Skar glances over at me, then across my body. He blinks, as if wanting me to make the order, though he says no words. It takes me a moment to realize he isn’t looking at me. He’s lookingpastme, to the man closest behind me.
“Of course I remember, Tymon,” Skar says lazily. “You served me well.”
“Then step aside and let me go. You can have the halfkeeper.” He squeezes Palacia’s shoulder hard. “She proved an excellent fuck for my wife, but we have no need for her. I have everything I need with Aelin and my two—soon to be three—children.”
There it is again. Playing up the pity points with his mention of family.As if this bastard ever thinks of his dhampir children, born from broodstock he stole out of the Firehold.
I grind my teeth.
“You served me well . . .” Skar repeats, trailing, “. . . until you didn’t.”
Tymon unhands Palacia for a split second, palm forward. He sees the writing on the wall. “You promised me freedom, Skartovius! You’ve always been a man of your word!”
Skar’s huge lie plays in my head.Has he?
His voice is low, enraged, brooding. It stifles the room with heat. “There is one thing we do not sanction, Demilord Aldion, no matter how many years of alliance we share. Come after us all you want—me, Vallan, Garroway.” His hand waves vaguely in the air. “Stab us, wound us, bleed us.” The lax hand becomes a fist, and his voice drops a notch, sheer malice taking overhis handsome features. “But the moment you lay a finger on our queen, your life is forfeit. It’s no longer yours to own. It’sours.” He flicks his wrist at Tymon like the vampire—the man who served him faithfully for decades—is nothing more than an insect.
I feel movement behind me, where Skar looked when I thought he was seeking me for an answer.
I should have known the answer was already decided.
When I glance over my shoulder, a mass of flesh is in the process of vanishing into my shadow.
Tymon’s eyes widen, veering between us, realizing something is amiss.
A frame materializes in the space immediately behind him, appearing from the dancing moonlight and shadows along the wall. A ray of silver slashes brilliantly in the gloom.
Before he can turn to react, Demilord Tymon Aldion bursts into a conflagration of raging fire as a sword erupts from his chest, a mere inch from Palacia.
The effect is instant and heated as he lets out a gurgling, flame-filled, blood-curdling scream.
Palacia hisses and leaps forward out of his corroded hand, avoiding the worst of the flames and smoke. I lunge and wrap my arms around her as she lurches.
Aelin screeches, hand flying over her mouth as she watches her nobleblood husband burn and sizzle, the scent of cooking flesh reaching her nose before any of ours.
Lukain Pierken stands behind the smoldering corpse of Tymon Aldion, sheathing his silver blade and watching the sizzling turn into smoking, the screaming into wheezing, and then hissing, and then nothing.
I’m shocked Skartovius allowed Lukain to use his shadowwalking ability, and even more shocked Tymon Aldion is a heap of ash in front of us.
Through tears, Aelin points a trembling hand at us. “Murderers!”
Skartovius snorts. “There’s a lesson to be learned here, Noblewife Aelin. You can revolt and harm your vampiric overlords all you’d like. I even encourage it. However, don’t ever betray Sephania Lock.”
Garroway adds in a snarl, “You could havetoldSeph what was planned.”
“I didn’t know!”
Garro shrugs callously. “I don’t believe you. Now your husband is dead. Your children are fatherless.”
“Yet you believeyouare the righteous ones?” Aelin coughs through the smoke, waving the stench away.
“We never claimed to be righteous, woman,” Vallan grunts. “Only mad.”
I imagine there are a few different ways to look at his choice of word. Because he’s not wrong: I’m angry at the betrayal . . . and probably a bit crazed because of it.
Lukain says, “You truly believed we could allow a traitor to run free, after welcoming assassins against our queen?”
My heart beats rapidly at all these strong, furious vampires and dhampirs calling me their queen. It makes me slightly scared, because I see the lengths they’ll go to protect me. All of them.Anyof them.