Page 33 of The Fury Queen's Harem

They lunged, withdrew, and charged again.

Slashing, ducking, and thrusting all in fluid fashion, yet every strike was lethal.

Both were excellent swordsmen, which made the situation even more dismaying, not to them but to me.

I had learned some sword skills back when I was the Dragon Princess. My childhood friend and protector Adrian had taught me. As a strategic and formidable warrior, he’d have been my general if I had taken the throne instead of being dragged here by some unseen dark force right in front of him.

I swallowed the bile. Had my grandfather the Dragon King punished Adrian? Had he survived? If he had, had he forgotten about me in the long march of time? He would have believed it was entirely his fault—that was how he was. I hoped I could have had a chance to tell him it hadn’t been his fault.

I heard a tear and snapped my attention back to the current fight.

The tip of Elvey’s black sword cut open the armor covering Blaze’s chest, but it didn’t do more damage than that.

I sucked in a cold breath. I wouldn’t let this keep going.

The dragon prince hissed, “Foul sorcery!” and swung his sword in an arc toward Elvey’s neck.

No!I almost cried out.

Elvey bent backwards, and the white sword sliced down and cleaved his left sleeve.

The duo crashed into each other in a blur of motion, unbelievably fast, their blades meeting in the air with clangs and sparks again. I knew they wouldn’t stop until one was worn out and perished.

“Enough!” I said, shocked at the sudden power pouring out of me. I had more power than I’d thought. Was it some kind of Fae magic in me that I hadn’t discovered? The impact of my power word hit them both.

The duelists halted and jumped away from each other, turning to look at me with a near-identical dumbfounded expression.

“This is my court,” I said. “And you’ll behave, or I’ll throw both of you out.”

My court? Where had that come from?

As if having perceived my paradox, Elvey’s eyes sparkled with amusement and delightful anticipation. But Blaze looked confused for a second and glanced around.

Right, all of my subjects were monsters.

Queen of the beasts. That was who I was now.

Elvey pointed the tip of his sword toward the ground, but he couldn’t fool me. I knew how fast he could lift it and hack at his opponent.

Blaze, however, held his white sword at an angle, aiming the tip at Elvey. His nostrils flared. It would take a great deal for the fire dragon to calm down, even though he wasn’t in his dragon form.

Since they’d ceased fighting, at least temporarily, I swiftly stepped between them, just in case they decided to pick up a fight again. I needed to dismiss them both before I changed.

“I’m sorry I offended you by fighting in your court without asking first,” Elvey said carelessly. “I corrected it as soon as I saw my error. I’ll abide to all the rules of your court, as it is proper. Queen—?”

My heart skipped a beat. Other than the Archangel and his mate, no one had even bothered to ask my name for centuries. But I wasn’t going to tell Elvey my real name.

Blaze stared at me intently as well. He’d pursued my name before I’d run away from him.

“Faya,” I said, using the Wickedest Witch’s family name. It seemed fitting. And Elvey was half-Fae like me. I heard it was a dangerous business to let a Fae know your true name and give them power over you.

Blaze blinked. “Faya?”

“A lovely name,” Elvey pondered, “but I preferred a more feminine one, something like Rose, Lilac, or Daisy.”

My heart pounded. He knew me!

“Who gives a fuck what you prefer?” Blaze snorted. “Faya sounds just perfect!” He bowed slightly to me to show his respect. “Queen Faya, Blaze at your service.”

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