Page 57 of Queen of Vampire Hearts

Gunnar nodded. “There is no greater crime than killing an unarmed babe. If revealed at a time of such upheaval in the lycan court, I don’t know that Erik would still be king now.” He paused before continuing. “And he’s a great king. The best we could ever hope for.”

When a hit of the broadsword split the staff in two, Lucien smiled and twirled the two pieces of wood around his wrists. I rolled my eyes at his display. It seemed that even ancient vampire kings were prone to showing off.

I sent a mischievous look at the wolf next to me and leaned in to whisper, “Should we remind them who has the actual power here?”

Gunnar’s smile was slow to form, but when it did, the grim lines aging him disappeared. “Go for it,völva.”

With magic glowing in my palms, I yanked the weapons from their hands. The broadsword impaled itself in the wall behind us, and the staff splintered uselessly against the floor. When both kings sent looks of surprise at me, I widened my eyes and pointed at Gunnar, stage whispering, “It was all him.”

Lucien’s bright smile caused my foolish heart to skip a beat, and to my surprise, he gestured me forward. “I believe you swore a rematch with your powers.”

I nibbled my lip and slowly stood, my steps unsure. “Against both of you? At the same time?”

Erik glanced at Lucien, then back, his bright eyes studying us both. Lucien was watching me intensely, his emerald eyes searing me, infusing me with confidence. “Yes,vrajitoare,both of us. I believe I promised you an even playing field.”

I shrugged, crouching down into a fighting stance like I saw them both do. The kings collected short swords, and Erik took a half-hearted lunge. My hands came up in a defensive position, and his sword froze mid-air, held still by my magic. Erik’s eyebrows went up.

You ain’t seen nothing yet, werewolf.

With a shove, my shield launched Erik across the room. He hit the ground with a loud thud. All present looked at me, their mouths dropping in unison. Lucien gazed at me with something that looked suspiciously likeawe.I could get used to that look.

“Are we going to spar or what?” I smirked as Erik came to his feet, rolling his shoulders.

Lucien and Erik glanced at each other, and moving like twin trains, attempted to land a hit from each side, hoping to catch me off guard. They failed. I fell backward, using magic to slip between them. Their swords met. They looked surprised at the clash of steel, not registering how I’d moved so fast. With two pointed fingers, I controlled the swords, wrenching them from their grips. I sent the weapons flying, Leif and Viggo ducking as they flew toward their heads.

I felt the flag of exhaustion, better to end the fight sooner rather than later. With another surge of power, I threw both men back, denting the walls where they landed. I smiled as they groaned in unison, but I wasn’t able to stop the faltering step I took. Lucien was by my side in an instant. He smirked, covering my power drain, pulling me against him, and twirling me around. His brows came down in worry as he whispered against my ear, “Is something wrong?”

I waved off his concern. “I usually use a single spell to annihilate my enemies with one move.”

Erik came to a stand, bowing to me. “I’ve never seen a witch move like that before.”

“I doubt you’ve ever seen a witch do any of the things I can do,” I added. Though exhaustion weighed on me, I refused to appear weak before them. As long as I didn’t use more magic, I would be fine. I needed to rest. Despite that, I gave more of my weight to Lucien.

“I doubt he has,” my vampire boasted, making me feel a little niggling of something likewarmtharound my heart. “Now, I believe I promised you an afternoon of history.”

I kissed him softly, uncaring of our audience. “Lead the way.”

XXVII

The Realm of Mortals.

Întuneric Castel, Romania.

GODS, HER POWER WAS HUMBLING.I led her toward the library with her hand tucked into mine. When we were out of sight of the wolves, I swooped down to pick her up in my arms. “You should have told me magic wears you down. I wouldn’t have encouraged the fight.”

“And look like a weakling in front of the wolves? Never.” She smiled brightly, lightening some of my guilt. “If all our enemies knew they only had to last through our spells until we collapsed from exhaustion, they wouldn’t take us very seriously.”

“At least you can count vampires out as enemies,” I said, settling into an armchair with her in my lap.

Phoebe raised an eyebrow at that, but I only shrugged. “If you don’t put the fear of the gods into them at your coronation, I will.”

Her eyes shimmered. Even that slight sign of affection between us made my heart soar. She cleared her throat. “Tell me about your coronation, so I can know what I might expect.”

Mightnotwill.She still might leave me. I forced the thought away and sighed, recalling the ceremony. “It was bleak. Many of the vampires who are now Elders felt I was too young. They had made their objections to my uncle, who suggested taking it up with my mother.” I laughed hollowly. “No one dared do so. How do you tell the Goddess of Vampires that her son is not fit to lead them?”

“But you still made them your advisors?” she asked.

“I did. I believed, and still do, people who questioned my rule were more likely to question my decisions. I knew they would speak up and prevent me from acting rashly.” I kissed her forehead. “They usually only come once a century to report on the vampire population, or before a Great Event, like a war or…” Her eyes connected with mine before I finished my thought, “finally, placing a queen on the throne next to me.”

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