Page 49 of The Crimson Princess (The Ravengale Chronicles #1)

“This is a battle of kings, and you are not one, not yet. Don’t be stupid.” I motion to his father, who’s standing upright again. “He’s not that hurt. Stand down.”

“She’s right,” Raven interjects, stepping in front of him, her hands on his chest. “They stripped us of our powers. That’s obvious. You can’t help. You have to let him defend his throne. That is how royalty lives and dies.”

I block them out, focusing on the battle.

Ruhn and Darus are now facing off with the fae king, but it’s clear that Darus is barely standing.

Alister’s blond hair is almost silver, and tied at his nape, a big man, as all kings are, but he’s agile, elegant almost, with magic in his every movement.

And when Alister turns his sights on Darus, it’s over for Darus, of this I am certain.

The druid king will die this day.

But I don’t care about Darus or the battle between those three.

I care about the one between my father and Toren, the one that has haunted my sleep, created nightmares that I now know were premonitions.

I rush through the arena, closing the space between me and them, needing a close-up view of what is happening.

They’re matching each other, strike for strike, but then the moment comes when my father creates a magic blade and slices Toren’s gut, and that magic cuts through his armor. I can feel the pain rip through Toren, and I cry out. “No! No! Stop!”

Toren holds up his hand, magic blazing from his palm as he throws a ball of energy at my father so intense, it lifts my father off his feet and blasts him backward.

That’s when a sword of magic, several feet long, rips through my father’s body from behind.

I cry out at the sight of him, as his body goes limp, and he crashes to the ground, the sword still in Ruhn’s hand.

The crowd goes wild with cries of distress.

I rush to my father’s side, collapsing on top of him, shaking him. Ruhn laughs and walks toward Toren, and the two men speak before Ruhn blinks away.

Were they together? Did they do this together?

Alister appears next to Toren, as does Tabby, Stefan, and Gideon. Toren walks to me and kneels beside me. “We need to talk to the gales.”

“Did you do this? Did you plot with your brother to kill him?” I’m shaking, speaking through gritted teeth, and when I push to my feet, I launch myself at him.

He catches my arms and holds me easily, I am after all without my magic.

He leans in close and whispers, “I’m sorry.

I know you hate me right now, but I’m doing what has to be done to save both our worlds.

If you do what I say, you save your crown.

” He pulls back and looks at me. “You hear me?”

I nod and he laces the fingers of one of his hands with mine. “We’re going to talk to your gales.”

“Who took our powers?”

“Me and Alister together are capable of many things. We couldn’t risk innocent gales jumping in and getting hurt.”

“I’m not an innocent gale. ”

“No, you’re the most important gale to me, Satima. We need to speak to them. Now.”

A microphone appears in his hand, and he blinks us to the stage. All of his team join us there, even Alister.

At that moment the Book of Life appears in front of me and Toren.

“Don’t touch it,” Toren warns. “It wants us under its spell.”

He uses his finger to point at it and a moment later, it’s locked in a wooden box.

He waves his hand again and it disappears.

Toren speaks into the microphone. “The book is evil. It belongs to the sorceress of war and chaos. It’s a part of her.

It is locked away, not to be touched or used by any of us.

” There are murmurs throughout the crowd.

“Your council will be dismantled. Their attachment to the book is dangerous to us all. The ways of the past are not the future for any of us. Today is a new day. The gales and the vampires will come together as one and your queen, Queen Satima and I will sit on the thrones of both worlds together.”

There are shouts of “Queen Satima,” and I squeeze my eyes shut with the pain of knowing my father is gone. No matter all his faults, I loved him. Somehow, I tilt my chin up and try to look strong when I feel weak.

“For now,” Toren continues, “the queen will return to Bloodstone with me, but to ensure your safety, and for the short term, King Alister will, as a neighbor and friend, oversee Ravengale. The druids will return to Fifth World under his rule. But I must stress, there will be no changes to your life but for the better, I promise.”

Someone shouts a question about the Challenge and Toren answers freely.

“Those who are serving as guardians and shadows will hold their positions until the next Challenge which will take place in two months. It will be volunteer only. Anyone, not just gales, may participate. None of us want Third World merging with any other world. We will protect our worlds together.”

He offers me the microphone, compelling me with a look to speak.

I swallow hard and reach for my shaky voice.

“I will never betray you. I will always defend you. I love my world. I love my gales. I ask for your trust. I give you my life. We will hold a tribute for my father, but I beg your patience. I just lost my mother, we just lost our queen. I need a little time to deal with this. And to all of you who have competed in the Challenge, who had family who competed, to those who have guarded the portals, we are forever in your debt. You are the heroes of many worlds.” I let out a heavy breath and lower the microphone.

Toren eases it from my hand and says, “We will marry soon. The details of which will be forthcoming. Peace be with us all.”

I gasp with the announcement, but Toren has already turned to face me, and captured my hand. He blinks us out of the arena. The minute we appear by the divide I am livid. “What was that?” I rotate to face him. “I will not marry the vampire who killed my father.”

Toren’s head lowers, his chin to his chest and I look down at my hand to find blood covering it.

I step closer and pull up his cape to find half his side gaping open.

No. No. I— no . I wrap my arms around him and pray I still have enough of his blood and magic to blink us to the other side of the wall.

A moment later, relief washes over me as we stand on Bloodstone terrain.

The minute we’re there, I blink us to his bedroom in the city.

The minute we hit the floor, he falls to his knees and then falls backward.

A second later he’s sprawled across the floor, and bleeding out.

The end…