Page 33 of Queen of the Wicked
“Alessia.” Erebos attempted to grab her hand, but she tugged out of his grasp.
“Donottouch me. I don’t trust any of you after today. Leave me alone, and do not speak to me again unless ithas to do with finding the Seeker, my mother, or getting me the fuck out of here.” She stormed off towards the castle, but only got ten steps before her body stilled. Her heart began to beat faster, and an overwhelming feeling of dread settled in her veins.
Something waswrong.
Very wrong.
“I am going to bring Alessia upstairs to get ready,” Izara said authoritatively. “It seems Bastian has decided to arrive a day earlier than anticipated. They are almost here.”
Chapter 16
Alessia
Izara forcefully gripped Alessia’s arm as she dragged her through the castle, and although she wanted to protest, she knew whoever Bastian was, he wasn’t someone good.Evil encircled them, and the air around them grew thicker and hotter with every step they took. She allowed Izara to rush her to her room without question.
Isla was ready and waiting with a hairbrush in hand. The shy, tentative handmaid was nowhere to be found, so Alessia didn’t fight her when she pointed to the floral stool before the vanity. “Can I ask what’s going on?” Alessia asked her.
“Were you instructed how to present her?” Izara lingered in the doorway, hands clasped in front of her.
“Yes, Miss Izara. His Majesty had a word with me this morning.”
She nodded promptly and disappeared in haste, leaving Isla and Alessia alone. “What is going on?” Alessia repeated.
“We do not have much time, so I need you to listen andnotinterrupt me. Do you understand, Miss Alessia?”
Alessia nodded.
Isla grabbed an elastic band from one of the vanity drawers and began to pull her hair up into a high, high ponytail—a style she hadn’t done on her before. “King Bastian is a danger to this realm,” she began. “Ultimately, he should be the overseer of Heaven, Hell, and Earth, but King Amos made a decree that His Majesty would have control over Hell and Earth on the night he was murdered. In this realm, broken decrees are punishable by death, so King Bastian is forced to abide by it until it ends. It is the only thing keeping His Majesty safe.
But in return, His Majesty is expected to abide by Hell’s rules, and the way King Bastian wishes this realm to function…”She shuddered. “Today will have you questioning certain things, but you mustnotlet it deter you from the truth.” She grabbed a tin filled with what seemed to be black tar. After dipping the brush to wet it, she instructed Alessia to close her eyes.
“You mentioned King Amos…” The power stirring inside Alessia took extra interest in the name. “Who is he?”
“King Bastian’s brother,” Isla replied.
“And what is Erebos being protected from?”
“That story is best saved for another day, when His Majesty might be ready to speak on it. Today, you will be introduced as His Majesty’s harlot, and you?—”
“Who? Erebos?” she hissed. “He is out of his ever-lovingmindif he thinks?—”
“No. Questions.” Isla dragged her head back to steadyit, causing her to wince. “Erebos is doing this for your best interest.Being his mistress may draw attention to you, but only as his harlot.Nothing more. Harlots in this realm are known for pleasuring without shame. They enjoy it, especially if they provide His Majesty with the pleasure.”
How degrading. Alessia’s fists clenched at her sides, but she had too many unanswered questions to fight Isla on this. She was the one Alessia trusted the most out of anyone in this castle. A red aura had never appeared around her. Not even now.
The woman staring back at her in the mirror wasn’t one she recognized. Isla had applied heavy black liner. Her lips were stained a deep red, and a blush crept along her cheeks, outlining her structured cheekbones. The dress Isla retrieved from the closet and held before her was absurd. It wouldn’t even cover her ass.
“Do not fight me on this, Miss Alessia. I am sworn to His Majesty to protect you, and if you refuse to get in this dress and defend yourself,His Majesty will blameme,not you. And I have fought too hard for my freedom to let you destroy it because of a simple fabric. A body is a body, no matter how much of it is on display.”
Dammit. Isla was attempting to guilt trip her. Had she heard or, worse,seenwhat went on in the courtyard? Had she seen the power Alessia had displayed? Izara had said it was black magic,which was clearly different from dark magic. Perhaps the library here carried books with knowledge on the subject.
Alessia stepped into the red dress, sucking in a breath as Isla secured it in the back. As suspected, the cheeks ofher ass were hanging out of the bottom, and the front of the dress had a cut out in the center, showcasing part of her toned stomach and the underside of her breasts. At least her nipples were covered.Barely.
A bead of sweat traveled down Alessia’s back, causing her to groan. “Why is it sohot?”
Isla wiped her sweat off her brow, giving her a sympathetic frown. “As I said, there will be many things you experience today that I am not authorized to tell you about. Please do not forget the truth.”
“What does that evenmean?” Why was everyone so evasive? Why did those who resided here dance around a subject that seemed so clearly in her face, but she could not see?
