Page 26 of Princess Avenged

“A fool to let anything trivial interfere with the life I’ve planned.”

Setting down her mug in a smooth dip in the rock surface, Selina turns toward me. “Surely you can’t mean love. Love is the least trivial, most glorious experience on earth.” A massive smile invades the concern on Selina’s face.

There’s no denying how love has changed my sestra’s life, how happy it’s made her. But as much as I love Selina, we’re not the same person. Not by a long shot. I’ve lived a hundred years longer than my newfound sister and that’s given me a century of wisdom to help me understand what’s really important.

“I appreciate that finding love was transformative for you,” I tell Selina. “That your men have made you happy. But I have no time for that. I want to make a positive difference in the world.”

Selina frowns. “You think I don’t?”

“I didn’t mean it like that.”

“Then, what did you mean?”

Oh, my goodness. I’ve insulted her. “What I mean is, I want to see the whole world. And I want to make big things happen. I want to change things that will improve the lives of all vampirekind. Humankind too.”

She chuckles. “You know what, Ana? If anyone else said that to me, I’d think they had delusions of grandeur, but I’m certain you’ll actually do those things. I have no doubt you’re going to change this world for the better.”

“So, you understand why love’s not for me.” I smile over my mug of tea, wishing this small victory had made me feel better.

“Not one bit.” Selina shakes her head. “I don’t see how one thing has anything to do with the other. I don’t understand why you can’t combine love and success. I don’t see why you can’t do great things with a man—or men—at your side. If anything, a mate’s love and support will bolster you, make you more effective in your work.”

I take another long sip of the tea, letting the warmth of the water and the force of the jets permeate my body. It’s possible she’s right. But even if she is, it’s not relevant. Not anymore.

“It’s not just that,” I tell her. “I’ve also discovered that I can’t trust those men.”

“Oh, I’m so sorry.” She slides toward me. “What happened?” She glances to the side to confirm we’re alone. “I mean, you told me a bit about their…dubious pasts. Is that it?”

I shrug. “Partially. Mostly. Maybe.” I shake my head. “The only thing that matters is I’ve discovered they’re liars. I can never trust them again.”

Chapter

Thirteen

Blade

“Holy shit,” Flame looks up as the three of us enter the palace archives. “This place is fucking huge.”

Seeing the awe on my brother’s face, my spirits lift for a moment, as light catches his blond hair and highlights the strong planes of his rugged face. His ocean blue eyes sparkle as he turns, while taking in the central section of this massive library. Housed in a natural cave in this mountain, the shelves in this area were carved into the rock and rise at least four stories to an ornately painted, vaulted ceiling. A circular ramp spirals up and around the vast space in front of the shelves of books, giving easy access to every single tome.

While Flame is clearly impressed, Crusher’s staring at the floor. Then again, the floor’s beautiful too. A huge mosaic of colorful stones and gems, inlaid in patterns into the rock.

“You should see this place with the lights on,” I tell them.

“Turn them on!” Flame grins in boyish delight, clearly admiring the library’s design more than its contents. This archive houses some of the most important documentation of not only the vampiric world, but regarding all topics imaginable.

From this main room, tunnels fan out like wheel spokes. Those tunnels lead to many more rooms housing collections of literature and poetry, as well as quieter study rooms and spaces to research online.

“Here are the books I’ve been looking at.” I point toward a long cherry wood table, piled with three dozen books, some still open where I left them when I was pulled away by the news about Phil.

My heart stops for a moment, remembering I’ll never see my gruff, protective brother again, but his loss makes me even more determined to discover what kind of demon took him down.

Until we know what it is, we can’t be certain the demon is dead, and most importantly, whether Ana is safe.

Even if Ana refuses to see us again—a thought too difficult to face right now—I couldn’t live knowing that thing is still coming after her.

“How can we help?” Crusher asks. His jaw twitches, and the veins on his forehead pulse. He’s at least a mile beyond tense.

As angry as Ana is with us all, Crusher took the brunt of her ire, and it’s hard to see how they’ll get back to the affection they’d begun to show for each other.

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