Kingdom of Villains and Vengeance: Fairytale retellings from the villain's perspective (Kingdom of Darkness and Light Book 2)

by Laura Greenwood

  He fell for it, and I ran my blade along his bare forearm. Blood welled up from the cut.

  It took him a moment to realise what had happened, but he withdrew his weapon and took a step backwards.

  "Bravo." He dipped his head as scattered applause started from the nobles surrounding it. They were trained well if they were being so polite with the way they saw my victory. But it would do what I needed it to.

  "You fight well, Prince Jonathan," I said loudly. I wasn't sure if it would make any difference if I said it in front of the people surrounding us.

  Whispers started almost immediately. Perfect.

  I sheathed my sword and swept my dress around, paying no more attention to anyone. "Riki, heel," I commanded.

  She did as I asked immediately, trotting along beside me just as she was trained to do. I had no idea what affect having a wolf by my side had on what people said, but I didn't care. She'd been the only thing I had for comfort until Gideon came along.

  Gideon.

  It was time I did something about my budding feelings for my childhood friend. But to do that, I needed to find a way to sneak into his bedroom for a change. I was done letting him come to me.

  Chapter 12

  It was strange how familiar and strange this part of the palace felt to me. I'd never been a guest here, and hadn't spent much time in this wing because of it. And yet it was almost identical to the wing I did live in.

  I could hear the faint murmur of voices from beneath the doors, but I didn't worry about any of them coming out and finding me here. It was too late in the evening for that.

  I stopped in front of the door I was searching for and paused with my fingers grasped around the handle.

  "Stop being silly, Katya. It's only Gideon."

  With that, I pushed on the door and let myself into the room. I was surprised it wasn't locked, it seemed foolish with so many more people around in the palace than normal.

  I wasn't about to make that mistake, and clicked the key, locking myself in. There was no turning back now.

  A soft glow came from further inside the rooms. Had I made a mistake? What was I going to find when I turned the corner? Would Gideon be entertaining some other woman because I'd taken too long to respond to him?

  That thought stopped me in my tracks, unable to go any further.

  "I know you're there, Katya." Gideon's voice cut through my nerves.

  I stepped forward, letting the light wash over me.

  He stood in the middle of the room, with two goblets of wine in his hands.

  "Was someone here with you?" I asked, nodding towards the wine.

  He smirked, and shook his head. "One of these is for you." He handed it to be.

  At a loss for what else to do, I took it from him. "How did you know I was even coming?" I asked.

  "Call it a lucky guess." He perched on the bed, his eyes watching my every move. "And the look in your eyes when you beat me earlier. That said it all."

  "And what did it tell you?" I'd meant the words to come out with an almost seductive air, instead they came out worried. What if he'd seen something that I wasn't aware of myself?

  To my surprise, Gideon chuckled. "Nothing that I didn't expect to see anyway. Now, tell me, Katya, is there a reason you came to my bedchamber in the dead of night?"

  I took a large sip of my wine, needing it to steady the nerves that started within me.

  "And where is Riki?"

  "I figured she didn't need to see this," I whispered.

  "See what? You're not making any sense." The impish smile on his face suggested that he didn't believe what he was saying, but I didn't call him out on that.

  "The mirror showed me something." My voice came out like a croak. "It showed me who I was becoming, and then it showed me the way to change that."

  "And what was that?" He set his goblet down and stepped towards me.

  I swallowed my nerves. "I think you know."

  He took my goblet from me and set it down next to his.

  "I need you to tell me, Katya," he said, his voice full of husky intensity that I didn't want to think about too hard.

  Actually, that wasn't true. I did want to think about it. More than that, I wanted to make the most of it.

  "Say it out loud," he whispered. He was getting closer by the moment, the tension building in the air.

  "How do you know what I'm going to say?" I whispered.

  "Your eyes, Katya. You've become a skilled liar, but you're not good enough to fool me."

  "The mirror showed me you," I whispered.

  "That's all I needed to hear," he responded, slipping an arm around my waist and pulling me to him.

  I licked my lips, anxious for the next part of what was to come.

  "What were we doing in the mirror?"

  "You kissed me." The words were barely audible, but I knew he heard it.

  "Like this?" he asked.

  Before I could answer, his lips pressed against mine. I'd expected something searing and passionate, but instead, I got a sweet kiss, full of emotion and feeling. There was no doubt in my mind that he was telling the truth about loving me for so long. I wished I'd been able to see it earlier and then acted on it sooner.

  It all felt so right. Gideon was my future. He was the only escape I had in a world that wanted me dead, and I was going to take it.

  We pulled apart, each of us breathing heavily, our breath mingling with how close we were standing together.

  "I've wondered how that felt for years," he whispered.

  Surprising both of us, I let out a loud giggle. "I hope it lived up to your expectations."

  "It far surpassed them. But I see why you didn't want Riki to come with you."

  I chuckled. "That's not why I didn't bring Riki."

  "Then what is the reason?"

  "Simple. It's because I don't intend to leave until the morning." I pulled away from him and went over to pick up my goblet, taking another sip. The kiss we'd shared had filled me with confidence I hadn't felt before. Potentially because I no longer had to worry about the way Gideon would respond.

  "Katya, I'm not so sure we should..."

  "Why ever not? I'm the queen, don't I make the rules?" I wasn't sure where this side of me was coming from, but I was going to embrace it if it meant I could have a chance at happiness.

  And if it meant I could have a chance at Gideon.

  Chapter 13

  Something roused me from sleep. I turned over in the bed to find Gideon's eyes staring back at me, awake and alert already, with a finger to his lips.

  I nodded, unsure what was happening.

  He slipped out of bed, and ducked through the curtains on the canopy. If I stayed quiet, whoever it was in his room wouldn't know I was here.

  I scrambled up, not leaving the bed, but grabbing Gideon's shirt from where it had been abandoned at the foot of the bed. I pulled it over my head, glad to be less exposed than I had been before. I crawled towards the end of the bed, my hand landing on the sheath that contained my dagger. Perfect, I could be clothed and armed. That was the preferred way to be. I could have used magic to hide myself, but that seemed pointless when no one was expecting me to be there.

  I peeked through the curtains, easily finding Gideon. He'd pulled on some clothes and unsheathed his sword, but otherwise waited silently.

  Had we really heard something? Or was this just the two of us being more paranoid than we should be?

  But then there was a shuffling side off to the left. There was definitely someone else in the room with us. Which only led to questions about why. What were they doing here? I presumed they were here for Gideon. I hadn't told anyone I was here, and no one had a reason to suspect I was. In theory, anyway.

  "Show yourself!" Gideon demanded.

  The shuffling intensified as a man stepped into the room.

  "Your Highness." The intruder dipped into a bow, but I could tell from the way he did it that it wasn't sincere.

  "What are you doi
ng here?" Gideon demanded in his best royal voice.

  Did the intruder know that he wasn't the real prince? I hoped not, or there could be a lot more trouble heading our way. Especially when we couldn't tell them the location of the real Jonathan, not without revealing that we also knew where Lucia was, and then my whole plot would come crashing down.

  "We've come to start a war, Your Highness."

  "And how do you intend to do that? I highly doubt a bedchamber in the middle of the night is the proper way to declare war on a nation." The shake in his voice was clear to me, but I knew him well enough to notice these things. The intruder probably had no idea that Gideon wasn't completely comfortable in this situation.

  Moonlight lit the room well enough for me to see the smirk on the intruder's face. "Our dear queen reminded us that a simple injury to you could result in a war earlier. I can't wait to find out what your death would provoke."

  I gasped despite myself, before shoving my hand over my mouth. Gideon flinched, having heard me. That wasn't good. I couldn't have him thinking about me when his life was on the line. He needed to focus or he was going to have some serious problems.

  "I can't let you do that, I'm afraid," Gideon said, his sword raised.

  "Try and beat me all you want. But you're going to end up dead and a war will be started," the intruder insisted.

  Gideon didn't wait for him to say anything else, and leapt forward, swinging his sword. The man parried with ease, and they started their harsh dance. It was difficult to tell exactly what was happening with how dark it was and how fast they were moving.

  My heart pounded in my chest. How was Gideon going to get out of this? He didn't have much experience of fighting in such close quarters. He was supposed to be outside, like his calling had always been. And I'd ripped that away from him.

  The squelch of a sword piercing flesh pulled my attention properly back to the fight. Rage bubbled inside me, spinning out from the amulet around my neck. I wasn't sure what I was going to do if it was Gideon who'd ended up injured, but there would be hell to pay if that was the case.

  "Katya, it's alright."

  I relaxed the moment I recognised Gideon's voice. He was fine.

  I pushed the curtains aside and made my way out into the room.

  "Are you injured?" I asked, running right up to him and patting down his entire body, searching for signs of any harm.

  "Katya, calm down. I'm fine, I promise."

  I could feel the beat of his pulse beneath my palms, but it was strong, despite the adrenaline.

  "You're really alright?" I asked.

  "Yes." He stroked my hair and leaned down to kiss me. "But you'd better sneak back to your room now, or they'll find it empty when I sound the alarm."

  I nodded. "Help me lace up my dress?"

  He shook his head. "It'll be easier for you to pretend to be asleep if you go back in your underdress. I'll hide the rest of your clothes and bring them to you later."

  I nodded, anxious about the walk back.

  "I can come with you if you want?"

  "It's best not. You need to raise the alarm as quickly as possible or they'll suspect you've killed him on purpose." I was already trying to run through what was going to happen when someone came to wake me.

  "Do you know who he is?"

  I glanced at the body, but his face was turned away from me. "He seemed familiar, but I'm not sure of his name." I'd done my best not to learn my subjects' names. It made it easier to be a bad ruler if I didn't have to worry about the individual people.

  "I'm sure the guards will know," Gideon assured me.

  "They know everyone," I agreed, grabbing my cloak from where I'd left it and swung it over my shoulders and headed towards the door.

  "Katya," Gideon said, his voice so full of longing that I wasn't able to deny him anything.

  I turned, and he closed the small distance to me, pressing his lips against mine in a kiss I'd be remembering for the rest of the day.

  "I'm sorry the intruder has ruined what's left of our evening," he whispered against my lips once he'd ended our kiss.

  I chuckled. "Yes, he did put a bit of a damper on it. But we'll have many more to come," I promised him. "I've finally decided that I need to accept the one chance at happiness that I've been given." I went up on my tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

  "I'm glad to hear that," he responded. "Now go. I'll see you very shortly anyway."

  I chuckled. "That's very true. I shouldn't linger any longer." Despite not wanting to leave him, I pushed through the door and out into the corridors.

  It was even more deserted than it had been before. The murmur of voices was completely gone now that the early hours of the morning had broken. At least it was the perfect backdrop for sneaking back to my room without anyone noticing.

  Chapter 14

  I tried to stifle my yawn, but it was getting difficult to. I hadn't slept at all since returning to my rooms in the early hours, and had spent the wait making my absence up to Riki.

  To my surprise, no one had come to get me so I could deal with the murder of the man in Gideon's rooms. I wasn't sure why. Perhaps they thought that it was too grizzly to wake the queen about. I didn't know for sure.

  "Your Majesty," one of the guards said, walking into the throne room and dipping into a deep bow. "May I have a word in private?"

  I raised an eyebrow. "Private?"

  "It's important." The nerves were written all over his face.

  "You can tell me what it is in front of the entire court," I suggested, waving my hand around to all the people assembled. It helped that I knew what it was about.

  The guard cleared his throat, clearly unsure whether or not he wanted to risk saying what he had to tell me, or go with his gut and not say a thing. He seemed to decide for the former. Smart man. And I had to admit that I was relieved, I didn't want to have to deal with his insubordination in front of everyone. "Duke Travers was found dead in Prince Jonathan's room this morning. The prince says that it was self-defence, that the Duke attacked him while talking of war."

  "Have the Duke's chambers been searched?" I asked.

  "There are guards in the process of doing that. As soon as we have any proof of anything, we'll act."

  I nodded. "Very well. For now, take anyone from the Duke's retinue and imprison them. Until we know what he's been up to, and how involved the rest of them are, we need to stop this from spreading." For once, I didn't think I was being too cold or cruel. The Duke had threatened someone I cared about, and risked a war that would upset the carefully laid plans to make Lucia into the queen she needed to be. Nobody associated with the Duke deserved my mercy right now.

  "As you wish, Your Majesty." He dipped his head once more.

  Relieved, I slumped back into my throne before remembering that people were watching and I shouldn't be so careless in my appearance. I straightened my spine and let my hand fall to the side of my throne to scratch Riki's head instead. She would be my comfort in all of this.

  The mood in the room was sombre, no doubt because other people who had considered moving against me were now starting to reconsider their roles in that. Or, they were thinking about the best way not to get caught. I should make sure some rumours made their way around about a way to join Lucia's uprising.

  This might not be what the Duke had planned, but I was going to use it to my advantage, that was the mark of a good queen, using what I had in order to make the best of a good situation.

  I clapped my hands, calling for some music to distract the assembled nobles.

  The musicians started to play even before I'd finished, clearly aware of what they were supposed to be doing.

  Now all I needed to do was spread the rumours. The music would cover where they came from, and the nobles would feel as if they were hidden by it.

  I pressed the amulet and thought about Lucia's uprising and where their headquarters were located. I had to admit that I'd been sceptical when Gideon had suggested invit
ing them here for a ball, but it was turning out to be quite advantageous to have them here.

  Whispers flew away from me and into the room. It might be a potential problem that no one would be able to source the rumours to anyone else, but I didn't think it would matter. No one would be in a rush to admit they knew anything about the uprisings, if they did, then it would be a short walk to the chopping block for them, even if I didn't want to do it.

  I sighed loudly, wishing Gideon was here to lighten the mood. It was probably better that he wasn't, though. If he was seen by my side too soon then maybe people would start to assume that there was something more to the attempt on his life than just a war.

  As if I'd summoned him, he burst through the doors, a solemn look on his face.

  I gestured him over despite the fact it wasn't wise. If he was my source of happiness, then I was going to spend every moment with him that I could get.

  He strode over and dipped into a bow. "Your Majesty."

  "I've heard you've had quite a night, Your Highness. Why don't you take a seat and tell me about it." That was the best way I could think of getting him next to me without anyone saying anything.

  "Of course, Your Majesty." He bowed again, and came to sit in the chair next to me. I was pleased to see that the servants hadn't moved it away since the last time he'd sat there.

  "Are you alright?" I whispered once he was sat down.

  He nodded. "Fine. No one suspects anything, though I have had a terrible thought."

  "Oh?"

  "We're going to need to send a letter to Prince Jonathan's father to explain what happened."

  "Oh, no. What are we going to do?" I asked, horrified. "Do you think I could use magic to make your handwriting look like his?" That was the only thing I could think of.

  He shook his head. "I don't think we can use magic. It would leave some kind of residue, wouldn't it?"

  "I don't know." I frowned, before remembering we were in the throne room. I schooled my emotions, removing them from my face. "Magic is something I've been using, but I don't understand it at all."