Page 2 of Wicked Court

The reason for our mandatory arrival is becoming ever so apparent.

Fuck.

“Did I give you permission to speak?”

The throaty voice comes from the front. One of the Sovereigns, then. Of the three, two enjoy hearing themselves talk and order us around. It’s the Sovereign that doesn’t speak, never speaks, that unnerves me.

While each represents the pillars of the Court, he’s the one who gets to enact strategy and enforce punishments. And his idea of torture is always … unique.

Footsteps follow, the sounds of expensive treads hitting concrete, complimented by dripping water nearby.

“Apologies, Sovereign.”

I lift my head as I say it, jutting out my chin. I can never precisely bow to authority—not in the way they want.

Rough nails slice through my lashes as two unforgiving fingers dig under the strip of cotton that obscures my vision, threatening to cut my corneas before tearing the fabric away.

I blink through the sweat now free to run into my eyes, squinting and surveying my surroundings as quick as possible after being blinded for over an hour. Strands of damp, black hair stick to my forehead and curl into my eyes, but I can’t do anything but jerk my head to clear the view.

We’re beneath the dim, crimson glow of our emblem. The chamber, an architectural masterpiece of Gothic grandeur that only the elite could think to carve under Ivy League buildings, boasts intricately carved stone pillars dancing amidst the haze of countless candles. The air is heavy with the lingering scent of incense, an aroma that clings to the dark velvet tapestries that hang from the walls like banners of mourning.

“You failed us, Cavanaugh.”

The Sovereign who tore off my blindfold stands before me, apathetic behind his plain white mask.

“You were meant to retrieve the ruby Heart for us and instead, you’ve given us silence.” He adds,“Did you not think we’d come for you?”

“I knew Mommy and Daddy would be mad,” I say through a clenched jaw, “so forgive me for delaying your sadism.”

Though it’s impossible to tell, I’m confident his eyes narrow behind the black hollows of his mask.

“Insolence, too? You’ve forgotten your place.”

“I know it well.” I keep my voice steadfast. “And I’d simper and beg for your forgiveness to your heart’s content, but for the surprising revelation that even you, sire, couldn’t predict that the Heart doesn’t exist.”

Silence, but for the fidgeting of the other thirty freshmen and sophomore initiates of the Court surrounding our circle, also cloaked, but wearing half-masks of porcelain.

Kaspian, Axe, and Wilder remain bound and blind by my side, though their chins are up like mine. All have blood and dirt marring their features. And when I came back with the news, I convinced each of them that there is no Heart, the largest ruby in the world rumored to have been lost somewhere in Titan Falls.

One we were desperate to find.

They are my loyal brothers of the Court. We’d die for each other. Kill for each other.

The Sovereign inclines his head. The other two Sovereigns remain seated on their ornate stone thrones, gloved hands gripping the arms.

“You seem so confident in your answer, Cavanaugh,” the standing Sovereign continues. “It gives me such great delight to inform you that you’re wrong.”

My answering smirk freezes on my face.

“It exists,” the Sovereign says. “The Heart isn’t the myth that many would like you to think it is. It’s the pulse of our power, soaked in a history you’ve barely scratched the surface of. Our possession of it will rewrite the past and open us to alliances and power-plays that have shaped the world’s elite for centuries. I’m shocked by your irreverence, Cavanaugh, considering your family’s unshakeable belief that it will cure their curse of misfortune that has been ruining your ancestors for hundreds of years.”

It pains me to do it, but I sputter, “That can’t be true?—”

“Do not question your Sovereign.”

Spit flies out of the small hole of a mouth in his mask, followed up by a crack across my face.

I keep my profile where it is after being whacked to the side, my lip curling, my vision turning red with actual blood along with the rage.

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