Page 24 of The Queen’s Shadow

“It’s a date.” I responded, turning on my heel to leave.

Leaving her to fill up this little book, apparently, with all the names of the daemons that had raped her.

Rycon

My little masochistic trip down memory lane had given me the motivation I needed to carry out the rest of my plan. Sliding the book into my back pocket, I crept out of Kasha’s room and down the hall to where my nose was telling me the slave was staying. I entered her room silently. She looked to be sleeping, and also… restrained.

Interesting.

I really didn’t think the mountain or the witch had it in them. Shrugging, I quickly scanned the room and smiled. There were several bottles and jars filled with herbs and potions on the table in the center of the space. Exactly what I had been looking for. I stalked silently to the table and began to sift through Meredith’s stash of healing potions and remedies.

As I sorted through the various bottles and vials, I heard the slave’s breathing pattern shift, and knew without having to turn around that she was waking up. I had a split second to decide whether I should abandon my task and escape before she caught me, or allow myself to get caught.

Just as I was debating if I really cared or not about getting caught, I found what I was looking for. I slid it into my pocket next to Kasha’s tiny jar of Olkuyrbe soil, before turning around to face the slave.

“Rise and shine,” I smirked at her as she rubbed her eyes, frowning in confusion.

“Who are you?” She asked, her voice still rough with sleep. I eyed the manacles strapped around her wrists. It looked like Dossidian and Meredith had made sure the chains that attached her to the wall were long enough that she could walk to the bathroom. This gave her almost free range of the entire room, which meant if she decided to attack me I was in the line of fire.

However, considering how tired and weak she seemed, I was confident I would be able to get out of the way if I needed to.

I raised an eyebrow, “Shouldn’t I be asking you that? You’re the one chained to the wall.”

She looked down at her hands, her lips pursing into a firm line.

“I asked them to do this. Ash Nevra could use me to try to hurt you guys.” She said, her voice sad. I rolled my eyes.

“Not to burst your bubble, sweets, but you’re not exactly serving ‘deadly threat.’” I pushed off the table and moved to leave. She narrowed her eyes on me, suddenly suspicious.

“What are you doing in my chambers?” She asked, her tone sharper than it had been moments before. She eyed me up and down, then glanced at the table full of medical supplies.

“None of your fucking business,” I snapped, and she surprised me by scoffing.

“I think you made it my business when you entered my room without permission.” She pointed out. I hadn’t been expecting her to pack any sort of punch, but it made me pause and turn back to face her.

“I needed some supplies.” I told her, not sure why I was explaining myself to this random stranger.

She raised an eyebrow. “Supplies to help you in your mission to kill Ash Nevra. You and your friends plan to kill her,” she said. It wasn’t a question.

It was my turn to scoff.

“Obviously.”

“I want to kill her too.” She said, making eye contact with me as she said it. I considered her for a moment. She was skin and bone. She obviously had been mistreated for who knows how long. I assumed it was Meredith who had cleaned her up, so at least she wasn’t covered in blood anymore. But no amount of soap would scrub the bruises that were splattered across her fair skin, or the haunted look in her crimson eyes.

I couldn’t put my finger on what it was, but something was seriously wrong with her. She was injured in a way that wasn’t immediately visible. It made my skin crawl.

“It’s a nice thought, sweets, but you’re more of a liability than anything at the moment.” I gestured to her shackles again and her obviously prone state. A little determined crease formed between her brows as she stared me down. I resisted the urge to chuckle.

Barring the fact that she was currently enslaved by the enemy and shackled to the wall, I had a feeling she was going to fit right in here. I had a sudden vision of her, Raven and Kasha teaming up to chirp the rest of us sorry assholes over some dumbass shit, and I felt my lip curl despite myself.

“I may not look like much now, but I will heal in time. Underestimating me would be a mistake.” She told me haughtily. “There is no one, outside of your Queen, that has more of a reason to want Ash Nevra dead than I. Believe me.”

The amusement bled from my face and the little notebook filled with the names of soon-to-be dead daemons suddenly felt heavier in my back pocket.

“I can think of one person who does.” I replied darkly.

The slave looked thoughtful for a moment, then her eyes widened slightly.