Savage Saints (Monsters of Saint Mark's)

I make a little ‘poof’ motion with my fingers just to give these words a little extra.

Then we hold our breath, waiting. The asshole guard is looking at me, eyes wild and wide, his mouth open, like he’s about to shriek more objections. Then his gaze redirects over to Tarq and he drops to his knees, pushing his face into the floor. “My liege! My liege has returned! All hail the king!”

“Holy shit,” Talina mutters.

Holy shit, indeed.

And when I look at Tarq, he’s wearing a fucking crown.

CHAPTER FORTY-THREE – PIE

I don’t exactly fall through the portal, even though it feels that way. It’s different than all the other times I’ve done this. It’s like… a world shift. Like I don’t move at all, but everything else does.

It’s weird. But I force myself to pay attention, to be alert. Because I just kidnapped a queen and put her in debt to me.

That’s when I notice I’m holding a book. “Now what is this fresh hell?” I read the spine, which is written in some language I don’t understand, but then, right before my eyes, the lines and loops of the unfamiliar letters rearrange and turn into English.

The Royal Beasts: A Book of Family Debt.

Ho-lee fuck. It’s legit. I made a Book of Debt. And even though I don’t have time to look, I am certain that Callistina’s name is in there.

Did I really mean for this to happen?

I don’t think so. I’d like to think it was more a circumstantial accident than a purposeful revenge scheme. But then the image of Pia’s lifeless body lying at the bottom of that cage conjures the rage back up and then… yeah. I’m certain that I did.

I whirl around and find… well. Not the queen. “Who the fuck are you?” I look around, searching for Callistina.

“What the—” The woman is looking down at herself. She is human. Kinda dirty and wearing rags. Her hair is long and greasy. Maybe light brown, maybe blonde. It’s hard to tell because it’s so filthy. In fact, everything about her is filthy. She looks up at me and snarls, “What did you do?”

I just squint at her for a moment, trying to force this to make sense. Because it does make sense, it’s just—“Callistina?”

Her face goes all rage-y and she screams, “You will refer to me as Queen!”

Uh. Yeah. That bitch and this bitch? Same bitch. I laugh, I can’t help it. “You’re human. And I’m not trying to be mean, I swear, but…” I shake my head. “It’s really not a good look for you.”

Her face goes red with anger. And I’m once again reminded of Pia. Then she yells, “Where is my scepter? Where is my—”

But that’s as far as she gets because a wolf-whistle, of all things, makes her shut up.

I look around, searching for the source of the whistle.

We’re the only ones here. And here is… well, let’s just call it interesting. Because it’s the sanctuary. It’s Saint Mark’s. I recognize the tombs. But then again, it’s not the sanctuary. It’s dark, for one. Foggy too. I quickly look down at my finger to make sure the ring is still there, because it’s the same kind of meandering tendrils of fog that tried to get me those first two days when I refused to put it on.

The whole place is… like… an opposite world. Where the Saint Mark’s I’m used to is always sunny and warm, this place is dreary and cold.

“What the hell?” I mutter, mostly just talking to myself. Then I notice that I’m human too. Wearing that same slutty schoolgirl skirt. It’s haunting me, this outfit. It’s got to mean something, I’m just not sure what.

“Hey, hey!” a man’s jovial voice calls.

Then another whistle. And another. More calls.

“Hey, girl, come this way!”

“Open the gate!”

“No, open mine first!”

“Let me out! Let me out! Let me out!”