by Everly Frost
“Show them!”
I run at him, grabbing his arms, beating at his torso, trying to free her. The elves don’t move, don’t care.
I scream. “Let her go! I don’t have any power!”
His heartstones flicker. A force slams me backward and I tumble across the floor, banging my knees. I slide to a stop, scrabble against the floor, and jump back to my feet, running back at him.
He roars, “Show them!”
The female’s eyes are closing. She has no time.
“Wait!” I cry, sudden clarity piercing my panic. “Give me a knife.” I run to the table, snatching up the leftover cutlery, whirling to the Elven Commanders. “I’ve been sitting here eating with knives and forks and spoons all afternoon and you didn’t notice!”
They actually focus on me for the first time since I entered the room. Until now, their eyes have glanced over me like I am a piece of furniture. For years they wouldn’t let me touch metal because it triggered my power. It took the touch of a dagger for me to discover that I could harness lightning as a powerful force, lighting it up at a single touch.
“No electricity,” Elwyn says, chin drawn back in surprise. “She’s telling the truth.”
“It’s gone.” I grip the spoon in my fist. “King Howl, they believe you. Please let her go.”
The female slides to the floor, choking and spluttering but alive. I run to help her, but Howl’s fist slams into my stomach as I pass by. I double over, gagging, and collapse to my knees, before he drags the female from the room. Sounds stop in the room beyond as he drops her in the doorway. “Get her out of here.”
My hands form fists on the floor. Where is that shred of hope that filled my heart this morning? My whole body swells with anger, drowning my hope, even my sanity. Howl doesn’t bother to wait for someone to help the female. He spins back to us, but as his back turns, I catch a glimpse of massive wings and Cassian’s blazing eyes. He scoops up the injured female, supporting her head, and disappears with her as the door closes.
My tears drop onto the floor.
“If she has no power, why marry her?” Elwyn leans forward on the table, licking his lips. “What’s in it for you?”
Howl scoops one arm under my stomach, carrying me back to my seat like a rag doll. He runs his fingers down my face and neck. “What isn’t?”
“Fine. What do you want in return?”
“I want the Rath and Mercy Heartstones.”
Elwyn and Pedr look at each other. “Why? They’re worthless.”
“Then you won’t mind giving them to me.”
They exchange another quizzical glance, clearly believing they are getting the better end of the deal. “We have an agreement.”
“Good. Now. Let’s go enjoy ourselves.”
He drags me out and deposits me next to the door, waiting for the elves to move along. But instead of going with them, he grabs me again, almost wrenching my arm out of its socket. He hisses into my ear. “If you want your freedom, you will find me Prime’s heart. He was the King’s best friend and with his heart I will have the three most powerful Heartstones. I won’t have to make deals with your weak Elven Commanders. Then you can go free.”
He shoves me against the wall so hard that the impact rattles through my spine. “Stay there until I come back for you.”
Lightsworn’s blue light mingles with Virtuous’s moss-colored glow as Howl strides away, the two heartstones a powerful reminder that Howl is invincible.
The crowd of dancing elves and gargoyles parts for him. Several of the females follow him to the dais at the other side of the room where plush couches await, along with drinks and food. I catch sight of Gilda and Carmen. I’m relieved that they’re okay, but every moment they spend near Howl is a dangerous one. Like the other females, they maintain blank faces. They are a commodity. I want to snatch all of them and fight our way free of this place. I would feel better if Cassian was nearby but I’m glad he’s helping the hurt female.
As instructed, I remain glued to the wall, unmoving. There are too many females in this room that Howl can hurt if I disobey him. But his time will come. His end will come.
“Princess?” Eli’s quiet question is almost smothered by the increasingly loud, alcohol-fueled laughter around me.
“Princess?”
I finally turn to him. “Eli.”
“You’re hurt.” He doesn’t touch me. The old rule: never touch the Storm Princess. He always respected it.
I ignore the growing bruise on my forearm. My stomach hurts too. The corset bones dug hard into my ribs when Howl punched me.
“I’ll heal.” I chew my lip, knowing I may not get another chance like this to ask about the people I left behind in Erawind. “Eli, can you tell me… how is my family?”
“I have news, but it isn’t good.”
“I can handle it.”
“I believe you. But I want you to be prepared. Your Storm Command has been captured. So has Elise, your advisor. There are two new Elven Commanders. They are both powerful sorcerers, and one of them is very dangerous. The five Elven Commanders are now completely consumed by sorcery’s evil power.”
My voice wobbles. Definitely not good news. “Jordan too? What about Sebastian and his mother?”
“They were the only ones who escaped. They’re somewhere in the mountains. They haven’t been found.” He keeps his expression blank, giving nothing away. An observer might think we’re discussing the weather. Nobody can know what we’re really talking about. “The Elven Command has sold it to the people as a hunt for you. They have proclaimed that anyone aiding and abetting you is a traitor to the elven race.”
“Because I killed Gideon Glory. They called it murder instead of self-defense.”
“Yes.” He gives me a short nod. “I’ve been doing my best to make sure the prisoners are treated fairly but they’re being kept in very poor conditions.”
“I have to get out of here,” I murmur. “I have to end Howl and I have to get back to Erawind.”
“No.” He breaks the rule. He touches my arm. It’s a reflexive gesture, a worried one. He immediately lets go, regret washing across his face. “I’m sorry, Princess, but you must regain your power first. Otherwise, you will never be able to fight their sorcery. They are powerful and they infect anyone they want.” He glances across the room. His grandfather Elwyn is looking around and it’s probably for him. “I have to go now. Please stay alive and come back strong.”
“I will,” I whisper to his retreating back even though right now, I have no idea how.
35. Marbella Mercy
I’m collapsing against the wall by the time Howl orders dinner to be brought in. It’s impossible to stand up straight for hours on end. But my discomfort only increases when he sits me on his lap throughout the meal, feeding me things I really don’t want to eat—rich saucy meats and sweet syrupy desserts. Each mouthful makes me gag. Who knew I’d crave gruel?
I put up with it for the sake of the females in the room. Howl is like a fire stick that could light up at any moment and I won’t jeopardize their safety. He loses all pretense of treating me civilly by the end of the evening. Ordering the staff to show the guests to their rooms, he grabs me by my hair and drags me down the opposite hallway, my eyes streaming tears of pain as he tugs on a combination of pins and curls. Whatever design my hair was in earlier today, it’s a fallen mess now.
We finally reach our destination, a secluded part of the palace far away from everyone else. Quiet. Scarily alone. The only positive is that there’s nobody here who he can threaten, but as we round the final corner and enter a short hall with a wide window on one side, Cassian straightens at the entrance to the room opposite.
“General,” Howl slurs, waving the door open with his power. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m here to make sure you don’t do something you’ll regret.”
“Why would I regret taking this sweet piece of—”
“My King? Think about it.”
Howl grumbles. His lip curls in disgust. “Little half-caste heirs running around.” He waves it away. “I don’t care. Fuck my own rules.”
Cassian doesn’t budge. His wings twitch outward, obstructing the door. I eye the window opposite. There’s no way I’m going into that room with Howl. If Cassian doesn’t succeed in blocking him, the window is going to start looking pretty good. My observation of the palace walls when we arrived told me there are ledges everywhere so I shouldn’t have far to jump.
“It’s not about rules,” Cassian continues smoothly. “It’s about your life. Any heir is dangerous. Especially if it’s born with the heartstone’s power running through its veins.”
So that’s what Howl’s really afraid of: passing the power onto an heir. That would explain why he only imprisons wives in his harem, females who have already had children, since gargoyle females have no more than two children in their life.
Howl sways on the spot, dragging me back and forth with him. I’m ready to punch his lights out and hang the consequences. If he swings me around one more time…
He shoves me at Cassian. “Get her back to the mines tomorrow. Stay here on this door tonight. Nobody enters this room. And you…” He topples forward to grab my shoulders one last time, almost shoving me over. “You will bring me Prime’s heart.”
He swerves down the corridor, wobbling side to side, too inebriated to walk straight. I don’t stop watching until he’s gone. Even then I stare at the dark space he left behind, waiting for his footsteps to completely retreat.
When I’m certain Howl’s gone, I round on Cassian, pushing away from him. “How can you serve him?”
He glares me down. “Do you think I have a choice?”
“Everyone has a choice! Who does he have imprisoned? Your wife? Sister? Children? Parents?”
He flinches at each word. “Nobody! I have nobody.” He reins himself in. Takes a deep breath. Stares past my shoulder. He fixates on the other side of the hallway as he says. “Until a month ago, I had nobody, but—”
I’m too angry to care that he had nobody to love. I’ve been mauled and abused all day and it spills out of me in an angry rush. “Oh, so a month ago you found somebody to care about. To maybe start thinking about whether Howl is any sort of leader you should be following?”
“Yes.”
I glare are him, expecting more but that’s all he says. His gaze returns to me, slides from my eyes to my arm. He frowns at the dark bruise circling it and I sense a growing anger in him, but he reins that in too.
He says, “You should get inside. Rest while you can.”
“You mean freeze while I can.”
“Not if I can help it.”
I close the door in his face. If I freeze like last night, then I’m going to need his help, but right now I’m too angry to accept it. Right now I’m furious at my own powerlessness to help my family and friends. To help Baelen or the Storm. To help the miners or the females stuck in Harem Hell. Right now…
Right now…
My eyes shoot wide.
The room is lit with soft lamps and contains a large bed, a bathroom through another door, a massive mirror on one side and…
Baelen!
His cage rests against the far wall, taking up most of the space between the floor and the ceiling and right next to him…
“Storm!”
She’s a puddle of silver next to his cage, her head resting on her bent knees, her dress spilling around her, and her silver wings curved around her shoulders.
I race to her, dropping to my knees. “Storm.”
She doesn’t lift her head, doesn’t look at me, keeps rocking back and forth. My happiness at seeing her turns to fear. “Storm? Look at me.” When she doesn’t respond, I try her name instead. “Elyria?”
She lifts her eyes, peering above her knees, unfocussed, glazed. She blinks at me. “Marbella?”
“It’s me.”
“Marbella,” she breathes my name, shaking her head, blinking, focusing. “Is it really you? There were other elves. I saw them and I stayed away from them. I stayed as far away as I could.”
That would explain why she hadn’t come out with Baelen when Howl paraded him before the Elven Commanders earlier today.
She says, “Every week there are elves. Here. They shouldn’t be here. Not here.” She grabs my hands, squeezing them tightly, tears leaking down her cheeks. “Where’s Jasper? I need him.”
“He’s back at the mine. But he’s safe.”
“At least he’s safe.” Her voice trails off. “Please, I can’t be here anymore. I know it’s not my home, not the home I grew up in, but it looks like my home and I can’t stand it. I can’t stand being here. I have to get out. Please, Marbella. Please.”
“What happened here, Elyria? What happened to make you the Storm?”
She shuts down, dropping her head to her knees again. “Jasper,” she murmurs. “I need Jasper.”
She won’t talk to me. She won’t tell me. I sit with her for a long time, careful not to squeeze her broken wing too tight, stroking her hair as she continues to cry softly.
“It will be okay,” I murmur. “You’ll be okay.”
Baelen’s cage is exactly the same. He is exactly the same. My greatest fear is that he won’t remain suspended in time and his wounds will progress and I won’t be here to help him. I want to talk to him but I can’t risk drawing him out like before. Just seeing him has to be enough, even if it’s here in this… bedroom…
I frown back and forth from the bed to Baelen. The sheer perversion of Howl’s mind sends a shudder down my spine. The only one who can move Baelen is Howl, which means he deliberately moved Baelen here in front of this bed where Howl intended to break me. I’ve never actually feared rape. In Erawind, nobody touched me because I could kill them instantly. But here… and if Cassian hadn’t got in the way… maybe I would have made it out the window but maybe I wouldn’t have…
I hug the Storm tighter. “You were Supreme Incorruptible,” I whisper. “You were the heir to the throne.”
She draws a shaky breath, head down, her voice muffled against her knees. “I was. But then I died.”
Her voice trails off. Her breathing deepens. She told me she doesn’t sleep much, but I’m certain she’s fallen asleep by the time I uncurl myself and seek the bathroom nearby. Once I’ve washed off the sensation of Howl’s hands all over me, I debate whether to put the dress back on or wear the simple pajamas that have been provided. In the end, I opt for the pajamas.
I emerge from the bathroom to the sound of voices out in the hall: Cassian’s and a female voice. I patter across to listen at the door but the sound is too muted to make out what they’re saying. The door opens and I jump back as a soft female voice floats inside. “Very well, if she’s asleep, I won’t wake her. But if she’s awake…”
I recognize the old Priestess as she pokes her head around the door and pronounces, “She’s awake.”
She shuts herself in with me, leaving Cassian in the corridor. She’s small and bony, but the air tingles around her. Howl may well be right when he says that deep magic recognizes itself. Just like the first time I saw her, the Priestess’s presence makes my skin warm like stepping into a shaft of sunlight.
Her eyes are bright and assess me quickly. “Howl has passed out on his bed. Clutching his heartstones of course.” She gives me a quick grin and I’m surprised at the way her cheeks turn into dimples. “Paranoia is the illness of kings.”
She tucks her long straight hair behind her ear. “General Cassian has brought me here because he believes that there’s something in this palace you need to see. It requires you to leave this room however, which in turn means danger for everyone involved. Are you willing to accept that danger?” She leans forward, peering into my eyes. “For everyone involved?”
“You mean… including for Cassian?”
“Yes.”
“I… have no idea.”
She cocks her head to the si
de. “That’s good enough for me. Put this on and come with me please.” She hands me a coat and as soon as I pull it over my arms, she darts from the room before I have a chance to blink. I glance back at Elyria but she’s fast asleep.
I follow the old Priestess out, frowning as I pass Cassian. He says, “Don’t be long. If Howl comes back I’ll only be able to stall him for a short time.”
The Priestess hurries down the hall. A minute later, she says, “It looks like General Cassian has found something to care about.”
“Other than himself you mean.”
Her voice is laced with warning. “Do not let your anger blind you to the truth, Marbella Mercy. Or you will lose more than you ever knew you had.”
Okay, why am I following this old lady anyway?
“How have you been sleeping, dear?” she asks before I can rethink my current course of action and head straight back to my room.
“Well, but not well.”
“How about tonight?”
I’m not cold. It only now dawns on me that I’m perfectly warm. Which means it must be something to do with the underground mine. I only freeze at night when I’m there. But… why?
The Priestess suddenly says, “Before you judge Cassian too harshly, you should know that he was barely sixteen years old when Howl killed King Roman. Howl killed everyone Cassian loved but gave Cassian a choice. Cassian chose life. My point is… nothing in this place is straightforward.”
Before I can respond, she places her finger to her lips. We’ve travelled from one secluded part of the palace to another, up a flight of stairs to a landing and another door.
“Nobody is supposed to enter this room,” she says, leading me inside. “It’s not locked because Howl expects his word to be obeyed, but I’m in a rebellious mood.”
I’m still reeling from what she told me about Cassian. I’m not sure how to process it. As the Priestess draws me into the room, I see that there are only two objects inside it. One I recognize and the other I don’t.
“My armor,” I whisper, racing to where it hangs. I’d left it in a satchel on the Phoenix’s back when Howl surrounded us on Mount Erador. I hadn’t seen it since then.