Page 22 of Queen Takes Knights
Daire tore off immediately, leaving a black streak on the grayed concrete parking lot. I pulled out more leisurely, very aware of the precious cargo I carried with me.
My queen. Mine. After so long.
She wriggled back against me tighter and wrapped her palms around my biceps. Exhilaration burned in her bond. She’d never ridden a motorcycle. She’d never gone anywhere without worrying about her safety. :Can we go faster?:
Without answering, I blew past Daire. We flew down the curving, winding road that led out of Eureka Springs.
My queen leaned forward into the wind and lifted her hands out to the side, her glorious laughter like a spur to my flank, urging me to push well past the speed limit.
Stupid? Yeah. Reckless? Hell yeah.
It was going to be a brutal ride with this massive of a hard-on.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Shara
I lifted my head from Alrik’s chest as we neared my mother’s house. We’d stopped only for pancakes and a quick shopping trip in Springfield, Missouri, where he bought me the softest, most delicious smelling leather jacket. I still felt guilty about spending his money, though every time my conscience twinged, he glared at me. I didn’t need it for warmth, but the weight of it across my shoulders felt good. I’d managed to doze off the last hour or two. Evidently even Isis’s last queen needed to sleep now and then after a night of sex.
My heartbeat quickened as we entered my old neighborhood. Despite being only a short drive from downtown Kansas City, Stuller had a small-town vibe with fields, small farms, and green space. Most of the town had fallen by the wayside over the years, even more so since I’d left five years ago. The old abandoned church had actually fallen down and was only a pile of rubble beside some leaning grayed tombstones from the 1800s. We passed the park where I’d played softball until Dad’s death, now an overgrown field dotted with junk cars. Large old trees lined the road we turned down. No other houses were on this street, so we didn’t pass any cars. As far as I remembered, we were the only house, our yard bordering the back of the park. The house had been old, though grand, five years ago. I couldn’t imagine that it’d fared well in the years since I’d left.
But as we slowed at the iron gate, I couldn’t tell that a single year had passed. The lawns still looked well manicured, the street and private driveway were clean of debris. The old house looked the same: huge square tower, red brick exterior, doors and windows intact.
“Have you never come back to this house?” Alrik asked.
I shook my head. “I was too scared. The monsters knew I had lived here. I thought they’d leave a lookout, or know immediately if I came back.”
Involuntarily, my head turned to the right, my eyes searching down the dead-end road that went past the house. Even at high noon, the end of the road was cloaked in shadows. I knew the park lay on the other side. That had been the shortcut. The place my father, and then my mother, had been killed. Would I feel something of her there? Would her blood still resonate, like ours had gleamed in the hotel room? Or had the monsters sucked every last bit of her blood out of the concrete? Where had she been buried? I had no idea.
Daire rattled the gate. “It’s locked. I could tear it down if you want, but let’s try the intercom.”
“Someone had to have bought the house,” I said. “It doesn’t look abandoned.”
He shrugged. “It’s worth a shot. If nothing else, they’ll know who they bought the house from, and that should give us someone in charge of your mother’s estate.”
“Your consiliarius,” Alrik clarified. “There should be someone running the Isador legacy for you, until you come into power and claim your birthright.”
Daire hit the call button. I found myself breathing more quickly. Afraid no one would answer. Afraid someone would. Mom had never said a word about a consiliarius. But maybe she couldn’t. What if I could have had someone to arrange things for me all along? If I hadn’t had to starve and work shady under-the-table jobs, constantly on the run? But how could I have known? And could this person even be trusted?
“Good afternoon, Talbott Agency.” A woman’s voice came through the speaker. “Can I help you?”
The only word Daire said was, “Isador.”
“Hold please. Ms. Talbott will be right with you.”
Anxious, I shivered slightly. Alrik tightened his arms around me, dropping his chin on top of my head. “Are you sure we can trust whoever Ms. Talbott is?”
“No,” Alrik replied. “But this is where we start. If we don’t like her answers, your warcat can eat her.”
Daire’s eyes lit up and he made a playful slash with his hand. It made me laugh—exactly as they intended. I knew by now that they didn’t go around hurting people. Only monsters who tried to hurt me.
“I will kill anyone, human or thrall or beast, who tries to hurt you,” Alrik whispered against my ear. “I won’t stay my hand for anyone but you.”
His words sent a warm flood through me. It shouldn’t have felt so good to hear him threaten to kill people. But it did. It felt very good to know I had him at my back. That I didn’t have to fight the monsters alone any longer.
“Good afternoon, this is Gina Talbott,” a woman said through the speaker, her words hurried. “Can you repeat that word please?”
“Isador,” Daire said.
