Page 121 of A Dose of Agony
“You believed this claim?”
“I did,” I whisper. “Beatrice implied the same thing previously; I just didn’t understand the significance.”
“She pushed me away,” Jarron explains. “She did not reject me, not completely, but it was enough to rattle me. Neither my human nor demon soul understood why she pushed us away. I didn’t know she had been told this lie, not until a few weeks ago when we once again came face to face with the council behind the Akrasia Games. During that altercation, we both learned that Candice’s sister was not dead as we previously believed. She had fought in the games but won. And winning made her the jinn—a magical slave to the games until the next set would take place. I also learned at this time that this council all believed Liz to be my chosen.” His breathing picks up speed. “Though I couldn’t speak their lie aloud, I informed the Cosmic Council that they were all fools. I vowed to end each one of them. But they were confident that I would follow their commands because they threatened Elizabeth.”
“They attempted to use your chosen against you? To manipulate you?”
“Yes,” he says, voice hoarse. “It was a betrayal of the worst kind. But luckily, they were wrong, and I had no fear in destroying them all so long as I could reach Candice. I used my magic to collapse the cave system in on them, grabbed my mate, and escaped.”
“That is quite a tale,” one witch says with a click of her tongue.
“By that telling,” the red-skinned witch says, expression making it clear she’s thinking deeply about the information presented, “this Cosmic Council, as you call them, should know full well that your chosen is not the one you call the jinn, and yet they’ve used that as the basis of their campaign against you.”
“Yes. They know. There is a fraud in this room, but it is not me,” Jarron growls. “Deep down, he knows he miscalculated, but he is stubborn. He refuses to face his error or simply doesn’t care. If he can convince enough clans to turn against me, it will not matter if his lie has merit, which is why I am here. Now that I have earned the heart of my true chosen, I can correct the manipulation and present your true future queen. Candice.” There is so much pride in his voice it brings tears to my eyes.
“Lies,” Vincent spits again.
“It’s an interesting story, Princeling, but hardly proof that Vincent’s claims are false. Let us hear from the opposition.”
Vincent grins, showing his sharp canines. When his eyes shift to me, a low rumble begins in Jarron’s chest. This only makes Vincent’s smile grow wider.
“You make a wonderful actor, Prince, but you have more than exposed yourself. The world sees the truth. You are not worthy of the crown. A second rejected prince.”
“Explain,” one witch demands. “Your puffed-up insults are not enough here.”
Vincent leans back and crosses his arms. “I met a young, beautiful female human during my time on Earth. Her name was Elizabeth Montgomery, and her parents are potions masters. We spoke at length about her history with the magical world. And she became enamored with me. She asked me how to become powerful. She wanted me to claim her, to mark her, but I told her I could do so much better. I offered her a place in a competition where she would earn power beyond reckoning. She agreed.”
“How did you come to believe she was the crown prince’s chosen?”
“During the competition, Beatrice informed me. She was concerned for the girl’s well-being, seeing as the competition is dangerous. But by this point, it was too late. I was enamored with the girl as much as she was with me. I had no intention of letting her come to harm. She of course won the competition and became the incredible being you see before you. After the competition, we spoke at length about the young prince, and she declared she didn’t want nor need him now that she was this powerful and she hadme. She did not want another. In the meantime, Prince Jarron started showing the signs of rejection. His magic was uncontrolled. He acted violently and out of character.
“He believed his chosen to be dead. Mourning is expected, except Prince Jarron then began a relationship with the other sister in Elizabeth’s absence. His true chosen learned about this betrayal and became justifiably angry. The prince’s behavior grew worse and worse. There are reports of his magic being uncontrolled. He nearly destroyed the academy. Together, Elizabeth and I created a plan to ensure our world was well aware of the prince’s lack of integrity. He is not fit to rule for so many reasons—today’s display is more disgusting than even I thought him capable of—and I believe our world will be better off if he never claims the throne.”
Jarron clenches his hands into fists.
“Neither tale is all that convincing,” one witch says after a pause.
“The reports of magic control have reached our ears though. That is evidence of his claim,” another witch says.
“I do not deny that my demon soul has been agitated,” Jarron says. “I only reject what Vincent claims is the reason. My demon soul and I have had conflict, but only after my chosen mate pushed me away due to this lie. I resolved this conflict and succeeded in earning her despite his insidious efforts to sabotage us.”
Silence stretches for several moments.
“It is ones word against another.”
“Both tales are plausible.”
The three witches nod as one. It’s a stale mate.
“If you allow lies and manipulation to alter the line of succession,” I say calmly, “you weaken your world’s power.”
“It weakens the crown; it does not weaken us. Competition for the throne is positive, in our eyes. The longer we allow rulers to pass without question, the more likely they will grow weak with complacency.”
My heart begins racing. There has to be a way to convince them.
“So, that’s it?” I stand. “You’ll just allow war to begin because of one accusation with no substance? You put mymate at riskbecause of a spineless coward’s jealousy?”
The witches appear amused by my assertion. “Do you have more to add to the discussion, human? Do you believe you can convince us?”
