The Witch Queen

by Juliana Haygert

  A lump rose to my throat. By all that was sacred … “Don’t worry, Keeran. She won’t find out.”

  “How?”

  It was now or never. “I haven’t thought of all the details yet, but I plan to run away. You could come with me. You’ll be free to do what you want, to live the way you desire.”

  His eyes widened and his face paled. “No, you can’t. If you’re caught …”

  “If I’m caught, I’ll be punished. I know.”

  “No, no.” He shook his head vehemently. “You don’t understand. I guess you don’t know because you weren’t here.”

  “What don’t I know?”

  “While you were gone, Blackmarsh and Bluemoon attacked the Silverblood coven several times. Witches have gone missing, taken as slaves by the other covens, and there has been many deaths on both sides.” He paused. “I heard rumors …”

  “Tell me.”

  “Lady Helen tried to escape. Princess Morda found her and punished her with the bloodbone ritual, to make an example out of her.”

  I gasped.

  Helen had been another weak witch who volunteered for the suicide mission. She had been quiet like a little mouse, but I remembered seeing her in the halls and exchanging a few words with her during events. I would never guess she had the guts to leave.

  And the bloodbone ritual …

  I closed my eyes as my stomach revolved thinking about it.

  It didn’t matter. Not really. I wouldn’t let my fear of the ritual stop me from being with Drake.

  “Don’t worry,” I said, more to myself than to him. “I will only leave when I’m certain I can do it.” He was getting agitated with the subject, so I decided to change the topic. I stood. “It’s getting late. Why don’t you take my bed? You should rest so you can heal properly.”

  He stared at me with surprise written all over his features. “What about you?”

  “I don’t think I can sleep right now.” I was tired to the bone, but my mind was worked up. Even if I lay down, I wouldn’t be able to sleep. “Go.” I beckoned toward my bed, then turned toward the door.

  “Where are you going?” he asked.

  I glanced over my shoulder. He was up and his body was coiled. He was wary again. “Don’t worry. I’m going to find you some decent clothes and be right back. I promise.” I shooed him away again. “Now go sleep.”

  I didn’t wait for him to move before exiting the room. As I suspected, witchguards patrolled the hallways.

  One of them stopped and faced me. I cleared my throat and put on a superior mask when I said, “Make sure my servant doesn’t leave. I’m not finished with him yet.”

  The witchguard nodded.

  Holding my head high, I strolled down the hallway. When I was out of sight, I let out a long breath.

  I had to wear this mask for a few more hours. For a few more minutes. Because now, I was going to scout the mansion, to find out where Morda had posted witchguards and patrols, and prepare for my escape.

  Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I would leave this place.

  6

  Drake

  First, Alex had sent Luana to me, now he was ordering me to hunt a freaking werewolf. What was he trying to do? This wasn’t about proving myself. There was much more going on. Alex was playing a game, and I had no option but to play along.

  However, I didn’t go alone. Alex sent Prince Phelps, Prince Gray, Eden, Ralf, and four other vampires with me.

  “As witnesses,” he said.

  Which meant, if the werewolf were a strong one, stronger than me, and was about to kill me, the other vampires weren’t supposed to intervene. They were there to watch, whatever the outcome.

  I bet Alex was hoping it was a huge ass werewolf who could overpower me.

  No matter. I would summon strength from hell if I needed it, but I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of seeing me gone. Not yet.

  While I ran after the wolf into the woods, followed by the witnesses, Alex went to the balcony off Lord Reynard’s office on the third floor—I guess it was Alex’s office now. The thought disgusted me—to watch the hunt. Waiting for me screw up, I was sure.

  The werewolf’s scent was an odd one. It seemed masked, but I caught a faint trail and followed it, running as fast as I could. Werewolves were fast, but unless this one was the alpha, he couldn’t outrun a five-hundred-year-old vampire.

  The scent grew stronger. I was getting closer.

  I ran into a valley and the scent died. I stopped in my tracks and turned, sniffing the air. The wolf was hiding. If I were human, I would have missed it in this darkness, but I focused on my enhanced sight and found it: a small opening in the side of the hill. It didn’t look big enough for a cave, but it could be a burrow or a nest of some other animal.

  The wolf was hiding inside.

  I halted five feet from the entrance while the other vampires watched from a hill.

  “Come out, little wolf, and I’ll kill you quickly,” I said in a normal voice, knowing he could hear me. I counted ten seconds before continuing. “Make me come after you and I’ll drag your death out for days.”

  I gave him another ten seconds.

  Damn it.

  I took a step and—

  The wolf lunged out of the burrow, right at me. Expecting such attack, I easily spun out of the way. The wolf landed where I had been just a moment before, and instantly, it turned to face me. He had an unusual color, light brown fur with some golden patches running down his paws and up his ears. His hazel eyes gleamed with vengeance.

  I readied myself in a fighting stance—feet apart, weight on the back leg, hands up—and smiled at the creature. “I changed my mind. I’ll take you alive so we can interrogate you. After all, I’d like to know why you were on DuMoir grounds.”

  The wolf snarled and charged at me again. I knelt and threw my arms out, connecting with his stomach. I pushed up hard, and the wolf let out a cry as he flipped over me and landed on his back behind me.

  The wolf whimpered and rushed to his feet, but I was on him before he could recover. Fangs already out, I pushed him back down and bit him in the shoulder. I went for the joints, right where the ligaments connected with the muscles, but the wolf twisted and I ended up taking pure muscle. Regardless, I let out my poison. Even if this wolf got away, it would be dead in a couple of hours.

  The wolf jerked and cried.

  I pulled back enough to lean over him again and bite somewhere else, but the wolf thrashed under me. His paw connected with my shoulder, making me lose balance. And that was his opening.

  The wolf thrashed some more until he was free of me.

  The wolf’s muscles trembled as he retreated. Where did he think he was going?

  Irritated, I snarled at him. “I’m taking you down now.” I went for him.

  But he jumped out of the way. In an unexpected move, the wolf ran up the hill and lunged at Eden, who went down screaming.

  Then, the wolf let him go and ran deeper into the woods.

  I stared at Eden’s body on the ground, not knowing what to do. Phelps and Gray knelt beside Eden, who was not dead, just down for the count.

  Ralf glared at me. “What do you think you’re doing? Go after the damn wolf!”

  Hell.

  I took off while the others stayed behind to help Eden.

  This time, it was easier to follow the wolf since his scent was stronger with the open wound and blood, and because it was injured, it was slower.

  Not even two minutes later, I spotted the wolf turning in the woods and going for the hills that marked the end of the DuMoir estate. Even if I didn’t catch him before he reached the top of the hill, there were only fields and hills and valleys beyond our borders. He would be easy to spot.

  The wolf reached the base of the hill and I sprinted, wanting to end this. By my estimate, the wolf would be crossing down the other side of the hill when I caught with him.

  The wolf was on top of the hill when the clouds moved and covered the moon.
/>   And the wolf turned into a woman.

  I faltered in my step then shook my head, getting rid of the shock. I advanced toward the woman without rush—in this form, she was almost as slow as a human.

  As I got closer, her odd scent became clearer.

  She stumbled on her feet and fell on the ground.

  Holding my breath, I moved toward her.

  Luana.

  She curled into herself, hiding her body from view, but I wasn’t paying attention to that. I was speechless, because I hadn’t even considered the werewolf could be a woman and that woman would be my new blood slave. More importantly, now that she wasn’t covered in fur, I could see her injury. I had torn part of her muscle and blood flowed freely down her naked body.

  “Just kill me,” she whispered, closing her eyes.

  I knelt beside her, took off my shirt, and covered her body with it. “How were you …?”

  “It’s a long story.”

  “We have time.” I had no idea if the other vampires were on our trail, or if they would come at all, but I hoped they took their sweet time if they did. She pushed up, but her arms gave out. I reached for her and she cried out in pain as I helped her sit up. Shit. I ripped a piece of the shirt sleeves and tied it around her arm. It wouldn’t fix her arm or stop the bleeding, but it would slow it down. “Now, explain yourself before I finish what I started.”

  “Don’t look,” she muttered, and I turned my face as she slipped my shirt on. “You can look now.” She was closing up the buttons of the once white shirt. It was now mostly bright red with her blood.

  “And you can talk now.”

  She took in a wavering breath. “I don’t know where to start.”

  “How about how and why you were at DuMoir Castle?”

  “I was captured by Prince Alex and his men a couple of weeks ago while I was scoping out the castle,” she said, her eyes filling with tears.

  “Scoping the castle? Why? Do the werewolves plan on attacking?”

  She shrugged her good shoulder. “If there was an opportunity, I believe so. My pack leader sends a wolf out every once in a while to check how things are going.”

  “But you didn’t report back because you were caught.”

  “Right. I changed into my human form before Alex and his men caught me, and they assumed I was a lost human. How they didn’t smell the wolf in me, I don’t know.” Even though I had found her scent odd, I also hadn’t noticed she was a werewolf. “I was immediately brought to the slave quarters and locked in there.” She wiped her eyes with her good arm. “I wanted to escape, but I wasn’t even allowed outside. So, I came up with another plan. I had heard rumors that you were good to your blood slaves. You were more lenient and didn’t abuse them. I thought … I thought that if I became your blood slave, it would be easier for me to escape.” Stupid girl. “So I started working on Prince Patrick, the one who called on me the most, about becoming your blood slave. But then Thea appeared and you ran away with her, so I to change my plan.”

  “But now I’m back.”

  “Yes. I heard you were back and I heard Prince—Lord—Alex talking to a few princes about taunting you with a new blood slave. He said it would drive you crazy to have one delivered to you right after losing Thea and Thomas.”

  My stomach tightened. He was damn right. Shit. “And?”

  “I volunteered. Of course Lord Alex asked me to report your activities to him. In return, he would provide me with treasure.”

  I scoffed. “You believed him?”

  “Of course not. But it was my opportunity to be your blood slave.”

  My jaw ticked. “When I told you to leave me alone a couple of hours ago, you left not only my bedroom, but my chambers.”

  “You’re the only prince without several slaves in every corner of their chambers, working like crazy. It was easy sneaking out through the door connecting the kitchens.”

  “You were going back to your pack.”

  “If I make it there.” Luana glanced down to her ripped arm. The bleeding slowed, but if we didn’t stop it soon, she would bleed out. Not to mention the poison.

  “Do you have healers who can pull out a vampire’s poison?”

  “I think so.” Her eyes widened. “You’re letting me go?”

  “I might. But first we need to talk.”

  She groaned. “Do it fast before I die here.”

  I wasn’t sure if she was attempting to joke around her dreadful situation or if she was serious.

  “I want to overthrow Alex and take DuMoir Castle.”

  “What? How? Why?”

  I chuckled. “I’ll start with why. Because Alex is a bastard and he’ll destroy our world. He’ll destroy all humans, to start, then he’ll come after the other supernaturals.”

  “And how would it be different if you were in charge?”

  “For one, I don’t want to be in charge, but someone has to be, and so far, I haven’t found many people who share my beliefs.”

  “What beliefs?”

  “That all races can coexist without declaring war every five minutes.”

  She stared at me for a long time. “I like that.”

  “As for the how, that’s where you come in.”

  I explained to her that I was sure I could find a dozen allies inside the castle, but that wasn’t enough against the other hundreds. I needed allies, and if her pack was willing, I would ask for their help in bringing Alex down. In exchange, we would draw up a nice peace treaty. No more hunting of both races.

  “I like this, but I don’t have authority to answer for my alpha,” she said. “As it is, he probably thinks I’m dead right now.”

  “Then go to your pack. Get healed, talk to your alpha, and then come back with a message.”

  She stared at me. “Just like that.”

  “Just like that.”

  “How are you gonna come back now empty-handed?”

  “I’ll go deeper into the woods, kill a random wolf, and tell him it’s a werewolf.”

  “Alex might not buy it.”

  “I’m hoping he will.”

  “There’s too much leaning on hope here.”

  I nodded. “Unfortunately, that’s all we have.”

  Luana and I agreed she would sneak back into the castle after she talked to her pack and the full moon was gone—apparently, she wasn’t mated yet. Unmated female wolves were weaker and couldn’t control the change under the full moon.

  I re-tied the piece of cloth around her arm, making it tighter so she wouldn’t bleed out before reaching her destination, and watched as she stumbled downhill, toward her pack.

  I stayed there under the cloudy skies, thinking of Thea and Luana and the plan that was forming. Hell, I hoped it worked.

  Letting out a long breath, I turned around and ran into the woods. I had a wolf to kill.

  7

  Thea

  A knock woke me up. Startled, I rolled and almost fell to the ground.

  Where was I? What was happening?

  In a flash, my mind caught up and I remembered everything. I was back in the Silverblood coven, in my bedroom, with a servant in my bed, and I probably only slept a couple of hours since I was now required to go to back to normal daylight hours.

  The knock came again, and Keeran showed up in front of me, still wearing the loincloth-skirt-thing. “I’ll get it,” he said.

  I started protesting, and then remembered he was supposed to be my servant.

  I had time to run around the love seat to the bed before Keeran opened the door, revealing a witchguard on the other side.

  Keeran stepped to the side.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “Princess Morda requests your presence for breakfast in thirty minutes,” the witchguard said. Without ceremony, she marched away and Keeran closed the door.

  I sat at the edge of the bed. “Breakfast,” I mused, surprised.

  Breakfast with Morda and her inner circle was an honor only a few witches experienc
ed. Of course, I wasn’t one. Until now. I wondered why she had invited me. It was probably because I had succeeded and brought back the coven’s heart. Now, she wanted to show the other witches how benevolent and fair she was by being kind to me and inviting me to events, like breakfast with her.

  I felt sick at the thought that I was one more pawn in Morda’s game, and I confess I considered not going. But I couldn’t refuse her. Not yet.

  Feeling like I was going on another mission, I turned to Keeran and said, “Let’s get ready.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “Let’s …?”

  “Witches take their servants to breakfast. You’re my servant now, so I have to show you off.” I gestured to the small bag on the side of the bed. “I got you some clothes. Nothing much but better than …” I pointed a finger at him. “That.”

  I took a shower first and got dressed. Knowing Morda liked her witches to be well dressed, I choose a long but casual black dress. While I applied some makeup and brushed my long hair, Keeran took his turn in the bathroom. When he emerged, his short hair was brushed back and clean, and he wore the gray pants and white shirt I had gotten him. My mouth fell open. He was miles away from the man who had been in a loincloth last night. That man had been broken, cowering, hurt. His shoulders had sagged, and he couldn’t lift his chin to look at me. I was sure he still felt all that inside, but the man standing before me now? He looked handsome, imposing, and strong.

  I smiled. “You clean up well.”

  His golden cheeks gained a faint red tint. “Are you sure you want me to go?”

  “It’s more like I need you to go,” I said, beckoning him to come to me. Once he halted in front of me, I hooked my arm on his. “Are you ready?”

  “Can I answer that honestly?”

  Right. He hated witches. He feared them. Of course, he wasn’t ready. To be honest, I wasn’t feeling ready either. But if we waited any longer, we would be late, and Morda would show off her short temper. Living in the Silverblood mansion was an endless game. And right now, I was a big player.