“I guess the older you are, the more of an asshole you can get away with being.”
“Elex! Don’t be jealous. We’ve both had too much going on to be jealous of those who have been around us. I mean, I could get jealous of that gorgeous Parli you’ve been around for the past few weeks.”
“Parli? She’s…Oh.” The comprehension washed over his face. His cheeks pinked, and he let a laugh out. “Okay, so I need to relax.”
I wrapped my hand around his. “We’ve been friends for ninety years, Elex. This new path is just weeks old. Give us both time to adjust.”
“Yes, of course.” The smile was genuine.
Not too soon after the last course of dinner, Elex stood and offered his hand. “Dance with me.”
I took the hand offered and moved away from the table. Without another word, he led me to the dance floor in the middle of the room as the orchestra started a beautiful, ancient piece of music, a traditional dance in S’Kir.
A traditional courting dance.
As Elex wrapped his arm around my waist, I leveled a bemused grin at him.
“Did you do this on purpose?”
“Perhaps.” The grin was in his voice.
“You don’t need to court me,” I whispered the words.
“I know.” His eyes alighted on the audience we now had. “But they need me to.”
It still struck me as odd that I had to show people what I was doing. Until the cave, I was nothing more than a slightly magically inclined teacher, the daughter of two humble bakers, who taught the young ones at the temple.
Now, I was a Lady of the Temple of the Lost God.
The eyes of S’Kir were on me
They were on Elex as well as he spun me across the dance floor in the traditional courtship dance.
He did this on purpose. He was claiming his right to court me, to be exclusive to me. It was a purposeful display to warn everyone that I was not for their pleasure.
I hadn’t realized it would, but his possessive stance on our budding relationship actually turned me on.
“The only reason we’re still here,” Elex whispered, “is because I wanted this dance with you. Else, you would already be naked on my bed.”
“You do not need to fan my flames, Lord Everettson.”
“I plan to do a lot more than just fan them.”
Butterflies fluttered through my stomach as we whirled our way across the dance floor and through just a few other couples. My nerves wound tighter as the song finished, and we bowed to each other and the other couples on the floor with us.
Elex’s words were breathy. “May I escort you to my bed, Lady Raven?”
Before I could answer, a hand that wasn’t Elex’s slid between us and grabbed me around the waist.
A tall, well-dressed man in formal clothes stood behind me, smiling. I didn’t like it.
“May I have the next dance, with your suitor’s permission?” His voice was full of snake oil and falsehoods, and it slithered around like the very snake he’d stolen the oil from.
But Elex couldn’t refuse because he’d asked permission. It would be rude, and in an unspoken agreement, Elex and I conceded this.
The snake oil aristocrat whirled me out on to the dance floor again, this time in a high-spirited dance that had a lot more people joining us on the floor.
I hoped Elex would cut in fairly quickly. He lurked at the edge of the dance floor for just that reason.
The music was joyful and light, and it was a song I would have usually enjoyed, but something was bothering me about the man I was dancing with. There was something dishonest about him.
Turning me out at the right moment in the song, another person wrapped their arms around my waist, and the hope it was Elex was gone instantly. This faceless man turned me out again in the song and sent me to another pair of arms.
Spinning me, again and again through a dozen different arms, it took me a moment to realize I was no longer on the dance floor, but being dragged away through a door opposite Elex and the masters.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
~ GWYNNORE ~
“I think your spell is broken,” Adelie griped.
I grunted. Because I couldn’t really argue with her.
A glance at my cell phone indicated we had been waiting for two hours.
Lord Otto growled, “Our spell is not broken.”
“Then what do you call this?” I waved a hand at the see-through glass where all the folding chairs remained empty. “You said most of the oldest male vampires were already here in the stronghold. This spell was supposed to make them rush with open arms into this room. That sure as fuck isn’t happening.”
The overlords had all found places to sit and relax once they saw no one was initially running through the cavern door. One of them, Lord Xenon, was even snoring softly.
Cato ran his fingers through his hair, his eyes flashing red briefly. “The spell isn’t broken, my dear.”
My eyes narrowed at his endearment, but I held strong to the argument. “Lord Pippin hasn’t ever done this before. Perhaps there was an error.”
The lord in question snapped his eyes in my direction. “Excuse me, candidate?”
“No offense, of course. I’m merely shooting out ideas.”
“More like, you’re just shooting shit out of your mouth,” he growled.
From his perch sitting against the glass barrier, Lord Belshazzar held up his hands to stave off further argument. “Lord Pippin performed the ritual flawlessly, Gwynnore. There isn’t a problem with it. There is no problem at all.”
My eyes widened in disbelief. “There are no men down there! That is a problem.”
Was I broken? Because if I were, I would be booted.
Unable to complete the “King” Challenge.
Adelie glanced at me, a brief flicker of worry entering her gaze before she hid it.
Damn. Even my friend was having doubts.
Cato hissed, “This was not what I planned for. I haven’t had blood in a week.”
Now, attention turned in his direction.
Adelie mumbled, “Leave. Go drink your fill. It doesn’t appear we’re going anywhere soon.”
Cato hissed, pure vampire.
He rolled on his own couch, placing his back to us.
Lord Belshazzar held up his hands once more. “Everyone, calm down. I will explain it all the best I can.” He flicked a finger at the blood-deprived lord. “He can’t leave. His power is bound to the spell. So, he’s mildly grumpy that we’re going to be here—possibly for a few days. And no one else can enter this room until the spell is complete.”
My jaw dropped open, and I shrieked, “A few days? What the hell!”
The eldest vampire sighed. “This has happened before. Many, many years ago. It was written in the ancient book, so if it ever happened again, the overlords would be aware of it.”
Lord Pippin dropped his head back and groaned loudly at the ceiling. “Oh fuck. That is happening?” He sighed and fell to his back against the hard floor. “Good God, we’re going to be here forever.”
My confused gaze flicked between the overlords.
In the resulting silence, I finally questioned, “Did I do something wrong? Should I have used more blood? I could fix it if I did. I’ll slice my wrist if I need to.”
They couldn’t send me packing. I wouldn’t let them.
Cato grunted, his face smashed against the cushion. “If only the problem were that easy to fix, my darling.”
I lost my cool, hissing, “Quit calling me that crap! You have no right!”
Another grunt was all I received in return.
Lord Belshazzar rubbed at his forehead, resting the back of his head against the glass. “Allow me to explain further, candidate.”
He was still calling me a candidate. That was a good sign. The tension in my shoulders eased some.
He continued, “You see, honestly, the vast majority of the eldest vampires are here. The fact that not one of them has come
is a clear indication of what is happening.”
I leaned forward, silently pushing him to expound on his words.
The old lord almost appeared hesitant to say. But he cleared his throat, and forged onward, “It means, Gwynnore, that your match is not a vampire.”
My shoulder slammed into the barrier as my legs weakened. “Huh?”
“Your match is either a human or a druid. Most likely a druid with the amount of power we had to push into the spell.”
I couldn’t stop blinking.
I was feeling faint, my head swimming.
I decided it would be best if I sat.
Though it was more of a slide down the glass, the screech hideous inside the silent room. My butt landed right next to the oldest vampire—the scariest one of all. I tilted my head and stared up into his ice blue eyes. “How in the world can that be?”
He hummed softly, his head teetering back and forth in thought. “You said you weren’t good with relationships. Perhaps it wasn’t really that. You are very headstrong, and the druid laws are more lax with females. The vampires in the stronghold obviously wouldn’t mesh well with you.”
A gurgle escaped my throat. “So we’re going to have a bunch of horny druids descending in here?”
He nodded, his nose scrunching. Even he didn’t like the idea. “I believe so.”
“Oh my God,” I groaned, closing my eyes. “I hate druids.”
Lord Belshazzar bumped his shoulder gently against mine. “They aren’t all bad.”
“Every single druid I have met has an ego the size of this mountain,” I growled. A disgusted shiver ran down my spine. “Do we even allow a druid to be our king?”
He rubbed his forehead again. “We do. It is the law that we follow the magic.”
I banged the back of my head against the glass a few times in frustration. “And I bet our people will love this.”
His sigh was profound. “Whoever is chosen will have an uphill battle.”
“How does this really even work, though? When he becomes an overlord, he won’t be able to help you with any rituals on the Original vampire amulet—only vampires can.”
“No, remember what Lord Cato said. Only overlords can wield it.”
Adelie muttered, “Fan-fucking-tabulous. A druid will get his grubby hands on our most prized procession.”
“The magic will choose well,” Lord Belshazzar assured. “It always does. Everything happens for a reason.”
I held up an instant finger. “Except for that one time it didn’t. I was listening earlier.”
“Not very well,” Elder Otto grumbled. “The match wasn’t ideal, but the king was. There is a difference.”
“This isn’t good.” I placed my face into my waiting palms, hiding from my misfortune.
“Uphill battle. But not impossible,” Lord Belshazzar reminded. “And with the overlords backing the new king—druid or not—our people will trust in us. Our pasts have won over the people, and that is how they remember us. Trustworthy and loyal. We wouldn’t back someone if we didn’t believe in them.”
I dropped my hands from my eyes and slumped onto my side. The chill of the ground was delicious against my fevered body. I growled in frustration. “I hope you’re right.”
Lord Belshazzar snorted. “Get up, Gwynnore. If the Unseen Gods saw how pitiful you looked right now, a candidate to the throne—”
“The Unseen Gods are only a myth,” I cut him off, bravery loosening my lips. “I can’t believe you believe in them.”
Though, I did sit up.
Ice blue eyes caught mine, sending chills down my spine. He rumbled, “I believe in a great many things. Live long enough, and you will too, candidate.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
~ GWYNNORE ~
One night in the old jail turned into two nights.
Then three nights.
On the fourth day, we were all a sight for sore eyes.
Though we had learned blood bags could be tossed into the room.
By females. Not males.
No men could enter the cavern who shouldn’t be here right now.
We weren’t thirsty anymore, but we were damn grumpy.
Thank goodness for the tiny shower in the bathroom.
Or we would have stunk too.
Lord Xenon rubbed at his chest and stared at the cauldron. “This is getting absurd.”
“It’s getting absurd?” Lord Otto growled. “It passed absurd two days ago. We’ve entered What the Fuck Land.”
I choked on a laugh.
I hadn’t known he had a sense of humor.
Cato prowled from one end of the room to the other. For hours straight. He rubbed the back of his neck fiercely, muttering, “It feels like there’s a whole damn legion of druids coming.”
Instantly, I sobered. All mirth was gone. “What do you mean?” Asshole.
Lord Belshazzar was doing a backbend, stretching his muscles…then he started walking on his hands and feet across the room, still in his backbend. Bored silly. It was the oddest thing to watch. He grumbled, “The power that’s holding the spell. It’s our magic. We feel it being pulled.”
Adelie cocked her head, eyeing him. “You know, Lord Belshazzar, you’re very limber.”
He snorted. Winked from his upside down position. “You have no idea.”
I waved my hands in the air, now playing the part that he had originally. “No one should be flirting right now.”
Because, damn, I was even starting to eye Lord Belshazzar’s ass. My hormones were going into overdrive the longer I waited to get laid after my Rest. Two hundred years and my pussy hadn’t seen any action. I needed to have a cock rammed so far up my—
“Hey, do you guys feel that?” Adelie interrupted my daydream. She stood to her feet and gradually walked to the glass barrier. Her small hands pressed against the glass as she leaned forward. “It feels like…”
“Like a small earthquake.” Lord Xenon stepped up beside her. “I guess Lord Cato was correct. It is a legion of druids descending on our home.”
In a rush, we all plastered ourselves to the glass.
And waited.
I despised druids with a burning passion, but I was ready to get out of here.
As soon as they all came, we could leave this place.
The entire lot of us jolted on our feet when the door to the cavern jarred hard against its bolts.
“I’m thinking we don’t pick the idiot who doesn’t know how to turn a doorknob,” I muttered under my breath. “I mean, what kind of moron doesn’t understand how to work a door?”
Lord Pippin’s head tilted. “I don’t think that’s what is happening out there. Those vibrations aren’t typical for an earthquake. Perhaps a fight…”
I blinked. “You guys did call the stronghold and tell them we were going to have company, right?”
“They know,” he answered calmly. “They’re staying away from this section of the mountain.”
Suddenly, the black wooden door bowed in on its hinges.
Boom.
All of our eyes followed the door as it flew across the cavern, slamming into the bottom of the stage and scattering a chair in its wake.
“That’s one way to open a door,” Lord Xenon rumbled. “Can anyone see them yet?”
“Nope.” I shook my head. “That was definitely druid power, though.”
The ground of rock beneath our feet rumbled, and we steadied our legs.
“I wonder if we’ll be able to fit them all in here,” Lord Cato muttered in amusement. “They’ll all need to enter so they’ll stop fighting each other.”
I cleared my throat. “Please tell me the spell does disappear for them. I’m not going to have some aroused druid nipping at my heels for all of the Challenges, am I?”
Lord Otto snorted. “No, it’ll disappear as soon as we break the spell.”
“Maybe you should break the spell when they enter,” Adelie suggested. “Because that’s going to be a lot of testosterone aim
ed at my girl here.”
Lord Pippin hummed deep in his throat. “I actually think that is a good idea.”
“Agreed,” Lord Belshazzar stated. “We’ll end their need as soon as they enter.”
All air escaped my lungs in a mad rush as a man threw his body inside the door. His legs were still outside though, and two men each had ahold of one of his feet. All three were a bloody mess, their clothes in tatters. The man on the ground clawed at the stone, sparks of red and blue glistening on his fingers.
And I knew him. I knew all three of them.
But I especially knew the one inside.
A man who had broken my heart…
When I was much, much younger.
My first crush and it had been him.
All of our jaws dropped at the sight before us.
Because he was Master Niallan. The Original druid.
The man who had stolen the Original vampire’s power. And killed him.
“Oh fuck,” Adelie gasped.
Lord Xenon grunted.
The rest of us stayed mute.
Master Niallan kicked and bellowed, his features contorting in rage. His normal gem green eyes had morphed into gold. He twisted to the side and threw his palm in his buddies’—and they were his closest friends—direction. A shot of flame erupted from his hand, hitting its target.
His friends howled their frustration, patting their clothes in a rush.
Letting loose the Original druid’s feet.
In one swift move, he jumped up.
The man bared his teeth at his friends.
Devin’s and Ysander’s eyes glowed golden, and they marched straight toward him. They also had the power of a vampire, gifted to them by their best friend.
But their heads smacked back suddenly as if they had hit a brick wall.
“Oh my God,” I mumbled in utter shock.
My eyes landed on the Original druid. The only one who could enter.
It wasn’t a legion of druids that had come.
It was the druid.
Cato snapped out of his shock, and hissed, “We need to shut his need down. Now.”
The overlords rushed to the cauldron, their heads bent close together.
Adelie and I watched as Devin and Ysander continued to try to enter. The floor continued to shake with each of their blasts for entry. They shouted at their friend, urging him to come out.
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