The Swarm Trilogy

by Megg Jensen

  Chapter Seventeen

  “I’ve got someone to talk to,” Chase mumbled. He opened another portal and left Bryden and I standing alone in his room.

  Bryden stared at me. I wanted to reach out to him, but I didn’t. “I should see if I can get an audience with Marek.”

  Bryden turned his back on me and started riffling through some papers in the corner of the room. “You know where the door is,” he said.

  I left his room, my back straight and standing tall. It was a good thing no one could see my broken heart, shattered into pieces. I couldn’t keep leading him on when I wasn’t sure if I could even trust my own feelings and instincts.

  Making my way through the castle, I smiled at the few faces I recognized. Most were slaves. The Fithian nobility was locked up in the dungeons until Marek decided what to do with them. Once I arrived at the rooms Rotlar had lived in, I took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

  The double doors opened slowly. “Lianne,” the slave said. “You’re back. He’s been waiting for you.”

  “Am I in much trouble?” I asked with a smile on my face. I tried to keep it glib, not show any of the last few weeks on my face.

  “Not sure, honestly. I do know he’ll see you, though. Wait here a moment. I’ll be right back.”

  She passed through the second set of double doors, leading to the meeting room. Rotlar used it to hold court with other visiting dignitaries. I could only assume Marek would do the same. A few moments later, she was back.

  “He’ll see you now.”

  I smiled and walked through the doors, not knowing what to expect on the other side.

  “Lianne, it’s good to see you again,” Marek said. “Back from your little adventure?”

  He stuck a finger in his tea, twirling the liquid around in circles. He removed it from the cup and licked the brown water off his finger. I shivered internally.

  “Want to tell me where you were, Queen Slayer?”

  My eyes narrowed.

  “I see you don’t like the nickname I gave you. It’s appropriate, isn’t it? You did kill the new queen, didn’t you?”

  I kept my breath steady. I wouldn’t let him rattle me. I had a job to do and I would do it no matter how much I hated working with this man who had used Bryden, Kellan, and me. Now I was going to ask for his help.

  “Call me whatever you want.” I sighed. “I’m back now. I delivered Trevin to his mother, Mags.”

  “Ah, the deposed queen. You certainly have strange loyalties, Queen Slayer. Helping the disgraced queen and killing the new queen who also happened to be your adoptive sister. Truly an interesting outlook on life. You are much like me.”

  I wanted to scream that I was nothing like him, but I held my tongue. Arguing wouldn’t get me anywhere now.

  “While I was gone, I learned something you might be interested to know,” I said. “There’s another army coming, the Malborn. They have very powerful magic and are looking to steal ours.”

  He stroked his golden goatee with his thumb and fingers. It trailed down his chin and ended in a braid about the length of his thumb. He twirled the tip between his fingers.

  “Steal our magic? Just how would they accomplish that?”

  “They’re running a breeding program, stealing magical people and forcing them to breed children that they raise to fight in their army.”

  “Now that’s an interesting concept.” Marek leaned back into the throne that Rotlar used to sit in. The contrast was stark. While Rotlar was obese and disgusting, Marek was fit and well-groomed. Under other circumstances, I might have understood the appeal. The Dalagan people followed him unquestioningly. “Maybe that’s something we should have tried rather than our little farming technique we used on the Fithians.”

  “You don’t understand. They’re coming for us. They’re planning on stealing your women and using them to breed more magical warriors.”

  “Certainly, I understand. Thank you for passing on this info, Lianne. We can prepare for their attack.” He waved his hand in the air, dismissing me without a word. I bowed, and turned to leave. “Wait a moment, please.”

  I paused, only steps from the door. “Yes?”

  “Where is the former queen Margaretta?”

  I’d come in here to tell him about an invading army and he only had questions about Mags. Bizarre. For once, I could be totally honest. “I don’t know.”

  “You don’t know? You handed her son over to her, and then she disappeared?”

  “Well, not really. She said she didn’t want to see me again, and then she didn’t. That’s about all there is to tell.”

  He twirled his goatee again. “And yet you were gone for weeks, gathering intelligence about an invading army and supposedly delivering a baby to his mother.” His eyes narrowed, as he penetrated my gaze. The fires inside screamed at me to run or defend myself or do something other than standing there like an imbecile.

  “What were you doing? Tell me, Lianne. What’s really going on?”

  I thought quickly, racking my brain for any idea. I looked over his shoulder at the portraits he’d hung on the wall. His people adored him, worshipped him, trusted him. It was what he expected, what fueled him as a leader.

  I rushed to him, falling to his feet. Laying my face against his silken pants, I mustered up every tear I’d held back over the past few weeks. Every moment I’d hurt Bryden. Every time I’d had to turn Chase away. Every instance I’d ignored my own instincts to preserve the safety and happiness of others. I channeled all of it into a rush of tears.

  “It was terrible! After I’d found Mags living in the forest, I’d started making my way back here. A man captured me in the forest and took me hostage. They said they could tell I had powerful magic. They’d heard rumors of the Queen Slayer. They took me back to their castle, across the water, transporting me through some kind of magical rip in the air.” His hand stroked my hair. It gave me incentive to keep going. It was working. “Then they told me their plans to use me as a breeder.”

  His hand moved from my hair to my shoulder. He leaned over me and kissed the top of my head. “I’d never let them do that you, my dear. I protect my people better than that. If they want to attack us, then we’ll be prepared.”

  I smiled into his pants, grateful he couldn’t see the glee on my face. I had to continue to play the part of the scared, innocent girl.

  “Come, come, stand up. Go back to your love, Bryden. Don’t worry. I’ll protect you. All is forgiven.”

  I stood up, my shoulders still heaving with the tears I’d allowed to break free.

  “That trick of your mother’s will be good too.”

  “My mother?” I asked, curious. I hadn’t had much time at all to speak with her since I’d first met her during the battle.

  “Yes, why do you think you’re so powerful, Lianne? You are one of her greatest success stories.”

  “I don’t understand.” I honestly didn’t. He knew something about me that I didn’t know and that didn’t set well with me.

  “Why when you and Sebrina were just babies, your mother siphoned all of your sister’s magic into you. Perhaps this is something we can use on these Malborn enemies you told me about. It’s far more effective than breeding. That takes too long.”

  Horrified, I backed away from him. “This overwhelming magic inside of me isn’t fully mine? It belongs to Sebrina too?”

  “It used to, but it’s all yours now, Lianne. I think you should spend some time with your mother so she can teach you this incredible magic too. You can save us all.”

  I turned and ran from the room, no longer caring how I appeared to him.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Even though he protested heavily, I grabbed Bryden’s hand and dragged him to Sebrina’s room. I hadn’t had a chance to talk to her since before Kellan tried to kill her. She’d still been in a coma when I left to find Mags. When I visited Bryden the other night, he told me she’d awakened. I hated making our reunion so dramatic, but
I needed to know if she knew what our mother had done to us.

  “You’re limping,” I said. “Did Johna’s concoction wear off already?”

  “No,” he grumbled. His hand laid in mine like a limp fish, totally opposite of the strong way he’d always grasped it before. “I’m faking it. I don’t feel like letting anyone here know how much better I’ve been. It’ll start too many questions I don’t feel like answering.”

  “Okay, I understand.” I didn’t, but now wasn’t the time to push him. My words earlier in the day had hurt him so much. Anyone could see that. I’d destroyed everything. I just hoped once things calmed down I could salvage some kind of a relationship with him.

  We walked in silence the rest of the way to Sebrina’s room. For appearance’s sake, we continued to hold hands. Everyone here expected us to be together. They’d seen us the night of the conquest and knew we shared a room. For us to break up so suddenly would cause too much speculation. We agreed to get through the upcoming battle before making any kind of official announcement. Besides, I still wasn’t sure I wanted to break up with Bryden yet. My heart didn’t want to tell anyone I’d left him because I still wasn’t sure what I wanted.

  “Are we telling Sebrina the truth?” Bryden asked as we stopped outside her door. I raised my knuckles to knock, but paused before they connected with the heavy wood.

  “What do you want to do?” I asked. She was my twin, and although we weren’t close, I still wasn’t sure I’d be able to hide it from her. She’d read me so easily the day we met. Why would it be any different now?

  “I’m not so sure that what I want matters right now,” Bryden said. He dropped his hand from mine. “There’s no one around. You don’t have to pretend.”

  I grabbed his chin, forcing him to look me in the eyes. “I still care for you, very deeply. Please don’t think that my feelings have changed. I just…” I hands dangled at my sides. “I just want to make sure I’m making the decisions for the right reasons.”

  “There’s never anything wrong with following your heart, Lianne. Never.”

  I opened my mouth to respond, but the door swung open. Sebrina stood in the doorway with a huge smile on her face. I couldn’t get used to the strange feeling I had when looking at her. She was my mirror image, down to the stray red curls on the right side of her head.

  “I thought I heard someone out here!” She grabbed my hand, pulling me into the room behind her. Bryden followed at my heels. I glanced back at him and shrugged. I didn’t know what else to do or say to him. “I’m so glad you’re back. When I woke up from the coma and heard you’d left, I was so upset. You’re the first person I wanted to see.”

  She flopped on her bed and pulled me down next to her. Bryden sat on a chair across the room, eyeing us.

  I gave Sebrina a big hug. “I can’t even tell you how sorry I am that Kellan tried to kill you. I never, ever meant for any of that to happen. It’s just that events unfolded so quickly since my birthday and I’ve barely had time to process any of it.” I shot Bryden a glance, hoping he’d understand that I wasn’t just talking about my relationship with Sebrina.

  “Of course I get it. You need time to breathe and calm your life down. Who wouldn’t?” She pushed out of our embrace. “And you…” She pointed at Bryden. “Thank you for coming to see me every day.”

  My eyes widened. He’d told me she was awake, but hadn’t admitted to visiting her.

  “Bryden’s quite funny, but I’m sure you know that. He’s kept me laughing every day. I really needed it.”

  I’d never seen Bryden as the funny type. Most of our interactions revolved around drama, or intense situations. We hadn’t had that time to relax with one another, just find shelter in each other’s arms. It was yet another thing I didn’t know about him, and another reason I was glad I’d made the decision to step back from our relationship. If Sebrina was seeing things in him I’d never noticed, then I wasn’t seeing Bryden’s true self at all.

  “I’m glad he’s been here to help you while you were recovering. That makes me so happy you weren’t alone. I’m sure you’ve have plenty of friends visit you, though.”

  A frown replaced the smile. “Not really. I don’t have a lot of close friends. I’m really young to be captain of a ship. I think it scares people more than it impresses them. Plus, our mother, well, she scares people away too. She’s a bit intimidating.”

  It was the opening I needed. “Speaking of our mother, I found out something interesting from Marek today. This may be hard to hear, but I have to know if you’ve ever been told anything like this before. He told me that when we were babies, she stole your magic and somehow put it in me, to make me more powerful.”

  Sebrina scooted away from me. Even though it was only a few inches, the distance suddenly felt like leagues. “I can’t believe that. It can’t be true.”

  I reached out to her, but she flinched away. “I don’t know. It’s just what Marek said. Why would he say it if it isn’t true?”

  “How should I know.” She turned away from me. “What do you think Bryden?”

  “I don’t know your mother well enough to make a guess. You’re the one who knows her best, which is why Lianne is asking you. If you say she wouldn’t do it, then she wouldn’t.”

  “One thing I never knew,” I said, “is how long you two have known each other. Bryden, you told me once that you’d been contacted by some of our people and you had Sebrina’s boat waiting for us when we escaped the dungeon.”

  For a moment, I was jealous. Insanely jealous. The last thing I wanted was to get into a romantic entanglement between my sister and my, well, my ex-boyfriend. Before Bryden and I had gotten together, they knew each other, even if briefly. I had to know what their connection was.

  “Oh, we’d only met once before,” Sebrina said with a wave of her hand. “If you think I’m interested in Bryden, you don’t need to worry,” Sebrina said. “I’m not into him. He’s more like a brother to me.”

  A wave of relief crashed over me. I believed her, too.

  “But what I don’t like is you suggesting our mother did this horrible thing to us as babies. Why would she even do that? And I’ve never even heard of anyone doing anything like that either. I mean, I know I don’t have magic. I’m pretty sure I was born that way.”

  Sebrina grabbed my hand again, all forgiven between us. “Besides, that would be beyond cruel. Stealing something from me to give to you, and then sending you out as part of a conquest plan…”

  She trailed off. For the first time she’d really thought about what had been done to me. I was given up as a baby to the enemy, a ticking time bomb to help my people take down the Fithians from the inside. I’d never known my own people. Never given the chance to understand or learn how to use my magic.

  Sebrina’s eyes grew wider. “Do you think she could have done it?”

  “I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “You know her. I don’t. Do you think she’s capable of it?”

  Deep down I knew it was probably true. I couldn’t figure out why Marek had told me. Did he think I’d be happy about it? Maybe he thought I’d want to learn the method so I could help my mother. All I knew for sure was that I wanted the Malborn to be defeated, but not by sucking the magic out of them so my people could use it to further their own domination.

  Tears slipped down Sebrina’s cheeks. She nodded her head, very slowly once, and then over and over again. “Yes, I do. It’s something she’s more than capable of. I always thought I was born like my father. Simple, non-magical. She’s the one who told me that as I grew up, that I should never be ashamed of not having magic because I was like my father.” Sebrina leapt up. Pacing the bedroom was preferable to sitting on the bed with me. With every step her body tightened up instead of relaxing. “She must have. I cannot believe she did this to us!”

  “We don’t know for sure,” I said, suddenly wishing I hadn’t said anything before investigating it myself, even though I had no one else I could have as
ked.

  Sebrina’s pacing ceased. “You’re right. We don’t know for sure, but I will find out if it’s true. I’m not afraid to ask her.”

  As if on cue, a knock on the door interrupted us. I answered the door. It was our mother. She stood in the hallway, imposing as ever. I’d only spoken with her briefly, and yet I knew she was a force of nature, more like a hurricane than a light spring rain.

  “Marek told me about your conversation, Lianne.” She swept into the room, taking up the entire space with her presence. Sebrina slinked back on the bed, her bravado and anger pushed aside. Chilly wisps crept up my legs. I shivered involuntarily, wondering if our mother had brought a breeze in with her, or if it was simply her chilly nature.

  “Is it true?” Sebrina sounded like a wounded child. She nibbled at her nails.

  “That I siphoned your magic and fed it to Lianne? Yes, it’s true.” She said it as if it was not a big deal. By the look on Sebrina’s face, I could tell it mattered to her. “But, girls, really, it happened so long ago. You both turned out just fine. No regrets.”

  “Yes, mother.” Sebrina’s willingness to give in astounded me. Just a moment ago she’d been angry. Now she acted like a three-year-old. Well, I wouldn’t.

  “You stole something vital to Sebrina’s soul and gave it to me. Then you sent me here to be a puppet in your war. That doesn’t scream motherly love to me.” I stood still, hands planted firmly on my hips, daring her to argue with me.

  She waved her hand in the air, brushing away some invisible irritant. “What’s done is done. It’s how we move on from here that matters.”

  “I agree.” Three pairs of eyes focused on Bryden. I had actually forgotten he was sitting on the chair in the corner of the room. “Unless either of you are proposing she try to reverse what she did, then I suggest we try to figure out exactly how we’re going to survive the imminent attack by the Malborn.”