Bane of Winter Page 8

  I am still Veles.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Wait here.” Nia planted me in a black and white chamber that looked like a sitting room with a low table and several seating options. A huge window made of thick glass took up one wall and heavy black drapes bordered it. It was a modern space, and for a moment, I allowed myself to imagine I was back home, back in Justice Falls. Visiting the fancy side of town, even though everyone I’d known who lived there had cut ties with me when Dad started drinking heavily.

  “Her Majesty will be with you shortly,” Nia said.

  At least I wasn’t dressed in another gauzy number. This morning I’d been provided with britches and a tunic top that went down to mid-thigh. Paired with my boots, the outfit was sturdy. Nia had brushed and pulled my hair back into another braid, and, satisfied with my appearance, she’d led me through the east wing and down a set of stairs into a network of narrow corridors and walkways. The staff access routes—dull, gray, and uncarpeted.

  It was obvious that the queen wasn’t ready for me to be out in public just yet. I’d need to convince her otherwise when she finally deigned to greet me. Standing here in her private quarters, like a lump of lard, grated. This wasn’t who I was, and playacting the docile mortal was beginning to wear on my nerves.

  Nia ducked out of the room a moment later, leaving me alone in the opulent chamber. It was time to explore. Several doors led off this central meeting room, and I padded over to the nearest one. It was slightly ajar, and a quick peek showed a small library of books and a desk. A study? The next door was firmly closed, but the third was ajar, and my breath caught as I peered inside.

  Rayne stood before a tall freestanding mirror. Her body, in profile to me, was encased in an ivory silk robe, and her hair was piled on top of her head in a coil. In the shadows behind her was an unmade and rumpled bed. My gaze tracked back to her as she unbelted her robe and let it fall to the ground to reveal her perfect, taut form—high, firm breasts, a flat abdomen, and gently curved hips. God, she was beautiful, and obviously proud of it to stand staring at herself for so long. This wasn’t a scene I needed to see. I made to back up, but then a voice whispered in the room.

  “Yesss. Oh, yess, my beauty. Touch yourself for me.”

  Rayne’s eyes fluttered closed, and her hands began to run over her body.

  “Lower. Lower …” the voice commanded.

  It was coming from the mirror. The mirror was speaking to the queen.

  Rayne obliged, her head falling back as she explored herself. Her chest began to rise and fall rapidly at her own exertions and then tendrils of black smoke seeped from the mirror to lick at her flesh. What was it? Who was it? Impossible to see from the angle I was at, but the smoke was all over her, touching her, caressing her, and then she was rising in the air, suspended by the smoke as it seeped into her skin. Her pale flesh flickered so it was covered in a network of black veins one moment, and then pale and unmarred the next.

  “Mine …” The thing in the mirror lowered her gently, almost lovingly, to the ground.

  Rayne’s feet touched the floor, and she swayed a moment, her eyes still closed. “Yours.”

  “Now, go and play.”

  Rayne stumbled back a step, and then her eyes snapped open. Shit. I backed up. The taint, it had to be. It had Rayne in its grip. I had to calm down, get my pulse under control before she—

  “Were you spying on me?” Rayne stood in the doorway to her bedchamber. Her nakedness was covered by the robe, but the imprint of what I’d seen was still burned in my mind’s eye.

  “No.” The lie was easy.

  “Come here.”

  That was the last thing I wanted to do, but compliance was the key for now. I walked up to her, and she looked down on me, and then she snagged me around the waist and spun me into the room. The door closed behind us, and she backed me up toward the bed. The back of my knees hit the mattress, and I went down.

  She stood above me, her breath erratic. “You smell different, little one. It seems you may have had a taste of my court after all. I’m glad, because I’m in the mood for a little recreation. At least this way you will not be overcome by my enthusiasm. You’ll oblige me, won’t you, my pet?”

  Oh, God. Did she mean …? “Your Majesty—”

  “Rayne.” Her voice was a growl. “Call me Rayne.”

  “Rayne, I don’t think … I mean, I’m not into wo—”

  She lowered herself onto me, cutting off my words. “How about you hold that thought until you try it?” Her lips claimed mine, softly, so softly that the contact halted my breath.

  If I lay still, if I didn’t respond, then it would be over. She tasted me, top lip then bottom lip, no tongue just that gentle tug with her mouth. Oh, God. She tasted good. Like cherry pie, and my mouth parted involuntarily, wanting more of that flavor, and then her tongue licked mine and that twisted, dark libido of mine, teased and coaxed by Berstuk, surged up in a low, carnal moan.

  She chuckled into my mouth and deepened the kiss. The weight of her body on mine, the crush of her breasts against mine, her hands tangling in my hair, it was too much—confusion and sensation and a need I didn’t know I had or wanted. And then the voice inside, the one demanding control, filled my mind. I twisted my hips, flipping her onto her back so I was the one on top, the aggressor. Her eyes widened in surprise, and the aggressor inside me reveled in my ability to shock her, and then I claimed her mouth with teeth and tongue, plundering and taking the flavor. My hands were on her breasts, exploring and kneading. It was her turn to moan now, her turn to arch beneath me.

  This was my power, my carnal web, my—Oh, God. What was I doing? I rolled off her and leapt off the bed, making it to the door before the whiplash of her voice halted me.

  “Stop!”

  Blood rushing in my ears, fists clenched at my sides, I turned to face her disheveled, flushed form. Her robe had come undone, and my gaze fell to her breasts. I forced my attention to her face and then composed my features.

  “Your Majesty?”

  She didn’t correct me this time. Instead, she merely smiled. “A performance like that deserves a reward, so tell me, pet, what is it you desire?”

  This was my chance. My unwittingly gained opening. “Freedom to roam the castle.”

  She pouted her full lips and gathered her gown around her. “I will consider it. Once I’ve greeted the ambassadors from autumn.” There was a sly look on her face as she waved her hand toward the door. “Go wait for me. We’ll go down to the throne room together.”

  Leaving her to dress, I stationed myself by the window, staring out at the frozen expanse below and waiting, waiting for the blood to stop simmering in my veins. The blizzard that had hounded the Raven and me whirled and swirled over the land, making it impossible to see farther than the gates to the court.

  My scalp prickled and then a chill brushed my back. How was it that she had felt so warm beneath me a moment ago and now it was like standing next to an icebox.

  “Do you like the vista?” she asked.

  “It would be much more pleasant without the storm.”

  She laughed softly. “Like this?” She stepped around me and flicked her wrist and the storm shifted, leaving the sky clear. “Is that better, pet?”

  “How did you do that?”

  “A recently acquired skill, and one which I am enjoying. It goes where I please, chills where I wish it to. Winter is no longer confined to the winter lands. Winter is spreading and, therefore, so is my domain.”

  She was controlling the weather? This insane blizzard that never ceased was her doing.

  “Why?” I turned to study her proud and regal profile.

  “Justice.” She fixed her ice eyes on me. “For those lost and those taken before their time.” Her eyes narrowed. “The other monarchs want my court. The other seasons hunger for this stronghold. They covet the majesty of winter, and so they come in the night, they send their minions and they hurt my people. I will not tolerate it.�
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  “The village …”

  Her smile was bitter. “A whole village wiped out.” She closed her eyes. “They were mine to protect, and I failed them. I have failed time and time again. My scouts, my eyes on the ground, have failed to catch the culprit, and so all the courts must suffer. It is the only way to flush out the perpetrators.”

  There was insanity in her eyes and yet her words made sense. She was a queen, and a queen had a duty to protect her subjects, and yet the taint was inside her. How much of what she said and did was the taint’s influence, and how much was her own mind? Confusion writhed in my chest.

  She smiled. “Oh, don’t think so hard, my pet. The safety of the kingdom is my responsibility.” She grazed my cheek. “You, my little one, are a much-needed distraction. Come, let’s tend to business, and then we will address your freedom.” She leaned in slightly, and despite my better efforts, I found myself leaning toward her. Triumph flared in her eyes as she pulled away, and a knot of disconcertion formed in my abdomen.

  I was changing in ways I didn’t fully understand, and Rayne seemed to complicate things. I needed to get out of here and fast. Just one more day. If there was no more information, then I’d leave.

  She’d retreated to cool and icy. Her expression indifferent. This was her monarch face, and her subjects stood silent and waiting on either side of the room, the same room where they’d danced and reveled last night, but this morning there was no music, no laughter, and no murmurings.

  I sat on the step at her feet like the night before, but she didn’t stroke my head. She didn’t address me. Instead, her attention was fixed on the two men dressed in green and brown who knelt before her. A large chest on wheels was stationed behind them. They’d pulled it in themselves, huffing and heaving. What did it contain that was so heavy?

  “Deliver your message,” Rayne said.

  “Your Majesty, the queen of autumn sends her deepest regards and a gift for your coffers.”

  “Show me.”

  They hurried to open the huge chest, faces red as they hauled the lid up to reveal the bounty within. Gold coins, goblets, rubies, and gems glittered. A collective gasp went up, but the queen remained unmoved.

  She flicked her wrist. “Close it.”

  The ambassadors of autumn obliged.

  “And what is it you want in return?” There was an edge to her voice now.

  The two men exchanged glances. “The chest is a gift from our liege and—”

  “And what does your liege want in exchange for this gift?”

  “Nothing in exchange, Your Majesty, just a small consideration.”

  “Go on.”

  “The autumn lands have succumbed to winter. Frost and snow blanket the land. The people of autumn are ill-equipped for it.”

  Rayne shrugged. “Buy some furs and chop more wood for your fires.”

  The second man’s eyes flashed. “With all due respect, Your Majesty, you are encroaching on our lands with your unnatural storm.”

  “Wilaby!” His companion looked horrified at the outburst.

  “No, Pilamon, this must be said.”

  Rayne smirked. “Oh, please, do continue.”

  She seemed to have relaxed, but it was an illusion, because the air around her crackled with tension. I tried to catch the speaker’s eye, but his gaze was fixed on Rayne, and his jowls quivered with righteous indignation as he spoke.

  “The blizzard is no ordinary phenomenon. Our magisters have studied it. Its origins are at the winter court.”

  Rayne made an ‘o’ with her lips. “What is it you’re trying to say?”

  “The blizzard is your doing,” he blurted out.

  Outraged gasps and exclamations filled the room.

  Rayne’s face was a mask of fury as she slowly stood. “You dare to accuse me of horror when your queen sends assassins into my lands to kill my people?”

  Another gasp of outrage from the court.

  The autumn ambassadors looked thrown.

  “Only yesterday, I rode through a village, a ghost town, where the mark of the elm was etched onto the gates and painted on the doors, where rivulets of blood stained the virgin snow. It isn’t the first village that I have seen left in this state. You killed my people, and you dare to come here with your gold and your gems and expect me to recall winter from your lands?”

  “So, you admit the blizzard is your doing?”

  “The blizzard is my wrath. The blizzard is justice. Autumn will pay for its treachery with blood, be it warm or be it ice in the vein. Winter will have its vengeance for the lives lost.”

  “Kill them!” someone shouted out from the crowd.

  “Make them pay.”

  Rayne exhaled, and the rage bled from her features, but her face was all the more chilling in its serenity.

  The ambassadors paled. “Your Majesty, please believe us, autumn has not raised a hand against winter. There must be some mistake.”

  Rayne shook her head and sat back down. “And now they call me a liar, question the evidence I saw firsthand.” Her lip curled. “We will have justice this day.”

  Two huge white wolves padded into the room and silence fell like a blanket on the gathered. Eyes gleamed in fear and some in excitement as the mammoth beasts snuck up on the envoys. Finally, the two autumn emissaries turned, trembling, to face the wolves. Lyrian’s silver gaze slid my way and a low growl had my hackles rising.

  “Your Majesty. Mercy,” Wilaby pleaded.

  “Mercy is something your queen did not offer my subjects. And there will be none from me.”

  The wolves pounced, and a scream locked in my throat. Flesh tore, blood spattered, bones crunched, and gut-churning screams echoed off the walls. The room watched in silence as the wolves ripped the men to shreds. The screams finally died, and Rayne stood.

  Her dull gaze fell on me. “Go wander, pet. Go wander.” And then she strode from the room.

  I’d seen the darkness in her eyes, the flash of desperation just before she’d turned away, just before the icy mask fell back over her features. I’d seen the flash of something raw, and now only one question burned in my heart and mind—who would she be if I could free her of the taint.

  Chapter Sixteen

  It was as if the display had put a damper on the very atmosphere. Courtiers drifted away, melting into the halls of the vast castle or out the doors to head back over the bridge into the village below. I slipped out of the throne room, hiding amidst the crowd, shielded from the snarling feeding wolves, and then ran up the grand staircase, past the guards, who knew me by sight now, and toward the network of corridors used by the help.

  As the gray stone and wooden floors closed around me, as the corridors narrowed, my breath came easier.

  The images of death began to fade, although the echo of screams lingered. She’d executed those ambassadors, given the order as easily as if asking for cream in her coffee. A maid scurried past, small and elfin like Nia; she glanced sharply at me, and then her attention dropped to my tunic and she looked away. The quality of the material of my tunic must have given her pause. I was no server.

  I came to a halt. “Excuse me?”

  She paused. “Should you be down here, miss?”

  “The queen has given me permission to wander.”

  She nodded. “And so I shall leave you to your explorations.”

  “Wait. How long have you worked here?”

  “All my life, miss.”

  “And how long is that?”

  “Half a century, give or take a few years.”

  “And the king? Where is he?” I dropped the question into the conversation smoothly, hoping to trip her up, but she looked up at me with a frown.

  “Which king, miss? The summer king?” Her expression softened. “Oh, dear, no, you need not worry. He won’t find you here. You’re safe here, miss.”

  She’d heard about my faux plight then, and it was obvious from her initial confusion that she knew nothing of the winter king.
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br />   She took a step closer. “If you carry on and take a left, you’ll find yourself headed to the kitchens; mayhap cook will be inclined to allow you a taste of tonight’s stew. Mighty fine it smells, miss, mighty fine.”

  I couldn’t help but smile at her enthusiasm. Like Nia, there was a simplicity and kindness about this creature that the noble fey seemed to lack.

  “I may do that.”

  She inclined her head and then hurried off. Now, veer left to the kitchen as suggested or go right to explore what lay beyond? My stomach grumbled, making my decision for me.

  “Well, you did a fine job of that stew,” cook said as she gathered the bowl. “No wonder, you’re all skin and bones. Them summer folk, prancing around all day in their fancy gardens, lounging around on their lakes on their fancy boats, sipping nectar from thimble-sized cups. Pah! No wonder you look half starved. We’ll put some color back in them cheeks.”

  I stared up at her in awe. The woman was a monolith of hulking stature, with tusks, a hairy chin, and an impressive bosom. She was dressed like the other help, in pants and a tunic, but her apron was a work of art with zippers and pockets of all sizes and shapes. Her hair was scraped off her frightful face, and the only reason I hadn’t soiled my pants on seeing her were her eyes. Her eyes were kind, and they crinkled at the corners when she smiled. Okay, so you had to ignore the tusks, but still.

  She’d known who I was and ushered me to the huge oak table, where other, smaller kitchen staff stirred and chopped and kneaded. And then there had been the stew. Fragrant and thick and delicious. My stomach sighed with satisfaction.

  “And them spring bastards,” cook continued as she rolled out some pastry. “Almost as bad as the summer folk, if you ask me, hiding in their glass towers refusin’ to take sides while autumn attacks our lands. Bastards.” She sniffed derisively. “I hope the frost freezes Queen Aurelia’s harvest machines. Them huge, hulking, cog-ridden monsters that reap the bounty of the land over and over need to fall over and rust. I hope her stores freeze. Did you know they stopped supplying winter a year ago?”