The Shadow Prince (6 page)

We followed her out into the hallway where two of her guards waited. She held up her hand when they attempted to follow. I pointed down at Marcus's shoes, trying to tell him to walk quietly without actually saying the words. He nodded, making me believe he understood. We crept slowly behind her, stopping when she opened the bathroom door.

I put my head up to the door. “I don't hear her speaking to anyone. I'm going in.”

“I'm right behind you.” Marcus rolled up his sleeves, revealing his caramel colored forearms—covered in faint scars. They had to be from his months of training.

A quick reminder of why this was so important.

I held up my hand. “No. I'll do it on my own.”

He shook his head.

Before he could say anything else, I said, “She's an untrained halfling. I can handle her.” It wasn't a lie, but the reason I didn't want him in there was because I didn't want him to be a witness. Without him saying it, I knew he didn't agree. I didn't either, but I would be king. I should be the one to kill her.

I opened the bathroom door inch-by-inch. Kalin was in one of the middle stalls. The toilet flushed. A moment later, she stood in front of the sink with her hands gripping the sides. She stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her expression somber.

This was my moment. I took several steps forward as I slid the sword out of its sheath. With only a few feet of space between us, I was close enough to take in the strawberry scent of her hair. There was another aroma coming off her. Perfume? Something with honey and cloves. I closed my eyes, taking it in.

I put my fist against my forehead.
What the hell am I doing?

Enough of this stupidity
. I gripped the sword with both hands, pulling it back over my head. From this angle, I could decapitate her. There would be no screams for help; she'd be dead in seconds. Sweat pearled in the palms of my hands. My mind raced through the events of the last twenty-four hours. Visions of her laughing, smiling, and dancing. I couldn't get the images out of my head. My stomach twisted in knots. Suddenly, the weapon got heavy. My arms were shaking.

It was as if my mind and body had turned against me.

I lowered the blade to my side. Frozen as I watched her wash her hands. Then she walked out of the bathroom.

Marcus raced inside. “Are you all right?”

I dropped to my knees, letting the iron sword fall to the floor with a clang. “I can't do it. If I kill her, I'm no better than my mother.”

He let out an exaggerated breath. “Good.”

My head jerked up. I questioned whether I heard him correctly. “How is that good?”

Marcus sat on the floor next to me, leaning against the white tiled walls. “Because I don't want you to kill her. Even if it means I'll never be free. How could I be happy knowing someone as innocent as Kalin died because of me?”

“Why didn't you say something earlier?”

He played with his hands in his lap. “I was being selfish. I kept trying to convince myself that this was okay, but it's not.” His eyes met mine. “I was about to bust in and stop you when Kalin walked out. The instant relief I felt assured me this was all wrong.”

The decision was made. Neither one of us could justify what we were about to do. It meant sacrificing the crown, but even worse, it meant that Marcus may never be free. But I was sure he was aware of the sacrifice. We both agreed it wasn’t worth taking an innocent life. Deep down, I'd known that all along. “I think we should go back to Avalon.”

“Your Mother isn't going to be happy about this.”

No one refused my mother. There would be severe repercussions for my decision. There was no way around it. “I would rather accept her worst punishment than kill Kalin.”

Marcus rose up, brushing off the back of his pants. “You won't do it alone.”

I stood. “Yes, I will. You came here as a friend. This was my task. I will accept whatever she dishes out, and if you're my friend, you'll stay out of it.”

He lowered his head. “How can I—”

I cupped his shoulder, giving him a light squeeze. “You'll do it for me. We both know she will kill you without hesitation, just to hurt me. The further you stay away from this, the better.”

Whatever she did would be brutal, but not deadly. I had rejected her order. But I was her only son. If she truly planned to abdicate her throne, she may not want to kill me now. As I thought about it more, I hoped I was right, but the uncertainty lingered. Mother was unpredictable. She could decide to make an example out of me.

It was time to find out.

Within hours, we were back in the fire court castle. The dark obsidian hallways were quiet for once. The only noise was our boots clicking against the rock flooring. Our pace was slow as we made our way toward the throne room. I wasn't sure what I would say to Mother.

Beyond saving Marcus and myself, I still had concerns about Kalin. I couldn't kill her. Neither could Marcus. But that didn't mean Mother wouldn't send someone else. There was a chance she could convince another royal in one of the other courts to help her. I had to show her Kalin was no threat. And, based on what I saw, I didn't believe she was the next akasha. There was too much mortal in her.

Honestly, I doubted she had any elemental powers at all.

Once we reached the door to the throne room, I stopped Marcus before he entered. “I don't want you to say anything. Let me handle this.”

“All right,” he said, hesitation in his voice.

“I mean it. Regardless of what I say, or what happens, you go along with it. I don't want you to be punished.”

“Be careful. Remember, this isn't the time for your usual sarcasm.”

He knew me too well. “I know.”

A gust of wind blew into my face as the doors opened. At least a hundred elementals, including a few council members and their guardians, filled the room. They were scattered in clusters. As expected, Mother was sitting on her throne. My adopted brother and sister stood on either side of her. All three of them turned to us as we stepped inside.

Mother remained sitting, tapping her fingers on the arm rest of her throne. “Have you completed your mission, Rowan?” she shouted.

We came to stand in front of her at the bottom stairs leading to her chair. I bowed. “No, Your Majesty.”

Her eyes widened with surprise. “Then why have you returned?”

“I cannot complete the task you've given me.” The silent room filled with sounds of faint whispers. Each of them had been around long enough to know what would happen next. There was no room for failure in my mother's court.

“Are you refusing my order?”

“I've spent the last twenty-four hours watching the girl carefully. Based on what I've witnessed, I do not believe she is a threat to anyone.”

Mother rose and made her way down the stairs. Only inches away from my face, she said, “I did not ask you to
spy
on the girl.”

“No, you didn't.” I responded with barely more than a whisper. I didn’t know why Taron kept her hidden, but if I revealed what Mother thought she was, some may seek her out to see for themselves. Or, they may fear Kalin as she does. Regardless, I wouldn’t put her in any danger. “You asked me to break one of the sacred rules of the decrees. To commit treason. To murder a royal family member. I'm sorry to disobey you, but I cannot do what you have asked of me.”

She circled me. Speaking loud enough for the crowd to hear, she said, “I asked you to prove your loyalty to this court. To show me you are worthy of my crown.”

“I have shown I am worthy by making the right choice regardless of the consequences.”

She placed her hand on the side of my face. From anyone else, it would've been a sweet gesture. From her, it wasn’t. “Well then, are you ready to accept my judgment?”

I put my hand on top of hers, removing it from my face. “Yes, I am ready. But I ask that you spare Marcus. He had accompanied me with the intent to help me complete my task. It was my choice to refuse your command.”

She let out a chuckle. “Very well. Marcus will not be punished.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty,” I said, trying to sound as genuine as possible.

“I wasn't finished,” she said with a wicked grin. “Marcus will not be reprimanded. However, he will assist in your punishment.”

I glanced at Marcus, then back to Mother. “What do you mean?”

“I'll show you.” She pointed at Marcus.

He dropped to his knees, pained screams echoed the walls. She was using her power to force him to shape-shift into his hound form. I clenched my fists at my sides. “This isn't necessary. You don't need to do this.”

“Oh, but I do. It's been so long since I shifted one of my hounds.” She twisted her wrist. Each time she waved her hand, bones in his body snapped and relocated.

Marcus clenched his teeth, trying to hide the pain. I agonized next to him, knowing there was nothing I could do to help. She wouldn't stop. Not even if I begged. She was hurting him to punish me. To cause me pain.

It was working.

Standing on all fours, he had already doubled in size. Clothing ripped from his growing torso until there was nothing left but shreds of fabric around his feet. Coarse black hair grew over his caramel skin. As he growled, his face morphed into something resembling a panther. Hands became paws until I could see nothing mortal in him.

She stood back to admire her work. “There. Now isn't that better?”

Marcus let out a howl, shaking the room. I lost my balance, almost falling. He couldn't communicate while in his animal form, but when we made eye contact, I could see his fear. I bent down, putting my hand on top of his head. “I'm so sorry. I will get you out of this, I promise.”

Two guardians in mortal form appeared at my sides. Each gripped one of my arms, pulling me into a standing position. I attempted to fight my way free. But breaking their hold was like trying to break free from iron chains. I didn't budge an inch. “What is this, Mother? Am I one of your prisoners now?”

She addressed the crowd. “Let this be a lesson to all of you. I will not tolerate disobedience in my court. If you refuse me, you
will
suffer the consequences.”

I glanced down at Marcus. Whimpering, he stepped toward me, then moved back. When I turned to look at Mother, she was holding out both of her hands like she was trying to control a puppet. The elementals around us cheered. They enjoyed watching the tug-of-war as Marcus fought for control of his own body. Whatever she wanted him to do, it was clear, he didn't want to do it.

I tried pushing my body weight into one of the guardians, hoping he'd loosen his grip, but nothing happened. These two hounds were immovable. Tears welled in Marcus's eyes. My chest ached imagining how much pain he was in. I had to stop this. “Stop fighting her, man. Let her do what she wants. You promised me, remember?”

“I will take my retribution,” she shouted over the roaring horde.

Taking a defeated exhale, Marcus settled behind me. The guardians pulled my sheathed sword over my head and removed my leather jacket. Someone from behind tore my t-shirt off. My wings protruded out of my back, expanding across my shoulders. “What the hell are you doing?”

I had my answer as soon as I felt Marcus’s teeth sinking into one of my wings. I screamed out as I tried to fight my way free. Was this really happening? Searing pain ran down my back each time his claws tore through my flesh. As his jaws clamped down, I heard bones breaking like microwave popcorn. With each snap, stabbing pain radiated between my shoulders in waves. As he shook his head back and forth, the skin and cartilage connecting my wings to my back separated. Bloodied feathers fell to the ground in clumps. With a thud and applause from the crowd, my wing landed at my feet.

My knees buckled from the injuries and blood loss. The guardians held me in place as Marcus repeated the same process on my other wing. At some point, I went into shock. The world around me was silent and I wished for death. My eyes were half closed with starbursts in the corners of my vision, yet I managed to lift my head high enough to see my brother smiling. My sister had her eyes closed and arms crossed, face turned away from me. Regardless, neither of my siblings moved or attempted to help me.

The guardians released me. I flopped on the ground, landing right on my face with a loud snap. Coppery blood dripped from my nose into my mouth, making me gag.

My nose.

My wings.

Everything was broken.

I was broken.

What a fool I'd been. All these elementals I had hoped to rescue from my mother celebrated as I was mutilated. Not a single one of them tried to stop what was happening or begged for mercy on my behalf. This court wasn't worth saving. None of them.

Except Marcus.

As I lay here, possibly dying, my heart broke for him. If I lived my scars would heal, but he'd have this memory for the rest of his life. And if I died, he was the one who killed me.

I turned my swollen face to the side, resting my cheek on the cold floor. I couldn't open my eyes. I didn't know where Marcus was, but I hoped he was close enough to hear when I whispered, “It’s okay.”

“Get him out of my sight,” she ordered.

There was a discussion going on above me. My heartbeat pounded in my ears making it hard to hear what they were saying. It sounded as if they were trying to decide what to do with me. Someone mentioned the dungeons. Another suggested throwing me out of the castle. It didn't matter to me anymore. I'd been left for dead by my own family. My court had abandoned me. What was left?

Then, there was nothing.

I had no sense of time. For a while, black emptiness was the only thing that surrounded me. It was peaceful. Painless. Comforting, like I was meant to be there. I awoke abruptly as someone carried me away. My eyes were at half-mast, but open enough to see I'd been flung over the back of a coarse haired creature. A hound? Whatever it was, it travelled at a rapid pace. The constant movement aggravated my wounds until every inch of my body ached. If I had any energy left, I would have let out a pained scream.