Page 48 of Queen Takes Rook
“She had twenty-six Blood when we left,” Rik said. “Twenty were female, six male. Ezra, what was the count when you left?”
“Wes was killed in the ring; the male alpha, Conall, was barely alive; and you know how Kendall ended.”
“That leaves twenty-two, assuming the alpha is beyond your healing,” Rik said. “If you’d even want or be able to heal him after what Keisha does to them.”
His tone didn’t change, but I felt his tension straining against my back. I still hadn’t asked him exactly he’d seen in Skye’s court. How did Keisha torture the alphas? Did I need to know in order to defeat her? I didn’t see how, and it would only upset him to drag out those old nightmares.
So, I changed the subject. “Should I assume that she knows how many Blood I have, and who they are?”
Gina grimaced and nodded. “I’m afraid so. Bianca betrayed us to Ra. We have to assume that she passed along other information, too, and she had full access to our guest list before we ever arrived. If Ra knows something that might hurt you, we have to assume he’d share that information with the other queens. He wants to sow chaos and discord among the Aima courts. If he can weaken you without striking you himself, he will.”
“She’ll know that I have Blood who are famous for killing other queens and alphas.”
“Which means if we do a formal procession, she would pair Xin and Guillaume with her best killers,” Rik said. “If she lets them inside at all. Honestly, she’ll probably refuse to let them inside her nest.”
I blew out a sigh. “That’s what I’d do if I were in her shoes.”
Guillaume didn’t move a muscle, but in our bond, I felt his hell horse pawing the ground and snorting flames. Blistering cold rolled from Xin, dropping the temperature around him enough that Nevarre shivered and rubbed his arms.
“So Mehen will probably be refused entrance too.”
“Fucking hell.” He threw himself down on the bed and glared up at the ceiling with disgust. “I was looking forward to spreading mayhem in New York City.”
“What about you, Ezra? Do you think she’ll let you back inside?”
“Definitely, because she’ll want to make sure I’m punished. Same with Rik and Daire. If she somehow manages to outsmart you, we’ll be made examples of.”
Even my rough and tough grizzly bear looked queasy.
Horrible images flickered through Rik’s head in rapid succession. A man, screaming, as he was slowly disemboweled. Castrated. Fingers removed. Hands. Feet.
I swayed. My face felt too tight, like the skin across my cheekbones had suddenly dried and shriveled up. Breathing hard, I pushed those images out of my head.
I pressed back against him and he wrapped me tighter in his arms.
:Sorry,:he whispered in our bond.:I would rather spare you the gory details.:
“How will you kill her, if you don’t have Guillaume or me to call upon?” Xin asked.
The trees whispered in my head. Blood. Fire. Blood. Fire.
My best weapons.
19
Shara
Winston flew to New York City with us, so he could meet the staff at the house and ensure their service was up to his level of expectations. Now, more than ever, I was aware of what immense wealth could do. The Isador property we arrived at had once been a small, but posh, Park Avenue hotel situated on the edge of Central Park.
Even after extensive renovations, the gorgeous marble floors, high ceilings, and gold-leaved plaster friezes spoke of old-world wealth. A blonde woman dressed in a very elegant black pant suit whispered quietly with Winston for several moments, and then stepped closer to me.
She dropped into a curtsey. “Your Majesty, welcome to your New York City home.”
“Thank you.” I held my hand out, intending to give her a polite shake, but she took my hand and bent even lower, pressing my fingers to her forehead.
“It’s such an honor to meet you, Your Majesty. When Winston called to let me know to prepare the house, I wept with joy that our Isador queen was coming to town.”
I imagined it must have been a fairly rare occurrence for any queen to come to New York City with Keisha Skye’s centuries of rule. “What’s your name?”
