The Witch Queen

by Juliana Haygert

  He snickered, but didn’t say anything.

  It didn’t take long until his breathing slowed and he fell into a deep sleep. I watched over him for a moment while my mind raced. No matter what I did, where I went, I couldn’t leave Keeran behind, not without breaking this bond first. Which meant, if I escaped, if I ran away and went to live with Drake, Keeran would have to come with me. But what if he didn’t want to? I couldn’t force him to live a life he didn’t want.

  I added one more item to my long to-do list: Find a way to break my bond with Keeran.

  “You care about him,” Ebby said as she followed me to the love seat. She sounded surprised.

  “I do.”

  “But … he’s your servant, not your lover. You’re not supposed to care about him.”

  I frowned. “That’s so wrong.”

  “What about Drake? Don’t you care about him?”

  “When I lived with the vampires, one thing was clear to me: The world isn’t black and white. There are several shades of gray. And that applies to feelings too. We don’t just love and hate. We can care about a person and not want anything romantic with him.” I gestured to her. “Take you, for example. I care about you, and because of that, I want to help you.”

  She didn’t seem convinced. “Why do you care about me? I didn’t do anything to make you like me.”

  In our society, a witch wasn’t liked for her kindness, or by who she was on the inside. She was liked, or feared, for her power, for her ranking, for her prowess. Witches didn’t have friends; they had allies. As for families, we weren’t supposed to love our mothers and grandmothers; we were supposed to revere them. If my grandmother and mother were still alive, I would be crawling in their shadows, worshiping them, and aiming for rewards by committing unspeakable acts.

  I was beginning to hate our society.

  “I like you because you remind me of myself a couple of years ago,” I confessed. “I was alone and weak and afraid.” I paused. “But more than that, I like you because you’re a young woman trying to break from the mold and be yourself.”

  She stared at me as if I had grown two heads. “I don’t get you. You’re too …” She looked around as if searching for a word in the furniture in my room. “Good. That’s the word. You’re too good to be a witch.”

  I shook my head. “To be honest, until a couple of months ago, I didn’t see the difference between good or bad. Or evil. We were raised in this society, but no one ever said we were cruel or evil. We just were. We didn’t question any of it.”

  “And living with the vampires changed you? But we were taught they are the true evil in this world.”

  “It all goes back to nothing being black and white. As there are less bitchy witches here, there are less evil and even some caring vampires there.” I paused, feeling like I was being too philosophical for this time of the day. It was probably because I hadn’t slept in over twenty-four hours. “Why can’t witches be good? Why do we have to be so heartless? To be honest, I want a society where we don’t compete against each other, against other covens.”

  “Then … what would we do?”

  “Live. Laugh. Love. I don’t know. Anything but fighting.”

  “You make it all sound so simple, so … good.” Ebby wrinkled her nose, probably not used to that word.

  “It’s definitely not simple, but it’s what I want.”

  “It’s what you think you’ll find with Drake?”

  “I’m hoping it is.”

  One corner of Ebby’s lips curled up. “You should be princess instead of Morda. I’m sure you would lead us to a better place.”

  I scoffed. “Don’t let her hear you.”

  “Oh, no, I would like to keep my head, you know.”

  I chuckled, taken aback by the fact Ebby was making a joke. She was learning fast. And speaking of learning … I glanced over my shoulder to my bed. Keeran was sound asleep.

  I stood and beckoned to Ebby. “Come on.”

  “What?” She rose to her feet. “Where are we going?”

  I grabbed her shoulders and pushed her back a few feet. “Right here.” Then, I rushed to the other side of the room. “Now, we’ll practice some basic spells. Are you ready?

  A wide smile spread over her lips. “I’m ready!”

  We started with the conjuring of flames or balls of light. To my surprise, Ebby even had problems with that. We spent over an hour practicing, and when she was finally able to cast the flames, I moved on to the next step—control over the flames. I showed her how to expand and move the flames and even toss them around, while keeping a leash on them, controlling where they went, what they touched, and the damage they would cause. In the process, she knocked the books off the side table—and Keeran kept on sleeping.

  Finally, after so long without sleep, the tiredness got to me in the evening.

  “I’ll let you rest,” she said, heading to the door. She stopped by the door and looked at me, her eyes full of wonder. “Thank you.”

  “My pleasure.” I smiled at her. “You should rest too, because we’re practicing again tomorrow.”

  She nodded, then exited my bedroom.

  Alone—except for my sleeping servant—I grabbed a change of clothes and went to the bathroom, where I took a long, hot shower. If I could, I wouldn’t wash my skin ever again, just so I could keep Drake’s scent on me.

  Thinking of him, I went back to my bedroom and glanced at my bed. It was a queen-size and Keeran was occupying half. I could lay down beside him and go to sleep, but for some reason, that didn’t feel right.

  I settled for the love seat, where I had to curl my legs so I would fit, but it wasn’t half bad.

  I closed my eyes …

  “Thea,” a voice called me. I blinked and found Keeran’s face above me. “Wake up.”

  I sat up, realizing I was in my bed. “How …?”

  “I woke up and switched with you.”

  But … I had just closed my eyes. “What time is it?”

  “Almost nine at night.”

  Holy shit, I had slept for a few hours. I already felt a more rested, but I could do that on the love seat. “You’re bigger than me,” I protested, sitting up. “The love seat will be too uncomfortable for you.”

  He shook his head. “We can discuss that later. Now you need to get ready.”

  I rubbed my eyes, trying to shake off the sleep. “Get ready? For what?”

  He pressed his lips tight. “A message just came.”

  I stilled. “A message?”

  “Morda is calling the witches for the pregnancy check.”

  12

  Drake

  I could have slept for an entire week, especially if I could keep dreaming about Thea. About her soft skin, about her long, blond hair, her red lips, her delicious body. I could also dream about her sweet scent and even sweeter blood.

  I sat up with a jerk, my throat parched.

  Hell, I needed a drink.

  I got dressed in my usual black pants and shirt and went to the dining room. My chest hurt as I halted in front of the table, remembering a crucial detail.

  Thomas was gone, and he wouldn’t be serving me bottles of blood anymore.

  Hell, who cared about the blood? I had lost a dear friend, and the pain it brought would never go away. I knew it wouldn’t. It lessened, like the pain of losing my parents and my siblings, but it never went away.

  Bristling, I marched into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of blood. I drank half of it in a single breath. A scent caught my nose and I gulped the rest of the bottle. The strength of the scent increased, and I reached for another bottle, just to be sure, before going back to the living room, where Luana was.

  “Want some breakfast?” I asked, raising the bottle.

  She wrinkled her nose. “I already ate, thank you very much.”

  I took my usual seat at the head of dining table and looked out the glass windows. The heavy curtains were drawn and the sun had just set, tinting the sky a dark
blue. I wished I could have stayed in the cottage to watch another sunset with Thea, but it was impossible. While we both still had so much to do in our covens, we wouldn’t have time to appreciate the sunset or the sunrise together.

  “When do you have to report my doings to Alex?” I asked, still looking out.

  “Later tonight,” she said. “Just before sunrise, actually.”

  I nodded. “Already know what you’re gonna tell him?”

  “That you’re wallowing in pain and drinking your nights away.”

  I glanced at her. “Good girl.”

  She crossed her arms. “Your mood is sourer tonight. I thought after seeing your woman, it would have improved.”

  “Seeing her for a brief time only reminds me we can’t be together yet, and that hurts more than a sword in the gut,” I said in a low voice. With her werewolf ears, I was sure Luana had heard me.

  “No time for self-pity or crying over open wounds,” she snapped. “My alpha wants to meet you tonight, remember?”

  I sighed. “Yes, I remember.” She was right, of course. Why wallow in my own pain, when I could be acting, making progress in this goddamn quest I chose for myself? The more allies I made, the faster it all would go. I drank another gulp of the blood, then stood. “When are we leaving?”

  “Now,” she said. “Right now.”

  Luana didn’t waste time. After scolding me for wearing slacks and black shoes to the meeting—how would I run in that?—and realizing I wasn’t going to change, she gave up. Together, we exited the castle, pretending we were going for a walk in the garden, even though it wasn’t common for vampires to be friendly to their blood slaves. Nobody stopped us, or even looked at us twice. I guess with Luana playing spy, Alex didn’t fear anything from me.

  Luana and I strolled past the maze, and once out of hearing range, she hid behind a tree, where she took off her clothes, tossed them to me—saying she would need them again when we met her alpha—then transformed into her wolf.

  We took off.

  When not injured, Luana was almost as fast in her wolf form as I was, which impressed me.

  We stopped a few yards from the same hill where I had caught up with her and found out her secret a couple of nights ago. She bit down, taking her clothes from me, and disappeared behind some bushes. A minute later, Luana emerged wearing black leggings and long white blouse—and barefoot. Because of the added volume, we had opted for leaving her shoes behind.

  “Where are they?” I asked, glancing up the hill. I didn’t see anyone, and when I used my senses to try to find them, I could only hear and smell the woods.

  A sly grin spread over her lips. “They will show up when we get to the top.” She walked past me. “Come on.”

  Wary, I followed her up the hill. I thought I could trust her—I wanted to trust her—but I was dealing with werewolves. My relationship with these creatures had always been strenuous.

  “What now?” I asked once we reached the top. I glanced around, but didn’t see anything.

  “Wait,” she whispered.

  A minute passed.

  Then another.

  And one more.

  I opened my mouth to ask her if she was playing me, when I sensed them. Their presence, their scent, their heat, their power … I couldn’t be sure, but there were a lot of werewolves approaching us.

  “How many dog guards does your alpha need?” I asked, trying to lighten the mood. I didn’t like being cornered by so many supernaturals.

  “Enough to deal with a powerful vampire, if needed,” she said.

  Finally, they emerged from the woods and marched up the hill like a wave of pure prowess. They were all in their human form, and most of them were naked. Their alpha, though, was easily recognizable by the leather pants and loose shirt. His hair was long and whipping in the gentle breeze.

  He halted a good six feet from me, flanked by two men, who I assumed were his two betas.

  Luana lowered her head, in respect to her alpha, then gestured to him. “Prince Drake, this is Ulric, the alpha of the Dark Vale pack.”

  “Well, well,” Uric said, smiling wide. His canines were elongated and sharp, almost like fangs. “Prince Drake of DuMoir Castle requested a meeting. I wonder why?”

  I frowned at Luana before returning my gaze to the alpha. “I thought Luana had explained.”

  “Oh, she did,” he said. It hadn’t escaped me that he hadn’t glanced at her once since arriving, not even when she introduced me to him. “But I would love to hear everything from your own mouth.”

  I wasn’t liking this. Ulric looked like an arrogant ass who thought too highly of himself—he reminded me of Alex. However, I knew from experience not all arrogant asses were evil like Alex was.

  And I wasn’t here to make friends. I needed allies. All we had to do was draw a good plan and follow through with it.

  I summoned my best political voice and started, “I know werewolves and vampires have always been enemies, but we can change that.” Ulric didn’t seem amused by my words. I went on. “Alex is in charge of DuMoir Castle right now, and he’s changing all the rules Lord Reynard imposed.”

  “You say that as if Lord Reynard had been generous to us,” the man on Ulric’s right said. One of his betas.

  “Rollin,” Ulric snapped. “Let the vampire plead his case.”

  They were having fun with this, and I didn’t like it. I suppressed a growl. “All Lord Reynard did was to ensure peace between all supernaturals. He tried to avoid war at all costs.”

  “By oppressing our race,” Rollin said, his fists clenched. “We heard about your little mission a month or so ago. You killed the alpha, betas, and the entire inner circle of a strong pack in northern Canada.”

  It had been my last mission before Lord Reynard had been killed. I had spent thirteen days fighting nonstop. It had exhausted me, but I had been satisfied with the results.

  “I did what I had to do to maintain peace,” I snarled. “That pack wanted to reveal our secret to the world. They wanted to take over the humans and change everything.”

  “What’s so bad about that?” the wolf asked.

  I shook my head. “First, the humans would freak out. Second, it would mean another world war. Their numbers are way larger than ours. They might not have our abilities, but they do have powerful weapons that can kill us.”

  “I agree with the vampire on this,” Ulric said, surprising me. “As much as I would like more liberty, we are better off if our existence is unknown.”

  I sighed in relief. Now I knew how to play his game. “Alex is plotting against the closest werewolf packs and witch covens. He wants to take over the lands around the castle, and he plans on killing every one of you.” That was a lie. I had no idea what Alex was plotting now since I had no access to his meetings, but I was sure it couldn’t be good. “He wants to be the supreme lord of all supernaturals.” The betas growled, while a cool mask fell over the alpha’s rough face. I could win this. “If you help me overthrow Alex, I can promise you more freedom. We can draw a peace treaty that will ensure you keep your lands. In fact, I can give you more lands.” That wasn’t a lie. Werewolves need more land to run the way they liked. Vampires only needed a little land to hunt. I could donate a few acres of the vast DuMoir estate to them.

  “What makes you so sure we can win?” Ulric asked.

  “Alex doesn’t have the support of all the vampires. Some hate him as much as I do. I’m sure we can get a handful of strong vampires on our side.” I paused for effect, knowing my next words could make or break the deal. “I’m also working with the Silverblood coven.”

  “What?” Rollin asked. “Why?”

  “That doesn’t matter.” I wouldn’t explain my relationship with Thea to them. “What matters is that when we attack, the Silverblood witches will help us.” I hoped Thea was able to convince Princess Morda. “And we can then easily overthrow Alex and take over the castle.”

  Ulric’s brows slammed down and he turned aroun
d, to his betas. The three of them talked in hushed whispers, and I only caught a few words they uttered.

  Jealous. War. Witches. Damned. Hell. Fuck it. A big problem. Useful ally. More lands. Trust.

  The tension inside me piled up during the ten minutes the three talked.

  “How long does this usually take?” I asked Luana in a low tone.

  “It depends on how important the matter is,” she replied. “And this one is pretty important.”

  Hell …

  Another ten minutes passed, until finally Ulric turned to me with a wide smile.

  He extended his hand toward me, and I couldn’t help but noticed his fingers had transformed into claws. “We have a deal.”

  Relief rushed through me. I took his hand and shook it tight. “Great.”

  We discussed a couple more details, like when to meet next, how to send messages back and forth, and when they should be ready to attack—hopefully we would meet again when it was time for the battle. If we needed to send messages, he would send a wolf to track down Luana, and I would send Luana. As for being ready to attack, I told them to give me a few days then be ready regardless. The moment I heard from Thea, we would go for it.

  At the end of the meeting, Ulric and I shook hands again.

  “Hope to hear from you soon,” Ulric said.

  “You will.”

  Finally, after an hour here, the alpha landed his eyes on Luana. “May I have a word with my wolf?” he asked, though he could have ordered it.

  “Sure.” I stepped back, giving her space.

  Head lowered, Luana marched past me and followed Ulric down the hill, with the betas close behind them. The other fifty or so wolves stayed positioned around the hilltop, all watching me.

  What a distrustful bunch.

  This time, I couldn’t hear any exchanged words, but the fact that Luana didn’t look in her alpha’s eyes once told me volumes.

  After lowering her head even more to him, she spun on her dirty heels and scurried to me.

  “Let’s go,” she uttered, pushing past me.

  I frowned, wanting to ask what was wrong. But I held my tongue, because she didn’t seem open to talk to me, and because if her alpha asked for secrecy, she was expected to keep it. I could get her in trouble.