Princess of Fire and Smoke (Forbidden Court Book 1)

by Stephanie Bell

  The pain from my magic must be making me go insane because it’s a struggle to hold back the laughter that is bubbling into my chest.

  I clear my throat. “It was more borrowing, than stealing, really. Storm was returned to you good as new. Better even, he needed a good run.”

  The General freezes so suddenly I stumble right into him. I watch his muscles tense under his uniform. His shoulders bunch up, and his hands tighten into fists.

  I bite my lip hard to keep myself from saying anything else I might regret. It’s surprisingly easy to rile him up.

  “Sir?” The soldier asks behind us. Probably prepared to stab me too, if I get out of line.

  “It's fine. Let’s go.” The General starts walking again, knowing we have no choice but to follow him.

  I wish I did have my mother’s powers. Then I could see into this terrifying man’s head and know what he was planning. Where are you taking us, General?...

  To camp, of course. Comes his startling reply.

  My hand flies up to cover my gasp.

  I walk quietly after that, trying my hardest not to say, or think anything at all. I don’t know what’s happening, but for all I know maybe he has the mind-reading magic and he can hear everything I’m thinking.

  He leads us to a meadow a few miles away from our campsite. It would have been beautiful if it weren’t for the dozen or so tents set up in it, or the soldiers walking around. There are a few fires crackling nearby and a space for the horses to roam about.

  “Come on Princess, you’re with me.” The General says as he nods in the direction he wants me to go. “Jameson, lock him up. If anything happens, kill him.”

  “What?” Emerson yells furiously. Then he turns his pleading eyes towards me. “Adeline, do something! You could wipe them all out in a heartbeat if you tried.”

  He’s right, I could probably kill all of them if I tried.

  The thought has my stomach churning. I don’t want to kill anyone. These are good men. They’re just serving the wrong leader.

  I lean into him, giving him a kiss on the cheek. Under my breath, I whisper “Emerson, I don’t want to hurt anyone. I'll talk to the General and get him to let you go.”

  “Let’s move,” The General's growl interrupts our conversation.

  “You know, it wouldn’t hurt you to learn some manners,” I say as I storm off in the direction he indicated.

  I think I hear a soldier coughing, trying to cover up his laughter.

  The General walks beside me guiding me towards the tent in the very center of their camp. It’s double the size of the other tents and has Maximus’ flag flying from the top.

  Fury unfolds inside me. “You boys didn’t waste any time, did you? How long after the High Queen's assassination did you declare your allegiance to her murderer?”

  With a speed faster than I thought possible, he yanks me into the tent and holds onto both of my shoulders.

  Narrowing his eyes at me, he leans in close, “What did you just say?”

  The smell of the forest and something else, something smokey, fills my senses and my mind goes blank. I try focusing my attention on his face, which doesn’t help much. His lips are pressed hard together and there is stubble growing on his chin. It looks like he’s had a rough couple of days. Serves him right.

  He might look even more handsome now if he wasn’t such an un-charming, ill-mannered, jerk.

  His lips curl up at the side in a smirk as he slowly leans forward until his lips press against my ear. His breath warms my neck, and my legs almost give out as he whispers “I may be a jerk Princess, but I could charm the pants off you if I tried. And I save my manners for people I actually like.”

  Stunned and humiliated. That’s how I feel. And angry, very angry.

  “Let go of me, now,” I say with as much ice in my voice as possible. “And I'd appreciate it if you’d stay out of my head.”

  He pauses and stares at me for a minute. Confusion lightning his eyes. “What are you talking about?”

  “All this…” I say pathetically waving my arms in between us.

  He raises an eyebrow at me. “I have no idea what you're talking about. And whatever you’re feeling about me, I can promise you, I'm not in your head.”

  He walks to a small sitting area beside his bed and sits in the only chair.

  “The only feelings I have about you are frustration and repulsion.” I tilt my chin up and glare down at him, giving him my best ‘Queenly stare’.

  I have been trained in how to act and talk since I was a child. There is no chance I'm letting him get the upper hand here.

  After a quick glance around and seeing no other chairs in the tent, I decide to act on impulse. I flounce over to his bed and sit down on it facing him.

  “Well, when are you turning me over to Maximus?” I ask him, trying to mask my anxiety.

  His eyebrows raise in surprise, before quickly lowering back into that scowl he seems to be so fond of.

  “That depends on what information you have, Princess.”

  “My name is Adeline and I can tell you everything that happened that night, but I have no proof and you won’t believe me.”

  He leans towards me to rest his elbows on his legs. “Try me.”

  We are way too close for comfort, his knees almost brushing mine. But I refuse to be intimidated.

  I look into his eyes, willing him to somehow believe me. “Maximus killed my father. Then he used my Mother’s powers to make everyone nearby think I did it. Right before he murdered her too.”

  The General lets out a low whistle and his eyes widen in surprise. “Of all the stories I thought you’d come up with, that wasn’t it. Why would your uncle kill his brother?”

  Why? The question I've been asking myself all along. I still don’t have an answer. But, I will.

  “I don’t know.” My voice cracks as I remember the terror of that night. “I know Maximus loved my mother and there was some history between them before their trial.”

  “Right…” His voice oozes skepticism. “Well, how did he manage to use the High Queen's power against her will? She could have stopped him with a single thought.”

  She could have, and I’ve seen her kill a man without even raising her hands before. But, thankfully I know the answer to this question.

  “There was a man there and he had the power to stop everyone's magic. All of ours. He could also use someone else's magic if he touched them. He tried to use mine, to get me to kill them. But it wouldn’t work. So, he used my mother’s instead.”

  “Let’s say I believe you. Which I'm finding hard to do. Who was this man?”

  “He was there with Maximus. Tall, about the same height as my father. Brown hair. Blue eyes. He was terrifying and confusing.” My voice trails off as I think about the stranger for the first time since that night.

  “So, a mystery man showed up with Maximus to murder the High Queen and King twenty years after their marriage because he loved her… That’s your story? Are you sure you don’t want to change it? Maybe someone took over your mind and made you kill them? That sounds much more believable.” He leans back in his chair and snickers at me.

  I've never wanted to punch someone more than I do at that moment. I hate him.

  “I'm sorry you don’t believe me, General. But it’s the truth. I hope, for your sake, when you realize you’ve been serving a monster, it isn’t too late for you.”

  “I didn’t say…” He’s interrupted by a soldier rushing into the room.

  “Sir!” The soldier salutes the General.

  “What?” The General barks at him.

  The soldier's eyes widen as he glances from the general to me. “Sir, there’s been a report. A water wielder is threatening to wash us away if we don’t give him the Princess.”

  Chapter Fifeen

  “What?” The general roars as he grabs the edges of his chair tightly, the wood cracking under his grip. “Who scouted the area? Send them in here, immediately!”
>
  When the soldier scurries from the tent as suddenly as he came, the General turns to me. “Who else is after you?”

  I open my mouth to respond, but I draw a blank. “I was so busy running from you, I never noticed anyone else chasing me.”

  A different soldier rushes in this time. The general stands up slowly, still crushing the handles of his chair.

  “Speak!” He orders.

  “Sir, I was scouting about two miles north of here. There’s a large group of soldiers stationed there, near the lake. I was captured but they said I could go if I relayed a message to you. They want the girl, or they’ll use the water and create a wave large enough to wash us out. They have several water wielders, Sir. I think they could do it.”

  “Show me.” He walks over and pulls out a map of the area, setting it on the opposite side of the bed from where I sit.

  “Right there, Sir.”

  I stand up to see where the scout is pointing. Sure, enough he pointed to a spot right beside the lake. But my attention catches on the town a half a mile south of us.

  “General, you have to hand me over,” I won’t let anything happen to those villagers.

  “Like hell, I do. We don’t know who these men are. They could kill you or be working with you.” He eyes me suspiciously.

  “I can promise you I don’t know who they are. But we don’t have much choice. If they release a tidal wave, they’ll destroy the village.” I lean down and point to the small village on the map.

  Silence fills the tent as they study the map.

  “There is another way. I'll figure it out. I finally captured you, I'm not letting them take you before I figure out what happened that night.” His eyes meet mine as he slams his hand down hard on the map for emphasis.

  “Well, I can think of a way to stop them.”

  No, she wouldn’t…

  I slowly turned to see Aileen standing at the entrance to the tent.

  “Aileen, run!” I scream at her.

  Terror washes over me at the smug look in the General’s face.

  “Nice to meet you, again.” He says to Aileen, as he glances at the soldier, “Arrest her.”

  “No! Please, I'll tell you whatever you want, just let her go.” I grab the General's arm and pull him back around to face me.

  Please. I send that one word into his mind with as much force as I can.

  I will beg, I will plead, and if that doesn’t work, I will kill all of them to save my twin.

  “Hold on, soldier. She says she knows how to stop them, let’s hear her out.”

  Hope blossoms in my heart only to be squashed by the General’s thoughts back to me. Don’t get too excited. I'll still arrest her, but I'll make sure she stays safe from… Anyone who might want to harm her.

  “Well?” He says to Aileen.

  “It's simple, really. There’s only one thing destructive enough to stop a tidal wave…”

  Stop talking! I try to scream at her mentally.

  The men stare at her, waiting for her to finish her sentence.

  “Adeline can stop them.” She walks over to me and lays her hand on my arm.

  I growl at Aileen as the men gape at us

  “Get out.” He orders the soldier. After a moment’s hesitation, he adds “Find Jameson and tell him to get in here, now.”

  The soldier sprints out of the tent and the General turns to me. “What does she mean?”

  “You don’t want me to do this,” I insist.

  “Sure, he does! There’s no other option, Adeline. I saw those men. I was scouting them when you were captured. They’re Maximus' men and they’re not nearly as friendly as the General here.”

  “But, HE’S Maximus’ General.” It's probably petty to point that out right now, but he is just as likely to hand me over to my Uncle as the other soldiers are.

  “I pledged to serve the crown; Maximus doesn’t have the crown yet.” He looks like he wants to say more to me but turns to Aileen instead. “What can she do?”

  Aileen grins. She knows she has him, the sucker doesn’t even know she's making his choice for him. “She can wield fire, unlike anything I've ever seen. She’s powerful, ridiculously powerful. She needs a little practice controlling it, but she’s good under pressure.”

  I can’t believe they’re talking like I'm not even here. I don’t want to do this. If I fail, all those people will die.

  I brush Aileen’s hand away angrily and walk over to look at the map. If he can get me close enough, I'll surrender to them so they won’t make the tidal wave, to begin with.

  “Are you okay?” I don't notice the General until he is standing next to me. His eyes soften as he looks at me.

  “Please don’t make me do this,” I beg him. “My powers only work when they want to. There’s no guarantee I can stop the wave from coming. Then everyone dies. If you trade me, everyone can still live.”

  The temporary softness in his eyes is instantly replaced by a cruel glare. “I am not handing you over to them. Either you can help me with the wave, or you can stay here while my men and I fight them.”

  They can’t take on a tidal wave with their swords. That doesn’t leave me with much of a choice.

  “Fine, I'll do it. But we need to get closer, and away from your men. If I can’t control my fire, they’ll be in danger.”

  “Done.” He says with a nod. “We'll leave immediately.”

  “General.” The tracking soldier, Jameson walks into the tent and freezes mid-step watching Aileen.

  “Jameson, have you been informed of what’s happening?” He asks him, every bit the general issuing orders.

  Jameson nods his head, but he’s still glaring at Aileen. So the General continues, “The High Princess and I are going to stop the wave. You get to babysit the other princess.”

  That got Jameson's attention. “You’re going where? With her? Are you sure that’s a good idea? You’ve been a little distracted lately…” Jameson stops talking at the General’s glare. “All right, boss. If you insist.”

  “He might be okay with this, but I'm not. There’s no chance you're leaving me here, Addy.” Aileen folds her arms across her chest and widens her step. She’s mad, and she's ready to fight for it.

  “Aileen, the General’s right. If something goes wrong, they’ll need a good healer here. They’ll need you.”

  “I need to be helping you! You know I can be helpful.” She flinches when she sees my face. “Don’t say it, Addy. Please don’t.”

  “I'm sorry sister, but it’s an order. Stay here and help the soldiers or the villagers, if they need you.” I blink back a tear. "I love you."

  “Adeline! Whatever your planning, stop it!” She screams at me, panic shaking her voice.

  I turn to the General. “Are you ready?”

  He hesitates, glancing between myself and Aileen, who is still screaming at me. With a decisive nod, he leads the way out of the tent.

  “General! Don’t let her do anything stupid,” Aileen’s plea follows us out of the tent.

  I hope someday my twin will forgive me. I'm not going to risk everyone dying because my magic doesn’t feel like cooperating.

  He leads us through a maze of horses and right up to a very familiar stallion.

  “Storm!” I laugh as his dark grey nose nuzzles my face. “Good boy! Has this mean man been treating you well?”

  At the General’s angry murmuring, I glance over my shoulder at him. “Traitorous horse. You do know she’s the enemy, right?”

  I laughed as he saddles the horse, readying for our departure.

  “Well, at least your horse has manners.”

  He rolls his eyes at me, but I think I see the corners of his mouth twitch up in a smile. “Let’s go, Princess.” He climbs into the saddle and holds out his hand to me.

  Here goes nothing… I hold onto his hand as he hauls me onto the horse behind him, ignoring the magic sparking wherever we touch.

  You might want to hold on. He thinks to me seconds be
fore Storm takes off through the meadow.

  I grab onto his shirt, holding on for dear life. My arms reluctantly circle his waist and hold on tight.

  Jerk… I think staring at his back.

  I’m very aware of his stomach muscles clenching as he laughs at me.

  The distance flows past us as the General urges Storm faster. The horse really is magnificent. When he slows down in a field, I'm almost sorry for the ride to end. I won't miss this man, but I will miss his horse.

  The General glances over his shoulder at me. “Darling, if you wanted to hold onto me, all you had to do was say so.” He drawls as he glances pointedly down at my hands, which are still wrapped around his stomach.

  My cheeks burn with humiliation as I lean up to whisper in his ear. “In your dreams.”

  I let my anger vibrate down into my hands and feel a tiny bit of magic escape through my fingers, shocking him in the stomach.

  I didn’t even know I could do that! I bit my lip, trying to hide my triumphant smile.

  I hear him gasp as the shock hits him. He turns his upper body towards me, his eyes darkening to the color of a storm. His gaze captures mine and as much as I want to turn away, I can't.

  Our magic jumps to life again spinning around us until it feels like there isn’t enough air left. I can’t catch my breath; all I can focus on are his gray eyes staring into me like he can see straight to my soul.

  He reaches a hand up and gently brushes a strand of hair out of my face. His fingers linger on my cheek and sparks flow through me. They mix with the magic smoldering in my stomach and I can feel my whole body ignite. Tingling rushes through me and I think I might explode.

  Shock flows into his eyes as he looks at me. “Well, this will certainly give me something to dream about.” He says as he gently reaches down and lifts my hand up so I can see it. Tiny flames cover it. They twirl and sway like they are doing a dance and as I look down, I see my entire body is covered in these flames. They aren’t the fierce fire from before, but a lavender, rose, and gold that swirl gently across my skin like something an artist might paint.

  On a whim, the fire spreads towards the General’s hand and gently wraps around his fingers. Sparking where our hands are joined. His eyes widen as he sucks air in, barely breathing.