26. Twenty Six
Waking up to sore muscles and bite marks scattered across my body isn”t something I”m familiar with, but I can”t say it”s a terrible feeling. But waking up that way with an empty bed, the other side so cold it”s clear he”s been gone for hours? That does feel horrible.
A light green dress is draped across the foot of the bed, along with a note and a pair of shoes.
In the library.
Take your time getting out of bed.
Or stay within it.
I”ll return to it and you as soon as I am able.
While it is tempting tosimplystay in the warmth here,there is still workto be done.
Why would he be in the library?None of ourmeetings havebeenthere thus far.
After dressing and using the cream Raya has taught me to slather on my hair, Imake my way downthere, wondering if the great hall and dining rooms have been compromised.Guards follow two steps behind me, andfor once,I”m grateful for their presence.Finally, I”m starting to feel safer with the myriadofcorpses around after that mess with the Syren Queen. If only they had been there when— no, we aren”t getting into that. I need to finish what I”m here for, and then I can process what I went through. Once there”s time.
The doors to the giant library open, and I expect to see everyone, but onlythe king sits there, alone, aside from the haphazard stacks of paper and discarded coffee cups around him. It”s clear he hasn”t slept at all.The bruises under his eyes worse than they”ve ever been, his beard unruly in a way I”ve never seenitbefore, the whites of his eyes bloodshot.
”Good morning,” he says without any feeling behind it. ”Did you sleep well?”
His strange, cold demeanor reminds me of when I first arrived, the aloof king once again trying to portray a calmness that I can tell even from here he doesn”t feel.
Tumultuous is the best word I can think of to describe what”s happening under the surface. Trepidation, resolution, anger, and even acceptance. And an undercurrent of possession and need that gives me goosebumps.
”Where is everyone?” I ask, fiddling with my fingers.
”Gone,” he tells me, rifling through the papers before him to avoid eye contact.
What?”What do you mean they”re gone?”
”They”ve begun their journeys back home,”he finally looks at me. ”We finished negotiations this morning.”
”Excuse me? How could you have done that without me? What about my country? My people?”Heat crawls up my spine, and the rage growing inside me is ready to boil over.
”I agreed to everything your people asked for,”he answers, finally looking at me with something akin to guilt crawling into his face.
”Everything?”
”Everything. And once I made that decision, everything else was done within an hour, agreed upon, and signed on seven copies for seven countries,”he explains.
”But I wasn”t there to sign. How did you—”That sticky, horrid feeling creeps up insidehimagain, tempered with a righteousness that makes me sick to think of what he”s not telling me. ”What did you do, Kairon?”
He rubs his eyes with the thumb and forefinger of one hand. ”I did what I had to.”
Fear grips me. ”What did you do?”
He clears his throat, putting down the papers. ”I sent Rhyma”s copy with a runner—a Zalig who can make it to Drechire in less than an hour.”
”But it doesn”t have my signature, so how could you have?”My whole body goes cold. ”Please tell me you did not forge my signature rather than just wake me?”
”No, my Elva, Ididn”t.”
”Then tell me what you did,”I order, seconds away from using my abilities to make him.
”As I said, I agreed to every single thing they proposed. The usage of my armies should they need them, the trade routes, the taxes for imports and exports, the—”
I cut him off, ”In exchange for what?”
”All I requested in return was you,”he admits.
”Me?”I scoff. ”There”s no way they will ever agree to that.”
Sorrow and sympathy bleed into him, and he sighs. ”Elva.”
”No,”I say again, my voice wobbling around the lump growing in my throat. ”They wouldn”t do that to me. Wouldn”t just trade me like a pawn to some fucking man in another country.”
He stares intently at me, his visage blurring through the liquid pooling in my eyes. ”My runner returned 30 minutes ago, Elva. It”s done.”
”No,”I say again, a tear running down my face as I think of how little I must mean to a country I”ve given everything for. ”You can”t— they can”t. How could they do this to me?”
Ever the strategist, he stays outwardly perfectly calm. ”In their defense, it was a good deal. They got everything they wanted from me and guaranteed peace between all of our countries besides that. All they had to do was let me keep you.”
”Keep me? What do you mean keep me?”I nearly shout. The king only continues staring at me, his ice-cold facade firmly in place. ”Like I”m a fucking pet?”
The mask slips, a small smile twisting his deceitfully perfect mouth. ”If that”s how you”d like to see it, I”m sure I could find you a collar around here somewhere.”
My voice shakes. ”This is not the time for your taunting and flirting, Your Majesty.”The honorific hardens whatever humor he finds in the situation. ”This is my life we are talking about. My future. Everything I”ve worked for. And you”re willing to take it all away from me? After everything?”
”It doesn”t matter.”He clears his throat. ”It”s done. Be as dramatic as you like, but this is your home now.”
All the fight has bled out of me, his resolve far more than I can stand a chance against. Feeling entirely defeated, I let the tears fall, a final plea and sob crushing my chest. ”You can”t do this to me.”
”You can”t see it now, my Elva, but this is for you,”he runs a hand through his hair, the nervous gesture wholly familiar now that I”ve watched the motion countless times.
”For me? Please,”I scoff. ”This is for you! You have full ownership of me now, no longer at risk of starting a war if something should happen to me. You could end me right this second and walk away victorious, still. We can end this charade of... whatever we”ve been doing. You can continue ruling just as you always have, and I”ll just be the dead girl you forget all about. A means to an end.”
Finally, he snaps, slamming his coffee on the table and shattering the glass. ”That”s enough.”
”You”re right!”I shout. ”It is enough. Ever since I arrived, you”ve taken my choices from me. And I”ve had enough. So either kill me now, or I will make you wish you had.”
He smiles sinisterly, tauntingly, as he stands. ”Oh, my sweet Elva.”As he rounds the desk in our shared living space, Ifind myselfbacking up against my will. ”Threatening me is not going to get you the reaction you”re hoping for.”
As I take another step back, he stalks forward, and I can feel myself being cornered, literally and metaphorically.His scent and emotions surround me, making me dizzy as his desire,hislonging, andhisfear radiate out from his chest, along with hisown anger and hisguilt, whether he”s willing to admit it or not.
”Do you think that your ire bothers me? Or that it angers me? Do you truly believe that I find your fury to be anything other than intoxicating?”His words are a confession, but his tone is one of the cruelest taunts. ”I crave your rage. I could drown in it, drown in you, and die happily.”
So distracted by his wicked tongue, I suddenly find myself trapped between him and the wall behind me, stuck in his gaze as he stares down at me. Unable to speak, I remain silent lest I reveal how affected I am.
His eyes dart to my mouth for only the most infinitesimal moment, but Ifeel that split second in every inch of my body. There”s no denying how taken I am by him any longer. The sigh that escapes me gives me away even as tearscontinue tostream down my cheeks.
”So come on, my sweet. Let me drown in you. Let me feel your fury as you fall apart around me again. You can scream how you hate me while your body bends and breaks for me,”he taunts, lips only inches from mine.
”No.”The word escapes me before I give it permission, livid that he”s trying to use seduction to distract me from this despicable thing he”s done.
”No?”
”No,”I repeat vehemently, shoving him away, though it pains me immenselyto do so. ”I won”t give myself to someone who takes my choices from me.”
He searches my face, looking and feeling as broken as I am. It”s the most plainly I”ve ever seen his emotions written across his face, and I almost want to take back what I”ve said. But I can”t. Wouldn”t even if I could.
”I understand.”He takes a step back, and I finally feel like I can breathe. ”You should get some more rest. I”ll fetch Raya to bring you breakfast.”
I nod, nervous that if I allow myself to speak, I”ll start apologizing.But I have nothing to be sorry for. So why does it hurtso badlyto watchhimstitchhismask of indifference back together?
As he exits the room, he leaves me with one last message. ”Your safety is still guaranteed. As part of the agreement I wrote, your death would still mean war for my kingdom. I”ll not let anyone harm you and get away with it, Elva, and I ensured your entire country knows it.”
His words stick with me the rest of the morning. I ensured your entire country knows it. What does that mean? Why would my country”s opinion matter ifI”mnever going back there?
As I stew, I realizethat Idid what I set out to do here. I led the peace talks. Imanaged to persuadethe feared Horned King to sign a trade and peace agreement with Rhyma. I accomplished what no one before me has done.
And yet, I feel like shit. Even if my safety is promised, my happiness is not.What could Ipossiblydo here to find fulfillment?
I could fulfill my promise to make him regret not killing me.
I glance at the stack of papers he left on the desk, the stack he”sclearlybeen working on for days betweenall ofour meetings.
I could even start right now.
He won”t be coming back for a while, at least, after our little disagreement.
That arrogant ass, using his gorgeous mouth and overwhelming body to distract me from how fucking pissed I was. Am.
Just a quick peek.
Two hours and nothing to show for it. The only thing I”ve found that has anything to do with me is a handful of letters from my colleagues and myself, discussing when I would be arriving and what to expect. He even has the dead messengers” letters crumpled and straightened out again until they”re legible.
Coffee rings litter the papers, proof ofjusthow long Kairon has been looking over these same letters.
Finally, I find one that Idon”trecognizeat all.It looks just the same as the rest that came from Rhyma,other than beingcautiously signed without a name.It entails my travel itinerary, a brief description, and some mention of a drawn rendering.
The wording is strange, though. So many words are misspelled thatit”simpossible this person didn”t notice. It”s also impossible that our leaders would have accepted this being sent to any country, much less this one, with all its flaws.
The guards in the corner of the room have let me rifle through all these letters and notes and scribbles, not even stepping in to warn me against it. But this paper makes me wish they had, rather than letting me stumble upon what this strange letter might contain.
I sit on the desk, clearing everythingelse off ofit, grabbing a nearby charcoal to underline the misspelled words and keep track of the excess, missing, and misplaced letters.
F W L H A E H N N T I H I E U G G I N R A L S D K I O E T S I A L
N P D S W L A L R I I W S A O M V Y E H R R F D A N S A T D I
Within a few minutes of me starting to take notes on a blank paper and organizing the letters, Kairon walks through the doors, pausing at the entryway with nothing more than mere annoyance as he sees the mess I”ve made of his papers. ”What have you been doing?”
”What were you looking for?”I ask, knowing exactly what proof he was after but needing him to tell me anyway.
”Elva,”he laughs, teasing me to distract me from the truth I”m moments away from seeing, ”I know I promised your safety, but must you taunt mesoby going through my private things?”
I scoff, ”These are mostly just my letters to Shan. Mine and a couple of my colleagues. But you”ve been searching for whoever sent the assassin and had Shan on their side, so why is this what you”ve been looking at?”
”My Elva,”he starts again, and I ask the question louder.
”Why?”
”Ican”t tell you,”he finally says, resilience making him staunch.
”For strategic reasons? Or personal ones?”
”Yes,” he answers. ”Both.”
”I could make you tell me.”I raise a brow in challenge. ”Just a little push and you”d tell me anything I want to know.”
One side of his lips lifts in a smirk. ”I know that, sweet Elva. But youwon”t.”
”Why wouldn”t I?”I ask.
”Because no one likes hiding from the truth more than you.”His smile turns sad. ”The proof has been right in front of you all along, and you”ve chosen not to see it.”
”That”s not fair,” I tell him. ”I”ve only just found these.”
”You did not need all of this to know who is responsible for the attacks against you.”
I scoff, ”You”re operating on the assumption that everyone is as dastardly as you.”
With a laugh,he sits beside me, twirling my hair in his fingers and making my head spin.”Darling girl, no one is as dastardly as me. I would have succeeded where they did not.”
”That”s very comforting, thank you.”Sarcasm drips from my tongue. He has no right to be so charming when I”m still so furious.
”It should be.”He fingers my blonde curls again. ”You have the worst villain of them all on your side.”
Slapping his hand away, I argue, ”You are not on my side. You are on your own side, and I am nothing more than a prisoner in this war you”re fighting against an invisible foe. We got nothing from Shan, his mind too shredded by the spell controlling him.”
Shoulders drooped in defeat, Kairon slumps into his chair. ”Invisible foe? You”re looking at the proof right now and still don”t believe it. What is this letter? I hadn”t even noticed this one.”
”Proof? All this is, is evidence that you keep very thorough but very disorganized records of missives sent and that someone from home doesn”t know how to spell. They even got my name wrong.”My heart rate climbs, knowingthat Iam not ready to hear the truth that I know is coming.
”If it”s just poor letter writing, why are you recording all the misspells? Are you going to run home just to tutor someone in proper spelling?” he teases again.
”I might, just to spite you,”I tell him.
He nearly growls, reaching for my jaw and forcing me to look at him. ”Let me make myself clear, my sweet. If you do something stupid and get yourself killed, I will raze this entire world to rubble. Not a single soul on this earth will be safe from me if you no longer occupy it. Do you understand me?”
I bite my tongue, refusing to answer.
”Answer me,”he orders. ”Tell me you understand the consequences of your demise.”
”I understand,”I finally relent, furious andyet powerless against his touch.
”Good girl,”he speaks against my lips before pressing a chaste kiss to them, one I”m hopeless to deny with the way he brutally grips me. ”Now, let”s solve this riddle so you can see what I already know to be true.”
”And what is that?”I ask, furious at him for thinking he knows so much better than me.
”That your country hired Shan to make sure you die in exchange for the crown.”
”Why would they do that?”I ask. ”Why not just attack if they”re so bloodthirsty for war?”
”They don”t want a war they won”t win, Elva. And they cannot win without the rest of the countries behind them,”he explains. ”The witches won”t fight no matter what, war being the one atrocity they won”t participate in. But Tirriel, Farhan, and Maren would have no choice.”
The truth settles in my chest like a stone. ”The perfect martyr, you said.”He nods, somber, as he searches my face for more rebuttals. ”We don”t know that for sure,”I whisper, searching for any reason not to believe him.
”Of course,”he agrees, placating me. ”Let”s solve this thing, and then we”ll have answers. Perhaps I”m wrong.”
”Idon”t even know where to start,”I confess. ”I”ve never had to decipher a fucking code before.”
He chuckles. ”That”s alright. I have. Many times. I was a warrior before a king, remember?”
”Right.”
He jots down a few common words he sees to narrow it down, separating the letters from the rest: the, and, is, and, will, in, leaving:
F W L H A E H N N I I U G G I N R A L S D K I O E T S I L P S W A R A O M V Y E H R R F A S T D I
”War,”I point at the only obvious word, pretending to be helpful.
”And half? Half of what?”
”Is that last word Fastid?”I ask, my heart dropping.
”Must be,”he mirrors my fear. One kingdom plotting to kill you is enough to fear, but two? Those are impossible odds.
”How could King Colm be in on something like this and me not know?”I ask, considering all the time we”ve spent together over the last weeks, with no hint of betrayal or anything negative at all, really, aside from his blatant misogyny.
”If your country is aware of your abilities, which I”m sure you needed to disclose for your position,”I nod, answering his unasked question, ”then they probably warned him to keep his mind clear of any treachery when you were around. Or spelled him to forget, like Shan.”
Every answer only leads to more mysteries. ”Who is capable of those kinds of spells?”
He shrugs, jotting down the word over, followed by the world split.
”Rhyma,”I say, spotting my own country”s name spelled backward.
Silently, he writes it next to the other words we”ve deciphered. Followed immediately by Oksangui.
W H E N G I R L D I E S
”When girl dies,”I say aloud, the truth I”ve tried to deny becoming plain right before my eyes. ”Not if. When.”
”I am sorry Elva,”Kairon tells me.”If it”s any consolation, I”ve been hoping for weeks I was wrong.”
”It”s not,”I scoff. ”When the girl dies, and war is over, Fastid and Rhyma will split Oksangui in half.”
Kairon runs his hands through his hair. ”Why would Shan be involved in a scheme for Fastid and Rhyma that destroys our kingdom? He wouldn”t gain anything from dissolving Oksangui.”
”And what about the fucking Syrens?”I dig my fingers into my eyes, leaving this puzzle with more questions than answers. ”Why would they go along with it?”
”I”ve no clue, my Elva. But I have some terrible news for you.”He sighs dramatically.
I groan. ”What else?”
He leans in close, whispering in my ear and making mebreak out ingoosebumps, ”Your plots for vengeance against me are just going to have to wait until we demolish our mutual enemies.”
”What?”
”Well, the way I see it, I am the only person standing between you and two kingdoms that want you dead.”He smiles against my skin. ”And as I”ve said, there”s nothing I won”t do to keep you safe. If after that, you still want to kill me for the part I”ve played, I will relish the challenge. Even coated in my own blood from your attempts on my life, I”ll still happily come to you and make you scream with unimaginable pleasure every single night until you succeed.”
”Kairon—”
”Yes, my Elva,” he purrs.
I push him away. ”I will not play these games with—”
”Stop,”he says suddenly, pushing away from the table so quickly I nearly fall over from the force of it. ”Get under the table and say nothing.”
My instinct is to ask him what”s happening, but before I can, his palm lands on my mouth, a flood of nerves, confusion, and rage flowing from him into me. His eyes are pleading, so I nod and do as he says, crawling underneath our workspace and making myself as small as possible.
A guard runs into the room, and from my vantage point, all I can see is Kairon”s legs as he wraps his cloak around them, presumably wearing his helm as well. He sits in one of the chairs, sending the other with a guard to set on the other side of the library.
His posture isentirely wrong,too relaxed and calm, with one ankle over the opposite knee.This false languidness he”s portraying makes me terrified to see who or what is about to walk through those doors.
The squeak of the doors swinging open is accompanied by a voice I had hoped never to hear again. Even in my nightmares, I am fortunateenoughto wake beforeshespeaks to me.
”Your Majesty,”the Syren Queen pants, sounding as if she”s just runall the wayhere.
”Valta,”the king drawls. ”How brave of you to show up here. You must know I”m going to kill you for daring to walk through those doors after threatening one of my guests.”
”Your pet was going to be just fine,”the queen spits, and the king”s rage grows, his protectiveness washing over me like scalding bath water. ”All you had to do was tell me what you were doing to find my Vanya. Where is she now, by the way? I”d very much like to apologize.”
Kairon tenses. ”She”s gone. Probably home by now.”
”Lying to me again, Your Majesty.”Valta”s foot stomps, the sloshing sound reaching my ears.
”I have not once lied to you.”The king”s foot bounces with impatience. ”I do not take kindly to threats or accusations, Valta. Why should I let you live now?”
”I have proof of your lies, Horned Devil,”she bites.
”Then provide them.”
The snap of her fingers fills the air, followed by footsteps and the sound of something heavy and wet being dragged across the floor.
”What is that supposed to be?”Kairon asks, disgust in his voice.
”That,”Valta replies, ”is your right-hand man that you claimed was searching for my Vanya all this time.”
If Kairon is surprised, he doesn”t show it, and his emotions don”t change at all.
”Where was he found?”
After a pause, the queen ignores his question. ”So you won”t even deny that you”re behind this.”
His hand slams against the table, and I have to cover my mouth so as not to scream from the startling impact. ”Where. Was. He. Found.”
”My scouts found him impaled off the cliffs of Rhyma,”she finally admits.
”When?”
”Two nights ago,”the queen answers again.
The king sighs, and I can almost picture him rubbing his eyes with his thumb and fingers now if he could.
”Why did you not come to me sooner?”His voice is quiet and defeated.
She scoffs, ”Does it matter? If you must know, it took my people two days to remove him from the rocks that killed him and bring him to me. I came here straight away.”
”You came here to accuse me of killing my closest confidante? What makes you think I won”t do the same to you?”Ice floods my veins at the thought of having to witness Kairon killing the Syren Queen.
Silence.
The king taps his foot, confusion, rage, and even a pained, guilt-ridden grief, unlike anything I”ve felt before, fueling his need for vengeance. But in the end, this is an ally we currently cannot continue without, and even Kairon knows that. ”I did not do this,”he plainly admits. ”I have someone that looks and acts just like him downstairs, now dead.”
”What?”Valta squeaks out. ”Then how—”
The king sighs dramatically, acting as if he”s completely put out by offering her this forgiveness. ”I am willing to overlook your lack of judgment when it comes to attacking Elva. You were frantic and out of your mind, missing your child.”
Suspicion becomes evident in the queen”s voice. ”Yes?”She waits for the king to continue.
”And to prove that our alliance is still as strong as ever, I will offer you a way to possibly find the answers you seek. There are two Syrens in a cell below us; one is very much alive.”Silently, I note that he doesn”t mention the third one he killed during the attack.
”And the other?”
”Dead, by the aforementioned Syren”s hand.”
An audible gasp escapes her, followed by a sniffle as she attempts to hold back tears. The king continues, ”I would be willing to allow you to take her, with no more harm done by me, under the condition that no one finds out about Shan”s double. And if you ever dare to harm a single hair on Elva”s head, I will filet you where you stand, followed by sending every corpse lost to the ocean to kill your entire species. Are we clear?”
”Yes, Your Majesty.”She sniffles again. ”Thank you, Your Majesty.”
The king dismisses her coldly, ”Get out. Your subject will be on the shore waiting for you by the time you arrive there.”
Without another word, her sloshing steps begin, getting quieter the further she flees from the king”s presence.
”You can come out now.”Kairon sighs, moving from the chair and helping me up from my hiding spot.
I clamber out, looking around until I spot the unrecognizable lump of discolored, bloodless flesh.
”Is that...”I can”t finish asking the question.
”That is Shan,”he answers. ”I could feel him the second they entered the castle.”
”If that”s Shan, then who did we...”The unasked question lingers in the air.
”I don”t know,”the king answers.
”And what happened to him?”
He sighs, my exhaustion mirrored in him. ”Don”t know that, either. And, unfortunately for you, there”s only one way to find out.”
The corpse before us slowly starts to move, just a few broken fingers at a time, then his arms, both bent at wrong angles and full of holes from the rocks. It clambers upright until the decrepit corpseis sitting, one eye and one empty socket staring up at us.
The world around me starts spinning, the vision in front of me too horrid, too vile, with his water-logged intestines spilling out onto the floor. My stomach churns, my eyes water, and I blink repeatedly to remain focused.
”My king,”Shan greets Kairon before looking at me. ”Elva. What”s wrong?”
Before Kairon can answer, the last thing I see is the ceiling as a woosh of air comes up to greet me, and my world goes dark.