Page 158 of The War and Deceit Series omnibus

One of the guards nods and knocks on the door twice before returning to his original position. We wait in silence for a couple of seconds until the door opens and a steward pokes his head out. Seeing the two of us standing there, his eyes widen and he quickly opens the doors.

“Please, come in, the queen has been expecting you, Clarissa.” I notice the slight tremble in his voice as he speaks, but who is he scared of, us or the queen?

The guards move their spears to allow us entry, and with my head held high, I stride into the corridor and down the small set of stairs that lead to the atrium, Eldrin on my heels. I can’t see the queen yet, but I can hear the murmuring of voices as they bounce off the marble floor.

“She’s important. You risk the wrath of the gods.” The voice is accented and cultured, but something about it puts me on edge as I slow my footsteps. What’s he talking about, and who is this ‘she’? Eldrin stiffens behind me, and I hear a deep rumbling in his chest.

“The gods have no hold here anymore,” a voice, undeniably the queen’s, sneers, and I hear a couple of angry footsteps before a slapping sound makes me wince. Whoever just spoke has clearly upset her. “You forget your place, brother.”

Brother. My mind puts two and two together, and I realise whom the voice belongs to. Taking the final steps, we walk out into the large glass atrium, the sunlight streaming into the room. There are two guards by the bottom of the stairs who don’t move a muscle, and as I glance to the side, I see two ladies-in-waiting wearing their cloaks, hoods up as usual, completely covering their faces. The only other people in the room are the queen and the elf I saw at the ball who wanted me to follow him. I was right, he isrelated to the queen. He’s wearing an almost identical outfit to what he wore the other night—dark trousers and a fitted jacket with bronze embroidery and detailing over the chest and arms. His silver hair is shorter than most elves seem to keep it, but long enough to run your fingers through.

The queen has her back to me, so she doesn’t spot us as we enter. The brother, however, is opposite her, but with his head turned from me. He raises his hand up to his cheek. “My apologies,” he murmurs, but I can hear the anger in his voice, making his apology insincere. As he stands to his full height, I see the anger blazing in his eyes, but his gaze is suddenly on me and a smile spreads across his face. “Clarissa.”

The queen spins around and glares at me, her cheeks flushed. “Clarissa, you’re here at last. You kept me waiting.” Her voice is dangerously low, promising violence if I don’t play my cards right.

Dropping into a low curtsy, I lower my head to show respect. “I apologise, Your Majesty, I had to change into something more appropriate.” Rising, I see Eldrin straightening from a bow as well. The queen’s eyes flick from me to him and back again.

“Hmm.” Her gaze runs over me again, her eyes criticising me without even having to say anything. I could have worn my finest dress, and she still would have found fault with it. “I see you’ve another one of my lords at your beck and call.” Her tone is light, but her expression is hard. The brother is watching ourconversation with undisguised glee, but I try to keep my eyes off him, not wanting the queen to think I’m after her brother. “Is Vaeril not enough for you?” she continues, her voice sharp now as she takes a menacing step towards me.

“Your Majesty.” Eldrin is suddenly at my side, his voice softer than I’ve heard it before, and I remember his promise to me. My heart flutters at the gesture, but the queen isn’t impressed. Crossing the space between us with fae preternatural speed and grace, she snarls in Eldrin’s face.

“I wasn’t speaking to you.” Her features are twisted, and I’m reminded that this is a supernatural being standing in front of me. The harsh words make him flinch as she stands in front of him, growling softly, but to his credit, he doesn’t step down or back away like my body is screaming to. As if just remembering I’m here, the queen’s expression starts to smooth as she glances at me, disgust flickering in her eyes for a second before her serene mask is fully back in place.

“Clarissa, have you met my brother? Prince Taejon?” she inquires, her arm gesturing backwards towards him, but she doesn’t turn around or look at him, her gaze locked on me the whole time. I get the impression that there’s no love lost between the siblings as I notice a flicker of irritation cross the prince’s face before he walks up to me. Stopping just a step behind the queen, he smiles in a way that, had I been a cat, would make my hackles rise.

“Your Highness,” I reply, remembering my lessons with Naril and Master Ardeth on court etiquette as I dip into a curtsy, making sure it’s respectful but not as low as the one to the queen had been. Straightening, I loosely cradle my hands behind my back, wanting to keep my goddess mark from his view for some reason. I know he’s seen it before. When I first arrived, my mark glowed brightly enough that everyone watching was able to seeit. “We’ve not been officially introduced yet,” I continue with a small, polite smile.

“The honour is all mine, Clarissa.” His eyes run up and down my body with a hunger that makes me feel nauseous. Eldrin shifts his weight behind me, and I know that if we weren’t in front of the queen, he wouldn’t just be standing quietly behind me. “I’ve heard much about you, including some of your more unique abilities—”

“Taejon,” the queen barks, cutting off whatever the prince was about to say, once again not even looking at him as she speaks.

His anger is much more obvious now, and I see rage threatening to overtake him as he tries to calm himself. “I’ve overstepped,” he apologises, his calm restored. Dipping his head towards me, he smiles, but it’s lacking the energy it had earlier, and something I’m unable to identify flickers in his eyes, making him seem dangerous. “It was nice to meet you, Clarissa, I look forward to spending more time with you soon.”

Without waiting for a reply, he turns and storms past us up the stairs and out through the door into the main castle. Relief immediately floods through my system as soon as he leaves, and this time, I can’t hide the shudder his presence invoked. I notice the queen watching me with interest. There’s a pause, and I remember why I was nervous to come here in the first place. She’s looking right at me.

“Clarissa, walk with me,” she orders, turning and walking farther into the atrium, fully expecting me to just follow without question. I suppose that’s the benefit of being in charge—people do what you say. Glancing over my shoulder at my companion, I see he’s frowning at the queen’s back, his confusion evident. At my look, he shrugs and gestures for me to do as she ordered, stepping forward in time with me.

As if sensing the movement and prepared to pounce, she pauses and glances over her shoulder. “Lord Eldrin, you may wait here.” Waving a hand dismissively, she turns away once more.

Struggle and strain are obvious on Eldrin’s face as he takes another step towards the queen. “But—”

This is the wrong thing to say. Spinning and using that supernatural speed again, she suddenly appears in Eldrin’s face, her expression full of rage. She’s going to hurt him, that much is true, and something strikes me in that moment as I watch him. He’s going to go against her orders. Sudden clarity hits me, and I know I have to do something. He’ll protect me, just like he said, and then she’ll kill him.

“You dare question me?” The queen almost seems to grow in size, and this close, it looks like her eyes have gone wholly black, her body shaking with her anger.

Then, in a move I’m sure I’m going to regret later, I step between her and Eldrin. “Your Majesty, please—” I’m cut off as she turns her hatred from him to me, her head tilting to the side as she watches me like a predator stalking its prey, and my words die in my throat.

“Why do you care what happens to him?” Her voice is surprisingly even as she speaks. She takes a half step forward, and I instinctively take a step back, bumping into Eldrin’s hard chest. His hand comes up to rest on my shoulder, and I take a deep breath, trying to stay calm under her anger. “I’ve seen how he treats you. What is it about him?” she questions, and her expression turns into a grimace as she glances over my shoulder at him. “It can’t be his looks, those were ruined years ago—such a shame,” she sneers, and I feel him flinch behind me. A smile spreads across her lips as she hits her mark, enjoying the fact that she can hurt him so easily. My anger bubbles up inside me, so fiercely that it almost takes my breath away.

“You’re wrong.” The queen freezes as I speak. “Besides, in my experience, the most outwardly beautiful people often tend to be the ugliest on the inside,” I state with a confidence I didn’t know I possessed, but I mean every single word.

I expect her to get mad and hit me like she almost did with Eldrin, but instead, she raises one perfect brow. Humming in amusement, she finally takes a step away from me, and I feel like I can breathe again.

“Maybe you are more like us than I first thought. Come.” There is no room for argument in her tone, and I don’t want to risk pushing her again, not when she seems to be so eager to punish Eldrin. For what, I don’t know.

The hand on my shoulder tightens, and I turn to look up at him. His face is torn, and I know his desire to protect me and obey the queen are warring within him. “I’m fine, I promise.” Smiling slightly, I roll my shoulders to try and ease the tension there, and he follows the movement with his eyes. “She won’t hurt me,” I promise, hoping he can’t hear the lie. I have no doubt that the queen will try to get rid of me in any way possible, and the fact she’s sent Vaeril and Naril away worries me.

“That’s not true and you know it,” he grumbles, crossing his arms over his chest. Silence fills the gap between us as his face shows a variety of emotions, as if he’s struggling to pick just one. “You tried to protect me.”

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