Page 12 of The Nightmare Queen

“He must be an idiot.” I throw the covers back, standing and skirting around him to disconnect from the moment of familiarity. “Does he really expect me to help him?” I ask pulling my hair down from the towel. “Does he not understand the circumstances ofwhyour kingdoms don’t cooperate?”

“Evie, it is possible he is unaware, this could work to your advantage. It would seem the prince and his father may be on separate terms on how to handle this situation with the Kingdom of Hadar. I urge you to at least hear them out. Do what you’re best at. Play your games, use your upper hand and eavesdrop, find their every angle. But do consider their request in the case they’re being true.” His gray eyes bear into the back of my skull as I drag the brush through my wet hair.

“And what would my own people think of that? The people who work in this court?”

“Our citizens only know the grief. Not the logistics. The respect will still be there, from both them and those that work for you.”

His words bounce around in my head, “I’m going to the Room.” I say curtly, walking to my doors to show him out.

“And dinner?”Such a father.

“Not hungry for food. Set the two parasites in the dining hall. Join them, converse and find out as much as you can. I’ll be late.” The door clicks shut behind him. I reach over, grabbing my weapons belts and slipping on my boots. My nightdress is a little unusual for my plans. Butat least, it’s black. Black always hides blood better.I knew I should’ve waited to shower.

Percy’s whimper irritates every nerve in my body. The tattoos inked onto my skin writhe around, all of them eager to let go of the magic clinging to them. “Poor pathetic Percy…I thought we had an understanding? Didn’t we? You were going to wait in your cell until I was ready to kill you. NOT, try to wage and barter with the guards or pretend to drink the vials given to you.” He mutters incoherently as I tuck a shiv into his right hand. He tries to release it but I press it tighter into his palm. “Do not let that go,” I whisper, “it’s important.”

I walk around him, tying my damp hair up into a top knot. “You’ve disappointed me greatly Percy. I could just let Vada sink her teeth into you, but I think you need a few moments to yourself. Don’t you?” The crack of my knuckles loud in his ears. “Yes I think you do, I think you need a moment to confront yourself and see what a disappointment you turned into.”

His desperation reeks as he fights miserably against the inky black tendrils of my magic. They enter every orifice on his body, infiltrating his senses both inside and outside — my Wield manifesting and manipulating the victim’s biggest fear. A satisfying feeling warms through me as my magic sinks its teeth into him. Some might find this sadistic. I find it therapeutic.

My shoulders against Vada’s right leg, I admire my handiwork, while tilting my head to look into the golden eye closest to me. . “They want me to help.”

“Hmph. Everyone wants something eventually, little demon. You humans are constantly taking more than what you are owed. Greed is your biggest weakness.”She huffs, turning back to the writhing man in the center of the room.

“I suppose.”I muse. “Though I don’t have that issue.”

Vada snorts, “No you, little demon, have a whole different set of issues.”She lifts her imposingly large head and her snout turning up. “Please end the man, his sniveling has become tiresome.”She slinks backwards moving deeper into her cave, leaving me with the miserable son of a bitch.

“Oh come now. Shhh. It’ll all be over soon. The worst is nearly over.” I croon. He looks pitifully in my direction, his pupils dilating wider the closer I get to him. “Percy dear,” I pat his sweaty cheek twice, “slit your throat please, your whines are grating against my nerves.” At the will of my Wield he takes the shiv in his hand and drags it across his throat. Blood spraying along my face and neck. “Release him.”I whisper the subtle command that beckons my magic back into its serpent counterparts. I stare down at the gore. “Told you it would be over soon.” I exhale letting my shoulders roll.Finally some peace and quiet, I think, clapping my hands together before kicking the dead Vellaran’s boot for good measure and leaving the room.

“Don’t eat him.” I warn Vada, her presence lingering closely in my mind.

The room shakes with a low growl rumbling through her cave. “I’d sooner eat you.”

Rorin

Felix leads the way towards our rooms leaving only a trail of two guards behind us rather than the five we were accompanied by earlier.

“Here we are.” With his hands on the knobs of the double doors, he pushes, revealing a suite following the same color palette as the castle. The blood red drapes frame a wall of large windows, but the view outside is much darker than home. “There is a sitting room, a bedroom through that door there and the bathroom suite is to your left once you enter the bedroom.” He paces around the room before turning to me, “Prince Rorin these will be your rooms during your stay here and Sir Will you will be directly across the hall. I will leave you both to rest now but if you would please join me in an hour for dinner. The guards,” he motions to the two that followed us, “posted outside of your rooms will lead you to the dining hall.”

He exits swiftly, leaving both Will and I to watch him move down the hall where his body simply vanishes into the darkness at the end of it. Will nods a thanks to our guards before closing the door. “This all feels very…odd.” He says as he starts to fidget around the room - snooping.

“Sit down Will, no bogeymen is going to pop out of the stone walls.” I pause looking around dramatically. “I’m pretty sure she’s down the hall.” When my eyes land back on him, he’s frowning in my direction.

“I am your guard Rorin, it’s in my job description to protect you, which entails checking all areas for potential hazards.” He scoffs, continuing his investigation.

“It was odd though, you’re right.” I concede, waiting for his reaction.Three, two, one…

His body slowly rolls back up to straight, his head swiveling around like an owl to look at me. “What was that?”And there it is. “Did you just admit that I was right about something?”

“You are positively insufferable.” I try to stop the direction of this conversation but it’s already too late. His grin is growing wider by the second. He continues on with his taunts for several more minutes, before I start to feel annoyed. “Are you done, Will? We need to rest up, we have dinner with Felix in forty-five minutes.” I fold my arms beneath my head leaning back to close my eyes. “Wake me up will you?” The sound of him getting up to head into his own quarters is the only indication I have of him leaving.

He mocks me with an, “I was right”and an, “I told you so.” before he closes the door.

With a few minutes alone to myself, I find my mind drifting back to the tiny queen. She took an audience with me drenched in blood - I wonder if this is a common sight around here or if it phased anyone else in that room besides Will and I. I don’t think I’ve ever seen my parents in a state other than pristine. My father especially has a penchant for keeping up the “proper image” as he calls it. As a kingdom of healers and portal masons, we are meant to be seen as new age, brilliant, and peace driven. Little do they know what a hypocrite their king really is.

Will woke me up with an obnoxious greeting. Still riding his high of me conceding to agree with him three quarters of an hour ago.

As promised, the guards delivered us to the dining hall where Felix is already seated to the right of the queen’s chair. Looking up from his papers, he nods at us in greeting. “Gentlemen, I see you found us alright. Rooms comfortable enough?” He asks.

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