Page 73 of The War of Wings
His gemstone eyes gleamed, his smile blindingly bright as he pulled me even closer. “I’ll meet you there.”
I leaned my forehead against his chest, savoring the way I could feel his heart beating. “I love you,” I whispered.
He pressed a kiss to my hair. “I love you,” he said, and goose bumps rose across my skin. “Are you ready for tonight?”
“Ready to shove proof in the faces of everyone who doubted me?” I swallowed hard, letting my anger flare again. “Yes, I’m ready.”
“That’s my fuckin’ girl,” he laughed.
I beamed up at him. Soon, dinner would be served and my plate would go untouched as the sound of silverware clinked around the ballroom. Then, King Laion would call everyone outside to the gardens forentertainmentas he’d phrased it, and I’d call the drivas. They were going to scare the ever-loving shit out of everyone, and I couldn’t fucking wait. I just had to make it through dinner.
“Excuse me, King Belin,” a gruff voice sounded from behind me.
“King Laion, Queen Irli,” Cal said with a curt nod, his face hardening when he saw King Laion and Queen Irli waiting expectantly.
While Irli’s lips were turned up in a demure smile, Laion looked uncomfortable, his jaw tight as he looked right past me. “Would you mind if I stole Queen Petra away for a dance?”
Cal raised a single brow. “She’s right here, is she not? You can ask her yourself.”
Laion’s face scrunched for a split second, his lip twitching as his eyes moved begrudgingly to me. “Queen Petra, may I have this dance?”
What the fuck? I stepped away from Cal, the two of us sharing a look that lasted a fraction of a second yet conveyed every bit of confusion. The last thing I wanted to do was dance with Laion, but I pasted a smile on my face. “Sure.”
Cal extended his hand to Irli, a polite smile on his face, trying his best to make it appear as if he knew how to dance. Then they were gone, swallowed by the crowd, and it was just me and King Laion and the ice-cold tension between us.
One of his hands reached for mine and his other settled gingerly on my waist, making as little contact as possible — something I was very, very grateful for. And then we were spinning, Laion taking the lead as we joined the crowd of partygoers. My steps were awkward as I stumbled to the music,but Laion was surprisingly quick on his feet, the only reason we moved with the crowd with something akin to ease.
“It is customary for the King and Queen to dance with the guests of honor,” he grumbled in explanation, his eyes looking anywhere but at me.
“Don’t worry, King Laion,” I mumbled, keeping my face neutral. “This is just as uncomfortable for me as it is for you.”
“Well, Queen Petra, you’ll come to find there are many uncomfortable things that come with wearing a crown.”
“I’m no stranger to discomfort, your Majesty.”
“Maybe not, but you are a stranger to the weight of a crown on your head.” His words were spoken so sharply they were like fangs, the venom entering my bloodstream immediately and making me feel small. Why was he so Saints damned hateful? I was here trying to do the right thing, trying to round up a force strong enough so that the realm didn’t have to simply lay down and burn.
My teeth gnawed at the inside of my cheek, trying to think of something to fill the silence. “You grew up here in Araqina, yes?”
“I have no interest in entertaining the questions of an Astranian.”
I reared back, a humorless laugh escaping me as I stared at him. “Are you kidding me? You know, I may not have grown up with much in the way of an education and my manners may not be up to royal standards, but at least I know how to speak to people.”Sometimes, but I kept that part to myself.
“You haven’t been royalty for long, so allow me to share a piece of wisdom. As royalty, you cannot be afraid to step on toes. I do not have time to entertain the frivolous questions of a foreign queen.”
He intended to make me feel small. He intended to keep me one step beneath him, one peg below him. And I wouldn’t fucking let him.
“Well, King Laion,” I started. “I don’t plan to step on any toes. I plan to stomp on the neck of the one who is the reason we’re here in the first place. I suggest you don’t get in my way, because I have no problem stomping on yours, too.” Disdain hardened his features as the orchestra’s melody began to slow, coming to a stop. “And it would do you well to remember I am not royalty. I am divinity. If you ever need a reminder, I won’t hesitate to provide one.”
His jaw ticked as we stepped away from each other and I turned to find Cal. But my search was cut short when an ear-piercing scream cut through the air, followed by the all too familiar sound of the Occulti.
Part II
Fire
“Power is intangible. You cannot hold it in your hands, but you can feel it slip through your fingers. You cannot taste it, but it can make you drunk all the same. You cannot see it, but you can watch as it mangles everything you hold dear.”
-An excerpt fromTheories of Blood Magic,written by Queen Ivey Nowlys
