Page 51 of Blackwarden
She smiled wide, showing sharp teeth. “My Blackwarden’s shadow magic is full of surprises, isn’t it? It comes in handy if he needs to manipulate someone or take advantage of a situation.” Her hand slipped from my throat as she glared at me with unyielding intensity. “His evil heart is as black as his flesh, my pet. Do not let him manipulate you.”
I found this hard to believe. The male who had helped me the night before had been nothing but kind, his presence calming. But perhaps it had been because he could sense the way I was feeling? I didn’t have time to review every interaction with Bevgyah glaring at me.
“When he took you to a suite last night did he stay with you? Did he touch you?”
I shook my head, my cheeks feeling hot with embarrassment. Did she think I’d been intimate with her consort? “No, your Majesty. He took me to a suite and said he needed to go. I assumed to return to you.”
She smirked, glancing at me from the corner of her eye. “He did not return to me. I found him in his own bed this morning.” She watched me with critical eyes. “Did he speak with you about anything? Anything at all? I need to know every word he’s said to you. I worry he may have ensnared you already.”
I tried to recall what we’d spoken about. I’d asked him questions about the portal and how I wished I could return home, and he’d answered them. But I’d also told him I thought I remembered him.
“He told me why I was here. Something about a treaty. I asked him about the portal...I...” Too scared to confess I’d asked him to take me home; I froze in place.
“Why ever would you want to know about the portal?”
I shouldn’t have said so much, but my fear had ripped the words from me. I should have lied and told her he’d said nothing. Her dark eyes burrowed into me, making me squirm under her scrutiny.
“I asked him if he could take me back through.”
A flash of anger moved across her face, but she stifled it quickly.
“Tell me, Tesanna, what do you remember from the human world?”
A shiver writhed up my spine. This was a dangerous question. It was growing clearer that I wasn’t supposed to remember. I tried to make my momentary shock seem more like reflection, but I wasn’t sure how well I’d hidden my fear.
“Nothing. The first thing I remember is the room with the mirror and so many shadows.”
She seemed to think on this for a long moment before she gracefully lifted herself to her feet.
“This has been a delightful chat, little pet. I will call for you later today so you might entertain me.”
There was something so sinister in the way she used the word ‘entertain' that froze my blood in my veins.
“Of course, your Majesty,” I said with as much sweetness as I could muster as she swept from the harem.
I was yanked from my suite at some awful hour of the night. At first, I thought it was one of the miniscule Fae who helped us in the harem, but when I realized it was a guard, terror made it hard to breathe. Where was a guard taking me in the middle of the night? I’d tried to wriggle free from his grip, but he only tightened his hand on my wrist.
His orangish red flesh peeked from beneath black armor, and I had a momentary flash of desire to see what his face actuallylooked like. My curiosity was washed away almost immediately as he roughly directed me out into the hall.
“Come on, her majesty isn’t exactly patient.”
And he wasn’t exactly patient either. I stumbled and lost my footing multiple times as he dragged me up a flight of stairs, my heart racing faster and faster, fear gripping my insides the closer I came to finding out exactly what Bevgyah meant by “entertainment.” I was yanked to my feet with a frustrated grumble. Clearly, the guard wasn’t interested in whether I met with the queen in one piece, only that I made it there.
I was ushered into what looked like a lavish sitting room with settees and futons spread out, framed by rugs woven in brilliant shades of blues and lavenders. The room was garishly decorated with silver trimming and gems on almost every surface. The ceiling was encrusted with thousands of massive crystals that made it appear as though it was encased entirely in ice. The walls were covered with an iridescent material that glittered in the brazier light and cast eerie rainbows over everything. A chill of warning writhed up my spine. On a settee near a massive faceted window sat Bevgyah, her Blackwarden nowhere in sight.
“Ah, Tesanna.” The Hag Queen’s voice was sing-songy, with a sweetness that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Tell me, what do you think of my palace?” she asked, lifting her arms to gesture to the room around her.
I was so confused. Why would she yank me from sleep to ask me this? For a moment I wanted to tell her exactly what I thought. This place was cold and creepy and nothing made sense. The last thing I wanted to do was be forced to spend my days in a room with a bunch of gossipy girls while we waited for the next party. I didn’t like the way she treated her Blackwarden, and I wanted to go home, even though I had no idea if home was any better.
“It’s beautiful,” I lied and hoped this would be enough because I wasn’t sure I could force myself to elaborate further.
“Come now. I am beautiful.My Blackwarden is beautiful.What do you truly think of your new home?”
She wasn’t wrong. She and her Blackwarden were indeed beautiful. I took a deep breath, trying to think of something else I could say that wouldn’t upset her.
“I’m still getting used to things, I guess, your Majesty.” I tried to stall further, but her expression was growing impatient. “I don’t like the revels.”
She threw her head back, laughing with her whole chest. The crystals she wore on chains around her neck chimed like a creepy song.
