Page 33 of These Violent Delights

In bed that night, her mind continued to dwell on the issue of what she would prefer to do, given the choice.Which did she care about more: how well the fruit trees were producing in the castle yard, or marching out to defeat an invader?Both were important, but which one would she rather handle?

She blew out a breath.The answer was obvious.The fruit.She'd rather raise children and take care of the household.It wasn't a small job, and it sounded like a nice break from the constant studying she'd done for most of her life.

It didn't mean she would stop paying attention to how the land was run, but it would take a lot of weight off her shoulders.That sounded nice, too.

And if she strenuously objected to something Ozzy was doing?It wasn't as if she were a weakling.With the castle on her side, she could certainly overrule him.Not that she would need to.If she didn't think that they could work out a solution, she wouldn't consider marrying him.Neither one of them needed to be a bully.

She wanted him.It came down to that.She trusted her instincts, and Uncle Tank had vouched for him.Unless something crazy happened, she was going to marry him.It was that simple.

Merry Infidel

It was all about whoyou slept with.

The former Lady Divine rubbed absently at her latest tattoo as she left her lover's room.The Beast Queen's son was one of the eldest and a favorite of the Queen's.He also appreciated a lusty young beauty without excessive tattoos, no matter what the current fashion was.

Della had a carefully calculated number of tattoos, just enough to appear one of the faithful.She was outwardly modest in her aspirations, just another pretty girl trying to get ahead by bearing a child of the royal line.

Behind the scenes, she had hooks in all the right places.When the time came, the Beast Queen would be in for a treat.

Smiling, she practically skipped along the stone tunnels of the mountain stronghold.Her dear sister would be in for a surprise.

***

THE BEAST QUEEN SATin her chair as her servant wrapped her hair into coils with copper wire.Heavily pregnant, she looked with satisfaction at her reflection in the mirror.The image was fuzzy, a byproduct of dyeing the whites of her eyes black.In fact, she was completely blind in one eye, a secret that few knew.

No matter, she lived like the queen she was, surrounded by cloth of gold and gem-encrusted decor.Every delicacy was hers, and her line would live forever.

As if to underscore the point, one of her advisors came to announce, “Congratulations, your Majesty!Your youngest son's third concubine just bore twin girls,” her advisor said with a bow.“May your line live forever.”

“May your line live forever,” the servants in the room dutifully repeated.

The Beast Queen smiled and flipped her forked tongue at him in benediction.She'd nearly died of infection from the modification, but it set her apart from her minions.

She'd come from nothing, had risen so high through her own hard work, and now she had an entire mountain full of followers who would do anything she asked.There was just one thing left to do, one thing she wanted.

“We will celebrate with blood!Gather my army.I will personally lead the attack on the castle.We will drive the infidels out and reclaim our rightful heritage.”

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