Unlikely Queen (Crystal Castle 1)

“It’s her room,” Tanya says, coming up behind me.

I turn to look at her. “Did she hurt you?” Tanya shrugs. “Tanya,” I press.

“She was never nice unless you were here, and even then, it was all an act. She spelled me and still treated me as a piece of shit, knowing full well I was at her service and there was nothing I could do about it.” She sucks in a breath. “When you were in that room, a part of me knew who you were and why I should stop it. But I couldn’t, I just…” She shakes her head. “I couldn’t.”

I reach out and pull her into a hug and hold her tightly. “I’m fine. You are fine. We survived, that’s all that matters,” I say to her. Behind her, I see Tatiana and Bronik in a heated discussion. If anyone can handle an angel, it sure as shit would be her.

“Where the fuck is she?” the voice is loud and booms through everything. John walks in, the wolves behind him, his eyes searching the area until they land on Tatiana. When he spots her, he closes the distance quickly, reaching out for her and picking her up, sticking her body to his.

“That’s, well…” I look to Tanya to see her staring with her eyes wide. I smile and tap her shoulder. “That’s your new brother-in-law.” I laugh, and Tanya looks at me, shock still written over her face, before she looks back to them.

“That’s the wolves’ alpha. The queen wanted him dead.”

I nod. Of course she did. Were there many people she wanted to be kept alive? Lord knows.

“So, they are…” she asks, raising her brows. “Gosh, how long was I gone for?” Then she turns to me. “And the Angel of Death, Talia? Really? That one you are going to have to explain in slow detail, because holy shit… he’s a myth, a legend. Not someone a witch falls in love with.”

“How do you know I love him?” I ask.

She waves her hand. “I may not know as much as you, but I pay attention. And the way you looked at him, well, let’s say that I hope one day I look at someone the same way.” I turn away from her and back to the room.

“I’ve seen some nice things lately. Seen things I never want to see again. But this, this is like nothing I have ever seen. How could she live with herself knowing how she treated us, and she lived here in this luxury?” I step into her room and my feet hit the incredibly soft carpet. It feels so good underneath my bare feet.

Shades of red and silver cover the room. And lace, lots of lace. Walking over to her bed, I touch her bedding and find that it’s silk. The last time I felt silk was when I was in the Viper Forest. I pull my hand away quickly. On the wall above her bed, I see pictures, lots of them. Crawling onto the mattress to get a closer look, I see they’re pictures of me. All of me. Places I have been, people I have been with.

Me.

I turn back around to find Tanya staring in disbelief.

“Did you see this before?” I ask, pointing to the wall.

She shakes her head, and I grab a photo from the wall—it’s me when I was a child. How on earth did she even get any of this? It has me baffled.

“She’s known who you are meant to be for a very long time.” Bronik’s voice comes from next to me.

“How?”

“It was in the deal she made. Everyone had heard of the prophecy, and she asked if it was her. When she found it was you, well…” he pauses and turns to the wall, “…she kept a close eye on you. Had people watch you to see if you knew. And all was good, clear, until one night we heard you speaking. That was when she knew she had to kill you so she could remain queen.

“Who was I talking to?”

Bronik smiles. “Why, Death, of course. It’s the only reason she acted. She knew she had to before you gained more ties than necessary.”

I remember that night, it was two nights before Tanya was taken. He showed up unexpectedly, and he never does that. We briefly spoke and then he was gone. It was so out of character for him. He usually only showed up when I needed him, but that night was different.

“Why are you still here?” I ask Bronik. “Do you not have somewhere you need to be?”

He looks at me dead in the eye when he speaks, “You are where I am meant to be.”

“Come again?” Tanya asks, baffled.

He nods and keeps his eyes on me. “It’s my punishment. So, you I will serve until you have the spot where you are meant to be.”