Page 29 of Lily of the Valley

Looming over them from the dais was Ferdinand, wearing her father's crown—her crown—and clearly relishing his eminent victory.

Hands clenched tightly, Lily surged forward, drawing all eyes. "That is enough, traitor."

"Oh, good, I don't have to send them out to look for you," Ferdinand said smugly.

"Lily!" Josiah shouted, as Scout growled and surged forward—

—as Ferdinand's eyes went brilliant scarlet and he threw out his arms, webs of black light springing from his fingers and racing toward her like lightning searching for ground.

She threw out her hand with the ring, and it shone with brilliant silvery white light before shooting out beams that absorbed the streaks of black light.

Ferdinand's face went red as he snarled, "How did you do that?"

"The likes of you will not be tolerated by the Laughing Forest, witch," Lily replied. More light erupted from the ring, sending out thin ropes of light that pooled and spread, turning into vines as they spanned the whole of the throne room at a rate which would probably be alarming if they weren't working on her behalf.

With another snarl, Ferdinand threw out his magic—but at Josiah and Scout.

"No!" Lily said—and then cried out in pain as something struck her hard on the head from behind, sending her toppling.

There was a growl like she'd never heard before, vibrating in her chest and rattling her bones. Lily twisted, but the vines were already dealing with her assailant. She turned back just in time to see Scout lunge at Ferdinand, teeth around his throat. He tried to scream, but it turned into a short, strangled wet noise before silence fell entirely.

Lily's breath hitched.

Slowly pushing to her feet, she approached Scout and the corpse. "Is he really dead?" But the gaping wound where his throat had once been, the blood that coated Scout's teeth, was answer enough. "Thank you, Scout. I'll never be able to repay all you've done for me."

Scout made a snorting noise that sounded impressively like 'whatever, shut up'. Lily smiled faintly before turning her attention to Josiah, who was slowly limping toward them. "I'll get a healer."

"No need for that," Josiah said. "I'll just have a snack and be good as new." He squeezed her shoulder before shuffling over to the man who'd struck her. Stooping, he yanked the man to his feet as though he was made of straw, and Lily caught the barest hint of sharp fangs before Josiah buried them in the man's throat.

The man tried to push him off, pleading and screaming, but just moments later he went limp. Josiah's eyes gleamed red, and she rather thought he was smiling before he turned away from them to finish the job.

"Right them," Lily said. "I need Penelope. Where is Alice? Leigh?"

Around the room, people slowly started to move, some going to help others, the rest approaching her. Lily swept her gaze over them, noting who was there, their haggard states. "Scout, who here can I trust?"

Scout gave a derisive snort, but after a moment limped down the stairs and nosed at seven of the nine gathered. Lily leveled her gaze at the remaining two. "Why can you not be trusted?"

"Because that bitch stabbed me and was standing with Ferdinand when I came in," said a woman.

"Fuck you!" the woman said.

Before the arguing could begin in earnest, Josiah joined her, looking as good as new as promised, despite all the drying blood that still covered him. "Your Majesty, I'm taking you to your chambers. Alice is sorting out the courtyard, once she joins me we'll start going through the rabble."

"Very well," Lily said, because it made the most sense. She could hardly work from a blood-soaked throne room, and she would need help to sort out who in the court supported her and who had been quick to turn. "Scout?"

Scout nuzzled her hand but then loped off with a series of sharp barks.

"She needs to see to her wolves," Josiah said.

Lily nodded, suddenly exhausted, and did not protest when Josiah led her away, through the castle that felt familiar and strange all at once, to the chambers she'd thought she'd never see again.

She was home. The fight was over. She was queen.

Later she would probably feel victorious. At present, all she felt was hollow and numb.

Moving to the balcony, where just weeks ago she'd been practicing a speech while her friends kept her company, she stared down at where trouble had arrived. Currently, it was a mess: blood everywhere, bushes and trees torn up, bodies waiting to be taken away.

It would take weeks to fix everything, and probably years for deeper wounds to truly heal.

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