the Chaos Kingdom reveres all four. It’s not surprising, since they don’t have one of their own and they allow all manner of people to reside here. It makes sense, to be honest.”
We move on, winding through a myriad of corridors. There are so many that I feel completely turned around, but Micah hums his approval.
“This setup is genius,” he mutters to us.
“What do you mean?” Gem asks just as quietly.
“This is designed to cause confusion for any intruders who may try to breach the palace walls. They would end up turned around and lost on their way to what I’m assuming is the throne room in the middle of the building.”
“Very good, Captain,” Titus calls back with approval in his tone.
“I bet they have secret passageways with a more direct route for anyone in the king’s trusted circle,” Hunter murmurs under his breath barely loud enough for us to hear, let alone Titus, but he does.
“It is a good theory,” he says flippantly as we approach another set of double doors with guards standing on either side. They push them open without a word from the male, and he doesn’t even slow in his pace.
What I thought was going to be an extravagant throne or ballroom actually looks more like cozy, comfortable, yet spacious living quarters.
There are sumptuous couches scattered around the room in bright jewel colors.
A large bookcase with a fireplace built into it lines one wall, and a huge skylight overhead shows the rapidly darkening night sky, the stars beginning to appear.
A blond man reclines on the couch, looking up as we enter, and a huge smile crosses his face when his lavender eyes meet mine. I can’t stop the gasp that leaves my mouth at the sight of him. Apart from his blond hair, it’s like looking at a slightly older, more masculine version of me.
“Holy shit, do you have a twin?” Brodie exclaims as the man and I stare at each other, his expression full of hope.