Chapter 29
An Unexpected Stop
Besides that beautiful saffron-colored snake that was slithering in the jungle, I hadn’t encountered another serpent during the long trek to the Emerald Palace.
I glanced behind me at my lady-in-waiting, who still looked like she was about to jump out of her skin at the mere snap of a tree branch.
I had half a mind to join in on her nervous antics after what happened earlier.
It was so odd, how the roots physically moved.
My curious gaze swept across the darkening forest, wondering what magic lurked within its cool shadows. You’d think the Serpent King would have briefed his queen on what dangers to prepare for in The Emerald Glades, but, of course, everything he did was for show.
It didn’t matter that he’d saved me only hours ago, he didn’t truly care about me. He needed me to save his own powers—nothing more.
The king abruptly stopped, raising a hand to signal for us to also halt.
“Why are we stopping?” I asked, glancing side to side.
I found nothing out of the ordinary, just the soft chirping of birds fluttering past. I folded my arms across my chest, huffing with irritation. I was exhausted, filthy, and had nearly died today. The last thing I wanted to deal with was any more of the Serpent King’s games.
I stole a furious glance at the menace next to me, feeling a fresh wave of irritation at the sight of his immaculately straight nose.
How many times did I need to strike him for it to stay crooked?
If only he didn’t possess the gift of immortal healing, then I’d be able to stare at the damage I’d inflicted on him with pride.
Instead, I was left to stare at his perfect face . . .
He might have said he was not a god yet, but he sure looked like one.
The king didn’t deign to respond to my question, beyond raising his hand and pointing to a yellow sign that was nailed to a nearby tree that read: Snake Crossing.
My brows tugged inward, my gaze dropping to the ground in search of any snakes, yet none slithered along the dirt pathway.
“I’ve had enough of your games. We haven’t seen a single serpent in the hours we have traversed through this realm.” I huffed again, prompting the king to finally tilt his head to glance at me.
His eyebrow arched at the tone I used with him, but I could give a serpent’s tail if he was bothered by me. The feeling was mutual.
I glared back at him, prepared to continue onward regardless of what the menace instructed.
However, my foot stilled mid-step when I felt the ground beneath me start to tremble. Panic pinched my gut as my eyes shot skyward, looking for any broken branches hoping to strike me down for good—but there was nothing beyond swaying monkeys drifting high above.
A rustling sound pulled my attention to the tops of the trees, but this time to my left.
The leaves atop the canopy shook with such a strong intensity I worried the entire forest was about to topple and crush us all. The crack of a whip split through the air, making me jump back just in nick of time as the largest snake I’d ever seen darted before us.
It must have been at least fifty feet tall and just as wide, its gorgeous golden body gleaming with emerald scales as the sunlight streamed down upon it.
I couldn’t tear my gaze from the magnificent creature as it continued to slither past us.
I glanced to the very top of the beast, catching a flash of something on its back . . . no, not something.
Someone.
Rather, it was a group of people straddling the snake as if they were casually riding a horse on a nice summer day.
The men wore no shirts, leaving the dark ink swirling across their deep brown skin clear for any onlooker to see.
The women were barely clothed as well, only small bits of emerald leather scraps clung to cover their most intimate parts.
Gold weathered bands were tied around all of their foreheads, each person holding a variety of weapons that ranged from spears, to swords, and even some crossbows.
One of the men glanced down at the king, bowing his head deeply as their eyes met. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught the king offering him a kind smile in return as he nodded back at the man.
How peculiar.
It seemed these people respected the Serpent King—and vice versa.
What a bizarre notion.
Lost in my thoughts, I only caught the last glimpses of the serpent before its tail flicked at us with one final splitting sound. Then, we were left with only the faraway sounds of the birds chattering once more.
“Now, we may proceed onward.” The Serpent King started down the dirt road, acting as if this realm was as familiar to any of us as it was to him.
My feet remained planted to the ground, shock and . . . what was that other emotion? It felt like what I experienced earlier, when I saw the sloth gliding in the trees.
Was I truly feeling a sense of wonder and awe?
The bargain must be weakening further for so many uncanny emotions to return to me . . .
Could that be why the Serpent King’s portal shot us out hours away from our intended destination?
It made sense, for why else would he force himself to trek through the jungle with people he could barely tolerate. Stealing a glance at the king, I noticed how his normally pale complexion was ashier, like how one appeared after falling ill.
As if sensing my scrutinizing stare, he stopped walking, turning to look at me with his arms crossed over his chest. He stared with such an intensity, it felt like he was looking straight into my mind to read my racing thoughts.
I cleared every doubt I had of him losing his magic from my head—just in case. Instead, I replaced my critical stare with a look of shock, letting my mouth slightly part as if to pretend I was still reeling from the gigantic serpent we saw.
He relaxed a little upon seeing my dumbfounded expression, then muttered, “For Serpent’s Sake.
” He spoke up as he said, “Are you all going to stand there with your mouths wide open for the poisonous bugs within these forests to fly straight into? Or can we continue to my mother’s palace now?
” He looked at us like we were sorrowful peasants, shaking his head in disgust before turning on his heel to resume his leisurely trek.
I quickly closed my mouth, turning in time to see Landon and Reena following suit.
I tried to collect all I learned of this new realm as I composed myself once again . . .
First, there were magical growing tree roots that latched onto me, nearly causing me to die.
Then, there was a ginormous snake that could swallow all of us whole.
Lastly, the king informed us of poisonous bugs casually flying about?
The Emerald Glades was very deceiving with its beautiful landscape, considering all the deadly dangers it was home to.
A rattling sound made me gaze toward the forest in search of its source, but it was only my lady-in-waiting’s hands shaking. Her face was white as a sheet, making a pang of what felt like worry crash into me.
Another new feeling . . .
I had no time to dissect the wave of empathy racing through my veins, for Reena seemed moments away from passing out from shock.
Moving quickly, I came beside her to brace a supportive hand on her lower back and help steady her quaking legs.
She jumped as I touched her, swiveling her head to see what monstrous beast was latching its claws around her.
I sniffed the air, smelling her fear before I saw her eyes glaze over with said emotion.
She furiously trembled beneath my hand, and that cursed emotion speared through the void in my chest again.
“Reena, breathe. The snake is gone,” I commanded, knowing the sense of normalcy of me ordering around my lady-in-waiting would help ground her.
She inhaled shallowly, her lips quivering as she blew out a shaky breath. My attention swung to my bodyguard, whose pupils were also blown wide with surprise.
“Landon,” I whispered, making his blue eyes swiftly shoot to mine. “A little help.” I nodded toward Reena, gesturing for him to grab her from her other side.
His eyes cleared upon hearing my command, and he quickly moved to Reena’s right, offering his arm to steady her. She glanced at his extended arm with wide eyes, but accepted it with her trembling hands.
With my hand supporting Reena from fainting backwards and Landon preventing her from falling forwards, we all continued onward at a far slower pace.
Reena shuffled her feet in the dirt, constantly looking around for any danger lurking in the forest. For my lady-in-waiting’s sake, I hoped she could remain upright and make it the rest of the way to the palace.
Considering she most definitely knew the alternative would be to summon that beastly serpent to carry her the rest of the way, I knew she would push through.
Reena was stronger than most people I knew. She had to be in order to succeed at being the Serpent Queen’s lady-in-waiting.
As I glanced at her, I caught my bodyguard’s eye, who was also checking on Reena.
There were no lingering traces of anger in his eyes from our previous argument.
My lips curved into a small smile, the best I could offer to let him know I appreciated all he did for me today.
He cast a sad smile back at me, all too used to my lack of appreciation.
I wished he realized I was trying, in my own way.
For me, a smile was not something I willingly dished out to many people—if any.
In fact, I couldn’t remember the last time I smiled and meant it . . .
My gaze dropped from his as I sank into a new fit of pity, this time aimed at myself and not my lady-in-waiting. I kicked a small rock to expel some of the emotions gathering at the back of my throat.
It felt like I was tirelessly working to swallow my newfound emotions, along with any thoughts about how my life might’ve turned out under different circumstances. Yet, this life of torture and misery—of ruling and leading by fear—was the life I chose, and I had to stand by my decision.
After being devoid of a moral compass for decades, I’ve completely lost myself within the darkness, and there was no turning back.
I reveled in inflicting pain on others.
I craved the smell of their fear as I carved my dagger deep into their skin.
I preferred their tortured screams over the sound of laughter.
I was who I was always meant to be.