Chapter 43 The Dance Of The Queens
The Dance Of The Queens
For the first time in decades, I didn’t dream.
Perhaps, it was because I lived out all my dreams last night with the Serpent King.
“What are you thinking of that has you smiling like that?” My lady-in-waiting nudged me in the ribs, causing my small grin to slip off my face.
“Nothing.” I threw my best glare at Reena hoping it would silence her, but alas, it seemed my lady-in-waiting had grown far less fearful of me in the course of only a few days.
“You are so thinking about him, aren’t you?! What did you two get up to last night after you ran off?” Her grey eyes were wide, full of curiosity.
“None of your business, Reena. Now, enough with the questions. I’m running late for my fitting as it is.”
We came to two hallways, the white and gold marble tiles sparkling down both directions.
“Which way to Adalina’s chambers?” I asked, wishing anyone but her was hosting my appointment today.
Earlier this morning, I received a letter to meet the god in her chambers for a private fitting to dress me in proper winter attire. Although I knew the realm the Ice Goddess lived in was known for its frost and crystals, my mood instantly soured when I saw Adalina personally signed the invitation.
It was almost as if any moment of happiness I grasped was bound to flee with Alaric’s mother looming nearby.
“Right this way, my Queen.” Reena headed toward the pathway on the right, picking up her pace to match my long strides.
We didn’t pass a single servant in the halls, which only served as a reminder of how odd the ruling god of the Emerald Glades truly was.
She liked to do her own cooking, cleaning, and tailoring—what was next? Was she going to let her people have a say in ruling her realm as well?
I shook my head in disbelief as we approached the most massive door I’d ever seen. It was made of pure, solid gold . . . the gods definitely didn’t lack riches, that much was for certain.
Reena pulled open the door, allowing me to enter the god’s chambers first. I wore my best smile as I entered, forcing my usual air of confidence to wash over my face, but my smile quickly dissolved when I was greeted by an unsettling sight.
Landon was sitting next to Adalina on a settee that was far too small for the both of them. A fire roared close by, and Adalina’s laughter intermingled with the crackling of the logs. My bodyguard smiled back at her like she was the sun that brightened his entire existence.
It was all rather romantic, and, although I was exploring something new of my own with Alaric, a pang of jealousy speared my chest.
She doesn’t try to turn me into a monster.
Reena gasped behind me and addressed the god. “Apologies, Your Majesty. We should have knocked.”
Adalina tore her gaze away from my bodyguard, smirking as she saw my smile fall.
“Nonsense. You are right on time. I was just finishing up Landon’s fitting,” she said, blatantly placing her hand atop his thigh as she rose.
I caught Landon’s eye for a brief moment, a subtle devastation drenching those clear blue eyes with sorrow. His smile swiftly crumpled as he stood and took a small step my way.
“Seera,” his voice was timid, the short steps he took while approaching mimicked his tone. “Can we talk?”
I steeled my expression into my usual mask of indifference, shoving down all the horrible feelings Landon brought to the surface last night.
“No, we can’t. I have a fitting to get to.” I brushed past my bodyguard, feeling the divide between us cement into something so permanent it would be nearly impossible to go back to what we were once this mission was over.
Yet, after what transpired in the jungle after our fight, I didn’t want to go back to the way things were before Alaric and I reconnected.
Everything was different now, and, while change absolutely terrified me, I felt a strange kernel of an emotion I used to detest stir in my gut . . .
Hope.
“Step right here.” Adalina sang while she gestured to a circular marble platform in the adjoining chamber.
I followed her into the separate room, leaving my lady-in-waiting to deal with Landon’s moodiness. I had a bigger problem to face, one with all-seeing green eyes glaring right at me.
“Where is the servant that will assist you with my fitting?” I glanced around the quaint room as I stepped up onto the platform.
The god’s laughter rang through the otherwise quiet room, a smaller fire popping in the corner of her work space. Fabrics of all sorts were draped over emerald, plush chairs.
Even the god’s space was deceiving, depicting a rather inviting and cozy den for such a venomous viper.
“I will be doing your fitting, and, Seera, please do not forget that we do not call them servants,” she said, pouting her lip at me like I was a child she had to scold.
My hands curled into fists, and I relished in the spark of pain that burst through me as my sharp nails tore into the flesh of my palms. This was my only avenue of releasing my anger, since killing the god before me wasn’t an option . . . yet.
Adalina stepped up to join me, quickly gripping my wrist with a rather surprising force as she sweetly smiled at me.
“Put your arms out straight, and let us begin.”
I bit the inside of my cheek against every instinct within me shouting to jam my elbow into her when I felt her touch upon my skin. Swallowing my violent urge, I did as she said and raised my arms out to my sides.
“Have you ever been to a winter climate before?” she asked, dragging the tailor’s tape across my wingspan.
“In my kingdom, it only ever rains. We have never experienced anything else.” I kept my response short and clipped, dreading every brush of her fingers skittering across my skin.
Adalina chuckled, tutting to herself as she moved behind me. “Oh, you are in for a rude awakening when you go to Rime. The weather there isn’t the only thing that is chilling.”
If I was going to be stuck in a room with such an exasperating god, I might as well gain some useful intel from her for my mission.
“I take it that you and the Ice Goddess don’t get along?”
“Oh, you could say that, alright.” Adalina sighed. “Isolde doesn’t give anyone a reason to like her. She has totally isolated herself in her realm. In fact, no one has seen her in decades.”
She rounded in front of me, tapping the outside of my thigh.
“Spread your legs.” The smile she cast at me held a rather crass element to it.
I resisted the urge to curl my lip in disgust as I did as she said. She crouched, running the tape along my inseam.
“Has anyone tried to visit Rime to see the Ice Goddess?” I glanced at the god below me.
“They have, but they have always failed.” She looked up at me, a wicked gleam shining in her eyes.
“Excuse me?”
This was information I should’ve been privy to before agreeing to go on this mission, and a hint of alarm rang through me at the fact the Serpent King omitted telling me this.
“Isolde chooses who is allowed to enter her domain—she has a magical barrier around all the entry points in Rime. Considering all who have attempted to visit have been unsuccessful, it appears she doesn’t deem any of us worthy enough to enter.”
Adalina popped up and started to wrap the tape measure around my bust, but I didn’t miss the tightness lining her jaw. This tidbit about no one being able to enter Rime to see the Ice Goddess bothered Adalina . . . but why?
“What makes you think Alaric and I will be successful at entering her realm if no one has done so before?” I narrowed my eyes at the god, trying to assess her every move for any tells of nefarious motives.
“It’s a gamble if she will allow you both in, but it is one we must take.
My son is in jeopardy of losing everything important to him, and I refuse to let that happen.
Alaric must keep his powers intact, so there is no room for error.
It is of the utmost necessity that this mission is successful, do you understand?
” She leveled an intense glare at me, all the while pulling the tape around my chest tighter than necessary.
It was easy to detect the warning lacing Adalina’s words, for I used the same tone many times as the Serpent Queen.
“I don’t respond kindly to threats, regardless if they’re coming from a god or not.” I didn’t back down, instead I brought my face closer to hers.
Her eyes darkened with delight, and her lips curved into a sinister smile. “I like that about you.”
After another tense moment, she released the tape from my bust, allowing me the opportunity to discreetly sniff and detect what feeling filtered through the god.
Adalina reeked like a bushel of mint, a smell I rarely encountered. I racked my brain for what the scent meant, but the god’s grating voice interrupted my train of thought as she stepped off the platform and went to her gilded white marble work desk.
“We are finished. I’ll make sure to have your clothes done in time for your departure tomorrow morning.” She didn’t spare me another glance, already moving on to grab a deep green fabric behind her.
Typically, her blatant dismissal would bother me, but I was more than happy to put distance between us. I stepped off the dressing podium and headed toward her main chambers, but her singsong voice halted me on the threshold.
“And Seera, it is not very fitting for a queen to have such markings upon her skin for all prying eyes to see.” I glanced over my shoulder, my brows knitting with confusion.
Adalina extended her neck, brushing a slender finger across the side of her throat. My hand floated up to the exact spot on myself, right where Alaric bit me last night in the midst of our passionate sex.
I scoffed at the god’s audacity to try to embarrass me. She really didn’t know me if she thought I’d shrivel at such a remark.
I suppose it was time to remind her who she was talking to . . . and what it meant to truly be the Serpent Queen.
Rolling my shoulders and raising to my full height, I slowly turned to face her.
“On the contrary, I think there is nothing more regal than having the best sex in my life and having a souvenir to show for it.” My smile grew into a thing of nightmares as I watched the god’s smirk melt off her face.
Adalina’s jaw was practically on the floor when I spun on my heel and strode out of her work chambers.
Reena was curled up on the settee, a book cradled between her hands as she fiercely read the novel. However, when I strutted straight past, her footsteps swiftly trailed behind me as I pushed open the door with a victorious smile painted across my lips.
Adalina thought she could intimidate me by sharing how no one has been successful at entering Rime. Then, she threatened me to ensure this mission is successful. Finally, she tried to seal the final nail in my coffin by attempting to embarrass me about the markings adorning my neck.
What a fucking fool.
If there was one thing I loved more than executions, it was proving people wrong.
Now, I was more determined than ever to make this mission a success, simply so I could return and face Adalina once more.
When we met again, I wouldn’t swallow my anger.
I’d let myself truly burn, and I’d make sure there was only one Serpent Queen still standing after I was done leaving a trail of ash in my wake.