Page 30 of Reign of Betrayal

We stand there in silence, assessing the contestants. Sweat drips down my chest, and I notice her again—Reign. She’s with those same prisoners, always drawn to them. They’re speaking in hushed tones, and I watch the rest, all practicing with weapons. Suddenly, I feel it—this sensation, tingling just under my skin. It’s like a pull along this invisible tether, and I know she is looking at me. Her eyes trail from my chest to toes and back up again to settle on my face. I wink at her. She immediately diverts her gaze to the ground in front of her. Her face reddens with embarrassment.

“Did you just wink at the prisoner?” Kylo asks, incredulous.Shit. I did.

“I like to piss her off,” I say. “It’s how she accessed her powers.”

James is now looking at me. I know those eyes, damn it. I am going to get a lecture. The same one I got when I was younger, and he caught me sleeping with a royal guard’s daughter in the training room.

“Don’t even think about it, Luke. Be smart,” James warns. “She is a prisoner, and you are the prince of Umbrahdor, and you know what the trials lead to. Nothing good will come from it—nothing. Stay away from her. She is trouble.”

I study James—really looking at him. He is finally starting to show some signs of aging around his eyes. Some gray is showing on the sides of his hair and beard. He actually looks concerned. “I have no interest in the prisoner,” I assure him. “You have nothing to worry about. She probably won’t even last the first round in the trials.”

Gods, she probably won’t. It shouldn’t be my concern. She is just a prisoner with barely any magic it seems—basically a Nomatrab. She has nothing to offer me but her body, and I can have anyone I want. Most women—who aren’t scared of me—throw themselves at me. Maybe it’s best she dies in the trials. But maybe if she…

“Prince Lukene!” a guard calls out, breaking me from my thoughts.

I snap my head to the guard, running to me from the castle.

He stops and bows. “We need you, it’s urgent,” he pleads.

I glance at Kylo and James. “Helpmyprisoner with her magic,” I instruct, then grab my tunic, pulling it over my head as I sprint toward the palace.

Ilisten as Larah asks, “Do we take all five of them out or just the king, queen, and Vanna?”

“All of them.” Elm replies, launching a throwing knife into a target with deadly precision. “If you leave any alive, they will retaliate.”

“But the youngest one, Lilyana, seems nice—nothing like the rest of them. And… the prince doesn’t seem all that bad,” I add.

Larah’s lips curl slightly, amused, but Elm fixes me with a blank, unyielding stare. “Lilyana has always been a sweetheart,” he says, voice devoid of emotion. “But if we do this, it has to be all of them. If we take out Vanna, the king and queen will come for us relentlessly. They’re ruthless. I heard from the guards that Prince Lukene was recently sent to take over Skalhar. They’re trying to conquer the entire continent.”

“What happened?” I ask, bracing myself for the answer.

“He succeeded,” Elm says grimly. “The guards said they’ve never seen anything like it. He wiped them all out, consuming them with his shadows. They said it was a bloodbath, yet none of his own was spilt.”

“Kingdoms go to war all the time,” I argue. “He’s the Captain of the Royal Guard. He has to follow orders from the king and Vanna. He isn’t the reason we were sent to The Hollows.” I glance at Elm, hoping for agreement. “…And neither is Lilyana,” I add softly.

Elm’s calculating gaze doesn’t falter. “They all go, Reign. Prince Lukene is dangerous. He’s loyal to the crown, and that makes him lethal. Keep your head down and stay out of his path.”

I know Elm—he’s worried. But there is nothing to be worried about. If he says they all go, then they do.

“How do we do it?” Larah asks, always pragmatic.

“Poison,” I suggest. “We can slip it in their tea or food. Depending where the trials are held, I can try to grab different herbs, roots, and flowers to make it.” I silently thank my parents for teaching me about plant magic, healing elixirs, and poisons.

As Elm and Larah talk about… something, I see Prince Lukene talking to James and Kylo. He has his shirt off. Double burning hells, how does someone have that many muscles? My breath catches in my throat at the sight of him. He is sinfully beautiful. He has a giant cursed rose tattooed on the center of his chest. It has vines with big thorns extending from it that trail to his shoulders, slightly up his neck, and coil down both arms. It’s beautiful. He’s beautiful. Ugh, I can’t think like that. He is a royal. My enemy. I continue to look down his body and back up. I startle when I get to his face because now he is looking at me. Then he winks. He winks! Arrogant pompous prince. Heat floods my cheeks, and I curse myself for getting caught staring.

“Reign?” Elm’s voice pulls me back to reality. He’s glaring at me now.

“Oh, I’m sorry. What did you say?” I mumble, embarrassed.

Elm sighs, exasperated. “He’s trouble, Reign. Stay away. They don’t call him the Dark Prince for nothing.”

A guard rushes out, and within moments, Lukene and the guard are sprinting back toward the castle. Kylo approaches our group, commanding our attention.

“In four weeks, the king will host a ball right before the first royal trial,” he announces, his gaze sweeping over the guards and contestants. “He hopes this will help motivate you to do your best in the trials. So, break off and train hard.”

Since Lukene left me, I am now with Captain Kylo and Elm. Elm’s power isn’t strong, but he has a solid grasp of how to use it. When it’s my turn, Kylo focuses on building up my magic.

“Now, concentrate on the flame in your hand.” Kylo says softly.

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