Page 27 of A Throne of Blood & Vengeance

Before I was split apart and half of me locked away, yes. He was young. I’m not good with human ages, but all he did was cry. I mostly tuned him out and was happy when he was given to the bloodthirsty woman. Although your grandfather was sad for a long time afterwards.

My grandfather . . . the Seelie King. He’d sent my father away. I wondered if the bloodthirsty woman was Moroi, perhaps my grandmother. My father had never spoken about his parents, and he’d died when I’d barely been a teenager. I’d never had the chance to ask.

And now I never would. The crown might be able to give me a lot of answers, but it had admitted to not knowing my father well. It seemed those secrets had been taken to the grave.

I let the melancholy of a truth I’d never know drift through my mind before fading away. There was no point in dwelling on the secrets of the dead when the living hold just as many.

Who locked you away?I asked. It had to have been referring to the room beneath Lake Malov where we’d found it.

I . . . don’t know. When I’m split into two parts, I’m weakened. Whoever did it knew what they were doing because they tore me apart before I knew what was happening. Even though I’ve been made whole once more, there are large gaps in my memory.

I’m so sorry. That sounds terrible.Sure, the crown was capable of tearing the free will away from people . . . but it was also kind of nice. A nice monster crown.

You cannot leave me behind. This woman . . . she has already made me do terrible things. I’m trying to resist, but I’m technically bound to whoever’s head I rest upon, and fighting is exhausting.

The pieces clicked together.That’s why you couldn’t talk to me the other day? You were tired?

Yes.

Guilt nipped at me, but I didn’t want to lie. There was no point anyway since the crown could read my mind like an open book.

I have no intention of leaving you in the hands of my aunt for long, but I cannot promise that I will take you with me, I said honestly.Escaping from here is my priority.

I am your priority.Its words were tinged with a desperate rage.

Not right now,I told it gently.There are so many people depending on me. I can’t let them down.

Cold silence reigned through my mind. I must have hurt its feelings. Probably not good to piss off an ancient Fae artifact.

I’m sorry, I tried again.I have no intention of abandoning you for long, but I will do what I must to get free of this place. Once I’m outside of these walls, I’ll be in a better position to plan how to fix all of this.

More silence.

Before I could make another attempt at soothing the crown—something I hadn’t anticipated being on my list of problems to solve—footsteps came from outside the hall. Vail’s eyes met mine from across the room. From where he was standing, there was no way he could see who was coming, but he’d likely caught their scent, and he didn’t look happy.

A second later, I knew why when a stunning woman with golden blonde hair and tanned skin stepped into the room. At her side was an equally attractive man with light brown hair and chiseled features. I’d had the unpleasant experience of conversing with both of them in the past. They were high-ranking courtiers of House Corvinus. Not advisors exactly but they were close friends of Mora and Darius Corvinus—the Heads of the House.

The two courtiers were also Kieran’s parents.

“Davon. Narcisa.” My aunt rose and greeted the two newcomers. “We didn’t expect you until this afternoon. Please join us.”

“I think we have everything we need to get started, Carmilla—I mean, my queen,” the fair-haired advisor at the table corrected herself. The other advisor glanced at Carmilla in panic, as if he expected my aunt to lash out.

She just smiled. “Thank you both for meeting with me. If you can have the information to me by tomorrow morning, I would appreciate it.”

“O-of course,” the woman stammered before both advisors practically ran from the table. Kieran’s parents observed everything with amused smiles.

I watched them go and pondered the conversation I’d been trying to keep track of while the crown had infiltrated my mind. My aunt was interested in how many gemstones the Sovereign House possessed, as well as a best guess to what the other Houses had. We relied on those stones to power the wards that kept the wraiths and other nasty beasts out of our Houses and outposts.

Why was she specifically interested in the numbers now though? Most of the Houses tried to keep best estimates of what the others had because it gave them an advantage during trade negotiations, but I didn’t know what Carmilla was plotting.

It was too much. Everything was too fucking much. Vail’s betrayal. Carmilla’s coup. That bloody crown. My heart raced as I tried and failed to calm myself. I was imprisoned by my last surviving family member. Someone I cared about very much was also imprisoned, and any day now, they could decide he was no longer worth the risk of keeping around.

Carmilla could order the death of Draven, and I wouldn’t know until it was too late. Cold, icy fear gripped my heart. I could lose him.

I tried to pick up my tea again, but my movements were so jerky that I knocked it over instead. It was a red tea blend, and it soaked into the creamy tablecloth like rusty blood. Before I knewwhat I was doing, I was on my feet and backing away from the table.

Apparently, this was the moment my mind decided to snap under the pressure of everything that had happened over the past two weeks. Ragged breaths tore from my throat. All I could think about was Draven chained up in the throne room the day we’d been captured.

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