Page 35 of The Court of Secrets
I looked around as the whispers rose louder. “This may be my mind, but those whispers in the air I don’t recognize. They’re linked to you. There are things here that are yours.” I hurried to the door, sweeping past his large form.
“I wouldn’t leave, if I were you.” Warning laced his tone. “We are in your subconscious. Without me, the demons in your head will be free to torture you,” he explained. “You may never escape. Those who venture into the depths of their pain often don’t return. You’ll appear to the world as mad, but the true you will be caged.”
I shuddered, then recoiled my hand from the door.
His words were hollowed. “I require deaths. I need to bring someone back.”
“You’re a necromancer. Isn’t bringing people back from the dead like your main thing?” I looked down at myself, as I was a living and breathing example of his work.
“It’s not as easy as that. The person who died is not whole. Their bones no longer exist. I can only bring them back to have them die again.”
I arched an eyebrow. “You want to bring someone back from the dead to kill them?”
His thin blue lips pulled in behind his teeth. “The semantics are not important. All you must know is you will help me. I won’t ask again. Stop taking the potion, or I will force you to.”
He flexed his fingers and sent me back to consciousness. Agony ripped through me and tugged at my nerves, dropping me to the ground.
***
“Your Majesty.” Adius opened the door. “King Blaise has set sail and will be arriving this evening.”
His words didn’t register in my mind at first. After my brush with the necromancer early this morning, I had been distracted, lost to thoughts I couldn’t connect. “Hmm?”
“Your Majesty? Are you unwell?”
I shook my head, snapping myself out of it. “Sorry. Um. Blaise. Right,” I said, connecting his words. “Yes, let him in.”
He scratched the back of his head. “Of course, but he has already been let in?” Confusion pinched his eyebrows down. “Are you sure you’re well? Would you have me fetch the physician?”
“No.” I inhaled sharply. “I’m fine, really. It’s the coronation and the fae’s visit. It has me stressed is all. Thanks, Adius.”
He didn’t look entirely convinced but left me in peace nonetheless. I liked that about him. He was short, to the point, and knew when to drop things.
Shortly after leaving, Marissa entered. A long white dress hugged her thin figure. Its lace trim and her matching bonnet gave it elegance. Her little lace umbrella would do little with the clouds blocking most of the sun, but I dared not say a thing. “Your Majesty.”
“Winter,” I stated.
She smiled politely. “Winter. Are you ready for our walk?”
I nodded. “Yes. I actually have a few things to discuss with you.”
I escorted her out, and we made our way through the bustling corridors, escorted by my guards, until we reached the large archway and doors to the garden. I gave them the signal to leave us alone.
The frostbitten grass promised spring was still out of grasp. Bare branches from tall oaks shadowed skeletal leaves that carpeted the ground. Rotten conkers peeked between long grass, forgotten by squirrels. The small, white flowers of baby’s breath had survived the cold. A layer of fog hovered through the gardens. We strolled between flowerbeds and weathered stone fountains.
“What do you think of Lady Nissa Avery?” I asked.
She pressed her thin lips together, brushing her gloved hand against her chest. She inhaled deeply. “She is… ambitious.”
“You are to speak honestly, Marissa.”
“She uses her body to get what she wants.”
“I know.”
“She knows everything about everyone. She makes it her business to indulge in gossip.”
A hint of a smile crossed my mouth. “Don’t we all?”
