A Kingdom of Stars and Shadows

“All fae have magic?” I finally managed the words as my hands tightened on the door.

“Most do.” She nodded. “It’s very rare for a fae not to possess any magic even if it is the simplest enchantments.”

I was dying to know more. “And the royals, they possess a lot more magic than others?”

Her eyes flicked to the doorway, then back to me. I could see her hesitancy staring back at me, but she still spoke even though her voice was barely a whisper. “The Achlys family has passed down a potent magical line for the hundreds of years that they have been in power, but some worry that power may be waning.”

I stepped forward, closer to her. “What does that mean?”

“I don’t like to speak of this.”She looked back toward the doorway.

“Please,” I begged, and her eyes flew up to meet mine.

“It is said that the magic that lies within you will determine the fate of the Achlys family and all of Citlali. You will either be the key to their rise or the catalyst to their fall.”

My heart hammered in my chest at her words. “I don’t have that kind of power.” I shook my head. “I don’t have any power.”

“Every Starblessed is born with the ability to awaken the dormant and lethal magic that hides within a fae. From what we’ve been told for years, you are the key to guaranteeing our safety.”Eletta fidgeted with her dress.

Safety.“Safety from what? What if you’re all wrong?”I clenched my fists at my sides as the weight of her words hit me.

Her eyes flashed with fear. “We should really get you into the bath, Starblessed.”

“What if you’re wrong?” I asked my question more firmly. If I was the one who was supposed to be such a vital role in the future of this kingdom, then I deserved to know the truth. Everything I had ever been told about my betrothal had been minimal and useless.

Never had I been told anything like this.

“If Prince Gavril feeds from you and he doesn’t gain the power that is prophesied, then I fear that the kingdom will be truly vulnerable to Queen Veda for the first time in millennia.”Her voice shook and fueled my unease.

I had never heard that name in my entire life. I had never heard of any other queen besides the one I was to serve. “Who is Queen Veda?”

Eletta turned and ran her hand over the rim of the tub. “She is the ruling monarch of the Blood Court, the vampyres, and it is told that she is ruthless in her power and her hatred.”

A chill ran down my spine. I had heard legend after legend of the vampyres, and none of them were good. But I had never heard of their queen. “And she wants what?”

“To rule all.” Eletta grabbed a towel from a small gold hook on the wall that looked softer than any fabric I had ever felt and set it beside the tub. “Queen Veda has wanted to overthrow Citlali for as long as I can remember, but this is the first time her threats have any real chance of coming true.”

She nodded toward the tub, and I slowly slipped off my boots and set them directly beside the tub where I could reach them. Eletta’s eyes widened as she watched me slide my dagger inside my boot, but she didn’t say a word. I started to undress as my mind raced. “And you all think that I am going to be the one to stop her?”

I stepped inside the tub, and even the heat from the water couldn’t cure the chill across my skin. I didn’t know what these fae had been told of me, but I wasn’t what they thought. I didn’t possess the power to stop a vampyre queen. I didn’t possess the power to stop anything.

“We pray to the gods that you are.” She dipped a cloth into the water before lathering it with soap while I hid my breasts with my arms. “If the foretelling is wrong, then I hope the gods are truly watching over us.”

For the first time in a long time, I prayed that they were too.