Chapter 17
Now
Resolve was an iron fist around my heart, squeezing, pumping the blood through my veins. As I walked into the throne room alone, six other doors arranged around the hall opened too, the other Initiates stepping forward as I did, their traditional pure white gowns just as excessive as mine. “Please, ladies,” crooned an indistinguishable voice belonging to a member of the Board of Blood. “Gather here.”
The seven members sat on a raised dais draped with crimson velvet curtains. The men were arranged in a straight line in lavish chairs that matched the drapes, each sitting leisurely.Fucking bastards.A behemoth of a throne rose behind them, empty, the deep mahogany gilded in gold. The Invisible King’s throne.
I wondered if he held court in his throne room. I wondered if he even held court at all. I realized I hadn’t asked Castemont if he’d ever met the Invisible King. Where was King Belin now? What did he think of this?
The Initiates and I stood together in front of the dais. The doors to the throne room suddenly slammed shut, the clangs echoing through the cavernous hall. I felt their eyes penetrating my skin, one set burning the most of all. The onyx black eyes of Ludovicus roved over my body, one eyebrow slightly raised and a lazy smile on his milky face. I wasn’t sure if he knew Castemont had caught me last night. Caught me andWrena. I shivered, willing my body to stay still.
“My, my,” crooned the same breathy voice that had called us to gather. Raolin. His ruby eyes reminded me of the rats that crawled through Inkwell. “You all look absolutely splendid.”
“Truly,” Garit added, his long fingernails tapping together. The brothers wore matching suits of black, silver stitching accenting the lapels as the dull sheen of leather glowed underneath.
I felt tension and uneasiness ripple off the other Initiates. I was standing closest to the east wall of the throne room, trying to keep my eyes from wandering around the hall. Alira stood next to me, her hands neatly folded in front of her. Did she know what was going to happen today? Were she and her sister Willow kept in the dark as I had been?
Marble columns the color of bone shot up from the matching floors, each carved with ancient scenes of the Saints’ greatest legends. Twenty-two columns in total, eleven on each side of the hall, two for each Saint. I saw Aanh, Saint of the Home, building a house of pure gold, protecting it with her life. Idros, Saint of Storms, was depicted pushing thunder clouds together, lightning snaking out beneath. Cyen, Saint of Death, stood over the graves of the departed. I shivered at the sight of his lifeless eyes.
The pillars reserved for the Keepers were gilded in gold as the throne was. A battle scene was etched into each column that belonged to Katia and Rhedros, though it wasn’t clear who had the upper hand. Katia’s crown shot sun rays to the sky while Rhedros’ crown cast a shadow downward.
The columns supported a mezzanine that shadowed the back half of the expansive room, no doubt for guards with bows ready to extinguish any attackers while court was held. It was empty. We were completely at the mercy of the Board.
Not me, though. The dagger pulsed at my thigh.
Ludovicus rose, placing his hands behind his back while descending the steps of the dais, weaving between us at a sickeningly slow pace. “Today you will learn the innermost secrets of the Royal Court. Those who succeed are sworn to secrecy to protect the sanctity of our court. Those who fail will be killed on site or cast into the Onyx Pass. Not a single Initiate has ever made it through the Pass to Blindbarrow.” His eyebrows raised as he stopped in front of Augusta, the furthest to the left. “I’m in a good mood today, but I’m not sure whether I can say the same for my brothers. Pray that if you fall, you fall swiftly.”
A spindly finger lifted Augusta’s chin as he inspected her face then stepped back and inspected her body. “Now that we’ve gotten to know each and every one of you, it is time to see if you’re worthy of royal standing. If you should be so fortunate as to pass Initiation and ascend to the Royal Court, you will be placed upon the marriage market and married off to the most suitable match.” He moved down the line, inspecting each Initiate as he had Augusta. “Your duty as women is to produce strong Eserenian leaders and wives to wed them. Should you be unable to provide,” he emphasized the word with a diseased tone, “you will meet the same fate as the failed Initiates. You have purposely been denied information throughout your life in order to protect the sanctity of this process, and if you are found to be disseminating any confidential information, you will meet the same fate as the failed Initiates. Am I clear?” We all nodded and I swallowed hard, my throat bobbing as he neared me.
“And should you break any rule, be found of any infraction,” he stepped closer to me, finger hooking under my chin, his voice lowering, “we will findgreatjoy in peeling the scalp from your head or watching the beasts of the Onyx Pass rip the eyes from your face.” He spoke the last words so low that only I could hear them. I remembered what Ingra had said.The beasts…with your blood on their jowls.I pushed the soothsayer’s words from my mind. I kept my eyes on his, my gaze a solid cover for the fire that was burning in my head. He was so close,soclose… I could grab the dagger and plunge it into his chest.
He released my chin, returning to his seat upon the dais. The room was eerily still, the lack of guards at each door making me feel more exposed than I had expected. I suppose I had grown used to the near constant company of guards. I thought of the carnage that hung outside the door I walked through, wondered if the blood still dripped from Wrena and Marita to the stone floor. I shook the thought from my head.
“As you know, we are the Board of Blood. My brothers and I were handpicked by the Saints to conduct Initiation across the continent, ushering in a new generation of royalty each year.” But were they really? “The Saints spoke directly to us twenty-four years ago, calling for the beginning of a new tradition.”
“Augusta, darling, please step forward,” Anton called. The girl took an apprehensive step, the ruffles of her gown swishing behind her. “Tell me of one sacrifice you have made in your life.” I had to keep my face straight, confusion sweeping down the row of Initiates.
She paused. “Could you please elaborate, Sir Anton?”
“I asked you to tell me of one sacrifice you have made in your life,” he repeated, annoyance lacing his words. “It’s a simple query.”
She shifted uncomfortably, the sudden attention making her visibly shake. “Each year, I choose to abstain from frivolous spending during the week of Saint Tolar’s Day,” she muttered quietly. The innocence in her voice told me that she genuinely thought of this as a sacrifice. As the daughter of a nobleman, I suppose it was a sacrifice. She did not understand that this “frivolous spending” was not normal for most Eserenian residents.
Anton’s face lit with amusement. “A whole week?” His words dripped with sarcasm like the bodies in the hall dripped with blood. “How conscientious of you.”
“Thank you, Sir,” she said, not catching the mockery in his voice. The other brothers let out quiet chuckles.
“You may return to your place.”
“Iridia, please step forward,” Arturius crooned. His voice was raspier than Anton’s, the grit sending a chill down my spine. “Tell me of one sacrifice you have made.”
She stepped forward, planting her feet on the ground. After hearing the question asked of Augusta, Iridia had an answer ready. “When I was eleven, my father, who as you know is Lord Pouissard, took me to Inkwell where we spent a whole day passing out bread and ale. I sacrificed an entire day to help the less fortunate.” I bristled at the mention of home. I wondered if I had accepted food from her, if I unknowingly ate the bread of a rich girl who I’d die beside in this very throne room a few years later.
“Goodness, me.” Arturius’ words were rife with the same sarcasm as Anton’s had been. “How devastating.”
The Board of Blood moved down the line, reacting to answers like giving away a piece of precious jewelry and settling for a brown mare instead of a black stallion.
“Petra,” Ludovicus hissed. “Please step forward.” A million ideas ran through my mind. Should I lie and say something that aligned with the other Initiates’ answers? No. I needed to get through this as cleanly as possible. “Tell me of one sacrifice you’ve made.”