The Forsaken King

Mastodon turned to regard me, his eyes in disbelief.

The queen’s hands curled over the edge of the armrests, and her blue eyes turned to icicles. “Huntley.”

My eyes glanced around me, wondering if that was her private guard or an executioner.

Mastodon turned to me, his jaw tight in annoyance.

I met his look—and then it became clear.

He grabbed me by the shoulder and forced me, pushing down on me with a kind of strength I couldn’t challenge. It was the weight of the entire sky, all on my shoulders.

I cursed under my breath then felt my knees hit the earth with a thud.

Huntley remained in front of me, his hand still on my shoulder. “My hatred doesn’t compare to hers, so I suggest you keep your mouth shut if you like your head on your shoulders.” He withdrew, the place where he’d touched me turning ice-cold the instant he was gone.

I took his advice and stayed in place.

The daggers in her eyes didn’t sheathe. They remained blunt and sharp at the same time, as if they could cut my flesh wide open and smash my skull. The fingers of her left hand slowly started to drum, a gentle tapping that was amplified by the rock wall that surrounded us. “Good job, Huntley. You were gone too long, but it was a worthy sacrifice.”

My eyes shifted to Huntley, the betrayal even deeper. He’d infiltrated my kingdom, fooled everyone, and if someone had listened to me…this all could have been avoided. He’d dragged me from my home, and now I awaited my fate.

There wasn’t a hint of apology in his gaze—just more anger.

Could these people really hate me that much? “You’re making a mistake. King Rutherford will send out his cavalry until he finds me. Then he’ll slaughter you all. Return me, and I’ll make sure you’re spared.”

Her head cocked slightly, in a sickening way, as if there should be a crack in her vertebrae, only there wasn’t. “Your king will never show his face at the bottom of the cliffs. I wish he would, for I would relish the opportunity to stab him in the heart then eat it clean off my sword.”

That was a pretty picture.

“No one is coming for you, child.”

“I’m not a child.”

“It seems to me you are,” she said quietly. “Thinking that knights in shiny armor are going to come to your rescue. Waiting and hoping that men will do right by you and risk their necks for you. That the Duke of Delacroix will get off his ass to save his kin.” With her head tilted, she continued to stare. “Child, you can’t wait for a man to rescue you. They’re selfish. They’re cowards. You’re all you have in this world. Figure it out yourself—or perish.”

“Then I’ll kill you. How about that?”

She smirked, amused. “What a pity. I might actually like you…if I didn’t want you dead.”

“If you see me as a child, you should let me go.”

She stared as if she didn’t hear me.

“An innocent child—”

“You have his eyes.”

The breath halted in my chest.

“I’ll never forget those eyes,” she said in a faraway voice. “Take her away.”

Huntley grabbed me by the arm and forced me up.

I twisted out of his grasp. “I can get up, asshole.”

He gestured in the direction from which we’d come.

I walked off, turning my back on the queen and her men.

Her voice followed me. “Return when you’re finished, Huntley. We have much to discuss.”

Word had spread like wildfire in the town square. I could tell by the way they stared at me as I passed, as if they knew exactly who I was. Huntley had left home to retrieve me, and they had been waiting for this moment until he returned.

I glanced back and forth around me, seeing men and women in wool breeches and thick coats. There were children too, but they stayed behind their parents.

Huntley remained behind me, and I continued to move forward even though I had no idea where I was going. Cabins were on either side, constructed out of wood, torches on the outside of each one of them.

“Here.”

I stopped at the command of his deep voice.

It was in front of a cabin, a cabin that looked different from the others because it had no windows. I assumed it was a prison. At least it would be warm, with four walls and a roof. I hadn’t slept well once on this journey, and I was so exhausted that I just wanted to go to sleep rather than try to flee.

Huntley unlocked the door then pushed it open.

Instead of crossing the threshold, I stared at him. His eyes were heartless. Empty. Devoid of everything.

“I warned you not to fuck with me. Now I’m warning you not to fuck with Queen Rolfe. You’ll regret it, I promise you.”

“You’re threatening me?”

“Was that not clear?” His eyes narrowed.