CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
Caspen
Caspen stared at the blood on the vial room floor.
He had returned here for reasons he himself did not understand, drawn by some force beyond his control.
He had won the Ranking, yet he did not feel victorious.
Harmony certainly considered him the victor—she had fucked him until he could barely feel his cock.
Caspen had been the one to finally get out of bed, claiming he needed to go hunting.
Instead his feet had led him here. Caspen stared up at the vials, deep in thought.
“It should not have been so close,” a voice came from behind him. Caspen turned to see his father emerging from the darkness.
“You should have won the Ranking by a landslide,” Bastian continued. “Instead you are barely ahead of someone who did not participate in one of the challenges.”
“What is done is done, Father. I won. That should be enough.”
Bastian shook his head. Caspen knew he did not agree. For his father, nothing would ever be enough.
“The Senecas from the sea supported Kronos. They gave him an advantage. Already, they gather against us. If we are not careful, they will seek to—”
“Father.” Caspen cut him off. “Look.”
Bastian followed Caspen’s gaze. He frowned. The blood in Kronos’s vial was rising. They both stood in stunned silence as it rose higher and higher, surpassing the blood in Caspen’s and stopping just short of Bastian’s.
“That cannot be,” Bastian whispered.
The blood in the vials should not be moving; the results of the Ranking were supposed to be final.
The only change would occur when the prince chose his wife and the blood of the corresponding basilisk turned black.
That was the final step in the process—the last thing that would solidify who would be first in line for the throne should Kora choose to pass on the power.
“How can his rank rise?” Caspen asked in disbelief.
“He has done something to garner power.”
“But what?”
Bastian shook his head. “I do not know. I have never seen such a thing before.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke. Caspen’s heart hammered in his chest.
“Caspenon,” his father said quietly. “It is time you understood something about our family.”
Caspen blinked. The segue made no sense to him. “What is it, Father?”
Bastian drew a deep breath before turning to face him. “You know your mother and I are bound by blood.”
Horrible dread filled Caspen’s stomach. “I do.”
A weighted silence followed. Was his father about to ask him whether Deltene had been unfaithful? Caspen did not know how to respond. He could not lie, yet he had to protect his mother. Before he could come up with a plan, his father said, “Our bond is about to be broken.”
Caspen allowed his shock to show on his face. “How can you know that?”
Bastian let out a harsh, pained laugh. “Anyone in my position would know. The woman I love is in love with someone else.”
Caspen shook his head. “Why are you telling me this?”
“I am telling you this because when your mother inevitably sleeps with Solomon and breaks our bond, I will lose the thing that has guaranteed my position.”
The blood bond had kept his father strong—it earned him the privilege of being Serpent King, and it had helped him retain the throne for decades.
“Kora will pass the power when it breaks.” Bastian pointed at the vials. “And I will not see it go to a Seneca.”
“That is why you called for the Ranking,” Caspen said in epiphany. “To guarantee I would be first in line when she breaks the bond.”
Bastian said nothing.
It was confirmation enough for Caspen. “You knew,” he whispered. “All this time, you knew she was unfaithful.”
“Of course I knew,” Bastian snapped. “I have known for years.”
Years.
Time moved differently for the basilisks—years to them were minutes to humans.
But Caspen had not anticipated that his father already knew.
All this time, he had worried. He had lost sleep; he had been in agony keeping a secret that was not a secret at all.
Now he understood why his father had been so cavalier with his lovers, why he flaunted his affairs and did not cherish the blood bond.
He had known that Deltene’s heart lay elsewhere.
“Does she know you know?”
“She does not.”
Caspen could not believe what he was hearing. “So you do this? You call for the Ranking—you put pressure on me—instead of talking to her?”
“Her heart lies elsewhere,” Bastian yelled.
“You, my dear son, have never been in love. Your infatuation with Harmony is shallow—a lie. You do not understand what it means to give your soul to someone and have them destroy it in return. You may never understand. For years you have ranked first, and for years Kora has refused to pass power to you. Do you not question why? Do you not wonder why she thinks you an unworthy successor?”
Caspen had assumed that his father had retained power because of the strength of his blood bond with Deltene. It had never occurred to him that he himself was part of the reason Kora had chosen not to pass it on.
“The moment your mother sleeps with Solomon,” Bastian continued, his words rushed and sharp, “I will lose the power that has preserved my position for so long. Kora will make the next highest-ranked basilisk Serpent King. If your girl does not win”—he jabbed his fingers at the vials again—“if that Seneca is first, the power will go to him.”
Of course. Everything made sense now. The reason his father had been so agitated lately—the reason he had asked Caspen to do the unthinkable: to crest another basilisk.
He was desperate. At any moment, Deltene could break the bond.
And at that moment, Kora could choose to pass the power to the highest-ranked basilisk: Kronos.
“Your girl was supposed to win,” Bastian said slowly, his tone barely under control. “Your girls always win.”
Caspen closed his eyes. Not this time. His father had made a bad bet—he had assumed things would continue on as they had been. Instead Kronos’s student had stolen the heart of the prince, and Caspen’s rank had suffered.
“You do not know what Kora will do,” Caspen said. “She may not pass the power. You may remain king.”
His father scoffed. “Why should I? My bond with Deltene will be broken.”
“You do not know whether Kora—”
“Do not speak for Kora,” Bastian snapped.
“I only mean to say that—”
“I do not care what you mean to say, Caspenon. You know nothing about what it takes to be king. And now, it is possible that you never will.”
Finally, Caspen fell silent. He had never seen his father this way.
“It is only a matter of time,” Bastian whispered. “You must prepare yourself.”
Caspen shook his head. It was too much to process. “If you know Mother’s heart lies elsewhere,” he said quietly, “then you also know you will have to kill her.”
Rather than eliciting sadness, his words seemed to anger Bastian further. “Of course I know that,” he snapped.
Caspen crossed his arms. “Does it not bother you?”
“I have no choice. It is a curse for a reason.”
“The chivalrous thing to do would be to kill yourself in her stead.”
“You think I should kill myself for her?” Bastian cried. “Why should I do such a thing? She loves another—she is unfaithful. She does not deserve my mercy.”
“You must tell her you know, Father. It is the right thing to do.”
“Do not speak to me about right and wrong.”
“Her life is in your hands. You must—”
“Her life is in her own hands,” Bastian said sharply. “And she has chosen to be careless with it. I must do nothing.”
“She deserves a warning at the very least.”
His father shook his head. “And where was my warning? She has not confided in me either, Son. My actions are no worse than hers. She does not deserve the courtesy of a warning.”
Caspen was too shocked to speak. This was beyond rationality. He had always known that his father was a bitter, cruel man. But even this went too far. This was wrong.
Before Caspen could decide how to proceed, Apollo appeared.
“Father,” he said. “There you are. I was—”
Bastian whirled on his other son. “And you,” he snapped. “Yet another weak link in this family.”
Apollo stopped in his tracks, a frown creasing his forehead. “I beg your pardon?”
“How is it that I have raised sons who are incapable of doing what must be done?”
“What are you referring to?” Apollo said blankly.
Bastian’s eyes narrowed. “I am referring to the stain upon you both. I am referring to the person you refuse to cut ties with. I am referring to her.”
Harmony.
Apollo’s eyes slid to Caspen’s as his voice entered his mind:
What is the meaning of this?
Wordlessly, Caspen pointed at Kronos’s vial.
Apollo’s eyes widened. “How can that be?” he whispered.
“It does not matter how it came to be,” Bastian said. “All that matters is that the Drakons are no longer first in line for the throne.”
“The prince has yet to choose a wife,” Apollo said. “He may choose Caspenon’s girl.”
“And if he does not?”
Apollo opened his mouth, then shut it.
“Kora will pass the power to Kronos,” Bastian said. “And the Drakon rule will be over.”
“You do not know if Kora will—”
“I will kill him before I allow him to be king,” Bastian yelled.
Apollo glanced at Caspen in bewilderment, who looked pointedly at the floor.
“I…do not understand what this has to do with Harmony,” he said tentatively.
“She weakens you both,” Bastian said. “Your priority will never be the throne as long as she is in your lives.”
“We owe her everything,” Caspen said quietly. “You know this.”
“I know you are weak.” Bastian spat the word out as if it were poison.
Silence fell. Caspen could feel Apollo pushing against his mind, but he did not let him in.
Could it be true? Was his connection to Harmony making him weak?
For years you have ranked first, and for years Kora has refused to pass power to you.
Do you not question why? He was right; it was strange that Bastian had retained the kingship for so long.
Even with the blood bond, it should have been passed to Caspen by now.
But that did not mean he could end things with Harmony.
She had a hold on him; he could not let her go.
Even if he wished he could.
“The next time I give you an order,” Bastian whispered with terrifying finality. “I expect you to obey it.”
Apollo’s frown deepened. “What do you mean?”
“You will both end your dalliance with Harmony,” he growled. “Or I will end it for you.”
With that, their father swept away. Apollo turned to Caspen immediately.
“What the hell has gotten into him?”
Caspen just shook his head. As the eldest, it was Caspen’s job to shield Apollo from such matters. He could not tell Apollo the full extent of their father’s mania; he did not want to worry his brother. Instead he turned to leave.
“Where are you going?”
Caspen did not slow down, did not turn back.
“To do what needs to be done.”