Witch Queen (37 page)

I was barely paying attention when the high
witch wrapped a thin ribbon of black Witchdom silk over our hands.
I was straining to keep my eyes open when I heard someone clearing
their throat.

“I’m so sorry I’m late.”

Prince Aurion strolled into the throne
room.

My heart leaped into my throat. I looked to
the prince, but he did not meet my gaze. He was looking at his
father.

The prince crossed the throne room in long
easy strides. His long silver hair braid swept the front of his
fine gray silk coat. His blue scarf was pinned by a silver brooch
and fell from his right shoulder in a graceful drape. He wore the
colors of his mother’s clan proudly.

He was achingly beautiful, and I wasn’t the
only one who noticed. I could see the flush on the faces of most of
the females in the chamber. Too bad he was such a bastard.

The witch king stood and ripped away the
ribbon that had tied our hands a moment ago. I could feel the anger
rolling off of him in waves.

“You dare interrupt the handfasting ritual,”
growled the king. “You better have a good explanation for this
insolence.”

The prince smiled coldly.
“I do.”

He
stood
defiantly next to
the platform.
“I must apologize, Father. But you cannot wed
the steel maiden.”

“Really?” The witch king’s eyes narrowed.
“And why is that, my
son
?”

The prince’s eyes darted to me. “Because
we’ve already mated. The steel maiden is
my
bride.”

CHAPTER 32

T
HE WITCH KING GLARED at me. “Is this
true?” he hissed. “Have you and my son…
mated
?”

I clenched my fists to keep them from
shaking. I could feel the king’s eyes burning into me, but I
couldn’t hold his gaze.

“Do you deny his claim? Have you
mated
with him?” venom spilled from the king’s mouth.

The thought of what had transpired between
the prince and me brought a cascade of tears spilling down my
cheeks. My shame would be the talk for centuries to come.

My lips trembled as I mumbled the words, no
more than a whisper.

“No, I don’t deny it.”

The chamber went into an uproar, and
confusion reigned in the throne room. The only grin in the entire
throne room belonged the witch queen. She looked like it was her
birthday.

A chill cut through me.

How would this affect my plans? Had the
prince ruined everything just to spite his father?

If there was to be no celebration dinner,
then there would be no distraction for me to sneak away. Everything
was ruined. My insides turned to stone.

“How dare you shame me like this, boy,”
growled the king.

“Don’t you think one wife is enough,
Father?” the prince held his head high and ignored the white-hot
glare of the king.

Some of the guests began sneaking out of the
throne room in a panic.

“Take her to my quarters,” ordered the
prince.

Before I could protest, I was ushered out of
the throne room by coven guards. I could still hear the bone
chilling yelling of the king from the corridor outside.

The guards were holding me so tightly that I
could feel bruises forming on my arms as I was dragged away. We
arrived at a door I didn’t recognize, and they thrust me inside
with such force that I tripped over the fabric of my gown and fell.
I jumped to my feet just as I heard the door lock from the
outside.

“Wait!” I threw myself at the door and
pulled the handle with all my strength. But the heavy wooden door
didn’t even rattle. I was locked in.

“I need my maid,” I cried out
desperately.

I knew that Celeste wouldn’t have known what
had happened yet. I feared that she might get killed if she got
caught sneaking around in the hallways now. I couldn’t let that
happen.

“Please, I need her. Will you send for
her?”

But I could hear nothing except for the
faint whispers of dust and gloom.

My heartbeat thundered in my ears. I was not
beaten. Not yet. I needed a new plan.

I turned and slumped against the door.

The prince’s quarters were grand, much
larger than my own. I lifted the skirt of my gown and ran through
his chamber and into the two connecting rooms. But there were no
windows in any of the rooms. My stomach churned, and I ran to the
bathing chamber and vomited.

The sound of a key in the keyhole jostled me
out of my thoughts, and I staggered towards the door.

The door swung open, and my heart leapt at
the sight of Celeste.

“But…” I began as she closed the door behind
her. “How did you know?”

She rushed to my side with a bundle of
clothes in her arms.

“The guards came looking for me. You’re
bonded to the prince now. You’re practically royalty…so they came
swiftly.”

“Can I still make it to the side entrance
without being caught?”

“Yes,” she said. “I’ve brought your clothes
and supplies in the bag.”

She pulled my gown over my head and tossed
it on the ground.

“I got some of the weapons you used in the
witch trials, too.”

She beamed and pulled my witch blade from
the traveling bag.

I grinned and grabbed my shirt and pants. I
dressed quickly and was pleased to have my own clothes for a
change. I couldn’t help but notice that they had been mended.

“How did you get the weapons past the
guards?”

“They’ve gone. All the coven guards are in
the throne room trying to keep the king and the prince from killing
each other. Still, we must hurry.”

With my sword and hunting knife sheathed
around my belt, and my bag across my shoulders, we hurried out of
the prince’s chambers.

Celeste explained that we were in the north
towers, and to my intense surprise and relief, the hallways were
deserted. We moved in silence and didn’t meet anyone as we dashed
through the fortress and flew down countless sets of stairs. I
followed Celeste, and we finally reached the fifteen-foot oak doors
that led to the outside. Celeste had been right, there were no
coven guards. We thrust our weight against the mighty doors, and
they groaned open to reveal a manicured courtyard with fruit trees,
shrubs, and ponds.

My lungs burned as I inhaled. The moon
illuminated all the shrubs and trees in silver. I could see the
outer stone wall about a hundred yards from where I stood. Beyond
the wall was
freedom
.

“Here, take this.” Celeste took my hand and
placed a vial in it.

It was different from the other tonics she’d
made for me, and even in the darkness of night I could tell it was
red. “What is it?”

“A remedy against black magic,” she said.
“I’ve never heard of it working on humans, but it’s worth a try if
you can reach him. You must make him drink
all
of it.
There’s not much, but if his body can handle it, then it should
work.”

I grasped the vial firmly in my hands. My
eyes burned.

“Thank you.”

I slipped the vial in my pack and swallowed
hard.

“Come with me.”

Her eyes widened in shock. “I can’t. I don’t
know…”

“There’s nothing for you here,” I said
hurriedly. “If this tonic works, you can be a real help in our
fight against the necromancers. You have no idea how much this
could help us. How much
you
can help us.”

Celeste looked away. “Your humans will never
accept me. I’m a witch, remember.”

“Maybe,” I said. “But I think if they saw
you as a
healer
, a healer with a tonic that fights black
magic, I believe you’d be safe.”

I could see her eyes flash with
understanding.

Celeste laughed nervously. “This is
crazy…but…all right, I accept.”

I flashed her a grin. “Come on!”

We dashed across the courtyard and were
heading south in search of the stables when the witch queen stepped
from the shadows.

CHAPTER 33

“
W
HERE DO YOU THINK you’re going,
half-breed?” The witch queen’s magecraft glowed like a tiny yellow
sun in the semi-darkness as she emerged from the dark.

I pushed Celeste behind me and whispered,
“Get back behind the trees.”

The witch queen was alone, but that didn’t
stop the terror that was building in the pit of my stomach. I knew
she was here to kill me.

“Have you been following me, queeny?” I
said, trying to hide the tremor in my voice and trying to keep her
attention away from my friend.

The witch queen smiled wickedly.

“Even if you did mate with my step-son, it
doesn’t change anything. I will never accept a lesser witch within
my
coven. Especially a half-breed, human tramp.”

From the corner of my eye I saw Celeste
disappear behind a row of bushes.

My hand crept towards my witch blade, and I
grasped its familiar cold metal hilt.

“I never wanted to be part of your stupid
coven. I never wanted to be part of any of this. Of this hell. I
came here for one reason alone—to seek reinforcements from the
witch king.”

“Even if what you say is true,” said the
queen, “do you really think you can defeat the necromancers who
have one of the most powerful magic stones in this world in their
possession? You? You don’t have what it takes. You lack the magic
power. You’re nothing but a second grade witch, a lesser witch. You
are nothing. Just like your mother.”

I tightened my grip on my witch blade.

“Let me go, and I promise you’ll never see
me again.”

The witch queen threw back her head and
laughed.

“That’s exactly what your mother said. And
now, here you are…her replacement. No, you need to die. I need to
be rid of all the steel maidens because the king will never stop
desiring you. The way he looks at you makes me sick. Sick! The
memories and the shame are all coming back like a horrible disease.
The king looks at you with the same pathetic desire for a lesser
being that I saw in his face when he looked at her. There can only
be one witch queen. Not two.”

“Please,” I said. “I don’t want to be a
queen of anything. I just want to go home. Just let me go.”

I was acutely aware of everything around me,
the trees, the wind, and the sound of the grass beneath my boots. I
narrowed my eyes and watched her.

“No.”

She moved from the shadows until I could see
her clearly in the light of the moon.

“I won’t make the same mistake again. I
failed to kill your mother. The slippery little bitch always
managed to get away and heal. She even made friends in the fortress
who helped her slip away before I could finish her off. But I won’t
make the same mistake twice.”

The witch queen’s violet eyes grew smoky
with power, and her magecraft flared. The vinegar smell of magic
hung in the air, and I felt goose bumps on my skin. Her face grew
wild, and she hurled a string of magic at me.

I knew what was coming, and I spun and
ducked. But a thread of magic struck me, and I sailed through the
air and landed on something cold and solid. My head cracked on the
ground, and I heard and felt my bones shatter. I groaned as my
sword slipped from my splayed fingers. She hit me with another
wave, and I heard more of my bones snap.

But then the familiar warmth of my own magic
surged through me.

I jumped up instantly, and whirled around,
searching for my sword.

“Such weak, beastly, lesser creatures,”
laughed the witch queen. “All steel maidens are the same. Animals.
And animals have no place in my coven. I think I’ll use your skin
as a hide for a new coat.”

“You’re a sick bitch,” I hissed.

Her magic struck me again, and I crumpled to
the ground, writhing in pain. My arms buckled as I fought to stand,
but she hit me again and again with waves of her dark magic.