“Is this about the attacks?” a woman asked without waiting for Maray to present her case.
Maray’s blood froze.
“What attacks?” another voice asked, and incoherent muttering began buzzing through the room, fueled by suspicions and guessing.
Eyes were meeting Maray’s gaze, challenging her for an answer, which she couldn’t provide. She turned to Scott with a helpless gaze, and he gave her a tiny nod, indicating he had the situation under control, and responded, “This is about more than the attacks.”
“Five reported incidents,” Neelis began, “and each of them more brutal than the other. If things are the way they appear, there is demonic activity in Allinan.”
When the noise stopped, all eyes were on Neelis.
“Demons,” Scott added. “More specifically, the Shalleyn.”
Gasps ran through the room, and Maray found faces full of horror—even Oliver Gerenhoff who always had an edgy comment to make, seemed unusually unsettled.
And in an instant, the coronation no longer mattered. The wedding no longer mattered. It was in that instant that Maray had to decide whether or not she could bear the consequences of sharing the truth with the council.
“Your Royal Highness.” Scott eyed her, having noticed her hesitation and her struggle. “How do you suggest we proceed?”
Maray looked around. All of the members of the council—Heck’s parents, Oliver Gerenhoff, and the other nobles—were waiting for her to say something, to have an explanation, an assessment of the situation. But there was no other she had to offer than the truth. And so, Maray drew a long breath before she eventually spoke, “Last night, I was visited in my own chambers by a warlock most of you only know from history books. I was threatened within my own palace walls. And he must be the one responsible for the attacks.”
Gasps of outrage followed her words, keeping her from continuing.
“Whatever does that mean?” someone whispered at the back of the room.
“It hasn’t slipped my attention that from the very first moment the throne of Allinan was vacated, there have been other forces seeking to make it theirs—most of them driven by their very own greed and their hope to enhance their own businesses and their families’ inheritance.”
Again, she was stopped by the voicing of outrage and disagreement. “Everything we’ve been doing has been in your best interest, Princess,” someone said, disgruntled, at the other end of the table.
This time, Maray looked for the source of the statement and wasn’t surprised to find Oliver Gerenhoff wearing a sly smile, which feigned nothing but honesty. She shuddered and bit back the urge to openly accuse him of seeking her throne. Instead, she returned his smile, polite and composed, the way a true monarch would, and braced herself for what lay ahead.
“And your support is very much appreciated.” Maray’s face felt frozen with the smile that belonged to a portrait rather than the way she felt. “But some of those forces are beyond what any of us could have imagined.” She paused to gain courage before she continued. “I called you here today to share with you the degree of danger Allinan is in, and for that, I need to tell you that the Queen you have been adoring for decades wasn’t the woman you believed her to be.” Maray’s chest ached as she spoke the words. Was she a traitor to her own blood because she shared the dark secret of her family? “Queen Rhia opened the rift between dimensions almost two decades ago with the help of the Shalleyn demons—” Maray didn’t stop when discussions broke out at the table without regard for her words, “—and when things got out of hand, she turned to that very same warlock who paid me a visit last night: Gan Krai.” It wasn’t news that Rhia had opened the rift. That had come to light before, and it had restored the honor of Jemin’s father. But the connection to the Shalleyn was something that shook the bones of even the coldest of council members.
“Gan Krai has been dead for hundreds of years.”
“Liar.”
“The Shalleyn have been banned. There is no way they returned to Allinan.”
“Who wants a Queen who can’t even speak kindly of her ancestors?”
The shouts hit her in the heart, right where she had been sealing in her final memories of Rhia and Laura, but there was no turning back now.
Beside her, Gerwin shifted, hardly capable of enduring the way the council was attacking his daughter. But Maray gave him a look that was supposed to reassure him she had everything under control.
“I understand your outrage,” Maray called over the voices, meeting people’s gazes. “But would I be standing here, undermining my own position, if it weren’t the truth?”
The room fell silent, and Maray could feel the expectation solidifying the air around her. She met Sara and Emir Brendal’s eyes, and her chest tightened even further at the looks of disappointment Heck’s parents shot her. She wanted to apologize, even if none of it was her own doing. Heck had known, all along, the horrible truth and had chosen to stand by her anyway. Maybe that was his way of rebelling in a situation that demanded his obedience to his family. He agreed to marry Maray knowing that if his parents knew the truth, they would never let him anywhere near her. Maray’s heart lightened at the vivid image of Heck’s satisfied smile, which filled her mind for a moment before the dire situation caught up with her once more.
“Spies have gone missing in the other world, spies of dimensions who serve the cause of protecting Allinan.” To her surprise, Scott came to her aid, accompanied by Neelis’ nods, which didn’t allow room for any doubts.
“Why hadn’t we heard of this earlier?” Oliver Gerenhoff asked with cold urgency.
“The Princess has kept this from you in your best interest,” Neelis snarled at him, beating him with his own weapon.
“It is only now, that things are getting out of hand...” Maray started but was cut off.
“So, you admit you are not in control of what’s going on.” Oliver got to his feet and openly accused her. “You have known for a while that Gan Krai is alive—that he is immortal—and you have been sitting on that knowledge, hoping to use it to your advantage one day. Admit it.” He spat the last words at Maray, earning applause from some, infuriation from others, and only a few heard that little detail Oliver had let slip.
“How do you know?” Maray asked bluntly, ignoring the shouts and the discussions that were individually forming around the table.
“Know what?” Oliver squared his chest as if he was readying himself for a particularly vain headshot.
“That Gan Krai is immortal.” Maray spoke those last words just loud enough to get through to Oliver, but momentarily, the room was quiet again, all eyes and ears on the two of them, and Oliver’s sucked-in breath sounded loud through the high-ceilinged room.
“What, Gerenhoff?” She got to her feet, unwilling to let him get away. Something was wrong, and she was going to figure it out right now. “Made a mistake? You shouldn’t even know that Gan Krai is alive, and yet you don’t seem surprised.” Her suggestive tone made Oliver’s skin color switch into a spectrum of reds close to purple. Oddly, she couldn’t tell if he was upset or if he was having physical problems. She had seen people running in the summer heat of D.C. turning a similar color after a couple of rounds and near exhaustion.
“Immortal?” Sara Brendal finally broke the silence that accompanied the accusation in the air as Maray waited for Oliver’s answers.
And it dawned on Maray that everything that seemed familiar to her was entirely new to the people who were sharing the air in this very room—the council she was supposed to trust and which was supposed to trust her.
And with a sigh, she let herself drop back into her chair, earning an alarmed gaze from Pia, who had shot to her side. “You have no reason to believe anything I say,” Maray said, almost expecting the council members to abandon her one by one. Beside her, her father seemed to understand what she was about to do. And he gave an indication of a nod, which meant the world at this moment of difficulty. “But believe me
when I say that it is time to share the truth—all of it. Just a couple of months ago, I didn’t even know Allinan existed, and today, I am here before you as her Crown Princess. I never wanted to be royalty. I never wanted power. And yet, it seems that power was passed down in my bloodline. Still, I am not only speaking about the power of being the future Queen of Allinan.” She looked around, meeting inquisitive gazes, but surprisingly, no one had left. They were all there, confused, scared, angry, some even offended. But none of them had abandoned her—yet.
As she spread the whole story in front of the council, Scott and Neelis both went rigid with disapproval. She could tell from the way they glanced at her from the side, but at this point, did it really matter what anyone thought?
“This is not about me or my ability to rule—with or without a husband—” She peeked at Sara and Emir Brendal and suppressed a sigh as their faces hardened at the hint. “This is about Allinan. I have been part of this magical realm for only a little while, and yet, I am willing to take up the challenge of defending it. With the crown that belongs to me.” She lifted one of her hands in front of her chest, not giving the council enough time to comprehend that she was aiming for a husbandless reign, and held her palm open. “And with my mind and my magic.”
Murmurs ran through the room as she let a thread of flames escape from her fingers and weave through the heated air between her council and herself. And for the first time, she saw clearly.
“My ancestors have made mistakes. Let me be the one to rectify them.”
“I can’t believe they didn’t run,” Maray repeated and let Pia confirm that she hadn’t dreamed it all.
“Why would they run from the most awesome Queen-to-be in history?”
Pia was combing Maray’s hair just to have something to do.
“Oliver has a different opinion, it seems.”
Oliver Gerenhoff was the only one who had stalked from the room, the purple of his face never fading.
“The way he has been treating you,” Pia pointed out, “is the opposite of what belongs in court. If it were up to me, he could disappear to another dimension and stay there.”
Maray laughed a little laugh of relief, which was instantly smothered by unease when Gerwin knocked on the door and popped his head in alongside Neelis and Scott.
“So what did the staff tell at the after-work party?” she asked, finding herself funny, and earned two looks of confusion from the men. “I apologize. How did the mood change once I left the meeting?” She repeated her intended question. “Any gossip? Any fronts that are forming?”
“I’m so proud of you.” Gerwin gave her a hug first thing as he strode over.
Maray gestured for both men to take a seat and joined them at the coffee table, sinking into one of the brocade armchairs, while Pia stood unsure, hairbrush in one hand and was half-turning to leave.
“Please, Pia,” Maray stopped her. “Stay.”
Pia’s eyes bulged.
Neither Neelis nor Scott objected, both of them understanding the importance of Pia’s role beyond that of a normal royal handmaiden.
Pia hesitantly crossed the room and sat on the chair to which Maray was gesturing.
“So, Commander, what is going on with the council?”
Scott turned back to Maray whose growing discomfort was leaking into her words.
“Fewer discussions about your capability as a ruler than about speculations of what Gan Krai’s return meant for Allinan.” Scott fashioned a serious expression, which didn’t let Maray believe anything good was going to follow. “Some say that if someone managed to build their own army in the background, over hundreds of years, unnoticed, they might be a worthy alliance to consider. A powerful alliance for Allinan.”
Nausea hit Maray’s stomach at the meaning of his words.
“And what would those people have me do?” she asked with more force than she had intended as she bit back the urge to retch. “Make a peace offer to Gan Krai? Take him up on his proposal? Marry him?”
“Absolutely not. We aren’t trying to establish you as an independent ruler just to push you into the arms of the next marriage alliance that comes along the bloody path to the crown.” Pia offered her opinion, much to Neelis’ dismay. But this wasn’t the pack, not the council. These were Maray’s personal chambers, and she quite agreed.
“There have been more attacks, Princess,” Scott pointed out. “Four more since the beginning of the meeting.”
Maray’s nausea spread into her limbs, making her feel like she needed to lie down. People were dying because of her. She had heard in the meeting firsthand from the nobles who had gotten the reports from the townspeople. The Shalleyn who were attacking showed no mercy to man, woman, or child. They slaughtered their targets, sparing only one to tell the tale—to make sure Maray heard about it and learned that it was her fault.
“Give her a moment,” Gerwin hissed at Scott, but when Scott fell silent, Neelis picked up where the Commander had stopped.
“If things keep progressing at this pace, it won’t be long before the good people of Allinan see you as their enemy,” he translated, and the helplessness she had shaken just one night ago when she had decided to confront the council about Allinan traditions was suddenly back.
“And aren’t they right, in their own way?” Maray mused aloud. “Not that it really is my fault. I am not attacking anyone. However, considering my refusal to Gan Krai, Rhia’s actions, and their consequences—I might as well shove a sword into each and every one Gan Krai is attacking myself. At least I would do it quickly.” She folded her arms across her chest and lowered her chin, trying to hold herself in place. This was unacceptable. “What do you suggest I do, Commander? Neelis?”
Both men eyed her with uncertainty. “Whatever we do, we need to do it fast.” Neelis was the one to speak. “And you are not alone. A lot of the council stands by you. Even if their loyalty is mostly motivated by fear of the outcome if we don’t fight Gan Krai.”
“So that’s what we’re going to do?” Maray asked, half-relieved by the council’s reaction and half-terrified by what they expected her to do. Fight.
She was aware that she had asked them to let her try to make it right, but what she hadn’t thought through was the potential indestructibility of Gan Krai.
“What are his weak spots?” she asked, feeling better when she focused on the solution rather than the threat at hand. “How can we defeat him?” And when no one responded, “Can we even defeat him?”
“That’s the thing, Your Royal Highness,” Scott said, a large wrinkle etching into his forehead. “From what we have learned about his power, it might be endless. He commands an army of Shalleyn, from what we know—if that’s even all. He has stolen powerful warlocks such as Corey from right under our noses, and he has kept his very existence a secret for decades.” The strategist in him had taken over as he explained his assessment, detached. “He obviously is a very patient man, willing to watch generations come and go before he strikes, and ready to accumulate powers and alliances that no sane man—or woman, for that matter—would ever touch.” He glanced at Maray, very much aware that one person in her family had sought such an alliance: Rhia. She had tried her luck with the Shalleyn and failed and, with Gan Krai’s help, fixed the hole she’d torn between dimensions. But Rhia hadn’t been sane by any standards. Even if she had redeemed herself through her sacrifice, she remained a symbol of where bad decisions led someone with good intentions.
A knock on the door made Maray jump in her seat. She glanced at her father, Scott, and Neelis, who were all mirroring her tension.
“Come in,” Maray called, and Scott and Neelis jumped to their feet, drawing their weapons as they positioned themselves between Maray and Gerwin, and the door. Pia, however, remained seated, her hand reaching out to take Maray’s.
The door cracked open, and Jemin’s caramel locks bounced in atop his guarded face. “I didn’t mean to disturb,” he let them know. “But I was told that I could find y
ou here.” His eyes were on Neelis and Scott, not on Maray, and it added another layer of anxiety to her current state that he seemed to not want to look at her.
“Why don’t you join us?” Pia waved him over, earning a disapproving look from Neelis.
“Right,” Maray added, “We are in the middle of discussing how to take down Gan Krai for good.”
Jemin’s eyes locked on hers, sending a shiver down her spine with their infinite tenderness. It lasted for a short second before he hid the gentle Jemin with unknown depths of emotions behind a well-composed mask and strode over to sit in a free chair next to Pia. “Then you might as well add his ability to manipulate the dimensions to the list, and how we’re going to deal with him perforating the veil that separates Allinan from the other world.”
Maray eyed him without apprehension as did the others.
“He created a place that doesn’t exist in two worlds, but two worlds exist inside of it.
As he explained how they had found a room in the basement of the Coronation Hall where they couldn’t technically portal between worlds, but they had walked into the room in one world and stepped out in the other, it began to dawn on Maray.
“The room is the portal.”
All eyes were on her as if she had said something horrible.
“If the room is the portal,” Jemin explained, that means that Gan Krai is channeling his army through there.”
His words made sense—and they didn’t. “Why there of all places?” Maray asked, hoping to see clearly.
“The Coronation Hall is used once every thirty to forty years; some reigns last even longer than that,” Scott commented with the tone of a historian. “It’s the perfect place to hide in plain sight.”
“I thought he was hiding in the woods,” Maray remarked and received a nod from Jemin.
“He was. Until we disturbed his hiding place and followed him down to the southern lakes—” He stopped short, and Maray’s heart began to beat faster as she remembered the outcome of that hunt for the crimson eyed shifter, the hunt she herself had sent Jemin on. And it had ended up with him almost dying and eventually transforming into a shifter himself.
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