by Rachel Angel
Kingmaker’s Kill
Kingmakers of Kingsbury
Book #3
Rachel Angel
Kingmaker’s Kill
Published by Romance On the Go, an Imprint of Sparklesoup
Copyright © 2020 Rachel Angel
All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the publisher except in case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Do NOT post on websites or share this book without permission from copyright holder. We take piracy seriously. All characters and storyline is an invention from Rachel Angel/Kailin Gow. Any resemblance to people alive or dead is purely coincidence.
For information, please contact:
www.Sparklesoup.com
First Edition.
DEDICATION
This series is dedicated to all of the strong women who have had to face bullying, are facing bullying, and who have had to overcome it.
SERIES BLURB
As Violet Kingsbury, I was born to be a kingmaker. In a time when wars were common and thrones were fought after, the only name that could bring about peace...the only man that could trump the decrees of kings was Kingsbury. The Kingmaker. But when the legendary Kingmaker is disposed, and the time of the Choosing has come, can I, the daughter of The Kingmaker rise to take the place of my father? I am about to find out as the strongest, most capable, and most legendary princes across the lands come to challenge me for the Choosing including 4 of the most handsome princes who not only wants to win, but to want to win me, too:
Avery
Axel
Reggie
Ollie
Becoming Kingmaker, even as The Kingmaker's daughter, will not be easy in a male world where ladies were supposed to be damsels who needed saving. To become Kingmaker, I will prove to all, especially the princes, that I am here to stay, and will be the one doing the saving. **Kingmaker's Kings is the first book in the Kingmakers of Kingsbury Series, a Reverse Harem Bully Romance with mixed genres elements, action, and mature scenes recommended for age 17 and up.
Prologue
Violet
Isle of Arcadia
Age 6
My private maid, Racelle, a slender older woman with dark brooding eyes and thin lips, stood behind me, brushing my hair, as Violet sat before a mirror looking at her reflection and the working hands of the maid.
Although only seven years old, I knew today was a special day, hence all the tedious preparations. Not only did I have a vague memory of the same day when I was six years old, but my father, King Kingsbury, had been telling me of the day to come for the past week.
“Today is my mommy’s birthday,” I told Racelle, not sure whether I should be happy or sad.
“I know, sweetie,” Racelle said as she pulled my brilliantly hued locks into pigtails. She tied a black satin ribbon to each pigtail, fashioning large black bows that adorned my colorful hair.
With my hair finally done, I took a closer look at my reflection. There was something ominous and creepy about having black bows in my hair and I already looked forward to the end of the day when I could have them removed.
“Stand up for me, child,” Racelle said.
Wearing only a thin white chemise, I stood to allow Racelle to dress me. I held my breath as I waited to see what dress I would be wearing for the occasion.
Racelle pulled a black taffeta dress with deep purple piping along the collar and cuffs out of the armoire. The dress was noisy and stiff as Racelle pulled it over my head then tied the sash at her back.
The dark and somber color displeased me, but I said nothing as I twisted from side to side, creating a constant swooshing sound.
“Can I go now?” I said, impatient to get downstairs to meet with my father.
“Let me just slip on your new shoes and you’ll be ready to go,” Racelle said.
The black shoes were shiny, which I liked, but they were also tight. I stood and grimaced.
“Hmm. So, you’ve outgrown your new shoes before even getting a chance to wear them.” Racelle patted me on the head. “I told your father when he ordered them a while ago that you were growing at quite an impressive pace.”
“I am getting big, aren’t I?” I said as she stood straight.
Racelle chuckled. “Indeed, you are. At any rate, you won’t be going far, and you won’t have to wear these shoes for very long. Try not to complain to your father. He already has enough on his mind.”
“Can I go now?” I said once again as I fidgeted in my tight shoes and loud dress.
“You can go,” Racelle said.
With my toes being uncomfortably squeezed together, I walked to the door.
“Violet,” Racelle called out. “You’re forgetting something.”
I turned around to see Racelle holding a large bouquet of fresh cut flowers. Her eyes lit up as she looked at the beautiful violets, daffodils, jasmine and lilies.
“They are just so beautiful,” I said, wrapping my tiny hands around the stems of the flowers, some of which I’d helped pick.
“Hold on tight,” Racelle warned.
“I will,” I said as I headed out the door.
I headed to the stairs where I took one step at a time, slowly making my way down with the large and bulky bouquet.
My father stood in the main foyer, looking solemnly out the window with his hands clasped behind his back. Dressed entirely in black, he was a very somber figure indeed.
With only a few steps left to go, I stopped and looked at my father for a long moment. He seemed so sad and that alone saddened me. He was usually so vibrant and energetic, but now he seemed old and tired.
“I’m ready, Father,” I said as I arrived on the main floor.
He slowly turned to her and forced a warm smile.
“You found some beautiful flowers to bring to your mother,” Lord Kingsbury said.
“It’s Racelle who picked most of them, but I’m the one who picked the daffodils,” I said proudly.
The king nodded and put his hand around my shoulder to lead me down the long corridor that brought us out to the back side of the castle.
In silence, we walked across the freshly cut grass until we arrived at a stone walkway that led to the crypt where her mother lay.
For a long moment we just stood there, looking at the crypt. I felt the need to say something, anything. I hated seeing my father in such a state and wondered why he put himself and me through the annual ceremony.
“Was she pretty?” I finally asked, just to cut through the silence. I vaguely remembered asking the same question the year before, and remembered my father telling me that my mother was the most beautiful woman in all the land.
“Your mother was a delicate beauty that concealed all the strength and power she truly possessed.” His eyes glistened with unshed tears as he ran his hand over the heavy stone crypt.
“Why did the angels come and take her, Father? Didn’t they know that you would be sad without her?”
He forced a tired grin. “I do miss her terribly. I don’t know if the angels knew just how badly I would miss her.”
“I miss her, too, Father,” I said, even though I had never known my mother.
“The entire kingdom misses her,” Lord Kingsbury said. “She is the one who should be sitting on the throne. Not I.”
Wh
ile I knew little about what my father did as Kingmaker, I knew it was important.
“She was the one with the Choosing,” he went on. “She had the Sight.”
“She was a Kingmaker like you, Father?”
“I would have never been Kingmaker if it were not for your mother.” Lord Kingsbury looked down at me. “Your mother used a very powerful magic spell to transfer a portion of her Sight to me.”
“You’re lucky then,” I said.
But her father didn’t seem too happy about it.
“In addition to being a powerful magic spell, it was a very dangerous one,” Lord Kingsbury said.
“Then why did she do it?” I said, curious about my mother’s motivations.
“You were in your mother’s belly at the time,” the Kingmaker said. “She felt it was important that I have the Sight… just in case.”
In case of what? I wondered but didn’t question. My father now seemed immersed in the past. His eyes were glazed over as if he weren’t looking at the crypt at all but was looking at the wife he had lost far too soon.
“Her magic was so powerful. It was the envy of the fae world. Although she was only partly fae, her fae lineage was ancient… as old as time, and it had been honed by centuries.”
I looked up at my father, trying to imagine my mother doing magic spells. Could she make things appear and disappear? Could she conjure up anything she liked? How wonderful it must be.
“Your mother had royal fae blood and she was touched with the most exquisite type of magic.” My father looked up to the heavens. “Oh, the magic she would do. She was superb, and above all, just. She never abused her powers and she never used them for unjust gains or revenge. The people of the land loved her all the more for her restraint.”
“But why did she give you some of her power?” I finally said, breaking into my father’s reverie.
Lord Kingsbury was silent for a long moment. “Because, my sweet daughter,” he finally said with a strained voice, “your mother knew she was going to die. She saw the future that was coming and knew that she couldn’t just let her Choosing and Sight powers die with her. She had to do something to preserve that most coveted power.”
“And she chose you?” I said.
My father nodded. “Although I was human, fully human, she chose me. She wanted to transfer her power to someone she trusted. Someone who was powerful and respected. Someone who could bring the kings from all the lands together.”
“And you were the one who was the most powerful,” I stated with confidence.
Grinning, Lord Kingsbury looked at me. “I suppose I was. At least, that’s what your mother thought.”
“You are the most powerful, Father,” I confirmed with a staunch nod of my head.
The Kingmaker patted my head and smiled.
“You know, even though your mother was very powerful, there were many occasions when men of these kingdoms refused to listen to her.” He shrugged. “Men can sometimes have their pride in the wrong place.”
“Oh, Father,” I said. “But you have your pride in the right place, don’t you?”
He chuckled. “I try to, Violet. I really do try to.”
“And you use your magical powers wisely,” I added. “Just like Mother had.”
He nodded. “Although, it’s not always easy. Using magic is not as easy as it seems. More often than not, my magic spells did not work out as I had imagined. There were even a few instances where the results were disastrous.”
“Like what, Father?”
“Like the time I wanted to confuse an enemy by creating a massive labyrinth in the forest, but instead, I ended up guiding him straight to our doorstep.” He laughed at the memory. “It was quite embarrassing.”
“But you learned how to do it right eventually,” I said.
“Eventually,” The Kingmaker said with a snort. “Your mother helped and guided me up until the moment when you were born.”
“What happened when I was born?”
The king lost his grin and stared somberly in front of him. “You mother had done the unthinkable. Already she had caused quite a stir when she had married me… a mere mortal man. Then she had caused a bit of an uproar when it became evident that she was carrying my child… that of a mere mortal man. But when the fae world learned that she had given that mere mortal man the magical powers bestowed upon her, she had gone too far. Even if her motives were pure – she was deeply driven by a need to create a peaceful world for all humankind – it did not matter to the fae.”
I looked up at my father, trying to understand all of the implications of the magical world of fae. It certainly did appear to be complicated.
“It was as if the magic powers within me rebelled before the transfer could be complete.” The Kingmaker looked down on me. “In the end, it is your mother who paid the price. The demands of the transfer were too much for me to take, but she is the one who took the brunt of the power. Weakened by your recent birth, she was unable to withstand the forces. Despite her fae lineage, giving birth to a human/fae child proved to be too much.”
I frowned. So that was how the Kingmaker’s legacy had started. To my youthful eyes, it seemed like a fairy tale; part fantastic and magical, part tragedy.
It would be years before I finally came face to face with the fae of the forest and truly began to understand the workings of this strange and magical world.
Chapter 1
Violet
My mind kept going back to the deaths of Barnaby and Flamish. As much as I tried, I just couldn’t make sense out of their killings. They’d been assassinated right in front of me, and I couldn’t help but wonder if that was not part of the plan. Were their deaths a warning? A sign of some sort?
But a sign of what?
I looked out at the men that had accompanied Barnaby and Flamish. In a way, they all seemed just as stunned by the assassinations as we were.
“Isn’t this an unexpected turn of events,” Henry said, more to himself than to anyone.
I looked at him, dismayed and disgusted by everything that had been happening over the course of the past few days.
My world had been turned upside down. My father, the Kingmaker, had been poisoned. His guests, royals and dignitaries who had come from all corners of the land, were still staying within the castle walls, and they were protected by a small army of guards.
My kidnapping by Gerr… his subsequent execution.
It was almost too much to bear, and I wondered how much more I could take.
“What are we to do with them?” Henry said, looking pointedly at me.
“What do you make of all this?” I said, unsure what our next move should be.
“We’ll have to investigate,” Henry said. “I wish I could offer a more enlightened answer, but truth be told, I don’t have a clue what’s going on. It all seems rather strange and convoluted.”
I nodded. “I need to get back to the castle quickly. I need to ensure that all is running smoothly there.”
“I agree,” Henry said matter-of-factly. “I’ve sent word to my men. Reinforcements should arrive at any moment now. Once they arrive, we’ll be better suited to deal with this band of thieves and hoodlums.”
“These men,” I said, looking at the men who were with Barnaby and Flamish. “They all found a way of sneaking onto the island of Arcadia.”
Henry nodded.
“I would appreciate it if you could escort them back to their point of entry and have them bring Barnaby and Flamish with them.” I looked at the men who awaited my order. “I want you to then set up guards to ensure no other intruders come onto the island.”
“Yes,” Henry said.
“Regardless of what happens,” I went on. “I do not want these men anywhere near the castle or my father’s distinguished guests. Is that clear?”
“Perfectly clear, Violet,” Henry said as he looked beyond me to the men who constantly shifted their weight from one foot to the other.
“They seem rat
her restless,” I said softly. I had assumed that with Barnaby and Flamish out of the way, their men would be happy to end the conflict and return home. But the more I looked out at the men who had hidden in the treetops, the men who had jumped down to surround them, the more I saw the bloodlust in their eyes. As far as they were concerned, the conflict was not over.
Even Gerr’s men seemed agitated and ready to fight.
Scanning the motley group, I sought out the youngest and least experienced of the men and walked up to him.
He looked barely sixteen, with dirty blond hair, milky grey eyes and a sallow complexion. He was thin, disturbingly so.
“Why have you joined this band of trouble seekers?” I said.
The young man looked down to the rags that served as shoes on his feet, then shifted his gaze to a bush at his side, then shot a sidelong look at the men to his left before finally bringing his gaze back to me.
“Speak up, young man,” I said with as much authority as I could muster.
“You got what we want,” the young man finally said.
“Shut up, Timothy,” an older, heavy set man growled. “She don’t deserve no answer to her question.”
“I could have you brought to the castle and shackled just for daring to come to this island at all,” I said. “I could have you imprisoned, chained to the dungeon walls for all that remains of your life.”
The young man swallowed and shot me a fearful glance.
“Tell me why you didn’t attack me earlier when you had the chance,” I said. “Is it simply because I held the well-being of your leaders in my hands, or is there another reason?”
The young man blushed at the mention of Barnaby and Flamish in my hands. No doubt he still had a vision of the erotic encounter we’d had. No doubt he was still aroused by the vision of me with my fingers tightly clasped around Flamish and Barnaby’s male members.
“Who would have to gain by assassinating your leaders?” I said. “Why would anyone want to kill Flamish and Barnaby?”
