Freya kept the act, noticing that more than half of the audience had collars on their necks. She didn't dare give it away that she had taken her body back and she came to a stop in front of the king, staring at his shirt to avoid meeting his eyes. Her mind whirred. So this was his plan, to trap her with marriage and mark her so they were bound for life. What had he done to the current queen to feel free enough to take another? "Do you, Your Majesty, take Lady Reynette to be your queen, to love and to cherish for all time?" The minister asked. "I do." Said King Ardelan. Of course, he didn't even know her name. How many people knew that Freya was Shadow?"And do you, Lady Reynette take Your Majesty King Ardelan, first of his name to be your husband? To serve and to obey him for all time?" The minster asked her. The silence that stretched out to fill the room was deafening. The minister cleared his throat and repeated the question and Freya knew the pretence was over. She dove into
One second Freya was in that warehouse being saved not for the first time by the male that promised to kill her. She blinked and she was now in an eerily familiar room. “Vinaud.” She growled and the door opened to admit him. “It didn’t take you long at all.” He said with a dirty smirk that she itched to slap off his face. “I see you didn’t forget everything about me.”The goddamn ring! She couldn’t believe she had been so stupid not to see it before. Freya felt weak and when she tried to reach for her magic, she hit a wall hard but she displayed none of the weakness as she started to pace slowly. “Do you wish to meet an early death?” She asked him but he only smiled like a contented cat. “No doubt I’ll meet such a death eventually but it’s not by your hand, sweetheart. Did you think I wouldn’t know it was you a week ago?” He asked. “So that’s what made you angry? That you were deceived?” She asked and his jaw hardened. “Just that?” He asked incredulously. “You don’t think I h
Alone and exhausted, Freya slid to the floor. Instinctively, she reached for her magic again, and again she met a wall. She had no idea how much she’d began relying on her magic because not having it felt like having crutches snatched out from under her leg. She dropped her forehead to her knees and closed her eyes. The darkness lunged up to claim her and she happily embraced it. Vaguely, she was aware of movement in the room, food being brought in and out of the room but she made no move to touch them. It was not until the third meal was taken back out untouched that Vinaud barged back in. “Is your genius plan to starve yourself to death?” He growled as he came in but his steps froze when he saw her on the floor. She raised her face and she must look as terrible as she felt because he crossed the room to her and grabbed her shoulder. “What is the matter with you?” He asked. “You’re burning up.”She smirked. “It’s worth seeing that look on your face when I ruin all your plans by
Freya could still hear the men’s ruckus from below stairs as she snuck into Vinaud’s private chambers, landing light as a cat and dusting her hands with a smirk. Vinaud might look like a brute but how many people knew that he was actually a collector of rare books? Striding briskly into the room she broke into his safe; a cakewalk really and she worked speedily, flipping through each book until she came upon the lost sorceries. For a lost culture, she sure was seeing a lot of sorcery around her these days. A coincidence? She didn’t believe in such. The book had shockingly detailed illustrations of magical artefacts and she flipped through several until she came upon the two rings, looped into each other. The illustration matched the ring on her finger perfectly and she dropped onto her ass as she devoured each page of information. “The slaver.” She whispered, that was the name of the twin rings. Everything she’d found out about it was written here. As long as she wore this ring an
Freya soon found herself in The Pit, the forbidden place was where Vinaud sent whoever was slated for execution. “You once asked me what was in there.” Vinaud sneered in her ear before she shoved her inside. “Why don’t you find out firsthand? Survive the next hour if you can, that’s your first test.”Fuck him and fuck his test. That was what she wanted to say but the door shut in her face before she had the chance. “Bastard.” She growled and tried the door to find it locked and reinforced. She kicked it in anger before she stood still, letting her eyes adjust. The place was just as it was called, a large pit. There was no other way out but the one she just came through. She heard some ominous rattling and she leaped to the ground just in time to avoid a stinger plunging into her neck. The stinger hit the ground instead and then she rolled away as it punched into the spot where she’d fallen to. She scrambled away and her back hit something. The acrid breath was her only warning and
“That ring is mine.” Vinaud growled, facing Riordan fully. “Old friend, you don’t want to make an enemy of me do you?”All Freya could see was that the ring was off his finger which meant... he was vulnerable to her attack. A hard wall of her shadows erupted from her breast and slammed into his back, throwing him into a pillar hard. Freya got off her knees and raised her fingers, calling her shadows to her. They streamed around her wrists, between her fingers, becoming thicker and fuller and she screamed as she sent her magic hurtling into his face. He flinched and the next second, her shadows had formed a hundred daggers hovering in the air a dangerous inch to his skin. He stared her in the eyes and she breathed hard as she remembered the terrible feeling of having her will stolen away.“Give me one reason why I shouldn’t kill you.” She gritted out. “Immediately I saw your power in the Pit, I sent a letter.” He said and she stiffened. “What are you talking about?” She growled. “M
“Food delivery-“ She heard the female voices outside. “Thank you.” He said extended his hand for the tray but the ladies outside were swooning, forgetting themselves are they drooled over his bare chest. Irrationally, Freya felt a flare of annoyance and she scoffed. As if, he could sell his chest to the highest bidder for all she cared. “Shall I starve to death ?” She called and he finally brought it in. Her eyes met the ladies’ before the door closed and she smiled. They could drool, but he was hers. He set the tray down on the bed and his weight dipped the bed as he sat opposite her. She swallowed hard, trying to ignore the little detail that they were on the same bed and buttered the bread. She broke it in two and offered him one before biting into her half and nearly moaning. She’d neglected her stomach recently, nibbling on the bits and ends here and there while trying to survive. She bit into the chicken pie and groaned. “This is good.” She said around her mouthful and she lo
She and Riordan ran out of the motel room but they quickly doubled back when they got to the stairs and found a trio of them just heading up. “Shit. Upstairs.” She said urgently but he pulled her to a stop. “No.” He grabbed her arm and ground her to a halt. “Never the roof. The minute you step on the roof you’re dead.”He grabbed her arm and ran down the hallway, and they turned the corner right before the Council dogs came up. “Are they seriously trying to kill me?” She asked as she kept pace, following him through the twists and turns. “Depends on who sent them.” He replied. “The Council duhh.”“There is not just one person on the Council.” He replied. The Council was made of four people but she thought they made their decisions unanimously. “You know an awful lot about the Council.” She said to him. “Do you know who they are?”He scoffed, his tone filed with humour. “If I did I would be dead.” He said. They finally pushed a door open and emerged on the streets and she bl