Page 41 of Treasured

“I will inform you the moment he’s been found,” Clement assured me.

“See that you do.” The shadows throbbed as I paced and paced and paced.

Nicolas had gone on a simple trip to the Koln Mountains. It should have taken him a day, maybe two.

He’d been missing for a week. Seven horrible, long, lonely nights.

My heart ached. I never thought I would find myself in love with a mortal, yet here I was, simpering after Nicolas after he’d been gone from my bed for a few days. This was nothing in an immortal vampire’s life, yet it felt like forever.

He was still young, my Nicolas. He wasn’t ready yet, but I would Make him. Soon.

Then, he’d be my consort. By my side, forever.

My love.

My one and only.

Worry twisted in my heart, and a tear slipped down my cheek.

Where was he?

Prinos groaned, the sound pulling me out of the past. His fingers grasped at the linens, and he writhed on the bed. His eyes were still shut.

I ran my fingers over the Blood Ruby. The jewel was cool beneath my touch, and I purred.

“I’ll find them,” I whispered. “And when I do, the bitch’s blood will be the fuel you need to last me until eternity.”

The jewel did not answer—of course—but a coolness emanated from it, sending calming waves through me.

Then Prinos blinked. The silver cleared from his eyes, and he sat straight up.

“Queen of Shadows, the path you walk is one of death.” His voice echoed with ancient power, and his eyes glazed over. “Darkness has come to Eleyta, and none are safe. The gods are awake, and all are watching as evil spreads through the land.”

I didn’t care about that anymore. I snapped, “My son? Where is he?”

The Fortune Elf snatched my hand and gripped it with a strength that did not belong to him. “Death is coming.”

Good. I liked death. Still, I needed clarity. “Whose death? Hers?” I asked eagerly. Please let it be hers.

“There can be no balance without death,” Prinos said. “The paths of light and dark cannot coexist any longer. Choices must be made. Lives will be lost.”

My heart raced in my chest, and shadows flooded out of me. What did this mean?

Before I could ask, Prinos’s mouth opened and closed. He released my hand and collapsed on the bed. His hands shook, his eyes widened, and a horrible, high-pitched scream left his lips.

“Death is coming, Queen of Shadows,” he rasped, looking at me one final time. “Beware.”

Then, his skin turned glassy. His chest trembled, once, twice, before it stopped. The elf’s entire body flickered in and out of sight for three seconds, and then it faded from view entirely.

The only things left on the bed were the clothes Prinos had been wearing and the wrinkled sheets.

Standing, I brushed off my gown before walking calmly to the door and opening it. Two servants were walking by, and they dipped into a hasty bow when they saw me.

“This Fortune Elf has Faded.” I walked into the hall. “Find me another one.”

I would send all my elves onto the silver planes if needed. Their lives meant nothing to me. I had a son to find, a daughter-in-law to kill, and a ruby to fix.

Nothing would stop me now.

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