“Go,” I repeated more firmly. I wasn’t sure where the strength came from, but it increased with each step toward him. The closer we were to one another, the more that strength grew. Part of me was terrified. Something deep within me craved even more.
“Go back to where you came from. And take no one with you,” I rushed to add. “This world . . . there’s still hope for it. But it can only succeed if there are actually people still left here. It deserves a chance. We deserve a chance—even the worst of us.”
The soldier reached out, and when he grabbed my hand, a current surged through my veins. I inhaled sharply as he said, “Your faith in your kind is nothing short of astounding. You are part of a volatile group of beings, my lady, and I’m unsure of your reasoning. But very well.”
He released my hand and held out his own, and a thick silver ring appeared in his palm. “Take this.” When I hesitated, he added, “It is an offering of my submission, and a declaration of your power over not only me, but death itself. It is yours for the taking.”
I shook my head. “But don’t you understand? I don’t want your—”
“Take it,” he insisted. “With this ring, I am at your mercy. I come when you call. I do as you say.”
I stared at him, then looked at Ethan, who watched with rapt attention. He nodded, a solemn expression on his face. Danny was wide-eyed, but when my gaze flickered to him, he nodded, as well. I closed my eyes. I’d seen crazy things over the previous weeks, things I never could have imagined. Yet here I stood, with the soldier of death submitting to me. And something told me he wasn’t exactly one to argue with.
With a deep breath, I opened my eyes once more. I reached forward and took the ring, which had some sort of inscription that glowed once I slid it onto my finger. “What does it mean?” I asked as I admired the gorgeousness of the shimmering words.
He spoke in a foreign language, the words beautiful, yet unrecognizable. “In darkness, there is light,” he then translated. “The ring’s inscription transforms itself to reflect whoever possesses it. It must sense something powerful in you, my lady.”
Staring down at the ring, I asked, “What if I don’t want it? What if I have no interest in any of this?”
“I’m afraid you have no choice. As opener of the scroll, it is your responsibility to oversee my doings. As you have commanded, I will return to my post—for now. But I have been assigned a duty that must be carried out, and at some point, it shall be. Even you cannot change that.”
He took a step back, bowed before me one final time, and vanished like a ghost on the wind.
Holy crap.
Holy freakin’ crap.
Dazed, I stared at the empty place in front of me. That . . . just happened. I raised my hand and looked at the ring yet again. The inscription no longer glowed, but its beauty remained the same. And then, it hit me.
I was the Mistress of Death. It wasn’t a nightmare or a vision. It wasn’t something I could just wake up from. Reality once again smacked me in the face, and this time, I wasn’t the victim. I didn’t feel like poor, crazy Kerrigan. I felt . . . powerful.
I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t think. My vision blurred as I gasped for air. Overwhelmed, I held my chest and doubled over, my lungs desperate for oxygen. I fell to my knees and the room started spinning. Yes, I felt powerful, but that power was terrifying. I wasn’t the right person for this. What the hell had I done?
I’ve lost it. I’ve lost my mind. This was what insanity felt like—true insanity.
“Kerrigan!” Ethan’s voice was distant, but soon, the sound of his footsteps broke through my daze. He knelt beside me, placing a hand on my back. He sat there silently, allowing me the time I needed.
“What in the actual fuck was that?” Bennett yelled.
Footsteps pounded down the stairs, followed by another set. I squeezed my eyes closed, wishing he would just disappear. I couldn’t deal with him now. I couldn’t wrap my own head around all this. Of course, he wasn’t one to be ignored. His shoes clicked loudly on the marble floor of the foyer, coming closer and closer.
“You heard me! Get up!” He kicked me in the butt, and I fell forward. I slapped my hands against the floor, catching myself before my face smashed into it.
Get up? You asked for it.
I pushed up onto my knees, and grabbed Ethan’s arm to pull myself to my feet. I turned slowly, meeting Bennett’s glare with one of my own. Never in my life had I hated someone so passionately. With every ounce of blood pumping through my veins, I despised the man before me. It wasn’t even possible to call him a man anymore. With his frantic eyes and heaving chest, the exterior finally reflected the lunatic resting beneath.
“Sir,” Nate said, placing his hands on Bennett’s shoulders. Bennett shook him off with a growl, and Nate took a step back. He gazed at me over the top of Bennett’s head with an indiscernible expression. “Sir,” he repeated, not breaking eye contact with me, “perhaps we should take this someplace else. We should take a few minutes to calm down—”
“Shut up!” Bennett shouted. He took a step closer to me, but I held my ground. “You. How dare you!” He brought a fist up to his mouth, gnawing on it before continuing. “This was mine. Mine. All of this was orchestrated for my power. For my rule!” He laughed, the maniacal sound bouncing off the walls. “And it all came crashing down because of a stupid. Little. Girl.”
He stormed forward and clenched his hands around my neck. I gagged, vaguely aware of Ethan and Danny clawing at Bennett’s arms.
Black dots . . .
No air . . .
Can’t feel . . .
Can’t breathe . . .
Bennett’s hands disappeared and I collapsed, coughing and gasping and wheezing as I fell into Ethan’s arms. Bennett’s face twisted in shock, and seconds later, he slumped to the floor, landing on his knees in front of me.
Nate pulled the blood-stained dagger from his back. The weapon fell to the floor with a clatter, breaking the silence that engulfed us all.
Bennett stared up at me with bewilderment in his eyes. He opened his mouth, but no words came. Seeing someone, especially my brother, in such pain, such agony, should have triggered sympathy, or some sort of urgency. I only felt relief. Deliverance. Finality. It was over. Sort of.
Regaining my bearings, I knelt in front of him. His gaze remained fixed on mine as I truly studied his face for the first time in a week. We had the same ice-blue eyes. The same slightly crooked nose. The same bone structure. The same blood. But in the end, it all came down to two vastly different hearts.
My mom once told me that good would always prevail over evil. I finally had reason to believe she was right.
“You should be careful who you trust,” I whispered to him. “You may as well have stabbed yourself in the back.”
His eyes fluttered closed, and when he fell forward, I caught him right before he hit the floor. Slowly, I rested his body there before rising to my feet. Fingertips brushed across my back, and I whirled around to Ethan’s waiting arms. I hugged him with every bit of strength I could muster, burying my face in his chest.
“I’m sorry.” Tears poured from my eyes, soaking his shirt. “I’m so sorry for what he put you through. I’m so sorry I didn’t help you sooner. I’m so—”
“Shhh.” He rubbed my back soothingly, resting his chin on the top of my head. “We’re here now. We’re alive. Somehow, we’re alive. That’s all that matters. You saved us—all of us.”
The tension in my body dissipated. We were alive. After all we’d been through, after all we’d suffered, we were alive. We’d made it. For once, we didn’t fail. I didn’t fail. The good side won.
“Ms. Andreas.”
Backing away from Ethan, I turned and found the guardsmen lined up across the overlook. Joseph was front and center, with his cap held over his chest as he addressed me. “We await your orders.”
I stepped back to Ethan’s side and grabbed his hand, lacing my fingers through his. He squeezed my hand, and I loo
ked at his battered face. Despite his broken bones, his bruises, and the utter chaos we’d just endured, he smiled. And it wasn’t a sad smile. It wasn’t one of sympathy, or pity. It was just him. That was all I needed for hope, true hope, to fill me for the first time in weeks. Because now I knew that we truly had survived, with both our bodies and our souls. Our hearts, the sources of our spirits, were still intact. That counted more than anything.
I looked back to Joseph, who was waiting for an answer. For the men up there, I did have sympathy. They only knew how to serve, how to submit to another person’s beck and call. And I had nothing to offer them.
“I have no orders for you,” I replied, “other than to go home.”
Joseph’s face fell, as did the faces of the rest of the men. They murmured amongst one another for a moment before Joseph said, “But we have no homes to return to, Ms. Andre—”
“Monroe,” I interrupted, my resolve strengthening. “I always have been, and always will be, Kerrigan Monroe. And I won’t be addressed any other way.”
Joseph nodded once. Ethan and I turned toward the door, our hands still intertwined. Nate stepped up and squeezed my shoulder, with Danny on his other side. I assumed they were as frightened as I was about what was to come, but we were together. That’s all that mattered. These guys . . . they were my home.
I felt badly for the guardsmen—I did—but I had no answers for them. I didn’t even have an answer for myself. Outside that door, there was destruction. There was heartache. Those weren’t things I hadn’t already experienced. The only difference was that now, it was time to rebuild. It was time to move on from the heartache.
I didn’t know how we were going to do that, either. Of course, I hadn’t believed we could travel hundreds of miles on foot, but we figured that out. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
And somehow, we always found our way.
Acknowledgements
To Brandon. When you asked for permission to kiss me seven years ago, I knew you were something special. I also knew that I couldn’t go another day without you, your smile, and your love for life. You are my home.
To Tristan. Smiles like yours make the world go ‘round. Thanks for putting up with all the chicken nuggets and blue box mac for dinner. I know it was torture.
To Momma and Daddy. You showed me that through hard work and pure determination, anything is possible. Your strength gives me strength.
To Cheryl Anne and Jen. You guys have been with Kerrigan and the gang from the first chapter. I wouldn’t be here without your red pens, pom-poms, and occasional kicks in the butt.
To Becca. You were the first person to tell me, “This is great, but I know you can do better.” You’ve been with me ever since my writing revolved around vamps, wolves, and lip-biting heroines. My Peanut Butter, my Rain Girl, my Gchat confidant: I will always heart you big.
To the Book Bunnies, for always holding my hand.
To everyone who has pre-read/critiqued KINGDOM COME in part or in full, your help has been invaluable.
To my family, for always believing I could do something of worth in this crazy world.
To you, the reader, for reading this little book and making my dream come true.
To God, without whom I truly would not be here today.
Thank you.
About the Author
Michelle’s a lover of love and all things happy. When not writing, she’s usually dedicating time to a few of her favorite organizations, including To Write Love on Her Arms and Love is Louder.
While studying at East Carolina University, a brown-eyed boy stole her heart. She now lives in North Carolina with the devilishly handsome boy-turned-Coastie, their son (who inherited her creative streak), and their crazy Border Collie mix.
You can find her online at www.msmithbooks.com.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Acknowledgements
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Acknowledgements
Kingdom Come Page 18
