Chapter 16
“Thorsten Steinberg.”
The two words fell on me like a pair of boulders. Olwen punctuated his sentence with a cold, businesslike nod.
All the flame and passion from the night before turned to ash. My ears rang, and I swallowed, straightening up. Did he know Thorsten had been coming onto the property? Worse, had guards heard us or seen him enter through my window? Thoughts swirled in my head and my chest constricted.
“Thorsten Steinberg?” I repeated, trying to sound stupid. “As in, one of the Steinberg heirs? If I remember right, he was a guard at Nocturnal Academy.” This couldn’t be happening.
“Yes. Word has it that he has great potential.” Olwen’s eyes remained serious and unmoving. Did he know or was this some horrific coincidence? It could be a loyalty test. I had to know for sure if Olwen suspected what we’d done.
“The Steinbergs are your enemies?”
“No, but getting closer to Vulthus will require some more work. You see, the Steinbergs are trying to reclaim their position in the Elites. Once they do that, they’ll want to discredit Vulthus who tried to push them out of the Elites in the first place. As Vulthus believes that I’m his friend, he’ll expect me to help him. Steinberg’s other heir already fell from grace. If he loses Thorsten, his position in the Elites will be taken away permanently.”
I should’ve felt relief that this wasn’t about doubting my loyalty, but just a horrible coincidence, yet I didn’t. “And the Steinbergs losing their position will make Vulthus happy so that he trusts you more than he does now?”
Olwen crossed his arms and nodded. “Yes. Only then will we be able to move against him, Onyx. This is a major test. You are up against a powerful vampire. Pass, and you will be granted your lust for revenge.”
I held back a shudder at his choice of words. Maybe he did know about Thorsten and me spending the night together. But how?
“And not to mention,” he added, “The Steinbergs are too unpredictable. They could become potential allies of the Summer Court if Petra returns with reinforcements. It is best that we weaken them now.”
“Yes.” I bowed my head and swallowing down panic, I walked away.
The whole universe seemed to have turned on me. Olwen’s stare made the space between my shoulder blades tingle as heaviness settled in my heart. I didn’t dare pick up my pace across the sparkling white floor of the corridor until I had turned two corners and walked past a pair of guards stationed near the exit to the plaza.
No, no, no.
My feet carried me outside where I found Lily hauling a broom and dustpan in the direction of the plaza. She was on her way to sweep leaves and pine needles off the cobblestone.
I froze. She did, too, and we stared at each other. Lily lifted an eyebrow, studying me. Her pupils widened. “Something’s wrong.”
“No shit.” My voice was hoarse. Raspy. I had escaped Olwen just in time for the dam to break. My body shook. He wanted me to kill Thorsten. Balling my fists, I checked that we were alone, then motioned for Lily to follow me down the path. I always had to be on my toes. That was my life now.
As we walked, Lily put her hands on my shoulders and squeezed as if she was returning the favor for all the times I had held her hand or rubbed her back. I breathed out and knew what I had to do. Shutting down wasn’t an option. I had an intelligent ear, a secret friend who could help me figure out how to get out of this mess. It was dangerous even talking to Lily as anyone but a servant, but I had already crossed into forbidden territory. What was a little more rule breaking at this point?
We headed around the edge of the plaza with the ice statues and ended up out near the training area. I eyed the arrows still stuck in targets. At least it was daytime and I frequented this area. Atticus wouldn’t be down here for another hour for our training.
Lily directed me to sit on a log. “Tell me what happened before it eats you up.”
“My next kill is...Thorsten.” I could barely choke out the words.
Lily’s jaw dropped, and her gray eyes grew to the size of saucers. In a voice that kept cracking and betraying me, I spilled everything: Thorsten coming through the window, our conversation, my fear, and the way he made me feel, well, like I was more than just a hardened killing machine. Like I was Onyx and my own person.
I had surfaced for one night and now I was drowning again.
Lily stayed still, listening, but the more I talked, the more my rage built. I gripped the log I was sitting on and watched as tendrils of frost spread from my fingers, not even trying to hold back the magic.
“Onyx?” Lily asked when I was finally done.
“I was stupid.” I felt as if I would never get off this log again. Maybe I could freeze myself here. Turn to ice like the statues.
“No. You’re right. You need to live, or what’s the point? There still has to be a way out of this. Have hope.” Lily scooted closer. She was taking a big risk herself.
“When Olwen wants something done, he gets it.” I looked into her gray eyes. Thick desperation settled over me.
“You’re his daughter, not his slave.”
“I’m expected to be a warrior.” That made me a pawn, just as Mom had been.
Lily took my arms. “Remember how Thorsten made you feel. Who cares what others expect of you? Since when do you bend to what everyone else wants?” Lily gave me a grin that dispelled the ice spreading through my veins. “I know you, Onyx. You make the impossible possible. You fought off Preston, exposed Petra, and fled Nocturnal Academy. No one had achieved any of these things before.”
Her words dripped warmth into my chest. She was right. I was Onyx and I had faced nothing but darkness, yet come out on the other side. “Do you have any ideas on how I could change Olwen’s mind?”
“Speak to Olwen in a way he understands.” She flicked her gaze back in the direction of the mansion. “Be cold and calculated. There’s a good chance this is all just a coincidence. Asking him to focus on Vulthus first can’t hurt. At least, you’ll find out if this is a loyalty test or if it’s just a strategic move.”
Lily had a point. So much about this situation was unknown. I had to try. I was glad she thought there was a chance I hadn’t really been caught with Thorsten. If so, then there was also a chance I could convince Olwen to go after a different target.
Lily chewed on her lip. “Maybe pretend to be angry and say that you’re wasting your time while Vulthus runs free.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
Appear angry. That wasn’t hard at all. I just had to think about how Vulthus had humiliated me and the awful things he was doing to Blair and his other poor servants.
“Onyx. Don’t push yourself past your limits. We still need to go out tonight,” Atticus said as I unleashed a barrage of ice daggers at the sandbags. Three spilled, and I wiped away the sweat off my forehead.
“I’m tired of these small missions. Vulthus is still out there.” I channeled my frustration into another ice dagger. “Olwen is never going to move against him.” Feeling that I had ramped up my act enough, I threw a thick dagger at another sandbag and as the contents spilled, I stormed up the steps and back into the main house.
The sun had just set. Darkness had fallen over the world outside, and I could barely make out the mountains and trees against the dark blue of the new night. Olwen would expect me to go out and hunt Thorsten before sunrise. But instead, I ripped open the door to the study, where he often retreated this time of the night, to find him standing and eyeing one of the bookshelves. Olwen was about to curl up and read. Unbelievable. I clenched my jaw, letting the temperature in the room drop to freezing.
That got Olwen’s attention, because he turned to face me. “Yes, Onyx?”
“Are we ever going to strike Vulthus? I have been waiting for months.” I flexed my hands, showing my impatience.
“We will, but these things take time.” Olwen’s cobalt gaze hardened. “I must ensure we are ready to fight him. We only get one cha
nce to get this right.”
“I’m ready. I’ve attacked plenty of vamps. I’ve killed one. I’ve also killed a Summer prince. It’s time to go after our true target before he suspects what we’re up to.”
“Perhaps you feel those tasks were below you?” Olwen asked in a dangerous tone.
I hesitated, not wanting to appear too eager. “Yes,” I said at last.
Olwen’s eyes sparkled. “You are confident. That is good. But you still need to learn strategy. Our plan will continue as we discussed this morning. One more kill, and we will go after Vulthus.”
I swallowed as my knees trembled. I hoped that Olwen blamed my hard training. “It’s always one more kill,” I said. “I want revenge. Vulthus humiliated me. Each day he goes free, we’re declaring that he can get away with treating a princess of the Winter Court as nothing.”
Olwen’s face darkened, and he stepped away from the bookshelf. Before he could speak, the door flew open. I turned, half-expecting Atticus, but another male guard took up the doorway, pale. He was a muscular fae with callused hands.
“Your Majesty,” he said. “We have word that Vulthus has attacked and killed two of our guards who were searching for Petra. The third guard that was with the group survived. She’s weak from blood loss and in the infirmary now.”
My jaw dropped. Vulthus had turned on Olwen?
Olwen crossed the room and grabbed the guard by his collar. “He killed my guards?” Olwen released the messenger with a shove and stormed out of the room. The guard hurried after Olwen, and I followed. This was a new and strange development. Why turn on Olwen after all this time?
The infirmary was on the other side of the mansion near the entrance to the guards’ barracks, which was a separate building at the side of the house. It was a simple room with several cots and reminded me of the one back at Nocturnal Academy, except for the quiver of arrows and the bow resting on the floor.
A female fae lay in one of the beds, a bandage around her neck. She had jet black hair and looked as pale as death. Slowly, her eyes opened as Olwen stepped closer.
“Sela,” Olwen said. “Is it true that Vulthus attacked you?”
I drew closer. She moved her lips, but no words came out at first. When she tried again, her voice came out as a croak. “Yes. He turned on us without a warning. He drained Vlad and Cassamir and left me clinging to life. I was barely able to return to the mansion.”
“Why did he leave you alive?” Olwen asked in a voice darker than the night.
“He wanted you to know…” Sela swallowed, then took another breath. “He wanted you to know he found out that Onyx is your daughter. He wants revenge for her attacking him and making a fool out of him.”
My insides turned.
“How did he discover this?” Olwen’s power was an angry mass whirling through the room.
“I don’t know, Your Majesty. His spies must’ve followed you or Onyx on one of your outings.”
Olwen whipped around, and I jumped. My ears rang. Because of me, two more fae had died.
I thought Olwen would go off on me, but instead, he worked his jaw. “Onyx, I will reconsider waiting to attack Vulthus. Remain in the mansion while I determine how we will fight back.”
Chapter 17
After Olwen left and after we choked down dinner, Atticus put me through another round of basement training, this one aimed at avoiding his ice magic. At first, I was allowed to use a shield, but after an hour of me dodging most of his attacks, he took the shield away.
“How am I supposed to protect myself? Can I counter attack?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No. I want you to learn to dodge. I’ll make my ice daggers dull so that they’ll leave nothing more than bruises.”
I sighed, hating that I had trained so hard earlier that day. “Isn’t it better if I practice attacking you while dodging?”
“No. If a vampire drinks a lot of your blood, you won’t be able to access your magic. Also, there are potions that can block it, courtesy of the Summer Court.”
I chewed on my lip. “If I was drugged or nearly drained, I doubt I could run and hide.”
Atticus’s face softened the tiniest bit before it turned to stone again, and I knew that unfortunately I was right. Powerful magic like a blood crystal or significant blood loss would be my undoing.
“Evading is the area we have worked on the least,” Atticus continued. “With Vulthus planning his attack, we need to have you trained in every aspect.”
I hated how I’d gone from warrior to a rabbit trying to escape the wolf, but arguing further with Atticus wouldn’t get us anywhere. I was already tired from our previous session, but complaining would only waste time, so I nodded.
Atticus began his chase, throwing ice daggers at me. Pain exploded on my back as I turned away. Atticus had a point. I sucked at dodging, which was a problem. Because while vampires didn’t have magic at their disposal and weren’t archers, they could be trained in knife throwing, and if Atticus’s ice daggers had been real, I would’ve been long dead by now.
I swerved, pivoted, jumped, and dropped around sandbags and tables to avoid his attacks, but didn’t feel like I was getting better as I was getting more tired by the minute.
Finally, Atticus called an end to the training. “That was a good start. Get a good night’s sleep, Onyx.”
I wiped away the sweat from my forehead. “Do you think we move tomorrow?”
“There’s a good chance that we will.”
My heart hammered in my throat despite the anticipation of revenge. Doubting I’d get any more information out of Atticus, I headed upstairs to my room, delighted to discover that a hot bubble bath had been drawn for me. I tugged off my clothes and sank into the hot water, my muscles relaxing instantaneously.
My eyes closed, and I must’ve drifted off, because a noise roused me. I shivered in cold water that no longer held bubbles and got out. Tying my silky bathrobe, I headed into my bedroom, ready to answer the door only to find a familiar figure levitating outside my bedroom window.
My heart hammered with excitement and a bit of trepidation. Thorsten. He was back. How long had he been floating outside?
I pushed open the window, and he entered. He gave me a quizzical look that turned into a scorching one as he took in my legs that were barely covered in my flimsy robe. My heart raced with excitement.
“Onyx, is now a good time?” he asked in a low voice that made me want to throw him on the bed.
Instead of replying, I pressed my mouth against his, channeling my need and relief through the kiss. He was alive, and he would stay so. How fortunate that Vulthus had made his move now.
I dragged Thorsten to the bed, pushed him down, and straddled him.
But instead of loosening the belt around my waist, he studied my face. “What happened?”
“Nothing.” I grabbed his hands, raising them to my hips.
He smiled. “Liar. I thought we were going to be honest with each other from now on.”
I sighed and sat back, still straddling him, but the passion cooled. “Vulthus discovered that I’m Olwen’s daughter. He turned on Olwen’s guards while they were hunting Petra. I don’t know how he figured out my connection to Olwen, but Vulthus wants his revenge. Olwen and I will finally move against him.”
Thorsten’s body tightened underneath me and not in a good way. He lifted me up and put me down next to him as if I weighed nothing. “When? Where?”
“I don’t know.” When he stared me down, I crossed my arms. “I really don’t know. Olwen disappeared and left me to train.”
Thorsten nodded. “I’ll return tomorrow, and then you can tell me everything.”
I shook my head. Tomorrow might be too late. “No, this is my fight.”
“I understand, but I can still help you.”
“I need to do this by myself.” I was shaking. I would not get anyone else killed or hurt.
Hurt flashed over his features. “You could use backup.”
&n
bsp; I hesitated. I wanted to dive into Thorsten’s offer, let him take care of me. But I was a warrior now. I didn’t want to have to rely on Thorsten the way I had been forced to at Nocturnal Academy. I wanted him to see me as an equal. Having him close would only distract me as I worried what Olwen would do to him.
“Please, stay away.”
Thorsten must’ve seen in my eyes how much it meant to me that he didn’t interfere, because he nodded slowly. My shoulders dropped. He’d he safe, and I could finish Vulthus.
“Did anything else happen?” Thorsten’s arctic gaze drilled into me, as if he could see right through me.
“Isn’t that enough?” I tried for a light tone. Thorsten didn’t need to know that my father had nearly made me kill him. At least, not now. I didn’t want to ruin the mood. I didn’t know what would happen tomorrow, but if I died, I was determined to not die as a virgin, and not die with Vulthus’s scent on me.
Thorsten nodded slowly. “I’m sorry. That must’ve been terrifying to find out that Vulthus knew—”
I cut him off, pressing my lips against this. “No more talking. I need you.”
Thorsten pulled me against him, our limbs turning to a tangled mess. He slid my robe off. I helped him with his shirt and pants. Our skin touched and where it did, I lit on fire. However, when I tugged on the elastic band of his underwear, he stopped my hand.
“Onyx,” his throaty voice only made me more desperate. “What are you doing?”
“Something I wanted to for a very long time,” I breathed.
He shook his head. “It’s too early. I don’t think you’re ready—”
“Let me decide when I’m ready, okay?”
He sighed. “I don’t want to mess this up.”
I smiled. “You won’t. Please, I need this.”
Before Thorsten could protest further, I pulled down his underwear, exposing all of him. I gulped, and then I let my hand trail over his shaft. At first, my touch was soft, but then it grew firmer. Thorsten moaned, and it drove me wild, knowing that I could give him this much pleasure with my touch.
Savage Monarchs (A New Adult Prison Academy Novel) (Nocturnal Academy Book 3) Page 12