“Well, well, well... what a wonderful surprise! Liars, traitors, and disowned royals all in one.” My breath hitched as I stared into the black abyss of the Ashbourne royal’s eyes.No... It can’t be.
“Hello, my sons. Welcome home.”
chapter twenty-four
Miron and Killian both stiffened as we stared across the elaborate throne room at the Ashbournian king. His proud smile spanned his whole face as he drank up our raw shock. He lounged back on his obsidian throne while leaning his weight on the jeweled hilt of a magnificent sword.
I thought Conan would be in the throne room... not King Darius.
“Father...” Miron’s voice came out as a near-growl as his shock slowly ran its course. “What are you doing here?”
The king chuckled maliciously as he slowly rose from his throne. The beautiful seat glittered vibrantly against the dancing light of the chandelier. Flickers of embedded rubies and gold-veined trim distracted me temporarily as the king approached our party with heavy steps. “What’s the matter? Can a father not visit with his sons? I feel as if we have so much to catch up on.”
“You’re no father,” Killian spat. “You’re a monster, and a threat to the realms. If you’re half as wise as you’ve always claimed to be, then you’ll surrender now and tell us where to find Conan.” Killian raised the tip of his sword. The candle light sent a fiery glow into his blazing eyes.
“Oh, Killian, always such a disappointment,” the king tsked. “You have no room to speak of being wise, especially when you’re foolish enough to wage war against the most powerful man in the realm.” He lowered his sword to the floor, allowing the blade to screech across the ground in a shower of sparks.
As he grew closer, his eyes came close enough to my view that I could properly focus on them. I funneled my magic through my veins, and narrowed in on a question.
What is the king hiding...?
My sight went black.
King Darius is glaring down at his sons and me with a touch of amusement. He reaches for his hip and slides out a hidden blade…
“Watch out,” I whispered to the princes. “He’s concealing a blade on his hip.”
My whispers must have echoed across the stone floor because the king raised a brow in amusement. “Very good, little Crystal,” he taunted. He reached toward his hip and revealed the blade, just as I had envisioned. He flicked the sharp tool onto the floor and it embedded itself into the stone with a deafening crack. “It would seem that you and Miron have become quite the pair. It’s honestly pathetic, Miron. I’m sure that measly power has only boosted your irritating pride another notch. Such power is wasted on you, son. You never possessed the proper focus required for controlling magic. I would have liked to make use of your unique gift, but I couldn’t trust that you wouldn’t attempt to use your magic for your own gain.”
Miron’s touch grew hot beneath my palm. “Wait a moment... you knew that I was a mage all along!?” he seethed, but then his face flushed white as he donned a look of understanding. “Of course you knew... My entire life you’ve had the servants prepare my drinks to prevent my magic from slipping out. You even insisted that I only drink my own water when I journeyed to Isalla...Why would you keep something like that from your own son?”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re my son or my shepherd,” the king stated menacingly. “In my kingdom, all magic belongs to me. If I don’t deem you worthy of your powers, then you aren’t permitted to know of their existence; and you, son, didn’t need to inflate your ego any further.”
I gritted my teeth as I glared daggers at the prudish king. “You’re such a hypocrite! Miron’s not the one with the ego,” I shouted furiously across the room and my echo rattled me from every angle. “Magic belongs to the mage who possesses it. You don’t get to dictate who can or can’t use their powers. We are not weapons or tools for your amusement. What you’ve done to your citizens is nothing short of barbaric. I may not have a castle, crown, or even a proper kingdom, but I know that as a princess, I would never intentionally hurt my citizens the way that you have hurt even your own family.”
My heart pounded violently in my chest as I unloaded my hatred onto the man I had once considered my protector. The king’s face twisted into a sick grin, and I felt a wave of nausea sweep through me. He let out an unhinged cackle, allowing his beastly laugh to fill every corner of the room. “You foolish, girl. You knownothing.” His lips curled up into a sickening smile, as if he was preparing to entertain himself on my fears and pain. “You would never put your kingdom at risk, would you? Well, isn’t that ironic... I suppose I can’t fault you for not knowing, especially since this particular fact was left out of our kingdom’s history.” He narrowed his eyes on me and I felt his glare dig straight into my soul.
A stiff knot twisted in the pit of my stomach. “What was left out...?” I knew I was playing into his hand, but if he knew more about my kingdom’s demise...
“It’s only a small detail, really.” The king snarked coyly as he gleefully toyed with my fragile state of mind. “You see, before the siege occurred, I had been lightly debating whether I should send out troops to kidnap a few valuable mages from Sybettal’s land or not. My wife, Queen Priscilla, was strongly against the idea, so I decided to wait for a bit of a sign... if you will.” He paced ominously across the room, never once pulling his villainous gaze from me. “It wasn’t until I received a letter from your dear mother, Queen Violet, that my master plan was able to form.”
I gasped.My mother?
“You see, you had just been born,” he continued. “In her letter, she explained that she had been blessed with a baby princess who had been born with incredible magic power, a sorceress. Even back then, sorcerers were rare, so the queen feared you would be hunted for your power and requested a very specific favor from me. According to her private researchers, there was a special plant, known asCrystalleaf,that when mixed with water, could mask the powers of a mage. This herb couldn’t grow sufficiently in Sybettal’s coarse soil, so she requested we grow it for her in exchange for gold. Well, naturally I had to test the legitimacy of her claim, so I found the herb, mixed it into Miron’s water, and quickly learned the queen was correct. I wrote back to her, explaining that I would be happy to grow the herb and she sent me loads of gold and all the crystalleafs she could get her hands on. The seeds took to our soil instantly, and I quickly had the plants cultivated along every one of our water sources. While the plants were infecting the water supply, I made my trip to Sybettal...” He paused to soak in the look of horror that now stained my face. “I couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to employ such a powerful sorceress, and I figured that while I was there, I may as well snatch all the other magic wielders to add to my collection. Since I had a way to control their power, it was no problem forcing them into submission and selecting the mages that best suited my needs. So you see, little princess, your kingdom would have never fallen if it not for your tempting powers. It was so easy to keep you and my other toys tucked away from prying eyes. Even my wife didn’t know of your existence.”
It all shattered. My heart, my thoughts, and even my desire to breathe all crumbled into shards of irreparable despair. Sybettal had been destroyed... because of me? My mother and father and so many innocent citizens had been slain...all because I was born with silver hair.
Every piece of me burned with a searing fire of rage and hurt. Blood raced through me, warming my fingers and reddening my burning eyes. “My mother reached out to you for help... And you not only betrayed her trust, but you used her knowledge to destroy her kingdom and steal her life.” My throat tightened as I fought the urge to scream or cry.
The king narrowed his soulless gaze onto me and smiled. “Precisely.” His voice didn’t hold even an ounce of regret. I could almost feel the heated anger radiate off of the two princes as they balled their hands into white-knuckled fists. The king scoffed at his sons’ untamed fury. “A true king takes advantage of every opportunity to rise in power. That’s something you two never truly grasped. Your brother, on the other hand, isn’t afraid to do what is necessary.” He looked straight past me, and I flinched at the familiar sound of footsteps.
The three of us turned as Conan strode confidently into the throne room. I sucked in a breath as my eyes fell on the sash that rested across his shoulder. The black sash glittered vibrantly with dozens of silver hairs that had been woven into the black wool. Each and every fragment of silver was alight with active magic, and I felt the nausea within me rise into my throat.
He’d converted them into a talisman... All of their powers are under his control.
Conan flashed his brothers a pearly grin. “I’m glad I didn’t miss out on the family reunion. You’re looking a little thin, Killian...Have the slums already taken their toll on you?”
Killian clenched his grip around his sword “Why you—”