“I tried to do this the easy way. I really did,” Kingsley says as he shoves through the crowd. “But since you insisted on being a pain in the ass, drastic measures are now being taken.”
My head spins as blood rushes to my brain. “Put me down, you asshole.” I smack my hand against his back. “I’m probably flashing everyone.”
“Yeah, so? I’m sure it’s not that bad of a view,” he teases.
I swat him again.
“You know, you used to be a lot nicer.” He adjusts my weight on his shoulder. “I’m not sure if this is really you or if you’re just too high on whatever it is you took.” He pauses, as if waiting for me to tell him, I keep my lips fused. “Fine, don’t tell me. I’m going to find out in a few minutes, anyway.”
I roll my eyes. Then puzzlement cracks inside me as he starts up the winding stairway
“Wait … You’re taking me upstairs?”
“Yep.” He sounds so smug.
I reach back and check to make sure my skirt’s covering my butt. “Why?
“Because your mom and dad are up there and need to talk to you.”
I scratch my head, which turns out to be an awkward thing to do while you’re hanging upside-down. “Why didn’t they just come down and get me?”
“Because they’re”—he gives a short pause—“dealing with a situation.”
What is with all these vague answers?
“What sort of situation?”
“You’ll find out soon. Just like I’ll find out soon what you’re on.” When he reaches the top of the stairs, he starts down a hallway lit up by gothic metal lanterns, and moonlight trickling through the glass window roof.
“Why? Because you think my mom and dad are going to make me? FYI, they won’t care.” I know my words are true, too. How could my mom care that I drank emperors’ blood when I know she would’ve let me go upstairs and drink some straight from the vein?
“We’ll see,” he says with that stupid smugness I grew up hating.
I smack him on the back again, just because I can.
He chuckles, and then mumbles, “Man, he’s going to have his hands full.”
I literally have no clue who the he is that he’s referring to. Or maybe this is all just a dream? Perhaps I’m passed out in the car from the blood boost and none of this is really happening.
I feel awake, though. Awake for the first time.
Man, I’m such a weirdo. How do I come up with this shit?
I continue to question if I’m dreaming until Kingsley reaches the end of the hallway and enters my mom’s office. Then the dream theory becomes a hell of a lot easier to believe.
I blink and blink again at the upside-down image of my parents, Nadine, Kingsley’s parents, Rhyland, and at least half a dozen strangers filling up my mom’s spacious office.
“Whoa, this is a trippy dream,” are the first words that leave my lips.
My mom promptly frowns. “What’s wrong with her?”
Kingsley sighs. “I think she’s on something.”
“Tattletale,” I hiss. Then I prop my hand against his back, lift my head, and brush my hair out of my face to get a better look at the scene.
Almost everyone is looking at me worriedly, except for Rhyland, who’s staring down at his clenched fists, and his mom is staring at him with extreme concern. Well, and Nadine, who’s glowering at me. That seems normal, though. Maybe the only thing normal about this entire situation.
My gaze shifts to my mom. “This is a dream, right?”
My mom shakes her head, appearing more on edge than I’ve seen her. “No, honey, it isn’t. This is very real.”
I rub my eyes, not fully trusting her. “Are you sure? Because this is really weird, and weird usually equals a dream.”
“Okay, now I’m really curious what kind of dreams you have,” Kingsley says with amusement.
I lift my hand to swat him again.
“Don’t even think about it,” Kingsley warns with a trace of laughter in his tone.
I pause, then lower my hand. Not because I’m scared, but my mom looks so upset.
“This isn’t a dream, Raven,” my mom clarifies again, then sighs. “Kingsley, you can put her down now.”
“Are you sure?” Kingsley asks. “With how bratty she’s acting, I wouldn’t be surprised if she tried to run.”
I pinch his back hard.
Shaking his head, he sets me down on the ground then steps back with his hands in front of him. “She’s all yours,” he tells my mom then positions himself in front of the doorway like he’s some freakin’ tough-ass bouncer.
I give him a dirty look, and he grins.
Shaking my head, I look back at my mom. My phone is vibrating wildly from inside my pocket, probably with messages from Effie and Anders, wondering what the hell is going on. I’m right there with them, equally as confused.
“So, if this isn’t a dream, then what’s going on?” I ask. “And why are all these vampires here?”
“To keep you safe.” A breath eases from my lips as my mom takes my hands in hers. “Raven, honey, before I try to explain to you what’s going on, I need you to tell me what you took tonight.”
I glance around the room, hyperaware that everyone is watching me. And while that contentment still exists inside my veins from the blood boost, I’m starting to feel a bit of apprehension stirring deep inside my chest.
“Um … Can I take a rain check on telling you?” I ask with a hopeful smile.
“Oh, my God, this is so fucking ridiculous,” Nadine mumbles, shaking her head. “Her over me. Her.”
“Nadine,” my mom warns. “You were warned.”
Sighing tiredly, my dad stands up from the leather sofa he’s been sitting on and moves beside me. “Raven, whatever you say—whatever you took—no one’s going to be upset with you.”
“I know that,” I say. “You guys would be hypocrites if you were.”
The crease between my mom’s brows gradually vanishes. “Oh, God … please tell me you didn’t … didn’t drink emperor’s blood.”
A deep, throaty growl reverberates around the room.
What the shit?
“There’s no way you can get upset with me,” I tell her quietly. “Not when you’ve let Nadine do it.”
My dad lets out a string of curses while another growl rumbles across the room.
What the hell is that?
“I’m not upset … I’m just …” My mom presses her fingers to the brim of her nose and shakes her head. “Whose blood did you drink?”
“I don’t kn—”
The words die on my lips as Rhyland jumps to his feet and chucks the coffee table against the wall, shattering the metal structure into a thousand pieces that rain into the air. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” he growls, a vein bulging in his neck. “This isn’t how this is supposed to go. She just has to keep fucking with me, doesn’t she?”
“Temper tantrum much?” I slap my hand over my mouth as soon as the words leave my lips. Kingsley was right; I am feisty when I’m riding a blood high.
Mr. Midnitegale gets to his feet and places a steady hand on Rhyland’s shoulder. “Son, relax. Everything’s going to be fine. We just have to wait for the blood to work out of her system. That’s all. Nothing’s changed.”
Rhyland’s fierce gaze locks on mine, his eyes burning with … well, I’m not quite sure, but it makes me step back.
I glance at my mom, her face a mixture of worry and terror. Then I glance at my dad, who is rubbing his hand across his forehead. Finally, my gaze falls to the black hardwood floors, covered in fragments of what used to be the coffee table.
“What’s going on?” I whisper, no longer feeling very confident.
My mom swallows hard. “There’s been a recent development … Well, development might be the wrong word.” Her throat bobs again. “I guess there’s no easy way to say this other than to just say it.” She clutches my hand. “Earlier this week … the lead empress requested that every empre
ss and emperor go to the Eternal Reading room … that the Eternal Readers had requested that everyone receive an unexpected reading.”
“Is that normal?” I wonder aloud.
She nods, her gaze flicking toward Rhyland, a movement I find odd. “It happens occasionally, but usually it’s to weed out some of the more unfit emperors and empresses who aren’t doing their job properly. This time it was for a different reason.” Her fingers tremble against my hand. “It was to announce a king.”
My lips part in shock. “Holy shit, Hawk’s friend of a friend of a friend was right.”
“Who’s Hawk?” Rhyland bites out, his body trembling with rage as he inches toward me.
His dad throws out his arm, holding him back. “Easy. You’re too amped up right now to get that close to her. You need to calm down first. You should know better.”
As my confusion soars through the roof, I find myself longing for the blood boost to return to my body, longing for that contentment again.
Ignoring Rhyland’s question, I ask my mom, “So, who is he?”
She lets out a deafening breath, and then her gaze shifts to the left.
Right at Rhyland.
I cringe. Fuckety fuck of all vampires, he has the power to punish me now? He has so much power. Arrogant, coldhearted, lock-me-in-a-locker-and-try-to-kill-me-with-a-demon Rhyland has more power than almost any vampire in the world.
“I know what you’re thinking, but it’s not like that,” Rhyland says, his fiery gaze carrying mine, his voice surprisingly gentle. “I promise I won’t ever hurt you.” Passion blazes from his eyes, a passion that shouldn’t be shown toward an enemy.
I literally have no damn clue what the hell he’s talking about, but something is going on. More than just Rhyland becoming king.
My gaze glides around the room at all the vampires staring at me, watching me with troubled expressions. Even Nadine looks a bit tense.
Something’s not adding up. Why drag me up here to tell me Rhyland is king? We’re not friends, so what’s the big deal? Why not just tell me when I got home? And without the vampire mafia around. They look like the same mafia that was hanging out in his driveway earlier. Are they here to protect Rhyland?
Suddenly, all those SUVs parked next door make sense. The vampires inside are probably Rhyland’s bodyguards.
“Raven.” My mom’s gentle tone draws my attention away from the strangers crowding the room. “There’s more I need to tell you.”
I swallow down a shaky breath, feeling a heightened shift in the air, as if my senses have turned up to full volume.
Giving my hand a gentle squeeze, my mom guides me over toward where Rhyland is standing. She gives Rhyland a small, encouraging nod. He returns the nod and sits down on a red leather sofa, releasing a shaky exhale. My mom then takes a seat, too, and pulls me down with her, positioning me between the two of them and leaving me very little room.
Warning flags start popping up, and I instinctively lean closer to my mom.
Rhyland sucks in an uneven inhale, as if battling to keep his temper under control. I remember how he grabbed my arm right before I left the house for the club. While his grip wasn’t rough, it was intense enough to startle me. With how intense he looks right now …
I lean even closer to my mom.
“Raven, honey, you need to calm down a bit.” My mom offers me a small, tense smile.
I peer around the room and frown. “It’d be much easier to do that if everyone wasn’t standing there, staring at me like I’m a one fanged vampire at a freakshow.”
Nodding understandingly, my mom then turns to a taller man with the greenest eyes I’ve ever seen. “Clear everyone out for a minute, will you? Let this be a family thing.”
The man steps forward with wariness written all over his face. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea right now. Not with what’s going on in the streets—”
My mom raises her hand, silencing him. “That wasn’t a request, Cam.”
He—Cam—presses his lips together and nods. Then he strides for the door. Everyone except for my family and Rhyland’s files after him.
Once the room is cleared out, Kingsley takes a seat, and my dad walks over and closes the door.
“Thank God,” my dad mumbles. “It was getting way too stuffy in here.”
“Yes, it was,” Mr. Midnitegale agrees, slumping down into a leather chair. “I know they mean well and that they’re here to protect, but I’m already starting to get a blood ache from them being around, and it hasn’t even been a day yet.”
“Everything’s going to be okay.” His wife takes a seat beside him and places her hand over his. Then she offers me a tiny smile. “Raven, you look lovely tonight.”
“Thanks?” I say more as a question because the statement feels strangely out of place right now.
She gives me an anxious smile in return, a nervous edge creeping into her features.
Nervous, nervous, nervous. Everyone is so nervous.
I settle my gaze on my mom. “Will you please just tell me what’s going on? Everyone’s acting like the apocalypse is about to happen, and I’m starting to get really worried because I don’t have my apocalypse emergency kit with me.”
“It’s not something bad,” my mom attempts to reassure me. “What we need to tell you … it’s not … bad… It’s just going to be hard for you to hear.” Her grip on my hand tightens. “Earlier tonight, before dinner, I was informed that an unexpected reading was told during Rhyland’s reading of him becoming king. During his reading, a queen’s name was announced. I wasn’t told who she was yet. Just that she’d been announced. But when Rhyland—the king—showed up at our house tonight, I—all of us—were informed of who she was.”
I frown. “Well, that doesn’t seem very fair. Shouldn’t the reading be told to the queen, and not passed along through a message? I mean, she’s going to be the more powerful one. If anyone should get told directly from Fate, it should be her.”
My mom’s lips quirk with mild amusement. “Unfortunately, that’s not always how it works. But I do agree with you.”
Rhyland blows out a deafening exhale. “So do I.”
The sound of his voice has me leaning even closer to my mom. “So, who’s the unlucky girl?”
“Hey,” Rhyland protests, though a smile threatens to turn upward on his lips. “I take that as an insult.”
“Good. That’s how I meant it.” I roll my tongue in my mouth to stop from saying anything else that might piss the king off. Although, it takes a hell of a lot of effort.
Instead of getting upset, though, amusement glitters in his eyes.
“Well, it really sucks that you see it like that.”
And just like that, reality is no longer smacking me across the face. It’s crushing me into the ground, into thousands of pieces, like the coffee table scattered across the floor.
“Wait a minute … It’s not … I’m not.” I shake my head in denial. “Nope. There’s no way.”
My mom holds on to me for dear life. “I’m sorry, sweetheart, but you are. You’re the queen.”
7
The words replay in my mind like a scratched record.
You’re the queen.
You’re the queen.
You’re the queen.
The words make no sense. None of this does.
“Are you sure it’s not a mistake?” My voice cracks. “Maybe the reading meant another Raven Olliviord.”
My mom is still grasping my hand. “Honey, Fate, the readings, they don’t make mistakes. Not with this.”
“But you told me earlier tonight that Nadine might not become an empress, even though the reading told her so.” I’m panicking and latching on to any excuse, any alternative that will get me out of this situation.
A sneer twists at Nadine’s lips and she opens her mouth to say who knows what, but my dad shoots her a don’t-even-think-about-it look. Strangely, for once, Nadine listens.
“No, I said that the reading
said she’d probably become an empress.” My mom’s tone is soft and cautious, like she’s talking to a spooked bat. “It never said she definitely would, so we won’t know for sure until training invites get sent out. But this …” She stares up at the glass ceiling, at the stars, as if cursing the heavens. I question if I’m not the only one upset about this. “There are no maybes with this.” When she looks at me, her eyes are watery. “You are the queen. The first queen in over a century.”
Tears sting my eyes. Sure, I sometimes dreamed of becoming an empress, but the queen …? The title is so important, so powerful.
“But I’m not even powerful. In fact, I’m below average. How can I be queen?”
She squeezes my hand. “You’ll get your powers… eventually. And it makes sense why your powers haven’t manifested yet. They were waiting for the reading, for Fate to announce it was time. It’s why you’ve been so tired and cold lately—your body is starting to change. Your father and I were getting a little worried when you told us … And I had just learned a queen had been chosen.” She shakes her head. “Looking back, with how you’ve been acting lately, I should’ve known it was time. But you’re so young—younger than all the rest of the previous queens—so I was hoping I was wrong.”
Panic seizes me by the throat, and I desperately struggle to find a way—an excuse—that this isn’t true. “But I haven’t even gotten my Eternal Reading yet.”
“You still will on your birthday,” my mom promises. “Just be warned that it will confirm you’re queen.”
I latch on to the word probably, even though I doubt she meant it that way, hoping upon hoping that maybe Fate will retract my royal title. I feel like a coward for thinking it, but I know I’m not strong enough to rule over and protect the entire vampire population from crazy rebellions and fights, like the one that just happened outside the club. Not when I can barely super speed without face planting.
“What am I supposed to do until my Eternal Reading, then?” I ask, staring down at my hands.
“You’ll start training and learning about what is required to become queen.” Her voice is tight. “And you’ll have to be under constant surveillance until your powers manifest, which will take some time. Until then, you won’t have the power to protect yourself yet, which will leave you very vulnerable.”