Instead, he took my hand, patted the back of it, and whispered against my earlobe. “Her name was Lisette.”
“What did you mean when you said I had the birth to rival Isabella Krypt?” I blurted out, suddenly uncomfortable as well as confused.
“Come,” he said with a lopsided smile.
The halls were empty. It felt appropriate. I, too, had become hollowed to some degree. The naivety and false realities carved out until even I didn’t know what to fill the emptiness with. I understood, finally, why my mother had found freedom in the forest. It made sense why she hadn’t wished this life for me.
He loaded me into a carriage, and we maintained the sharply edged silence until we were across the bridge.
“Where are we going?” I asked, quickly throwing myself against the door. I don’t know what I would had done if the damn thing had flown open on me.
“We can’t practice in Rochambeau. You are a Krypt, everyone knows you there.” He shifted about and finally afforded me a glance. “There is a trading port at the base of the mountain. A few hours ride. Much coin flows through it, so you will likely meet gentlemen from abroad. Mostly the Spicelands, perhaps a few Inlet Chieftains.”
I looked at him across the space of the bench, unable to prevent the scrunching of my face. “Messiah, I may look like Isabella from a distance, but I’m not Isabella. I don’t have her grace or… or—”
“You’re right, you don’t have her grace, you have more. Much more to offer.” Never one to be rushed to a point, he left the conversation hanging and stared out the window. It was the first sunset I had seen on the move. A gorgeous mingling of blue and pink that melted away my stress for the few moments it lasted.
“You’ve much potential, Chalice… and much to learn.”
I snapped my neck in his direction so fast it hurt. “I have much to learn… how can I learn anything when the rules change every day and the pile of topics that we can’t openly speak on are mounting by the minute?”
He canted his head and gave a nod that said he empathized with my assertion. “Did your mother ever speak about her life on the mountain? Aside from the fact that she was a rebel?”
Another scrunch passed my features, and I swore my eyes might freeze with the crow’s feet decorating either side.
“Chalice. Listen. Stop trying to think on what I tell you and listen.”
I wet my lips and studied him in silence.
He pawed the back of his neck and appeared to be on the verge of speaking several times, before he finally found his words. “You are aware that whoever kills the Excellence is entitled to the fucking throne? Your mother wasn’t exiled, she was set to be crowned, until she feared her sister Isabella would kill you to get to the throne. She ran to protect you… from the same thing you stumbled back to.”
Chapter Nineteen
When Reality Rears Her Head
Ender
I wasn’t sure how I would manage to sit through a dinner and polite banter with Atticus, or any of the others for that matter. Not even Isabella had spoken up when he turned his inner monster on my brother. No one batted an eye. The anger and anxiety of it all had swelled within me. Until all I could see was the day-to-day acts that passed the time. The mundane acts that required no thought allowed me to slip away mentally to places I only knew in my dreams.
That’s exactly what I was doing when Chalice entered the room, leaning against my brother’s wheelchair while I tried my best to hide from any true conversation or interaction. She was gorgeous in black. It contrasted her skin and made the glow of her youth more noticeable. Her hair was pulled up, exposing the crevice of her neck. Earrings swayed with each step, drawing attention to her bold, bare shoulders. Those were all nice, but it was the way she held my gaze that made my heart momentarily stop. She passed by and the smell of something exotic and forbidden lingered in her wake. I couldn’t help myself—I turned to follow her, despite my brothers last ditch attempt to grab my wrist and stop me.
“En!” he hissed, but I was already gone. I followed the flutter of her white hem across the balcony and into the room beyond.
Where the fuck was she going? It didn’t matter, I was incapable of stopping at this point, and yet unsure of what exactly I intended to do. I was stirred beyond belief by lascivious glances and the twitch of her silk-clad ass.
“Chalice.” I said her name like I was trying to taste each syllable. When she turned to face me, I hooked a hand around her waist and pulled her into Atticus’ office. I didn’t give a fuck if it was a courtroom or the temple, for that matter. All I cared about was sating… whatever this was between us.
When her back met the wall, I noticed the smile that split her tempting lips. It was triumphant and sordid all at once. I nipped her lower lip and kissed her until she parted her lips and allowed her tongue to flicker with mine.
“Fuck,” I growled over her lips as I sampled the thickness of her ass with both hands. I hefted her up, fully prepared for the usual startle that such crude advances usually provoked from girls, but all I found was her thighs snugly wrestling and tightening around my waist.
“Well done,” Messiah called from behind me, his large hands echoing a condescending clap that irked my soul. I allowed one leg to drop, but only enough that I could turn to face him. “It was a test to see how well she could lure. Now get the fuck off her.”
I glanced down at Chalice who could only flail for words.
“Atticus will kill you both. He has his heart set on her,” Messiah continued until I dropped her other leg. She shoulder-checked Messiah on her way past and stormed from the room without providing an apology or any type of answer to his accusation.
My lips were still painted with her taste, and I could feel her fingers clinging to my neck.
“You’re going to get her killed with that shit,” I hissed toward Messiah.
I wanted to say so much more, but it was all I trusted myself to say in that moment. My cock and my ego had both been left aching.
Fuck dinner. Fuck it all. I needed to get my mind right. I clung to the shadows until I was back in my room and hurriedly pilfered around to find my Root box. All it took was a couple hits and I forgot all about dinner and my family.
The hours slipped away in a Root induced haze until, finally, a gentle scraping sound brought the moon into focus. I palmed my temple and eye socket and shifted toward the door. It must have been left open, I thought to myself while reaching out in anticipation. Rather than wood, I found warm flesh. Fingers! I took a sharp breath and nearly choked on the jasmine essence that came with it.
“Chalice,” I whispered. She was already rounding the sofa near my ankles. She reached up to my mid-thigh and slid her hand back toward her knee. As she did so, she had straddled my lower legs. Through the expensive underwear, I felt the bodice of her gown, and then the softness of her stomach was teasing against my cock.
When she felt it, she stilled, drawing in a breath just fast enough to have made it audible. She couldn’t do this. We couldn’t do this. If it was as Messiah said, and Atticus really had some fucked up… thing for her.
Fated Fucking Few.
Fated Few, she felt so fucking good. If it was her test, why was I the one struggling? I shifted, intending to help her off me, but when I did, it jostled her and left her snuggly straddling the source of half my misery.
“Fuck,” I growled against her. It seemed to be the only thing I could say or think of around her anymore. I tried to still her, but it only resulted in me gripping her ass. She took it for an invite and prowled up me until she was nipping and sucking my lower lip. It wasn’t Chalice atop me. Chalice was cunning, beautiful and curious. This creature was intense, demanding, and fucking breathtaking. Her tongue danced with mine, resisting my occasional attempts to slow her.
What the fuck had Messiah created?
One hand laced fingers with my own and stretched my arm over my head. She grabbed and pulled at my hair. I tried to catch her hip and pin it. It
was surreal, I kept asking myself if it was a Root induced hallucination, but no, she was rolling and grinding against me without shame, rubbing herself against the length of my cock and silencing my words of reason each time I found enough self-control to repeat them.
Fuck. Fuck.
I wasn’t sure how to stop her, but I was certain Messiah was right. Atticus definitely wanted this one. I flung my weight against hers and rolled, pinning her on her back. Prying her hand from my hair I left her with both wrists over her head. Her amber hues widened, and a sharp breath betrayed her sudden second thoughts.
“What. The. Fuck. Are. You. Doing?” I finally managed.
Her chest heaved, and her lips were swollen from the recent battle. “Fuck Atticus. I won’t let him bargain with me. My body is mine. Mine to decide!” She tried to raise up, but I kept her arms pinned, so all she accomplished was sliding her body against mine.
It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done in my life, but I pulled myself from her and opened my door with a sigh.
“Get some sleep,” I strained to suggest before taking the stairs two at a time. She could have the room—I wouldn’t be sleeping tonight. Not after that.
Chalice
I’d seen more sides to Ender than I thought possible. His devotion to his twin slipped past the brotherly expectations I had held. Demetri was his weakness. His humanity. In the days following the surgery, he had met every battle cry that rang over the mountain. I watched him once, through a looking glass in his room.
I pictured so many things over the years, listening to that metal clash and hiss through the woods. Nothing in my wildest imaginations could have measured up to the sight of him charging into battle. He didn’t confront his opponents, he cut through them.
It occurred to me while I was watching it all, that the name he possessed was likely assigned to him, and with good cause. Any sensible woman would have heeded such intuition, but not me. In my twisted existence it only made me want him all the more. I wanted to hear him chanting my name like the sweetest of last breaths in bed and hailing it like a war cry on the battlefield. I wanted to be his weakness and his strength. I wanted him to be my Ender.
I almost had him, too, until he jumped up and bid me goodnight. My body screamed for the sudden stripping of his body heat, and I stared in confusion toward the door.
“Messiah,” I hissed to myself.
Of course, in the back of my head, I knew it wasn’t Messiah’s fault. It wasn’t anyone’s fault that Atticus was such a monster. They were likely as afraid of him as I was.
I almost laughed at my own craziness. No way in this world or the next were Messiah and Ender afraid of that vile old man. No. He had to have something on them. Some leverage or secret… I didn’t know, but I had made up my mind. I would find out. I had to sift through the secrets and find out the truth. My truth.
As far as I knew, they were clueless. The only person who knew about my true mother was Messiah. Who knew, maybe House Krypt might be a little different if Atticus wasn’t around, or Isabella for that matter. She had, after all, volunteered me to Icarus’ guests that night. She was probably in on Atticus’ scheming, too. She sure hadn’t saved Reverie, or even tried too, from what I’d seen.
I turned toward the crackle of Ender’s hearth and closed my eyes. I drifted off to sleep wondering if a person could will the truth.
***
As they say, be careful what you wish for. I awoke to Aella standing over me. Her smile was far too bright to be delivering anything that could possibly have been good news.
“A formal breakfast, sister.” I winced at the term of endearment, drawing back as if she were a striking serpent.
“Breakfast?” I repeated, alert but still choked with sleep.
“Indeed, a family announcement. Hurry along now.” She pranced from Ender’s room and dread settled heavily in my legs and chest.
I was still in Ender’s room!
Fated Few!
Don’t tell Atticus. Please don’t let her tell Atticus, I begged the powers that be and scrambled to wet my face and find a gown. My hair looked like it had been pulled all night, and Ender’s tiny shaving mirror offered little assistance in righting the unruly mess.
Ender met me at the bottom of the steps. He didn’t look anxious, he actually looked to be a little bored. I smoothed my gown and accepted his arm when it was offered.
“What is this about?” I asked as we moved through the halls. He gave me a side glance that labelled me silly without him having made a sound. We rounded into the dining room and any chance toward conversation was instantly denied.
Two dozen of Rochambeau’s finest were gathered around prepared to take their seats. Lady Nayana and her son were all smiles. I couldn’t help but notice that the recently branded daughter in law was not present. At the head of the table, Isabella sat with Atticus on one side and Messiah on the other. To Messiah’s right stood Lady Blazian.
Ender escorted me to a seat next to Icarus and claimed the one on my opposite side. Icarus turned to greet me, but before he could, Isabella noticed and clinked a prong against her wine glass.
“Now, now,” she called with her polished public voice. “Before we all enjoy, let us give a toast to the confirmed couple. My son Messiah and his intended Lady Blazian will be unioned at the next full moon.”
She sat her glass down and gave a genteel clap of congratulations that spread like fire around the table. I nearly dropped my glass.
I knew they were intended. Intended couples eventually sealed the deal. So why the fuck did it feel like he had me in a choke hold? His hazel eyes held mine across the table so intently he almost seemed indifferent to the speech. Sadly, Lady Blazian and Isabella noticed, too. They both leveled a glare at me that would have made me want to melt under the floorboards not so long ago.
Those days were over with. I felt betrayed, and even though part of me knew it wasn’t his choice, another part wanted revenge against them all. I sat up a bit straighter and glanced toward Ender. When he caught me staring, I smiled and turned toward Icarus allowing my half-spilled updo to flutter just so as I did.
It caught Icarus attention true to the mark. He quickly slid my silver wear free of their napkin and unfolded it before his pale blue hues looked up at me in question.
“May I?” He smiled gesturing toward my lap. Aella slid a finger along her clavicle and toyed with the strings of her corset.
I nodded, flashing him a coy smile and grazed his arm with my hand as I whispered, “Thank you.”
“Of Course, Lady Chalice.” While we sipped wine and ate berries and hot cakes, he entertained me with travel tales. A confession that I had never seen the Torch of the Sea left him wide-eyed and insisting that someday we would travel together and see it.
Messiah
It’s safe to say that most men awake with nerves on the day of their ceremony. Me, I had begun to dread every day that carried me toward the sacred date. It was getting harder to pretend. Not that I ever wanted to begin pretending with Lady Blazian. She was a decent and darling young lady. She deserved a chance toward some type of happy home.
She was a great friend, but she would never hold my heart.
I simply didn’t see her that way, and if I were being honest with myself, I wasn’t even sure I still had the ability to give all of myself to another person. I did that once and watched on as every ounce of my former self melted away in the clear waters of Lake Last.
No thanks.
Only, I couldn’t say ‘no thanks.’ I had to smile and say, ‘yes, Sir’. I had to choke out a dozen thank yous when congratulations were passed. But worst of all, I had to see Chalice’s eyes when Isabella rubbed her nose in it without warning. I heard Isabella telling the audience I belonged to Blazian, but when I saw Chalice was wounded and felt her pain in the depths of my being, I knew I was only lying to myself. I couldn’t give Blazian my heart, Chalice already owned it.
She was an anomaly. A woman who had redefined herself
, not to catch the eye of men, but to protect herself from them. Some people had walls, Chalice had mirrors. I had tried my damnedest to teach her the art of impassive response, but she was incapable. Chalice gave exactly what she got. So, I shouldn’t have been surprised when she ripped the knife out of her heart and turned it against me.
It turned my stomach to see her brushing against Icarus and smiling like that. I found myself wanting to cut him rather than my steak.
What the fuck was I doing? I loved Icarus. In the earlier days and months after Lisette’s execution, Atticus’ rage had been entirely directed at me, and it was Icarus who had always been there to reassure and comfort me. We’d shared more nights than either of us could count, but in that moment, not a one of them counted.
He looked up from his plate and flashed a brief affectionate smile before almost returning his focus to his plate. His head came back up ever so slowly, and he locked eyes with me again. He stopped chewing and hesitantly glanced around with open confusion and concern. I forced myself to look away and realized Isabella was glaring at me. Her eyes had turned so dark they were almost black, and she sawed through her steak with a set jaw.
Fated Few. Chalice had used her luring on him, and in turn, commanded a reaction out of me. I wanted to dance her back to the cell the same way I escorted her the first time, but another part of me was proud of how far she had mastered the art of luring.
The blame remained on me throughout the meal. I was shunned by Mother and had dealt enough of an unintended blow to my intended to leave her speechless and teary-eyed.
She left with Lady Nayana, and Chalice all but sprang after them. The others trickled out slowly as the hour wore on, until it was only me, Atticus, and Isabella.
Chasing the Night (The Krypt Series Book 1) Page 16
