I kissed to her forehead. “Promise me you’ll stay by my side?”
She nodded. “I will.”
“Everything is about to get worse, but I Saw the path out of here. If we move quickly, we will be out before nightfall.”
The rest of the visions, I kept to myself. My dark princess didn’t need to know about them. Not right now. She was happy, and I would keep it that way for as long as I could. After all, if even a fraction of what I had Seen came into fruition, soon there would be no happiness for anyone in all the Four Kingdoms.
Darkness was coming for us all.
The Dragon Queen
SAENA
My heels clicked on the rough, snow-dusted cobblestones and my dress swept the light powder in a white cloud me as I walked back and forth in front of my gathered soldiers. Some had the pointed ears of elves, while others bore the signature marks of werewolves and shifters. There used to be humans in my army. Not anymore. That was the reason we gathered in this place today.
The air was dry, but the scent of blood coated everything like a thick blanket. It might have turned the stomach of a being lesser than I, but the aroma invigorated me, sparking the dark magic in my veins. The draken within me practically purred at the smell.
Death is here today,it said.
I had never heard the creature so happy. Not that I blamed it. There was something about death that encouraged the song of my heart. It was the only thing that made me feel alive.
The irony was delicious. If I had been in the mood to laugh, I probably would have done so. Unfortunately, the rows of soldiers dressed in bloody uniforms kneeling before me made laughter difficult. I glared at them instead. They were the reason I was here.
All of them had failed me. Their actions had clarified one thing: the only warriors I could trust were my Winged Soldiers. The rest of Ithenmyr’s army was weak, at best. Only that could explain the current situation.
I came to a stop in front of the first row. A few of the males trembled, as if they knew how disappointed I was in their behavior. They’d all be quaking before I was done with them. If they were lucky, that was all they would be doing.
I would not hesitate to spill fresh blood today. I never hesitated when it came to bloodshed. That was why I was the queen, and they were a pitiful group of males.
“You lot call yourselves soldiers?” I shook my head in disgust. “You are notworthyof such a title. Soldiers do their jobs. They get things done. They don’t come home covered in the blood of their fellow fighters, claiming defeat by a few vampires. Soldiers can complete the tasks their queen has given them.”
I paused, giving them a moment to hear my words and truly understand them for what they meant. I wanted them to comprehend the depth of their failure, to know how disappointed I was in them.
Barely a minute of silence had passed before someone a few rows back mumbled, “This bitch is not my queen.”
He probably thought his words were lost in the wind, but he waswrong. Instantly, my hackles rose. The beast snarled within me, and red-hot anger surged through my veins. A roaring filled my ears, and I searched through the crowd for the source of the voice.
“Who said that?” I asked, my words echoing over the now-silent square. The wind stopped blowing. The birds ceased chirping. No one dared breathe, let alone move.
I searched through the kneeling soldiers. Most of them stared at the ground, quaking in fear—as they rightfully should. I heard the rumors; I knew they were calling me the Dragon Queen. That didn’t bother me. I liked the sound of that. It was fierce. Powerful. The moniker told my people exactly who they were dealing with.
It was perfect for someone of my stature.
There was only one soldier who dared to look at me. I met the elf’s brown eyes, and he had the audacity to smirk.
Smirk, as if he were my equal and not a mere fighter in my army. He had a death wish. That much was clear.
He doesn’t know who he’s dealing with,the beast crowed within me.Show them what it means to be the Dragon Queen.
Eagerness pulsed through my veins in time with my dark magic. I clenched my fists, cracking my neck as I stared and stared at the audacious elf.
Eventually, his throat bobbed, and he dipped his head.
It was too late for regret. Too late for this soldier to show me the respect I was due. Too late for all of that.
No one came against me and lived.
Death was my ally, and unlike every single male in my life, it would not fail me.