The Fate of Crowns: The Complete Trilogy: A YA Epic Fantasy Boxset

by Rebecca L. Garcia

  “She is not a sovereign ruler. You were antagonizing her too.”

  I exhaled deeply, slumping my shoulders forward. “You’re right.” I hated it. “I should just find Blaise. I wonder if Edgar sent anything, a declaration perhaps. He must be furious.”

  “If Edgar sent anything at all.”

  “We are all but declaring war on him by building this army. Like Adius said, the scouts told him Edgar knows about the decoy ships at the ports.”

  Morgana nodded. “We have Licia to thank for those.”

  “How?” Sometimes I didn’t even think to ask how things got done. They just did when I asked.

  “They weren’t real ships, instead tricky, incredibly difficult glamours to create and keep standing for some time. He is a remarkable man.”

  My forehead wrinkled. “Licia is… no. Please don’t tell me you like him.” I felt nauseated. “He’s awful.”

  “He has his own motives, as we all do. I cannot condone him for that. Besides, like for us means two different things. He is becoming a friend.”

  I inhaled sharply. “Which is what he will stay.”

  Morgana pressed her lips together. “I don’t see Blaise anywhere. Any ideas? You know him best.” She gave me a look.

  “No.” I looked around the bustling throne room of oddly dressed fae, in silks of white and blues, and tables covered with delicious foods and cooked hams. “Okay. Perhaps his library.”

  Morgana side-eyed the white-pillared entrance to the east dungeons, leading to Licia’s gambling rooms. “I should go to Licia. We are working on ways to disrupt what is happening to the dragons in Berovia. If we can shake the foundation enough, we could even break the spells suppressing their magic which were placed on the two in captivity. They’d be able to break free. They’re not weak enough yet to be siphoned, but close.”

  “Do what you need to do,” I said. “If they get the dragons’ magic, we’re done for.”

  “Yes, we will be.”

  Her revelation shook my core. My fears solidified. She never pushed fear. Everything could be changeable. Not now. She knew what was at stake. If she believed we’d have no chance, then it was certain.

  “Please, stop them.”

  “We’re doing everything we can,” she promised, although it did little to unknot the scrambles in my stomach.

  Once she’d disappeared past the pillars into the shadowy, glittery area, I turned on my heel and headed toward the library.

  The fire crackled from the large fireplace, hissing when he threw a newspaper onto the logs. The sofa sat in front of it. I remembered spending my evenings devouring the books there before we were to be married.

  It felt like a lifetime ago.

  Blaise’s sharp eyes found mine. “Seventeen looks good on you.”

  I furrowed my brows.

  “You didn’t think I would forget?”

  I blushed. “I didn’t know you knew.”

  “I made it a point to know important dates such as a birthday, especially when I was to marry you.” He tilted his head, his silver crown glinting as he did. “Although you did not become my wife, I can still recall it all. The details of you are firmly in my mind.”

  I turned my back to him, my heart racking wildly. Gripping my nails onto the stone ledge, I gasped. The cold stole all warmth from my hands. “I see the towns and villages are being repaired.” I looked out at the frosted houses, hoping to change the topic.

  “Yes.” He stepped next to me, placing his hand an inch from mine. “I’m bringing the kingdom back to order.”

  “About time,” I said. “Although I don’t agree on your way of doing it.” I treaded the subject carefully. “We both know what you’re responsible for.”

  “Yes. I killed him.” His words lay heavy in the air. He cast his eyes down to our hands. “It’s the first time I’ve said it out loud,” he stated. “I am also aware you killed yours. I know you were close to the castle after Amos died. You were seen by my spy at the tavern. Shortly after, news broke and the Ring of Immortalem he wore was missing, and we both know what happens when the wearer removes it. You disappeared to Berovia, to erase suspicion. A move I’d have made too. It wasn’t hard to put two and two together.” He dragged his smoky eyes to meet mine. “We have both murdered our fathers. I’ll also presume the ring was taken from you by Xenos.”

  My throat felt as if it were closing. “I didn’t have a choice but to kill him, and yes.”

  “Neither did I.” He blew out a tense breath. “There are two people who know the truth of what happened, and they are both standing in this room.” He exhaled slowly. “I trust you.”

  “You also have the truth on me, so…”

  “I know you wouldn’t tell, even if I didn’t know your secrets.”

  “Why did you do it? Was it mer-venom to drive him mad?”

  “He’d grown… bored,” Blaise explained. “He had always been impulsive and angry, grief-stricken by his queen’s death, and a warmonger, but in recent years, he took things too far. He would never have given me the throne. His soul was darkening with each passing day. His tastes became more and more sinister.” He didn’t elaborate. “If I didn’t weaken him with the poison over time, trust me when I tell you, we’d have had no kingdom left to rule.”

  “I’m sorry I lost the ring.” I changed the subject as the realization remained at the forefront of my mind. “We’d have been an object closer to breaking the curse.”

  “We’ll get it back,” he said, nonchalant. “Xenos will get what’s coming.” A sly grin spread across his face.

  “What have you done?”

  “I have people at his court, as you well know. Those close to him.”

  “Can you hurt him?”

  “He has many tasters,” he grumbled. “Protection spells, guards, and more. But I can get information. No one is truly immortal. We all know that. In the end, if I know his weaknesses, then when the time comes, he will fall, and I will take the ring and his kingdom.”

  My eyebrows shot up my forehead. “Ambition.”

  “Are you surprised?”

  “Not really. You’ve grown more serious since I was last here.”

  “I have responsibilities, people who are looking up to me.”

  I licked my dry lips. “About my father, you should know, he wanted me dead. I can’t remember if you knew, but it’s one of the many reasons he had to die.”

  “I know, and I feel no remorse for mine either.”

  “I do.” I flushed red. “I don’t approve of what either of us did. Even if we didn’t have a choice, it’s still murder, which is wrong.”

  “The world isn’t black and white. Things aren’t just separated into right and wrong. It’s all kinds of complicated. Don’t you understand? The burdens, the laws, they fall into our hands. We’re the ones who are supposed to have blood on our hands for the greater good. We did what was needed, and you won’t make me regret it.”

  “Did he use the dagger, or did you?” I asked, wondering if the plan all along was to make him kill himself with the dagger by driving him mad with poison.

  “Once he was weak enough, I stuck it into his chest.”

  Bile rose in my throat. “He’s with the ancestors now.”

  He shrugged. “He can stay there if he really is.”

  “Even fae go to the spirit realm,” I stated. “I often think of the dead, even my own mortality and that of those around me.”

  “I’ve not put much thought into death,” he said, leaning back on his foot. The moonlight brightened his pale skin. “I’m alive. Why would I waste any energy on the end? There’s nothing I can do to stop it from happening.”

  My eyebrows knitted together. “What do you believe then?”

  “I think there is something bigger than us, yes. I even believe that the dead sometimes linger.” He gazed around the dark walls. “I just figure I’ll find out for sure when I’m gone, so why worry now?”

  “I like to think about it.” I stepped
back from the window. “It’s weaved into everything I stand for. My magic. My prayers. My entire belief system. I’ve been close to it so many times.”

  Blaise snapped his fingers, and the lamps on the wall, which flickered dim flames, grew larger. Stone illuminated from the shadows. Bookshelves, lined with ancient spines and parchment pages, brightened. “I know, love.” He grasped my hand and walked me toward a dusty shelf. “Enough about dying. I want to show you something.” He ran his finger along its wood surface. “Here are many history books in their original text, scribed, on previous wars and battles. I’ve read them all. I like to know previous strategies, then net them together to make my own, just in case we are attacked. If you’re going to be a warrior princess and fight back for your crown, I suggest you read them. Remember, Winter, you are commander in chief. People will look to you, including your generals. Prepare.” He pointed at one thick book. “Start with this one. It’s about the original battles between the light fae and solises.”

  “It’s a good idea,” I replied. He grew on me with each beat. He’d always made me dizzy and swirled my stomach into butterflies, but this was new. I think I liked him as a person. He wasn’t as bad as I thought. “You know all my secrets, even the hurt I feel that I’ve kept from my nearest and dearest.

  He smirked. “Does that make me your closest person?”

  I shuttered my eyes. “It means I trust you too.”

  “That’s all I want.” A lighthearted smile stretched his thin lips but quickly dropped. He always seemed as if he were in pain.

  “Before you go.” I leaned against the bookshelf, shifting the weight from my feet. “Tell me why you’re sad. I saw you in a dream, suffering. Then there was the night when you were crying. I feel your sorrow. I was drawn to you. I can’t explain it.”

  “I can’t.” He choked. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  Fae couldn’t lie, which made his avoidance all the worse. “Please, Blaise.”

  He looked away. “I’ll be going now.”

  “I’m here for you,” I called after him. “Always.”

  He paused before walking out the door. “Good night, Winter.”

  TWENTY-NINE

  Winds hassled us as we prepared for more men coming in from the south. I pushed the side of my hand against my eyebrows, shielding my eyes from the bright sunlight that arrowed through a gap in the thick cloud cover. I’d stayed up all night reading. My eyes were heavy, but my mind was sharp. I lifted my chin and looked from Cedric to Morgana. Both stood on either side of me, strong, loyal, and ready to fight. “Do you think it will work?” I asked.

  “I believe it could,” Cedric replied. “Have you discussed the plan with Adius?”

  I nodded quickly. “The hunters at the edge of the forest on the other side of the border are on our side, which we already knew. Magaelorean soldiers have always been afraid of the men of the woods. It’s more beneficial for us to keep them at the border, defending the path for more to be able to come into the kingdom than to bring them over right now,” I explained. “Now, the merchants who Blaise said fled to Inferis to avoid taxes and shutting down their trade routes, they will fund us. Naturally, they want me back in power. They can’t do business. If we can get word to them, they will send us food, armor, coins, and weapons. They have their supplies on ships in different areas and in storage places.” My hands trembled from the adrenaline rushing through my veins. “The mercreatures have been forced away by powerful lunas using spells to shield their shores. Of course, it means they’ve come to the fae’s colder seas. We can use them. I know the mer king, as you know.” I looked at Cedric. “And I can ask them to allow ships through. It’s worth a shot. I don’t know if he will go for it. I’ve thought about this a lot, but it’s time to do it.”

  Morgana’s breath misted when she exhaled sharply. “We must ensure we attack as few lunas as possible. We want little tragedy. Edgar is our target, and the lords who support him, as well as the Berovians. Many lunas will be caught between swords, forced into a military they may not agree with. We go carefully.”

  “Yes.” I wholeheartedly agreed. “I wish to unite, not divide us further. I think if we can show enough force, Edgar will concede.”

  Cedric chimed in. “I don’t think he will. He knows his fate if he hands over the crown. If you don’t kill him, a loyalist will. Your rule will forever be in question as long as he may live. One of you will rule; one will die. It is what has to be. It was sealed the moment he became king.” He gave me a look. “Don’t look at me like that. It’s your kingdom’s rules, not ours. We wouldn’t kill a ruler. It’s archaic, but it’s just the system yours is built on. You believe you’re anointed by your god, creator, ancestors… it doesn’t matter. The point is, I understand what needs to be done and I’m not even from here.”

  “I know what needs to be done,” I grumbled, then clasped my hands together. “If we can get the ships and, Morgana, you can stop the dragon’s magic being siphoned, then we may have a fighting chance. Firstly, I need to talk to the mer king.” A shiver danced down my spine. “To the ice-cold waters it is.”

  “Before we go.” Cedric looked out over the gray mountain base and snowy tops. “I should have led with this, but Enchante has become the go-to area when people arrive. The border is heavily guarded, but with the hunters helping, as you can see, people are still coming through. They’ll be hungry and tired. Not everyone has your stamina.”

  I smirked. “I suppose.”

  Morgana cleared her throat. “We need to ask your merchants, sailors, and men to deliver food to Enchante too. Not just Fairmont. And weapons.”

  “Yes. Good thinking.”

  “It was Cedric’s plan,” she said. “It’s a good one.”

  “Morgana, how is it coming along with Licia?” I questioned. The dragons had been at the forefront of my mind since her prediction of us not having a chance if they succeeded.

  “We’re blocking it.” She sighed. “It’s not been easy. They’re using elemental magic. We’re combining natural and ancestral. We are bringing more fae in to help.”

  I nodded. “Whatever you need, it’s yours. It’s imperative you do not fail.”

  She nodded and turned to face Adius, who was waiting by Enchante’s well, the entrance to the village. She left Cedric and I behind, and we both sighed in unison.

  Cedric lowered his voice to a whisper. “The story you told me you and Morgana came up with, about your reason for being in Berovia, it’s been spread. Morgana told someone at Lepidus, and I mentioned it in front of a servant who was attending to my fireplace. They told another, and you know how the people at courts are”—he smirked—“such gossips. Naturally, everyone knows. I assume Adius does too.”

  “Yes, and I think he believed it.” I stared over at him and Morgana talking. “I hope so anyway. Morgana said she told him last night when she went to the town. He hasn’t said anything to me.”

  “Once the story reaches the heart of Magaelor, watch more people turn away from Edgar. He has Berovians in high-ranking positions. It’s already frowned upon, but with this news, it will explode everything. There’s already unrest. Next, there will be an uprising. His numbers will dwindle. It was a brilliant idea.”

  “How did you tell the story if it’s a lie?” I questioned, placing my hand on my hip. “Seriously, faeries can’t lie.”

  “I didn’t. I said I was told this is what happened. Not, this is what happened.”

  “Masterful.”

  “We’re known for it.”

  “Yes, you are.”

  He leaned down and brushed his lips against mine. “I feel like we’ve hardly spent any time together. I understand, but I miss you. A lot.”

  I bumped my nose against his. “I miss you too.” I buried my face into his chest. “You smell like honey and pastry.” I breathed in the evocative scents.

  “I found a baker in that place they call a town. It’s okay. It’s something.”

  I smiled. “I’l
l bring in supplies, and you can make your famous tarts for us.”

  “That’d be nice and normal. Let’s do it.”

  “Okay, but first I need to see if I can arrange a meeting with the mer king. Oh, damn.” I bit my lip. “I promised Blaise I’d read over this battle strategy from a century ago with him, but you know, I’ll tell him another day.”

  His expression hardened. “Does he need to be with you to read?”

  “He knows a lot about it,” I explained. “Blaise is king. I have to spend time with him. He’s funding almost everything we’re doing.”

  He tapped his finger against the side of his head. “I wonder why that is.”

  I rolled my eyes. “It’s not what you think. This is beneficial to him. He can’t survive Edgar’s rule, as he has an alliance with Berovia.”

  “I’m sure that’s the only reason.” He shrugged, then shook his head slightly. “No other motivations.”

  “There is nothing between us.”

  “For you, perhaps not, but maybe for him.”

  “Stop!” I said, berating him. “Enough of this talk, please.” He wasn’t entirely wrong. There was something there. It was powerful, lustful, and downright dangerous, but I was squashing it. I wasn’t letting it in, and that was what mattered. The truth would only hurt Cedric, and I didn’t want to do that, especially considering he had nothing to worry about.

  “You’re right.” He inhaled deeply and ran his hand through his hair. “I’m sorry. I’m not used to feeling this… vulnerable.”

  Warmth spread through me. “You’re sweet. Really, you’re perfect for me.”

  He laughed. “I’m glad you think so. I do too.”

  I chuckled. “Will you walk with me to the shore? I think Adius will die if he sees me going anywhere alone.”

  “Yes, but wait.” He pointed over my shoulder, toward the mountains. “They have finally arrived.”

  “I know them!” I squeaked, rushing toward them until I reached Hawk. He towered over me, looking down with dark eyes. He wore a suit under his thick jacket and smelled like cigar smoke.