Page 65 of Queen of the Crimson Throne (Queen of Blood and Stardust #2)

65

LENNOX

Twenty minutes later the four of us were in the dungeon, the heavy cement door slamming shut behind us, the lock clicking back into place as we strode down the hallway.

“Good morning, Caio,” I greeted the guard.

“Good morning, Your Majesties. Are you here to see the prisoners?”

I nodded. “Is there anything more you can tell us about them?” Luka asked.

“The three of them were ready to talk their way out of here this morning, they claim they were sent here by some group, but meant no harm, they were only sent to spy.”

I shared a look with Luka. If they were sent by the Vanir, we’d easily be able to confirm such by searching them for the mark. But I had a hard time believing they were sent here only to spy.

“After we detained the female we found this on her.” Caio handed me the empty vile. It was miniscule. I was almost surprised they didn’t miss it, it was only slightly bigger than my fingernail.

“You think she’s the one who tried to poison us?” I surveyed the bottle.

Caio shrugged. “I don’t know. That’s above my pay grade.”

“Let me see it.” Gently, Luce uncorked the top, brought the vial to her nose and sniffed. Her face scrunched at the smell. “That’s it, that’s the poison that was in your drinks.”

“Now we need to figure out who she’s working for.” She had to be with the Vanir, we needed to get her to admit it.

“Declan and Luce, why don’t you two go see what you can get out of the other prisoners.” I dipped my head toward the cell behind me. “Luka and I will deal with this one.”

Without another word, we separated. The door to the cell creaked open as Luka and I made our way in. I blocked out the musty smell that invaded my nostrils, instead focusing on the female in front of me. She lay on the straw cot. Her hands were bound together by the magic-enhanced cuffs, which were chained to the wall. She must have put up a good fight last night if they thought it necessary to keep her chained to the wall.

She was a tiny thing, barely taking up any space in the small cell. Her hair was dark, shaved on one side and fell in a long straight curtain on the other side. She was dressed elegantly, her dress was a deep blue with a high neckline and long sleeves with silver embroidering. The fabric pooled around her waist slipping around her thighs as she sat with her knees bent. Had she been a wedding guest? I didn’t recognize her but that didn’t mean she hadn’t been a guest. Or she had poised as a guest to make her way into the palace—the perfect cover. Slip in, poison us, and slip out. She would have done it if it weren’t for the Dhampir attack.

It looked like she had gotten into it with whoever detained her—whoever found her trying to slip from the palace. Her lip had been split, it was already healing, as well as the black eye she was sporting.

“I was told I might get to see the queen,” she rasped, “but I didn’t expect I’d get a personal visit from Her Royal Majesty herself. And her consort.” She looked at Luka. “What an honor. ”

“You did try to sneak away from the wedding celebrations without saying hello.”

She laughed, the sound gravely in her throat. “Is that what you called that blood bath? A wedding celebration? Maybe you are as bloodthirsty as they say you are. We know your husband is.” The way she sneered at the word husband made me want to slash my sword across her throat.

Luka’s fingers brushed over the small of my back. Not now. They seemed to say.

“Who sent you?” I asked.

Her dark eyes fixed on me. “I think you know.”

Luka cursed.

“Prove it,” I demanded.

She brushed her long hair behind her ear and turned her head towards the light. “See for yourself.”

I took a step forward, my hand on my sword as I bent to examine her closer. Sure enough, inked behind her rounded ear was the symbol of the Vanir in white ink.

“Our people will not rest until the crown rests on one of our heads.” Her words lacked conviction.

“Your people?” Luka questioned. “You are nothing but a disgruntled band of outlaws working towards an impossible goal.”

“I would have been successful if it weren’t for the witch bitch!” She spat, struggling against her chains as she attempted to stand. “No one should have been able to detect the poison before it was too late.”

I silently thanked Luce for her constant thirst for knowledge.

“Why do you want me dead?”

The female contemplated for a minute before speaking again.“If I tell you what you want to hear, will you promise to make my death quick?”

I reared back at her words. “What?”

She crossed one ankle over the other. “If I did manage to escape and get back to my people, I’m dead anyhow for coming back a failure. I’ll tell you everything you want if you make my death swift. How you choose to go about it is up to you, but I want a quick end.”

“Deal,” I said before Luka could protest.

“You’re making a deal with an assassin. Someone who tried to commit treason against us,” Luka argued. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“We’ve been searching for information on the Vanir for months with no avail. If she’s willing to give me information I can give her a quick death if that’s what she wants.”

“Okay.” I expected him to argue more, to question my intentions, but he didn’t. Instead, he took a step back, allowing me space to do what I needed to do.

I sliced my palm with a dagger at my side. “Give me your hand?—”

“Oriza.”

“Oriza.” She held out her palm, her shackles clanging as I dragged the blade over her skin before taking her hand in mine.

I muttered the spell, feeling the magic working its way through my arm.

“I, Lennox Adair, promise to give you a quick death if you, Oriza, promise to give me the information I need.”

Her dark eyes met mine. “I need you to repeat the promise,” I told her. “It will seal the deal so neither of us can break our promise.”

She repeated my words. “I, Oriza, promise to tell you all the information I can give on the Vanir in exchange for a quick death.”

Magic zapped through our joined hands, causing Oriza to jolt back, hugging her sliced palm to her chest. “What are you?” Her voice was quiet in the cell.

I stood, wiping my bloody palm on my leathers. “Since your breaths are short-lived I figure it won’t hurt to let you in on Lethenia’s best guarded secret.” I turned and smiled at the female. “I’m half witch. ”

“Holy stars,” she murmured. “That’s why you have a witch in your circle.”

“My cousin,” I confirmed. “But enough about me. Tell me about the Vanir.”

“What do you want to know?”

“Why are they after Lennox?” Luka asked from his spot leaning against the wall.

“I made a deal with the Queen, not you,” she spat at Luka.

“Careful how you speak to your High King or I won’t hesitate to bury my dagger in your thigh.”

“You can’t.” She smirked. “You made a deal.”

“I made a deal not to drag out your death. A dagger in your thigh won’t kill you. It will only hurt like fuck. But if you talk to my husband like that again there won’t be time to take back your words.”

I pulled an old wooden chair from the corner—wanting to be on Oriza’s level, but not willing to sit on the floor of the cell.

I sat in the chair and leaned back, crossing one leg over the other. “Talk.”

Oriza crossed her wrists over her bent knees. “What do you want to know?”

“The poison—why try to poison me and Luka?”

“It was mainly supposed to be for you and your sister. The Vanir want to eliminate the Adair line. They tried to kill the two of you before you got married.” Obviously . “But since that didn’t work, they believed Luka could be persuaded to work in favor of the Vanir. But if he would have drank the poison they wouldn’t have been upset about that. If the crown was open, they’d make their bid for the crown.” She swallowed. “They figured getting to your sister would be easy if you were gone.”

The knot in my stomach tightened. They greatly underestimated Kara. “So you poisoned all three of our glasses?” I asked tentatively.

She shook her head. “I only got the poison into yours and Luka’s. I was going to try to find your sister’s glass later in the night, but all hell broke loose.”

Luka and I muttered in agreement.

“What else do you want to know?”

“Why do the Vanir want me dead so badly?”

“At its core, the Vanir are against the concept of having a High King and Queen. If there is going to be one, they want it to be a Vanir with the crown.”

“Don’t you think the Vanir are putting too much stake in the hatred between the vampires and the rest of the courts?” Luka asked.

Oriza shrugged. “That’s not my judgment to make.”

“It doesn’t make sense—this level of hatred.”

“They’ve lost sight of the vision they started with,” Oriza said quietly.

“What was that?” Luka pressed.

She sighed. “When the Vanir originated—centuries ago—all they wanted was equality. They wanted their people—the vampires—to be treated as everyone else was. That vision was quickly lost when members became bloodthirsty. They saw the power that came with killing and they got a different type of blood lust. They thrived off of fear—no longer did they worry about true equality. They wanted the crown. With the crown, they could demand justice by force.” She looked at Luka. “I’m sure you’re all familiar with how the original rebellion ended.”

We nodded solemnly. “Everyone thought the Vanir had snuffed out centuries ago when they were hiding in the shadows instead. The Vanir never ended. But they decided recently to make themselves seen again.”

“That’s how they’ve been able to keep themselves so hidden while coming back so strong.” I looked at Luka. “They’ve been hiding for centuries.”

“Why are you telling us all this?” Luka asked Oriza.

“I didn’t have a choice in being a part of the Vanir.”

“What do you mean? ”

“I was born into the Vanir. My parents were members. Once you’re in it, there is no way out but in death. I was forced to live in the shadows.” She took a deep shuddering breath. “Living in the shadows is no way to live.” Oriza looked at the ground before speaking again. “What else do you want to know about the Vanir?”

“Where can we find them?” I asked without hesitation.

“They’re everywhere. They live in groups all throughout Lethenia—not only in the Blood Court. It’s nearly impossible to find them unless you know their locations and know about their tattoos.”

“Can you tell us the locations you know?”

“I moved to the Star Court about ten years ago, I was too young when we came here to remember where we were located before, even if I could, I doubt they’re still there. But I can tell you about my base here.”

Luka and I nodded, encouraging her to continue. “I’ve been living with a group of Vanir located on the northernmost tip of the continent. You have to travel through the Abode Mountains and on the coast there are several small villages scattered along the border.” She looked at me. “People rarely travel through the mountains.”

She was right, there was nothing of use on the other side of the mountains, so no one ever traveled there. Making it the perfect hideout for a secret organization.

“Who is your leader?” I asked.

“And where can we find them?” Luka added.

“I’m afraid that’s a question I can’t answer. They keep their identity safely guarded. Only the people in their trusted inner circle know their identity. As well as at their home base. From what I understand they move around a lot though.”

“That makes sense,” Luka murmured.

“Is there anything else you can offer us?” I asked.

She thought for several minutes .

“I don’t think so. I’m sorry. This was one of my first jobs. They don’t share much information with me yet.”

The more I looked at her, the younger she looked. She couldn’t be older than twenty and yet the Vanir sent her out here to poison the High Queen.

They had to have known it was a suicide mission.

“You going to kill me now?”

I arched a brow at her. “Not yet, I have a couple more questions. Why did you send the Dhampirs after us?”

Her brows furrowed. “Is that what those creatures are? You think we sent them?”

“Didn’t you?” Luka and I asked in unison.

She shook her head. “The Vanir have nothing to do with those abominations. We’ve been avoiding them for months. They’ve killed many Vanir since they started appearing.”

“If the Vanir aren’t responsible for the abominations, who are?” We all shared a questioning look.

“What about Astria’s journal?” Luka pressed.

“Astria’s journal?” Oriza asked, her brows furrowing.

“Fuck,” Luka swore. “The Vanir aren’t the ones looking for Astria’s journal are they?”

Oriza shook her head. “I might not know much, but I’ve never heard anyone mention a journal or book of any type.”

My stomach hollowed.

Luka swore. “What does this mean?”

“It means we’ve been keeping our eyes on the Vainr this whole time, while there’s another force at work.” I looked at Luka. “It means we no longer have one enemy, but two.”

Oriza whistled. “I’m not envious of you guys, that’s for sure.” I leveled her with a gaze.

“Any more questions?” She turned away from my stare.

I looked at Luka, who shook his head.

Well then.

I stood and reached for my sword. Luka stopped me with a hand to my arm. “Do you think killing her is the best idea? What if we could get more information?”

I looked at Oriza. “I made a deal. I will stick to that deal.”

“You didn’t say you had to kill her immediately,” he countered.

“I know.” I looked at Oriza again. When we first came in she looked like a tough assassin. Now—now she looked like a sad young female.

“Keeping her alive any longer would be as bad as torturing her.”

Luka removed his hand. He hadn’t been trying to stop me, he only wanted to make sure I was certain this was the right choice. I appreciated it when he did that. I did tend to make brash choices, but this wasn’t one.

Minerva whined as I removed her from her sheath—causing Oriza’s gaze to flick up to meet mine. She stood, the chains shaking slightly as she wrung her hands. I met her dark gaze. “Thank you for all the information you gave. Rest well knowing it will be used to create a better Lethenia. To help try to end this strife between our people.”

A muscle feathered in her jaw as a tear slipped down her cheek. I tightened my hand around the pommel of my sword until the metal bit into my palm. I focused on the sting. On the pain.

She had tried to commit treason , I reminded myself. She would be tortured if I let her go. I couldn’t trust her to stay in the palace—even if she had given us valuable information.

I closed my eyes and thrust my arm forward. I winced at the sound of the gasp choking from Oriza’s throat. I removed my sword from her heart letting it clang to the floor as I laid her lifeless body on the straw. Her blood coated my hands as I stared into her lifeless eyes.

It was what had to be done. I closed her eyes with shaking fingers before squeezing my own eyes shut. This is what she wanted, I repeated to myself .

A hand brushed over my shoulder, taking me from my thoughts. “Lennox, it’s time to go,” Luka whispered gently.

I wiped my bloody hands on my leathers, quickly turning and leaving the room. I made it several paces down the hallway before stopping and turning to Caio, snapping my mask of queen back on. “The body should be burned and set to rest in a dignified manner.”

He nodded and at his confirmation, I turned and headed back out of the dungeon.

I could feel the panic clawing up my chest. Tears clouded my vision as I made my way to my room. I needed to get to my room.

“Lennox.” Someone called but I ignored it. I needed my room. I needed to be alone. No one could see me break down.

The door of my office came into view and I bounded towards it. When I closed the door behind me I was met with resistance. I pushed again, but the door pushed back until Luka emerged.

He looked at me with such a soft expression, causing the last tether of my restraint to snap.

“She was just a girl,” I rasped, tears clouded the edge of my vision.

“I know.” He wrapped me in his arms. “But you did the right thing—that was what she wanted.”

“I know, but it doesn’t make it any easier. Oriza, and the people who died at the wedding yesterday—I feel those losses on my soul.” I let their faces filter through my mind. I knew their deaths weren’t my fault—but I had a hard time believing it. I was their High Queen, I should have protected them. I should have done better.

“We’ll get through this.” Luka held me until my breaths evened out again—my heart beating in time with his as I tried to reconcile my thoughts.

“I love you. ”

“I—”

“I know.”

“Until the stars turn to dust.” I should say it. Tell him I loved him—but I couldn’t get my lips to form the words. I wasn’t ready yet. Soon. Soon I could tell him how I felt. Even if he already knew—I wanted him to hear those words.

But not right now.

Not after I had taken the life of a young female.

Not when my hands were stained with Oriza’s blood.

Not when people were dying on my watch left and right.

Later.

I would tell him I loved him later.

Luka held me until I was ready to face everyone again.

He wiped away my tears and helped me clean Orizia’s blood from my body.

I took one more deep breath before I let Luka lead me from the room.

We found everyone in the sitting room, chatting idly with plates filled with meats, cheeses, and bread littered on the table between them. Luka and I settled on the couch, I popped a piece of cheese in my mouth before leaning back, my eyes scanning the room.

“Where’s Kara?”

They all shrugged.

“I haven’t seen her yet today,” Luce remarked.

“Neither have I,” Nico pinched a piece of meat between his fingers.

A seed of panic took root in my chest. I took a deep breath to quell it. “Has anyone seen her today?”

Everyone shook their heads.

The seed of panic grew.

Declan stood from where he leaned against the wall near the window. “No one has seen her today? ”

We shared a look. I could see the worry in his eyes. “When was the last time anyone saw her?”

“I saw her briefly last night, she was heading to her room after helping get everyone home with Caterina,” Luce said.

“But no one has seen her since?’ Declan pressed.

The room was silent.

I stood, the panic no longer a tiny seed but a sprouting worry. “She could be sleeping, it was a long day yesterday.” I tried my best to keep my voice calm as I spoke, but fear seeped in.

I took off towards Kara’s room. She was probably still sleeping. I felt Luka’s presence behind me—but he said nothing. Not bothering trying to calm me. Knowing it was pointless until I confirmed where Kara was.

I knocked on her door with three rapid knocks. “Kara!” Nothing.

I knocked again. “Kara.” My chest constricted.

I tried the door handle. It opened, I pushed open the door, Luka following behind me. “Kara?”

My stomach dropped at the sight of the empty room. “Kara?”

The bed was unmade. The sheets rustled slightly from the breeze filtering in from the open balcony doors.

She had been here. But where was she now? “Kara?”

I walked out towards the balcony. Maybe she had fallen asleep on the balcony.

Nothing. I walked back into the bedroom. Luka’s face was pale as he looked up at me. “What is it?”

My eyes flicked to the paper he held in his hand. “Lennox.” The hairs on the back of my neck rose at the tone of his voice.

I approached him. My boots crunching on something. I looked down to find broken glass littering the floor. The bedside lantern had been shattered. There were flecks of something staining the ground. The flecks were a deep red color. Blood— was that blood?

“Kara’s not here.”

“What do you mean?” Luka passed me the note.

“She’s not here. Someone took her.”

There was a roaring in my ears. I held the paper—the note in my shaking hands.

If you want the Princess back, bring me the journal .

The paper fell from my hands. Gently falling to the floor, landing on the broken glass. My eyes fixed on the white paper as the edge’s darkened. The spot spread, blood slowly staining the parchment.

That’s how it felt in my chest. My feelings slowly seeping in, staining me, tainting me.

My sister was gone. Taken by someone.

Who?

Where?

Kara was gone.

I fell to the ground. Glass bit into my knees as my skin shredded on the tiny shards of glass. The pain was nothing compared to what I was feeling inside. All these years—everything I had done was to protect Kara.

And I had failed.

This. Letting someone take her—this was my greatest failure.

Someone was screaming.

Tears tracked down my cheeks. Or was it sweat? I couldn’t tell. I couldn’t feel anything. My entire body was numb.

My sister was gone.

I slammed my fists against the wooden floor and the room shook around me.

This feeling—this bone-crushing feeling. The excruciating pain that ripped through my chest. It was familiar. That thought alone could have sent me to my knees if I wasn’t already there. The last time I had felt like this—the last time I felt like this was the night of the vampire attack. When I realized they were dead .

Magic exploded from my palms as the pain rushed through me. Pain. That’s all I felt. Soul-crushing excruciating pain.

“Lennox!”

My chest heaved violently. I was unaware of what was happening around me.

“Lennox,” came a calm voice.

Arms wrapped in flames enveloped me. Legs coming on either side of me as I was pulled against a strong body.

Hands searched for mine, forcing me to relax my hands from fists to intertwine with theirs. Flames lick up our hands, our arms.

Our entire bodies were encapsulated in flames.

“I’m here.” Luka held me to him. “I’m here, Lennox. I’ve got you.” Sweat dripped down his brow onto my shoulder. “I need you to breathe.” I couldn’t.

“Yes, you can. Breathe in.”

My body shook as I tried to get air into my lungs. “Good. Try again. Breathe in.” He brought our intertwined hands to my chest. Placing one set on my heart and the other on my stomach.

“Feel as you breathe. Try again.” I took another breath, getting more air in my lungs this time.

I don’t know how long we sat like that. Each time I breathed my flames grew smaller until my heart leveled out and the last of my flames flickered out.

The floor beneath us was scorched, as were parts of the sheets falling from the bed.

“Can you get up?” Luka stood and offered a hand to me. When I was standing in front of him he wrapped his arms around me.

“She’s gone,” I choked out. “They took her.” There was no stopping the tears now that they flowed. The sobs wracked my body violently. My legs wobbled beneath me. If Luka wasn’t holding me up, I was certain I would have fallen back to the ground in a heap of tears .

“I know.” He ran a hand down my hair. “We’ll get her back. I promise.”

“You can’t promise that,” I choked out.

“I might not be able to promise it, but I will try my damnedest, Lennox. You know that.” He took a step back, holding my face in my hands as he looked at me. “I’ve got you.” The look on his face—the sincerity and determination written in his expression—Luka. I still had Luka. No matter what happened, I still had him. I was not alone. I closed my eyes and pressed my head against his chest.

“We’ll find her.” He placed a kiss on my forehead. “We’ll find her.”

That was the last thing I remembered before I slipped into the darkness.