Perfect Storms (Storms of Blackwood Book 4)

by Elle Middaugh

  "What are you doing, Bria?" a deep, tired voice asked me from the dark.

  My blood went cold. Oh shit. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.

  I jumped up and spun around, searching the darkness for his crowned silhouette. "Nothing, Dad. What are you doing? Up for a late-night snack?"

  He sighed, opening his palm to release a faerie light into the air. As it rose, it illuminated the tiny space in an ethereal glow.

  "Yes," he replied, playing along with my stupid analogy. "I had a sudden craving for a demon sandwich with fae sauce. Care to join me?"

  The next thing I knew, all five demons and my precious Orion were being dragged into the tent—gagged, bound, and at the mercy of our highest-ranking fae generals.

  Fuck!

  My eyelids drifted closed, and I swallowed hard. How the hell was I going to get out of this one?

  "All right, fine. You caught me. Release them and the joke will be over."

  My father rubbed his temples and sighed. He was clearly not amused with my games. Not that this was truly a game. I was just trying to make it seem that way.

  "No, Bria. This nonsense is finished. I've given you too much room to screw up. Too much freedom to make the wrong choices. That ends tonight. From now on, there will be no more cavorting with demons. No more visits to the Storms and their communal whore. No more fraternizing with lesser fae. It's time you stepped up and did your godsdamned duty for once. And if you can't do that yourself, then I'll just have to make it easier on you."

  My heart was racing a mile a minute. My freckles were probably glowing blindingly bright. "What's that supposed to mean?" I asked, not wanting to hear the answer, even though I already had a bad feeling about it.

  Dad didn't reply, simply nodded his head. At his cue, the soldiers withdrew curved daggers, the perfect length for slicing throats.

  "No!" I screamed, a strangled sound clawing at my throat. "Father, please!"

  "This ends tonight," he muttered ominously. "Right here, right now."

  My whole world crashed to a screeching halt.

  "Release them!" I shrieked in a panic.

  But no one listened. Before I could utter another word, blood was running. Rivers and rivers of it. Like gurgling streams dripping down the throats of my friends… and my lover. Orion's big, beautiful eyes popped open wide in grotesque surprise. Blood spluttered from his lips as he coughed and… and he dropped to his knees.

  "No!"

  The scream didn't sound like my own. My soul wasn't even in my body—it was in his, dying as he died. I crashed to my knees before him, squeezing his shoulders tightly.

  "Orion? Oh gods, hold on, sweetheart! We'll—" My voice broke as tears welled in my eyes. "We'll get through this. You're going to be okay. Tell me you're okay, sweetheart."

  But he couldn't speak. I was pretty sure his vocal cords had been severed and he was literally drowning in his own precious blood.

  Numbness clawed at the edges of my existence as reality began to set in. His beautiful voice would never again touch my ears. His heart would soon stop beating. Those loving, adoring eyes of his would see me no more. Perhaps they couldn't see me already…

  "Orion," I sobbed, gripping the sides of his face to both hold his attention and keep him from falling. But he was weak and unfocused. I wasn't even sure if he could hear me. My lips found his cheek for a kiss, but his skin was cold, the warmth fleeing quickly along with his energy and life.

  Then he went still. Terrifyingly, gut-wrenchingly… still.

  "No," I whispered, feeling every muscle, bone, and vein trembling in my body. "No." My voice rose as the sadness and pain hardened into anger in my system. It pumped venom through my bloodstream, filling my heart, soul, and mind with rage. "NO!"

  "Enough, Bria! I'm done watching you make a fool of yourself and our kingdom."

  I turned to my father, seething, seeing nothing but red. "You…"

  He rolled his eyes and smirked. Fucking smirked!

  "Yes, child. As your father, I was forced, yet again, to make a difficult decision on your behalf. If you could make decent choices on your own, none of this would have happened."

  My upper lip curled, and my nostrils flared. "Don't you dare try to pin this on me! This is your fault! All of it! The war, the death, the destruction, it's all because of your arrogance and pride!"

  "Hold your tongue before you lose it," he threatened darkly.

  His words made me pause just long enough to completely survey the scene before me. My beloved Orion was dead, nothing more than a heap of blue skin and empty bones on the floor. Beside him lay the shadowy bodies of my new demon friends.

  I looked back at my father. How could he stand so tall while people I cared about lay crumpled and lifeless at his feet?

  He sighed once more, glancing at a small black chest resting between us. I knew immediately it must've been the Eye. "I'm sorry, Bria, but you'd left me no choice."

  Before… I didn’t know what was best. I was afraid to make the choice for selfish reasons. Was being with Orion a good enough cause to overthrow my parents?

  Now… I knew. Yes, yes it was. I should have done anything to protect him. To be with him. Even stand up to my dad. Even overthrow him. Even kill him.

  "No, Father. It's you who have left me no other choice."

  I lurched forward and snatched the chest, immediately removing the glowing pearl from its cushioned resting place. It was warm in my fist, casting little rays of light between my fingers.

  "Bria, put that damned thing down," he commanded me, but I shook my head, feeling blind rage consume me.

  "You killed him!" I screamed maniacally. "You killed my friends!" My voice was like glass scraping across slate—shrill and terrifying enough to set his teeth on edge. I dropped the glamour and all my magical energy clouded around me, fuming like a volcano about to erupt. "You're a monster! And you will get what you deserve!"

  The guards’ eyes went wide, and they bounced nervously from foot to foot. They'd probably never seen a fae do that before... because I sure as hell hadn't. Whatever my magic was doing right now, it was not normal. In the back of my mind, I wondered if it was due to the pearl I had squeezed in my palm, but the thought was quickly blotted out by fury.

  All at once, my magic flared bright, bursting out in a seismic wave of destruction… and death. It happened so fast, I couldn't even comprehend what had happened until long after it was finished. My father's body lay lifeless on the ground, along with the bodies of his guards, my demon friends, and my beloved Orion.

  Oh my gods, what have I done?

  Footsteps shuffled on the outside of the tent. My magic blast had apparently drawn a crowd. Before they could burst in and arrest their own princess for treason, I grabbed Orion in a rush of adrenaline and hefted him over my shoulder, pausing for only a moment to glance at the unmoving demons.

  "I'll come back for you," I promised them.

  And then, I was running through the night.

  Chapter 19

  ALEXIS

  I didn't sleep for the rest of the night. None of us did.

  After Bria stole the Eye and killed her father, I was expecting them to attack us during the night out of spite. To say I was surprised when the sun began peeking over the horizon and we'd remained untouched was an understatement.

  All night long, soldiers had filtered into our camp, people I never once imagined being allied with—sirens, harpies, fae, and a mixture of humans—all supporters of the young princes and princesses of their kingdoms instead of the kings and queens. It was amazing. I honestly thought it'd be harder to start a revolution. Now, I feared finishing one would be the true test.

  By the time dawn settled in and the sun's rays glittered off a fresh layer of snow, I was finally able to see, with my own eyes, how the tables had turned. What started out as an even fifty-fifty separation on each side of the barricade, was now more like one-third to two-thirds, with our enemies falling short. New tents had been erected on our side of th
e barrier too.

  I had no idea how the kings would react when they realized what had happened, but I was already bouncing on my toes, trying to stay ready for anything.

  "You need to calm down, Sailor," Ben whispered with a grin.

  I looked into his brown eyes and forced myself to stop bouncing. "Sorry. I'm just nervous."

  His grin widened. "I can tell. But we got this. We have the numbers now, and thanks to the COCK Alliance, we also have the allegiance and financial support we need."

  I raised a brow. "Yeah, but I wouldn't put it past the kings to fight their own children for their senseless causes. They're proud, and they oftentimes let that pride get in the way of their better judgement."

  "I'll give you that." Ben nodded his reluctant agreement.

  I glanced over at Bria who'd been sitting protectively at Orion's body ever since she returned. He was mostly covered by a white sheet, but his face was out, his once-blue skin now fading into a dull gray. She couldn't stop staring at him, and I couldn't stop staring at her. It was a morose cycle of heartache and despair.

  "Come on," Cal said, jarring me from my thoughts. I quickly realized he had Camilla and the twins with him, as well as the rest of the Storms. "The kings are lining up at the front. I think we should try to talk before we fight."

  "And if they won't listen?" Bria asked, her tone devoid of emotion.

  I knew where she saw this little meeting of ours going because I saw it too—straight to Hades, that's where.

  Cal sighed but allowed a gentle smile to pass his lips. "Then we'll have to win the old-fashioned way."

  Killing off the old and forcing the new.

  It sounded so hypocritical when I thought of it like that. Sometimes you did have to fight fire with fire. If words alone wouldn't work, that's what we'd be left with.

  I'd never fought in a war. There was that scuffle back in Eristan and that sort-of battle with the Storm King where he just deflected our attacks and kicked our asses, but that was about it. This would be full-body armor, slashing swords, and actual killing. Blood would be shed. Lives would be lost.

  Unless we could make this meeting with their parents count. But how the hell were we going to do that? What could we possibly say or do that would keep them from continuing down the same destructive path? Nothing had worked so far.

  The two kings and Queen Bravia were on horseback, and Rob must've ordered a few servants to ready our steeds as well, because they were already clomping over in golden armor that matched our own.

  "Oh, Caramel," I muttered as I saw my horse all decked out in protective metal. I couldn't even pet her muzzle like I usually did because it was shielded beneath a helmet. Her eyes found mine—big, black, and peaceful as always. She either didn't know what was about to happen, or she was simply ready for it.

  I shook my head and pet the metal anyway.

  Oh, to be a horse...

  We saddled up, and before I was even close to being mentally prepared, we were trotting over to meet them.

  They were lined up in a perfect row, each looking as majestic and malevolent as the last. King Solomon, wearing more clothes than I'd ever seen, sat giving Bria the darkest looks I'd ever seen. King Thane, in silver and green, sat looking like the Siren King he was—pompous and overconfident, sneering at his boys as if they were nothing to him. And Queen Bravia, features hard except for the pink around her eyes, sat taking the place of her recently deceased husband.

  Were we seriously hoping to reason with them?

  "Asher Storm," King Thane said, sneering at my Shifter Prince with just as much animosity as he'd given his own sons. "I thought you were supposed to be dead?"

  Ash grinned, not looking even the slightest bit perturbed. "Guess the old man wasn't as good as he thought?"

  Thane sniffed out a laugh. He was no ally of the Storm King, but he wasn't about to be paling around with Ash either.

  "A pity you survived all this time, just to be killed here and like this. Why don't you step down? All of you. Let the peasants do the fighting, and when all's said and done, we'll make sure your punishments aren't too detrimental."

  Blane chuckled, and Zane shook his head.

  "Oh, Father," Zane said with sarcasm. "You always were one for putting on a show. Unfortunately, this isn't the time or the place."

  "This is no show, son," King Thane said sternly. "This is war. It's very real, and it's nothing any of you children are prepared for, I can promise you that."

  Camilla lifted her chin, her expression embodying so many emotions—confidence, allure, defiance, humor... "We're not children, King Thane. Your sons have thoroughly proven that already. And we're not backing down. Why would we? We have a distinct advantage."

  "And what advantage might that be, my treacherous daughter?" King Solomon gritted out.

  I mentally snorted. Not a desert flower today, huh?

  "Look around you," I answered him. "Your own soldiers have abandoned you. The ways of the old kings and queens are over. You've had your fun, you've done your damage, but your reign has grown stale. Our kingdoms need fresh rulership. They need us."

  "You?" Queen Bravia hissed, staring at me like I was a bug on the bottom of her bejeweled high heel. "Your kingdom has never needed you. You were nothing at all before King Zacharias took you in. And now? You're nothing more than a whore for the princes and nothing less than Blackwood's total destruction. If you hadn't shown up, this war wouldn't even be happening. All of this is your fault."

  I held my breath, swallowing hard. I'd faced those very same thoughts and emotions numerous times before. The guys had tried so damn hard to make me believe that those words were false but having someone ram them down my throat again had caused the guilt and uncertainty to rise up once more.

  "Then we should be thanking her," Bria said, boldly striding over to my side on foot.

  I reached down and helped her up into the saddle with me, so damn grateful that she'd taken a stand, taken this next step in her journey. She might've been broken by the events of the night before, but she would piece herself back together because she was strong. I had every intention of helping her heal in any way that I could. She was my friend, and after all she'd sacrificed to help me, it was the very least I could do.

  She nodded and gave me an almost-smile before turning back to her mother. "Without Alexis, Blackwood would be blown to bits by its own sadistic king. Without her, all of fae kind would have perished. Without her, I'd be stuck in a loveless marriage with Prince Calvin. And if it weren't for Alexis's liberal approach to matrimony, Princess Camilla would be in the same position as me—stuck in a loveless marriage, doomed to be nothing more than a half-hearted queen lying silent beneath her king. Now look at her. She's about to conquer not only Eristan, but Hydratica too."

  "And," Rafe added timidly, staring at Camilla with... admiration? What the hell? "I would love nothing more than for her to become queen of Werewood one day as well."

  Camilla’s eyes widened, and she quickly turned around to face Blane and Zane, who were grinning. "What the hell is he saying?" she hissed at them.

  "You heard the man," Zane told her, his grin broadening by the second.

  "Yeah, but what the hell? He wants me to marry him too? I don’t even know him!"

  "You’re his fated mate," Blane explained easily but quietly. "Your love is going to come naturally. But you don’t have to choose. You can have us all." He paused long enough to delve deep into her exotic, dark eyes. "Be our queen, Cam. We’ll make sure you never regret it."

  Her gaze met mine from across the group. "Hades fuck…"

  I couldn’t help but grin in response.

  "You can think on it," Rafe insisted quietly, but he didn’t look upset or worried. "Don’t make any decisions now. Just know that you have my eternal devotion as well as Werewood’s unending allegiance."

  She swallowed hard and, after a while, nodded. It was just a faint bob of her head. I think she was in shock, honestly. I kind of was too.
r />   "As touching as this little moment is," King Solomon seethed, his knuckles pale on his horse’s reins, "I refuse to watch my daughter become a whore to any royal with a dick! It’s madness. Whatever game you’re playing, it’s over now. Whatever fun you've had, it's done. You will get your head out of your ass and start acting like the proper princess I raised you to be, or there will be Hades to pay!"

  Camilla glared at him. "You’re the one who ordered me to court the Hydratican princes."

  "So you could pick one!" he cried in exasperation.

  She shrugged. "Well, I picked both. And as long as it works for them, then it works for me. It’s not a game, Father. Nor is it over and done with. Not for me anyway."

  King Solomon's dark eyes grew suddenly darker, like a storm cloud had just moved in across his face. "Are you threatening me, Daughter?"

  Camilla sighed and shook her head. "No, Father. I'm simply telling you what's going to happen. The sun has officially set on your reign. Eristan has been living in the dark for long enough. It's time for a new sun to rise, a new light to shine. Mine."

  King Solomon's nostrils flared, and he shared a hardened look with the other royals.

  "And mine," Bria concurred, reaching out to clasp hands with the desert princess.

  "And ours," the Atwood twins agreed, following Bria's lead and joining hands.

  My princes and I shared an encouraging nod. "And ours," we said at last, moving in to extend the line on the right.

  "This is not just some spur-of-the-moment, hairbrained idea, Father," Camilla told Solomon. "We have officially formed an alliance. The 'Children of Calloused Kings.' And together, we are going to make right our kingdoms' wrongs. Together, we are going to make this world worth living in, worth fighting for."

  Damn, she was good at this. I sat a little straighter just listening to her empowering speech. My shoulders squared. My smile proud but not boastful.

  "And if we refuse?" Bravia asked arrogantly.

  "When we refuse," Thane corrected her with a sneer.