At one point, Cobra and Scorpius got into a fight to see who could handle the most pain. An hour later, Cobra was in a chokehold with his eyes popping out of his sockets, and he refused to call it quits.
Jax had to pull them apart, and they were forbidden from talking to each other the rest of the night.
It didn’t work.
Later that night, Cobra pulled Scorpius behind the tree and stabbed him in the thigh with a carving knife. They both smiled at each other and watched blood drip.
I rolled my eyes at their antics and turned back to the party.
I was too drunk to judge.
The best part of the night was when John tried to fight Sadie because she kept boxing him out on the dance floor. Luka stepped in before his twin could get his ass beat.
It was a messy, chaotic night.
It was perfect.
At one point, in the early hours of dawn, I sat tiredly at a table to catch my breath from the dancing and sipped water while I watched everyone else frolic.
A tongue licked up my leg slowly, and I jolted.
The lemon-meringue-patterned tablecloth hid him from view completely, and I tipped my head back and closed my eyes as Scorpius made good on his promise.
When the sun crested over the rolling hills, the men took my hand and RJE’d me to a surprise location. I was convinced they were taking me to a beach somewhere.
I was wrong.
It was even better.
We arrived at the fae palace, and I gasped in shock.
“Surprise.” Corvus smirked.
The men explained how they’d put in an announcement the week prior that I’d be returning to face my challengers; as a result, the palace halls were filled with fae who wanted my throne.
Corvus’s expression became serious. “I trust you will eviscerate the competition. It is—hard for me to put you in danger like this. But I know what you can do.”
There had been a restlessness among all of us the past few weeks. A small itch that needed scratching.
I smirked up at him evilly and patted his arm. “Don’t worry, sweet cheeks.”
He looked worried.
But Orion opened his mouth before he could argue, and together we unleashed our powers.
A blizzard rolled in.
Fae charged forward but ice spread through the halls and froze them in their tracks. Their eyes widened with surprise then went blank as I tapped my staff and ice cut them to pieces.
Word spread and the fae stopped running toward me, but away from me when they saw me coming down the hall.
I chucked my head back and laughed.
The power intoxicating as I tapped my staff and eviscerated them.
Five men walked behind me with knives drawn like avenging angels ready to protect their woman if I needed their help.
I didn’t.
Forty minutes later, I walked through the ice-coated atrium and collapsed onto the seat of death with a smirk.
I raised my staff and slotted it in the arm holder.
The skull on top matched the black skulls that covered the throne.
It was a perfect fit.
I exhaled as I took in the body parts of the slain challengers that covered the floor of the throne room.
I didn’t feel bad for them.
Okay, I felt a little bad, but I was really not trying to think about it.
Instead, I focused on the high of victory.
My mates kicked the downed bodies with vicious satisfaction as they walked toward me with proud smirks on their faces.
Palace aides filtered back inside the castle, staring at me in awe as they took in the carnage. An enchanted broadcast stone floated overhead.
The fae realm got the first glimpse at their new leader.
Days later, I found out that the broadcast had record turnout, and afterward they’d held a realm-wide poll. My approval rating was above one hundred percent because some people had voted multiple times.
The realm was delighted to see their favorite fae princess as a powerful queen. The pundits were quick to claim that they’d been the first to recognize my strength as a child. They wrote that I was the strongest water fae the realm had ever known. They speculated my half-angel heritage made me invincible.
I let them have their delusion because I was a merciful ruler.
Mother had been wrong—I was stronger than she could have ever imagined. Stronger than she ever was.
Because the seat of death was mine, and I didn’t want it.
Chapter 70
Jinx
SECRETS
Theomania (noun): religious madness in which the patient believes that he is the Deity.
I was woken up by an electric shock to find two figures looming in the darkness beside my four-poster bed. Turning as I convulsed, I shoved Warren’s sleeping ferret form under the pillow.
The two leaders had arrived.
Dick stood beside the cloaked figure with vibrant blue eyes.
Sadie and Aran thought the cloak concealed a man because of the person’s deep voice and commanding size. You should never make assumptions without all the facts.
The figure pulled down the head of their cloak and revealed a gorgeous woman’s face. She pressed on her thin silver necklace and canceled the enchantment that concealed her voice.
“Hello Jinx,” her tinkling feminine voice filled the quiet room. She was a master of secrecy. As far as I could tell, I was one of the few people who knew she was a woman, but I still didn’t know her name.
My limbs stopped trembling as I panted, “I’ve been expecting you.”
I sat up and grimaced as I realized my prosthetic was across the room, leaning against the chair behind them.
Their positioning was purposeful.
Cowards.
I glared at them, and Dick scoffed as he walked into the light.
“You will step down as Regent of the Fae Realm immediately. We did not authorize you to rule the realm,” Dick spat. “Also, your other shackle will be reinstated because you’ve clearly demonstrated that you have no control over your violent urges.”
It was my turn to scoff.
Every move I made was carefully calculated and planned out; it was how I’d always lived. If I weren’t so regimented, I wouldn’t have survived this long.
Dick held up the gold shackle, and I cradled my bare wrist against my chest protectively.
Then I pulled up the sleeve of my nightgown to reveal the small word carved into my flesh: “LIARS.” You wouldn’t notice it unless you knew to look for it.
“Take a step closer and you’ll regret it,” I warned.
Dick stopped moving.
“What is that?” the woman asked.
I smiled. “Insurance against you two.”
“Explain,” Dick spat, his disguised features turning red with agitation.
My tone was blasé as I said, “Aran’s scar got me thinking about the many uses of blood enchantments. They are quite versatile.”
Dick’s scowl deepened, and I kept my face a blank mask while inside I was a mess of nerves.
I had one chance to get this right or my life was forfeit.
I continued, “This blood enchantment is tied to my life force and—through a tricky bit of science, made possible by the resources of the fae court—it is also tied to an algorithm. You both know how talented I am when it comes to equations.”
Dick’s eyes flashed, and his plain features distorted as his true face showed through.
Both Dick and the cloaked woman understood that I was a genius beyond the scale level used for these realms. They were the ones who’d tested me.