Chapter 5 The Queen's Plea
My world is spinning so fast that I feel as if I could float off the surface and never come down again. Pressing my forehead to the cold stones in the secret passageway, I try to catch my breath. It’s finally begun. I’m finally here. Everything I’ve worked for is in reach. Redemption is in reach, and I can barely breathe with the weight of it all.
My mind keeps flashing back to seeing Thorne for the first time today, the way he turned his head toward me, the way he could see me. My skin crawls, my heart clenching. I’ve always known the slayer master was cold and calculating, but seeing him up close, smelling the scent of sulfur and fire… Thorne is the real deal. The first to ever slay a dragon, the first to prove it could be done. Being in his range is as terrifying as it is exhilarating.
Click. Scrape.
Click. Scrape.
As if my thoughts have summoned him, the sound of Thorne walking through the halls on the other side of the wall echoes through my mind. His pace is slow, almost leisurely, and I swear I hear his fingertips grazing the cold stones as he walks, his staff dragging after every step. If I could see through these walls, I’m certain the blind man would be looking for me.
Click. Scrape.
Silence.
He’s stopped walking, the last click of his staff right in front of where I’m hiding, thick stone between us. I swallow, pressing myself to the opposite expanse of the passageway. Something in me just knows he’s facing me. Does he know I’m here? What’s on the other side of the wall? A tapestry? A painting? Is there something else he could be staring at that would mean he can't sense me?
“Thorne!” Queen Serena’s voice pierces my brain as cleanly as my needle pierced Malachi’s eye. Her anger is palpable, like something I could reach out and snatch from the air.
“Ahh, Serena, I was hoping we would meet before the trial began,” Thorne says calmly, his voice bordering on mocking. “I wonder…no, never mind. How can I help you?”
“You will address me as Queen Serena or Your Highness!” Serena’s bristling, more angry than I’ve ever heard before.
“But of course, My Queen. My sincere apologies.”
“How could you allow this?” Serena whispers, devastated to see her son, her only child, her heir, sign up for the trial.
“Allow what, Your Highness? I am merely the slayer master. The only thing I’m responsible for is training the acolytes in how to destroy our greatest foes.”
“How could you allow her to sign up?”
I suck in a sharp breath. She’s worried about me? Not Zaries?
“Her? I could have sworn you bore a son, not a daughter,” Thorne quips.
“Do not test me, blind man. There are other dragon slayers now. Others who could replace you easily.” Serena clears her throat, and I can hear her shift her skirts uncomfortably. “She’s a lady’s maid, Thorne, not a warrior.”
“Then she will die. Either way, you need a new lady’s maid.”
“No! Revoke her entry! Refuse her at the trial!”
I surge away from the wall. No! He can’t! I’ve worked too hard for this!
“The parchment is signed and sealed, My Queen. I have no power to turn her away, nor would I expend my energy to do so. People must die in the trial so others can see the odds they truly face. Your maid will be a perfect lesson.”
Click. Scrape.
I wonder if the queen is as furious as I feel she must be.
“Serena, ahem, My Queen… Do you not worry about your son in the trial? What is so special about this young woman that you would plead for her life and not his?”
The stark silence on the other side of the wall sets my teeth on edge. Thorne’s right. Why is she more concerned about me than her own son? I’m nothing but an attendant to her. The only thing I have to offer is embroidery and help to dress and prepare for the day. As far as she knows, I am and have always been, nothing but a maid.
“Zaries seeks to prove himself. He’s trained to fight. He will survive.”
“I admire your faith in the young prince,” Thorne chuckles.
“Turn her away, Thorne. I’m warning you.”
Thorne cackles at that, laughing right in the face of the queen’s threat. “Serena Carpathian, if a great fire-breathing dragon cannot harm me, what makes you think you can?”
“That dragon blinded you, Thorne, lest you forget. I may be no dragon, but my claws are my soldiers, and no one man can stand against an army.”
The air seems to crackle with electricity, the lingering threat hanging between them. Thorne scoffs. Serena’s silent.
No other words are shared between the two before the clicking of his staff signals his departure.
Serena sighs. Just like when Thorne approached, I can feel her turn toward where I am hiding and stare as if she can see me. “Zaries, my love, we will lose everything I’ve fought for tonight. I only wish I had you by my side to hold my hand. If I lose her… Oh Zaries, there must be some way to stop her!”
I blink. That's right, this hall is the memorial for our departed king and Zaries’ namesake. She must be addressing his marble bust. I can almost imagine her stroking his stone face, tears falling from her eyes.
“Protect our son, Zaries. But if you have any power left in this world, deliver Anara from this madness and back to my side. I cannot go on without her, you know this…”
There’s a faint clearing of the throat. “Queen Serena? The representatives of the neighboring kingdoms have arrived. They are waiting for you in the throne room.”
“Thank you, soldier.” The steel is back in Serena’s voice. “I will greet them presently.”
As the queen's steps slowly fade, I take my first full breath since the whole conversation began. Who am I to the queen? Who am I to Thorne, that he would deny a royal order to keep me in the Trial?
I remember his breath so close to my face, the feeling of destiny, the weight in my soul the moment I signed his parchment.
I shake my head, running my hands over my hair to smooth any flyaways. I can’t think of anyone else right now. Their motives are not my concern. My concern is passing this Trial and finding the monster that changed everything.
A flash of silver scales, the burn of blazing fire against my back.
I will exact my revenge.
Or I’ll die trying.
Ignoring my spinning thoughts, I hurry to my room. There’s not much time to finish packing. At nightfall, I’ll either be dead or moving to the training grounds. Either way, my meager possessions will be prepared.
When I reach the exit nearest my room, I store my glowing orb back in my satchel and peer out behind the large forest tapestry to make sure the coast is clear. I’m about to step through when something reaches out and snatches my bun, yanking me backward.