Page 89 of Enticing Monsters

“The fae learned that when a new skinwalker came of age and was ready to rule, their hair would turn pink. The current ruler would step down, and the new one would take over. This occurred for thousands of years until—” He snapped his mouth shut, shadows seeping into his eyes, turning the molten gold into amber.

“Until?” Sera asks tentatively.

“Until her. Until the Obsidian Queen.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

SERAFINA

“The Obsidian Queen?” Foster parrots, frowning.

I feel my own eyebrows draw together.

Why does that sound like the name I would read in one of my fantasy novels? I actually want to laugh out loud at the ridiculousness of such a title, but Cadmus’s grave expression tells me this is no laughing matter.

“Every skinwalker was gifted mates. Some only had one. Others two or three. A few of the most powerful had four or five.” Agitated color creeps into his cheeks. “I don’t know why the fates would choose her as a mate for the skinwalker. Maybe they messed up. Maybe they didn’t see this coming. Maybe?—”

“Slow down,” Kian says, though not unkindly. “Explain.”

Cadmus takes a deep breath, his chest expanding, before seemingly able to get himself under control.

“I apologize for my outburst,” he says with rigid formality.

“Who is the Obsidian Queen?” I try to keep my tone gentle, to not allow my impatience to seep through. “What happened?”

“I told you a little bit about her before, but not the entire story. I wasn’t lying when I said historians have differing opinions on her, but I know the truth. She tried to change history, tried to paint herself as a kind and benevolent ruler, but there’s only so much darkness you can hide. She was the mate to the very last skinwalker to rule this land,” Cadmus says cryptically.

Something in his voice causes fear to slide up my spine and knot in my throat.

“King Loren, correct?” I ask, remembering what he told me earlier. “And this Obsidian Queen… She was Queen Leah, right? The one who killed the other wives?”

“How many mates did the skinwalker have again?” Kian asks, his hands stroking my shoulders.

I revel in the ministrations, focusing on the pressure of his fingers on my skin. It calms me. I flash him a grateful smile over my shoulder, overcome by my love for him, and he blushes and smiles back.

“He had five,” Cadmus answers. “At the time, that was the most mates in documented history for a skinwalker. But the Obsidian Queen, as we call her now, wasn’t happy being just one of five. She didn’t want to split the power amongst her consorts. So…she killed them, or at least that’s how the story goes.”

Even though I know that already, I still suck in a sharp gasp, my chest physically tearing in two at the thought.

Cadmus eyes me gravely. “There’s a fine line between love and hate, but somehow, that line got warped.” He swallows, and my stomach pitches. “The king was horrified at what his queen did, but he still loved her. She was his mate, after all.”

He shakes his head in disgust.

The weight in my stomach turns into a one-thousand-pound bowling ball. What would I do if one of my mates killed all of the others? Would I still love them? I don’t think I would be able to. Or maybe I would, but my pain, anger, and betrayal would supersede any warm emotions I’m capable of feeling until all that’s left is stony wrath.

“As the years progressed, the king became more and more depressed, and the queen took on more and more responsibility. It wasn’t long before she had the entire world under her thumb. And then word got out about a new skinwalker coming into power.”

Fear tightens my chest and speeds up my heart rate. I know what Cadmus is going to say even before he says it.

“When the young girl and her parents arrived at the castle to meet with the queen, the queen had her killed. She put her head on a spike just outside of her palace as a deterrent to anyone who thought they could steal the crown.” Anger flavors each word Cadmus spits out.

“My god.” I place a hand on my stomach as if that could somehow keep the contents firmly inside, where it belongs.

“But the Obsidian Queen wanted even more—more than the world could offer her. She recruited the help of the smartest fae in the land. She wanted them to find her a way to live forever and have the power that rivals even that of Arisha.”

The more he speaks, the tighter the anxiety in my chest coils.

Outside, the world explodes in color from the lightning zigzagging across the ground. Foster jumps, and Tristan takes a step closer to me. Kian’s hands on my shoulders tighten nearly imperceptibly.

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