by Olivia Ash
Hearing their laughter made Sadie happy. Across from her, Steele caught her gaze. His eyes wandered down her legs and returned to her eyes. He smirked. When she walked toward him, he pulled out the chair beside him. He stood as he guided her to her seat before sitting down beside her. To her other side, Mordecai took a sip of what she hoped was wine, but knew it was probably blood. That was a thing here, apparently.
“What were you talking about?” she asked as Hobson poured red wine in her glass. She whispered her thanks before he left to stand along the wall.
“We’re planning our next game of meracoan,” Steele said. He looked pointedly at Mordecai. “And this time, shadow-shifting is banned.”
He took a bite off a loaf of bread and spoke around his food. “We’re planning to give Damien permission to use his powers.”
Mordecai chuckled, and Damien grimaced.
“What’s meracoan?” Sadie asked.
“It’s a game we used to play when we were younger. Kind of like soccer, but different. It’s pretty known in the underworld. We should teach you,” Kaiser said. He looked around the table at his brothers. “Don’t you think so?”
This cordial exchange was so far from their usual bickering. Sadie’s eyebrows shot up. It was the first time she observed them so at ease with each other.
“I would love to play with you guys,” she said. She turned toward her butler. “Maybe Hobson can join, too.”
“If I’m to join, I should be on your team to keep an eye on you,” the gargoyle said.
Sadie crinkled her nose. “I can keep an eye on myself, thank you very much.”
“Uh-huh,” Hobson said and smiled. “And you should wear armor when you play.”
Sadie’s jaw went slack. “Armor?”
The guys laughed, no doubt imagining her playing an outdoor sport covered head-to-toe with metal. She visualized herself wearing armor, too, and she found herself laughing with them.
It felt good, being around the guys when they were friendly with each other and not fighting over the silliest things. They could be controlling idiots sometimes, but damn she adored them.
Her smile faltered, and she realized that thought was true—she deeply adored them all. She had vowed to take only one ally, but what would the others do if she refused them? She would lose them, and she couldn’t imagine what her life, what the castle would be like without them all here.
She bit her lip, deciding to stall her decision. She still needed more information on each of them. At least, that was the lie she told herself.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Damien
Damien stood outside the fortress walls, hidden in shadow as he waited for the small silhouette sneaking its way toward him from the forest nearby. The figure sprinted from tree to tree, careful not to be seen by the ifrit sentries walking along the castle walls. A few feet to the side of the figure, Damien saw something else shift within the trees. He peered through the darkness, waiting for the shadows to move again, but the imp came into view, dashing at full speed toward him. The creature stopped in front of him, catching its breath that billowed into mist from the coldness of the night.
Damien looked down his nose at the creature. The top of its head hardly reached Damien’s waist.
“What took you so long?” Damien asked.
“Sorry, Your Highness.” The imp fidgeted with the hem of its dirty brown tunic. “I thought someone was following me.”
Damien furrowed his brow and stared into the shadows of the forest again, waiting for that movement he saw. Nothing shifted for a good, long moment. He mentally shook his head. The imp was probably just making an excuse. Though that didn’t explain him seeing something else move too.
“Do you have it?” Damien asked the creature.
“Yes.” The imp didn’t elaborate.
Damien grew impatient and growled out, “Well?”
The small creature uneasily shifted. “C-carleset Hollows.”
Damien’s eyebrows rose. He had to admit that Carleset Hollows was a clever hiding place. It was well-hidden, and it had been abandoned for centuries. He wasn’t sure it even still existed.
“You’re certain?” he asked his spy.
“I should be asking you that question. You’re too invested in this queen,” the imp said. “Do you want to fuck her that much?”
He leered at Damien. “Can I have a go?”
Damien’s blood boiled. No one should talk about Sadie in that way. “Do you like having a tongue?”
The spy continued, as if Damien hadn’t made a threat, in a more serious tone. “You have allies enough. You can make a move against your father now and secure the—”
He shut the imp up with a stern glare. “You’re dismissed.”
“I’m only trying to say—”
“You’re dismissed,” he said again. He kept his monotonous tone and the imp’s eyes widened, no doubt feeling the roiling anger underneath Damien’s words.
Finally.
“Leave, before I change my mind and kill you after all.”
The creature left without another word.
He leaned against the fortress wall, lingering in his post for a few minutes. He arrived here with the intention of a mere alliance, but his mission had been interrupted by the unexpectedness of Sadie and the arrival of his brothers. He smiled, as he always did every time he thought about the most incredible woman he had ever met.
The woman he was falling in love with.
Damien furrowed his brow. Was he falling in love?
He thought about all the times he had spent with her. How he felt every time she was near, every time he touched her, and every time she touched him back. When he found out she had run out into battle to fight Mara, he had felt fear unlike anything he had ever felt. He remembered hoping, wishing, and his version of praying that she remained safe, unhurt. He realized at that moment he wouldn’t know what to do if something terrible happened to her.
He really was falling for Sadie. He had never felt this kind of emotion before, but he knew.
Now he was stuck. What would he do with this realization? It was a dangerous thing—a demon falling in love. He would raze cities and destroy empires in his passion. He had heard stories of similar feats during his childhood. His father drilled it into his head that love was a waste, it made you weak.
But he was in love. And he felt stronger than ever.
And his brothers. He took in a steadying breath, knowing full well they were drawn to her as well. Mordecai had made out with her, Steele had said so. Steele, on the other hand, was obviously smitten with her. He sucked at hiding it every time she walked into a room. And Kaiser had a bond with Sadie.
Though he knew things for him couldn’t possibly end well, he still couldn’t help himself. He needed her. And he refused to lose this contest. Not just for his father’s crown but to win her, too.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Sadie
Sadie cast a spherical shield of smoke around her. Since she didn’t have anything else to do, aside from brood over her lack of ideas to kill Mara, she decided to head to the west courtyard and do some warmups with smoke casting. Hobson helped her train, launching more of his stone discs in her direction. The discs struck her shield.
The impenetrability of her shield’s surface wasn’t consistent, so every now and then, Hobson’s stone discs passed through and hit her limbs. She bet she would be bruised after this. But she pushed through, knowing she should exert herself to improve.
She kept in mind some of the pointers Mordecai had taught her, and those helped. The more she practiced, the better she got.
Footsteps ruffled the grass on her right. Sadie raised her hand. The flying discs halted. She let her shield dissolve and faced Damien as he approached from the fortress. He held a determined expression on his face. He stopped a few steps in front of Sadie. “I know where we can find the weapons to kill Mara.”
Her heart thudded with excitement. “Where?”
; “It’s a place called the Carleset Hollows,” he said. “A cave. And apparently it contains the mageblades—it’s a collection of four daggers. They’re strong enough to kill the demoness.”
Sadie narrowed her eyes. “How do you know this?”
Damien winked and smiled. “I called in a few favors.”
Sadie took in a deep breath. Since the dragon attacked the ifrit village, she had spent most of her time stewing on the most random ideas, grasping at any plan at all, no matter how futile, just so she could do something. This news changed everything. Now, defeating Mara was possible.
“I always have someone who owes me.” His gaze turned serious as he stepped closer. “I’ll spend all these favors on you if I have to. Without thinking twice.”
Sadie smiled. “I got you wrapped around my finger, don’t I?”
“You have no idea.”
She shook her head, unable to understand that he would do such things for her, but she appreciated the gesture.
She faced Hobson, who stood by silently as they talked. “Please, gather the others in the sitting room.”
The butler nodded and left to carry out his orders.
“What’s your plan?” Damien asked.
She tilted her head to the side. “What do you think?”
He snorted. “I shouldn’t have asked.”
Sadie and Damien walked to the sitting room together. She opened the door to find the other three princes waiting, sitting comfortably on the posh couches. The princes stood when they entered.
“What’s up?” Steele asked.
Sadie said, “We know where the mageblades are.”
Mordecai’s eyes widened. “What?”
Steele’s mouth hung open.
“We need to leave immediately,” Sadie said. “We have to get our hands on those weapons.”
The three princes looked at each other, not answering.
She placed her hands on her hips. “I’m going without you if I have to.”
Kaiser, Mordecai, and Steele seemed to snap out of their surprise.
“Of course, we’re going,” Mordecai said.
Kaiser frowned at her. “You’re not going alone.”
Sadie smiled. I knew they would see it my way.
Hobson chimed in. “Then you all need weapons.”
Everyone looked at the butler.
“Thanks a lot, Sherlock,” Steele said.
Hobson rolled his eyes. “Just follow me, will you?”
The butler turned on his heels and headed out the door. Sadie and the princes exchanged glances before following him.
Hobson led them to a hallway she had never been in before. They stopped in front of a vault that extended from wall to ceiling. He faced Sadie. “Only you can open it.”
He pointed to a shallow, circular depression on the door. “Place your palm here.”
Sadie stepped closer and did as she was instructed. Her hand fit the space perfectly, almost like the depression was made to her hand. The sound of a latch opening clicked inside, and the vault slid open, revealing a massive, square room filled with an array of various weapons.
Behind her, one of the princes sucked in a breath. Steele whistled.
“Holy shit,” Damien said, rushing to the farthest shelf. He touched every weapon he could get his hands on whilst muttering under his breath, “Bone reavers, justifiers, modulators. Moonbeams.”
He faced Sadie with a glint in his eyes that reminded her of a boy on Christmas morning. He practically bounced in the place he stood. “You didn’t know you had this room?”
Hobson said, “I didn’t have the chance to show it to her yet.”
“Well,” she said. “Take the weapons you think you would need.”
Damien’s eyes lit up. “Don’t mind if I do.”
He scanned the shelves and took a belt that could hold numerous daggers. As Sadie watched, he attached no less than a dozen knives to the belt and a few small grenades. He pocketed a few more weapons she didn’t recognize.
Steele approached the shelves on the left wall. He grabbed two short-handled axes and holstered them. He grabbed another weapon: a hammer encrusted with diamonds. He grinned as he spun it with his fingers. He took a few daggers and tucked them in his boots and sleeves.
On the right wall, Mordecai finished lining his belt and tunic with different colored gemstones. After tucking daggers and circular throwing blades inside his boots and pockets, he perused a tall, mahogany shelf filled with books.
“You have the Verity Scrolls,” he said. “They have been lost for millennia.”
His hand twitched on his side as if he wanted to touch the tomes but restrained himself.
Sadie smiled and shook her head. Boys and their toys. “Take a look then.”
His eyebrows shot up. “You sure?”
“Yeah,” she said, chuckling.
She didn’t think these princes could be nerds, but she had been wrong before. Kaiser stood beside her and had already grabbed two daggers, tucking one in each boot. Other than that, he didn’t seem interested in anymore weapons, to which Sadie found interesting. He turned and watched his brothers, too. The corner of his mouth lifted.
Hobson approached Sadie. “There’s a small room down here.”
Sadie nodded and followed him to a special back room. As soon as he opened the door, she was captivated by the battle dress adorning a mannequin in the middle of the room. It was made of flexible, blood red fabric, and metal spikes lined its sleeves. Like all her other battle dresses, a slit opened up on the front of the skirt, revealing dark tights with a webbed pattern.
A black belt cinched across its waist and it had numerous attachments where she could holster weapons. The sleeves were wide and billowy, also with a slit up the side as not to hinder her in battle. The dress was the most badass thing she had ever seen.
Daggers, swords, and arrows lined the walls of the small space. Any of these weapons would look good on the outfit. Their hilts glimmered with jewels or shining stones. She approached a pure white dagger and touched it. She assumed it had been carved with a very pale looking wood, or some kind of metal, but it was made of bone.
A creeping, itching sensation traveled up Sadie’s arm, and the eyes of the carved skull on the dagger’s hilt glowed red. She spun it in her fingers, feeling comfortable and weirded out at the same time. She put it back on the shelf and took the dagger beside it.
This one’s hilt was covered in moss and vines. It felt different in her grip. She felt warmth and her blood rushed.
The next dagger was made of water. She held its hilt which shimmered against the room’s white light. She didn’t expect it to feel solid, but aside from its cold and damp hilt, the blade didn’t feel different than ordinary knives. When she was about to put it back on the shelf, it shifted and turned into a shield made of ice. She gasped.
She shifted the shield, letting it catch the light of the room in various prisms of color before it shifted back into dagger form. She set it back on the shelf and hovered her hands over the other daggers.
Each was different from the others in appearance and ability. One’s hilt had multi-colored gems that resembled a rainbow, another dagger had a handle that looked like a key, and there was a sword that seemed to hum violin tunes. Each weapon also reacted to her differently, but all were equally powerful.
As she walked around the mannequin, she saw a sword strapped to the back of the dress. She unsheathed the dark blade outlined in silver. A blue pearl glowed in the pommel, casting a dull light over its cross guards that were shaped like arrowheads.
It was light as a feather and felt so natural in her grip. Unlike the other weapons, this one seemed to have a direct connection with her amulet. Her chest warmed, and a chill crept down her spine. When she held the hilt with both hands, the blue pearl glowed brighter, and the blade erupted in light blue flames.
She stepped back, lowering her arms, nearly dropping the sword. The tip of the blade touched the brick floor and immediatel
y formed a small crater on the surface. The affected area turned to ash. Having casted fire hot enough to turn skeleton to ash, Sadie realized the fire that came from this weapon transcended even that. She smiled, certain she had found her weapon.
She sheathed the sword and set it aside in order to put on the battledress.
This queen was ready for war.
Chapter Thirty-Eight
Sadie
Sadie sat on the head of the table of the war room with the four princes surrounding her. All of them were dressed and geared for the mission. Before leaving the castle, they agreed to go through a dry run of what they would do once they arrived at Carleset Hallows.
“Here’s the plan,” she said. “Once we get there, Mordecai will scout the entrance to see if we have company. He will then return to our hiding place and notify us of what he sees.”
“Noted,” Mordecai said.
Sadie continued. “Whatever his report will be, determines what we do next. If we have the all clear, then we will proceed to the caves. If not, then we will have to fight.”
She faced the shadow shifter. “Mordecai, your task after that is to scout the remaining parts of the cave for the artifacts. The rest of us,” she said, motioning to the other princes, “will enter together and meet up with him inside. Let’s hope the odds are in our favor.”
They promptly left for Carleset Hollows. Sadie flew with Kaiser and the other three men flew alongside them. They landed a few miles away from the location and walked through a dense forest of elms and aspens toward the hollows. When they reached the clearing where the cave was located, Sadie and the princes hid behind the brush lining the fringe of the glade.
“Ready?” Sadie asked Mordecai.
He nodded.
She placed a hand on his shoulder. “Please, be careful.”
His eyes softened before he shifted into smoke and disappeared.
Sadie and the rest of the princes waited in silence for about ten minutes before Mordecai reappeared. He grumbled under his breath and said, “Empusa.”