Queen Takes Queen

by Joely Sue Burkhart

  He turned my hand over, his thumb rubbing gentle circles against my palm, where he pressed a kiss and closed my fingers over it. “Offend them. It won’t matter. You’re the fucking queen of Isador, and they won’t lay a finger on you. But I know you too well to fear that you’ll offend anyone, my queen. All will be well.”

  “Promise?”

  He winked at me and slid out of the seat toward the door. “You know it. Wait for me to offer you my hand before you get out.”

  I pictured him being all mean, bad alpha, glaring at all the people who might be standing around waiting for me to get out of the car. It made my mouth quirk and my nerves settled a little. His hand came down outside the door, and I slipped my fingers into his, sliding toward the door.

  Warm air wafted over my face as I stood. I glanced up at the sky first, afraid to see how many people were watching. It wasn’t dark yet, but the sun was slipping below the horizon with a glorious explosion of color. I didn’t see the moon, but one large, bright star winked at me in the sky.

  Rik tucked my hand beneath his arm, his fingers firm and confident on mine. His biceps bulged beneath my hand, his rock troll hovering beneath his skin. Ready to defend me at a moment’s notice. Gina gave me an encouraging smile and then turned, leading us down a white-graveled driveway. Stone pillars framed a wide iron gate that opened into the property. As we neared the blood circle, my scalp crawled, my nerves humming with tension. I couldn’t see the boundary with my eyes, but fine hairs rose on my arms, quivering like an electric fence was powering up, ready to zap me.

  Mehen and Guillaume stood on either side of the pillar, just inside the low stone wall. That must be the very edge. On the other side of the gate, a small group of people waited for us, but I could sense many more on either side, deeper into the property. My heart pounded as Gina paused in front of the gate. She fucking curtsied, and a sudden surge of panic rolled through me. We didn’t cover curtsies or bows or—

  :Because my queen fucking bows to no one.: Rik growled. :Not even the Triune.:

  “Welcome, House Isador,” a woman said, her low, sweet voice carrying through the night. She was shorter than me with bombshell curves, dressed in a sparkly pink gown that hugged her body. Another woman stood beside her, tall and slender in a white gown. “I’m Mayte Zaniyah, and I welcome you to my nest. Please, be at rest in Valle de Zaniyah.”

  The queen herself, welcoming us? That seemed unlikely to me, especially for older Aima well used to playing court politics. I glanced at Gina, and her eyes flashed wide with surprise too, her bond shimmering with excitement. She took it as an extreme honor. “Thank you, Your Majesty. We were honored to receive your invitation. I’m consiliarius, Gina Isador.”

  Mayte inclined her head slightly, a smile curving her lips. “Please, no formality among friends. This is my consiliarius, Bianca.”

  “Mayte. Bianca.” Gina inclined her head to both of them, and then turned to me, inclining her head even more. “May I introduce my queen, Shara Isador.”

  Mayte’s gaze locked on me, and though she smiled and inclined her head, her luminous eyes tugged on me. Frantic, almost. Scared. Worried. Not because of me, though, and it finally dawned on me. She was just as terrified of making a mistake as I was.

  Relief washed over me and tension melted away. I smiled and mirrored her movements as closely as possible to convey equal respect. “It’s an honor to meet you.”

  Holding my gaze, she offered her hand, and though I couldn’t see it, I knew her hand must have slid through the invisible barrier.

  I started to let go of Rik’s arm to take her hand, but he clutched me hard. “Not until your Blood are through.”

  Mayte didn’t withdraw her hand, and again, I felt an overwhelming sense of urgency from her. Like she was afraid if she didn’t get me inside, it might be too late. I listened with all my senses, trying to find anything amiss. Hopefully my magic would warn me if there was a trap of some kind awaiting us.

  “Of course, please allow me to introduce you to my Blood,” Mayte said. “My alpha, Eztli, along with Diego, Luis, and Maxtla.”

  The four men stepped forward, and though Rik didn’t move a muscle, his bond vibrated with intensity as he scanned each man and found them worthy adversaries. Eztli was the biggest man, though nearly a foot shorter than Rik and nowhere near as massive. All four men moved with lithe grace, lean muscles flowing under their skin with an ease that made me think of jaguars prowling silently through the jungle.

  :They are cats of some kind.: Daire’s warcat rumbled a warning. :Most likely jaguars as you guessed, but I won’t know for sure until they shift.:

  :She only has four Blood?: I asked Rik. :Do you sense any others?:

  :Not through the blood circle. It’s a barrier that our senses have a difficult time penetrating. Once we’re through, I’ll know better if she has other Blood that haven’t been introduced. That would be something to be suspicious of.:

  He moved so he stood behind me, my rock, always at my back. Then he gave a nod to the other Blood. One of Mayte’s Blood offered his hand and Mehen took it. For a moment, they stood there, squeezing each other’s hands and staring into each other’s eyes. Mehen didn’t move a muscle or say a word, but the other man’s eyes tightened and he grew pale around the mouth. When Mehen stepped through the circle and then released him, the man opened and closed his fingers several times.

  Guillaume went next. He stood at the edge a moment, waiting for one of her Blood to offer his hand. They whispered among themselves a moment, recognizing the Templar knight famous for taking alphas’ heads. So I was impressed when Eztli offered his hand rather than making one of his underlings bring my knight through. Guillaume didn’t play any games like Mehen, though he did meet and hold the alpha’s gaze without straining in the slightest and stepped through. One by one, the rest of my Blood followed them, until it was only me, Rik, and Gina.

  Bianca offered her hand and Gina stepped through the circle.

  The whole time, Mayte offered her hand to me silently.

  :Go now,: Rik told me. :I have your back until you’re through.:

  Taking a deep breath, I slipped my hand into Mayte’s. Her fingers closed around me, trembling slightly, though that could have been nerves. Something sparked between our palms, quickly growing warm. She clutched me harder, her eyes shining, and started to pull me through. I could see the blood circle now, a shimmering wall of energy that licked up my fingers, wrist, and forearm. My palm burned hotter. My instinct was to let go, to avoid the pain of a serious burn. A mind trick? Or a warning from my goddess?

  The fire burned hotter on my skin. My entire hand felt like I’d fallen into a fire or stuck my hand on a stove. Fire was my gift, but it’d never hurt me before.

  “Please don’t let go,” Mayte whispered urgently, her shining eyes locked on me. Her eyes glowed like moonlight on a crystal clear lake. “I mean no harm to you and yours. I swear it.”

  “Stop,” Rik barked, lunging toward me. He touched my back and I screamed as a thousand-watt bolt of lightning tore through me. I knocked him reeling backward, my entire system powering up in a heartbeat. Pressure built inside me, my magic surging to red-line levels. I didn’t know what was happening, but if I didn’t release it, my own magic would tear me to pieces.

  I tore my lip open with my fangs and power exploded out of me. Ice burned up my spine, meeting the fire in my hand.

  Something did not want me in that nest. Wind and lightning tore at me, whipping my hair, tearing at my dress. A frantic howling wind swirled around me, black thick air trying to suffocate me. But I could still see Mayte’s eyes, shining like lanterns against the darkness. She’d begged me to not let go of her hand. She’d sworn she meant no harm to any of us. So then who didn’t want me crossing Mayte’s own blood circle?

  Frankly, it pissed me the hell off. I’d been so scared of making a political mistake that it’d never dawned on me that I’d encounter trouble trying to cross into the nest despite Mayte’s
own blessing. I pulled harder on my magic, pushing back against the storm. But force wasn’t helping. As when Ra attacked us, the harder I tried to push the wind away, the more it roared, using my own power against me.

  I drew my power back, conserving my energy while I looked for the source of the storm. I let the storm batter me, sinking deeper into the darkness. High-pitched shrieks of vicious glee swirled around me like a hurricane, but I ignored it, even when it felt like something nibbled at me, taking bites of my flesh. The gale sucked the air out of my lungs and I couldn’t breathe. I had to be in the tail of the storm, almost at the source. I couldn’t see anything in the blackness. My body was quickly slipping into panicked flight mode, but I held on, gritting my teeth.

  There. I could feel something pulsing beneath me, spewing up the storm around it. It crouched on top of Mayte’s blood circle like a huge venomous spider, claiming her boundary as its own.

  My chest ached like my lungs had caved in, but I honed my magic into a fireball, spinning with energy, red and dark with my fury. I willed my fire to explode on that nasty spider. I heard its legs cracking. Hairs catching fire, exploding with pops. A vicious screech. It tried to flee, legs cracking and breaking off, charred in the heat of my rage. Hotter. I felt the sear on my face, sheets of fire rippling up my body like it was going to tear skin from my bones, until finally the spider exploded.

  The winds ceased so suddenly I stumbled. Hands closed on me that my body knew even if I couldn’t see them. Mehen. Daire. My Blood. Yet I still fell into darkness. Rik roared, the ground shaking and bucking with his fury. Then he was gone. They were all gone. The last thing I saw was Mayte’s eyes, still shining as she pulled me through.

  20

  Rik

  What the fuck had we been thinking? Letting our queen enter another queen’s nest? My queen was gone.

  Fucking gone.

  I couldn’t feel her bond at all.

  I pounded massive boulder fists on the ground and against the invisible barrier, bellowing at one of them to bring me through. I couldn’t feel her. It was like she was dead. Again. And I couldn’t bear it.

  The rest of her Blood surrounded her. Mehen dragged her up into his arms, and the queen who’d fucking betrayed her still clutched her hand. On her knees beside them, but still touching her. Tears ran down her face but I couldn’t make sense of what anyone was saying. Probably because I was roaring like a mad man.

  “Calm the fuck down, man.” The other queen’s alpha came to stand in front of me. Safe on the other side, fucking pussy. “Your queen is unharmed.”

  “The fuck she’s unharmed! Bring me through, motherfucker, before I tear this whole place down brick by brick!”

  The other man’s eyes narrowed, his fists clenched at his sides. He glared at me through the barrier and I fucking glared back. If I had him on this side of the barrier, we both knew who’d be standing with his boot on the other man’s face, and it sure the fuck wasn’t me tasting his boot leather.

  “I’ll bring you through, but don’t hurt anybody. What’s happened—”

  I jammed my hand up to the barrier, ignoring the fierce cramp that rocked up my arm. If I didn’t move soon enough, the cramps would eventually knock me out. “Bring me through!”

  The man sighed and wrapped his hand around my wrist. Immediately, I surged through the blood circle, shoved him flying out of my way, and grabbed Shara from Mehen. Panting, I clutched her, eyes closed, feeling along her bond gingerly, looking for any injury. At least I could feel her again, her bond whole and gleaming in my mind. I slowed my breathing, but didn’t ease my fierce hold on her. She still wasn’t moving and I didn’t feel her mind stirring at all. It was like she’d gone blank, though her body was still warm. She hadn’t died this time. But she was knocked out cold.

  The crown had slid down, tangled up in her hair. Gina carefully loosened the tangled strands and took the crown off her head. Her hands were shaking as badly as mine. “What happened? Crossing a nest isn’t supposed to be dangerous with the host queen’s invitation. I told her there was nothing to fear.”

  “There shouldn’t have been,” I gritted out, giving another glare at everyone. Especially the queen, Mayte. “You caused my queen pain.”

  She drew herself up proudly, though she nodded in agreement. “I’m sorry, but there was no other way. I hoped she was strong enough, and she is. She’s wondrous.”

  “She’s unconscious and suffered pain at your hand. I’ll not soon forget it.”

  Mayte inclined her head. “I wouldn’t expect you to, alpha, though I hope to earn your forgiveness. Please, let’s go inside and get her comfortable. I’ll explain everything once she wakes.”

  I paid little attention to our surroundings as we walked up to the main house. I was still too shaken at that horrible emptiness I’d felt in her bond. :G, take over.:

  :Understood, alpha.: Immediately, Guillaume sent the other Blood into a guarding formation, two behind and three ahead, as we walked down a long graveled driveway. People lined the road, whispering as we passed. Isador. Queen. Everyone seemed hopeful and excited, but it only pissed me off.

  Her first political meeting, that she’d been so worried about, should have gone off without a hitch, a purely entertaining and light arrangement with a fellow queen. Instead, it’d been a fucking disaster, and she wasn’t even awake to realize it. Let alone worry about making another mistake. I half hoped that when she woke that she’d want this entire nest razed to the ground.

  Zaniyah led us inside a two-story Colonial style house and into a dark, quiet room with several long couches. “Here, please, sit. Rest.”

  Biting back a growl, I sat down on the nearest couch, with Gina on one side of me and Daire on the other. The rest of her Blood spread out about the room, grim and cold, ready to kill anyone who looked at us sideways. Mayte had her four Blood and Bianca shut the door behind us, closing out the curious.

  “Well?” I demanded, smoothing Shara’s hair back off her face.

  “Wait until she wakes, so we only tell this story once.”

  “If she wakes,” I muttered darkly. Though I already felt a faint stirring in her bond. When she opened her eyes, we all breathed a heavy sigh of relief.

  “What happened?” She tried to sit up, her eyes flying wide as she noted everybody staring at her. She looked around, not recognizing the surroundings. “Did I faint? Where are we?”

  Mayte came closer. Bristling, I kept a wary eye on her as she knelt before my queen. “Your Majesty, do you remember me?”

  “Mayte,” Shara whispered. “I took your hand. There was something warm between our palms, like a… a… stone. Then it caught fire, and a hurricane tried to kill me. I couldn’t breathe. The harder I pushed on the storm, the stronger it became. I finally found a thing like a spider on your blood circle. When I killed it, the storm died.”

  “Let me tell you a story about the last time a queen came to visit me,” Mayte said softly, looking up at my queen earnestly, her eyes begging for understanding. “Forty-nine years ago, Keisha Skye came here uninvited and asked to parley with House Zaniyah. I knew what she wanted, and I refused to invite her into my nest. She spent the next few years attacking us. She sent humans to infiltrate my court. She had sibs of her own stationed nearby, ready to attack if anyone ventured out alone. She nearly succeeded with her ants, but I don’t think she counted on our voracious fire ants being willing to help defend the nest. When all her attacks failed, she made one last trip here to contaminate my own blood circle.”

  Mayte reached out to take Shara’s hand. She flinched, her skin still tender from her ordeal. “She laid a geas upon my own nest, so that no other queen could pass until I allowed her to enter. She couldn’t break my circle—but she dropped enough of her blood on top of it to spoil our haven into a prison. I couldn’t invite any queens to ally with me, unless I thought she’d be strong enough to break through Skye’s geas. You broke that geas, Shara. You were able to cross and reach us.”

&
nbsp; Fuck. No wonder crossing the circle had hurt her so much. Rage bubbled like acid in my veins. “And you never thought to prepare her for such a trial? To warn her of the danger?”

  Mayte bowed her head, pressing Shara’s hand to her forehead. “I couldn’t. All I could do was hope that if you came, you’d be strong enough to break her hold on us. And you were. You are. You broke a geas laid by Keisha Skye like it was nothing.”

  Nothing. Never mind that she’d been knocked out cold for longer than I cared to remember.

  Shara lifted her other hand to her temple, her fingers trembling. “I still feel… fragile. Like my head will explode if I move too quickly.” She leaned forward a bit to sit up, but slumped back against me.

  I tucked her head up beneath my chin and wrapped my arms around her, giving her my body heat and strength.

  Guillaume stepped close, knife in hand. “May I feed you, my queen?”

  “I will,” Mayte cut in hurriedly. “Gladly. It’s the least I can do. Zaniyah is ready and willing to swear to House Isador immediately.”

  Shara looked at her a moment and shook her head. “No. Not yet. I don’t know how I feel about that, especially…” She didn’t finish the sentence, but her meaning was clear.

  Mayte looked at her consiliarius, desperation sharp between them, and yeah. I was fucking glad. They needed to squirm a bit after what they’d done to my queen. Let them worry about facing Skye’s rage alone, now that her geas had been broken. Even hundreds of miles away, Skye would have felt that snap in her magic. I could only hope it’d laid her out cold too.

  “I want to taste Rik first,” Shara said softly.

  I raised my wrist and Guillaume made a neat cut for her, mindful of her dress. I pressed my forearm to her mouth and glared at Mayte and her Blood. Especially her alpha. If Shara decided to take Mayte as a sib, I didn’t want those Blood anywhere near her. They didn’t deserve a single drop of her blood. Not after silently letting her step into a trap of Skye’s making.