Page 5 of King of Fire and Flames

Shut the fuck up, Arrow, I told the unwanted memory. I couldn’t care less what you think anymore.

Flashing Esen a serene smile, I said, “It sounds like you’ve forgotten I’m a queen.”

“Were to be a queen. What you are now remains to be seen. But regarding your horse, she’s currently tied to Raiden’s. They’re traveling behind the carriage.”

Raiden.

Another two-faced prick.

It was so quiet outside that I’d forgotten the bastard was along for the ride. Other than the whoosh of the fire geysers, the rhythmic thud of hooves and jangling horse tack, all else was silent.

I hadn’t heard a word from the other fae. Not the ones I couldn’t see—Raiden and the flame-eyed mage with crimson hair who was somehow blocking my reaver magic. And not from the two visible through my window—the pair with long black hair escaping their helmets, trailing down their chests like ink spills.

One of them appeared to be a dark-haired version of the crimson-haired mage. Perhaps they were brothers. And possibly even twins. Sorrow squeezed my heart as my thoughts turned toward Quin. Again.

Another enemy I’d mistakenly chosen to love and trust. And now he was dead, his serum-soaked flesh rotting under a slab of marble beneath the Mydorian Palace in our family’s ancient crypt.

I drew my mind away from the past and watched Esen shift her weight, something moving under her clothes on her right side. A small blade, if I wasn’t mistaken.

“Esen, if the Storm Prick ordered my arrest, then why are we going to the Fire Court?”

A new smirk tilted her lips. “As you know, Arrow broke the peace accord because of you. To make amends, he promised to deliver you to Taln himself. But when I heard that the City of Mydorian still thrived and you were supposedly their lost princess, I knew Azarn would be extremely eager to meet you. As predicted, instead of waiting for Arrow to deliver you, he ordered me to take you directly to him. So… here we are. Together at last.”

“What an interesting chain of events,” I said dully, keeping my expression blank as my mind buzzed with the words Arrow had said to me in Mydorian. The hardest thing he’d supposedly ever done was stand by and watch me kill my brother, risking my life in front of him.

A lie.

He had also stated he felt physically unwell whenever he was away from me.

Another lie.

He apologized for every wrong he’d ever done to me.

All lies… along with every tender word he’d ever whispered in my gullible ears.

I seized hold of my spiraling thoughts, forcing calm to flow through my veins. Making myself think with my head instead of my heart for a change.

“Does Arrow know that Azarn’s soldiers have me?”

“Not yet. But he’ll soon be told and will no doubt hasten to the Fire Court to witness your extermination.”

Yeah… I wasn’t convinced. This whole setup felt wrong.

The details of events relayed by Esen seemed murky at best.

According to her, Arrow had agreed to hand me over as payment for his past misdemeanors. She didn’t say he had ordered my arrest. And I knew better than to trust Esen. Was it possible this whole thing was a trick? A plot to make me believe Arrow had betrayed me?

I looked out the window again, flinching as a geyser showered sparks across the night sky, peering toward the back of the carriage where Raiden rode. I couldn’t locate him, but I had no doubt he was there. I had seen him in the desert with my own eyes, and the presence of the Storm King’s closest friend proved the circumstances of my arrest had most likely unfolded the way Esen had explained.

“I don’t quite understand,” I said. “All the kings of the realms are now aware I’m the heir to the Earth Realm crown, yet they still believe Arrow has the right to trade me to another king?”

“Of course. Why do you think the elves keep Mydorian cloaked? Humans are weak and hated by the fae. Your brother was too stupid to realize Azarn was using him to maneuver closer to the reavers and their precious gold mines. And Arrow? He has always believed he owned you and that you were his possession. But now you belong to the Fire King.”

“You expect me to believe that Arrow would give anything he considered his to the fire fae. It’s not in his nature to share.”

“Oh, Leaf, did you never listen to the things Ari told you? All fae despise humans. But the fire fae hate Arrowyn even more than they hate you. In addition to the Bonerust incident, Azarn blames Arrow for the death of one of his sisters.”

My jaw dropped, and Esen’s face went blank as her brain caught up to her mouth, likely realizing she’d shared too much. “That’s enough bonding, as you call it. I’ve been kind and, as usual, I’ve told you far too much. I don’t know why your sad, green eyes elicit such pity inside me, but I’ll work harder to resist them in the future. Rest now. The journey is nearly over.”

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