Chapter 3
"Lady Ari, please be respectful," an attendant said firmly. "She had passed the Trial of Fire."
She sneered at me. I returned her dismissive look. Ari flushed.
"Even if that's true, my brother deserves better," she snarled. "You have no right to wear the queen's colors, human!"
I narrowed my eyes. "Is that because you want to wear them?"
She snarled and drew a sword.
The attendants went still, but I darted forward, striking her in the wrist. She let the sword go, and I snatched it out of the air. Ari stumbled and tried to swipe at me, but I dodged and shoved her back into the wall, then pressed the blade to Ari's throat. Ari gasped and flashed her sharp teeth.
"Your Majesty--"
"Let me make something clear," I said. "You may have run around being a terror before I arrived, but I'm not one to be bullied."
She snarled. Her eyes flashed with light. "You human wretch. You'll regret this."
"Not as much as you will." I pressed the blade closer to her neck. "The next time you pull a sword on me, I'm going to take your fucking arm off."
She snarled. "My brother will never accept you."
I scoffed and stepped back, dropping the sword at her feet.
"I'm not asking him to. I didn't ask to be here. Send me back."
The attendants looked nervous. "That's not possible."
Ari snarled, snatching the sword up from the ground. "You..."
"Lady Ari, you've attacked Her Majesty," the attendant said. "Under the law..."
my hand. "Don't worry about arresting her. Just... report it to whoever the powers that be are. Whoever is going to get her
"Aren't there officials? Elders?"
this," the attendant said slowly, glancing at me. "They will also want to
"No, thanks."
"That's not an option."
I have any
Their eyes glinted. "No."
I scoffed.
at me. "Just you
and stomped out.
"I have to report to the Elders
a gong started to ring through the
"What is that?"
past dinner time, heading into the sleeping hours... As the new queen, it's your duty to bathe the King
cocked an eyebrow at her. "You... expect me to change a man... twice my size? Who I have never met? Seems a
chuckled. "It is your
"I could kill him."
"Please don't... joke like
essentially forced me through a wall of magical fire and slapped a
lineage has
thumb back. "She seemed more than happy to take up that
into a smile. "Lady Ari
"Great. An enemy I didn't ask for.
is tradition. You will understand the longer you are
"Highly doubtful."
scent of burning bodies and shuddered. I watched Maya walk into the attached room. She
you. Please call me if you need me." She
"Wait a second!"
door closed behind her. I went to it and tugged on the door, finding it locked. What the hell? Was this some odd idea for a marriage night? I shuddered, feeling more sick by the second. I looked down at the bowl of hot water and et on the bedside table. I turned around to look at the
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