Аманда Хокинг - Ascend

“Yes, but my mother wouldn’t let him.” He chewed the inside of his cheek and stared straight ahead at the snow coming down. “So he killed her.”

“What?” I asked, thinking I’d misunderstood. “Sara’s alive.”

“No, my father killed my mother,” Loki said flatly. “He hit her in the head with a metal vase, over and over. I was hiding in the closet, and I saw the whole thing.”

“Oh my god,” I gasped. “I’m so sorry.”

“The King found out, and he didn’t really care that my father had murdered someone,” he said. “But then I told the King why my father killed her, about his plan to assassinate Sara.

“My father tried to make it back to the Trylle,” Loki continued.

“He offered Elora trade secrets, anything she’d want to know. I’ve been told that she accepted, but he never made it there. Oren found him and executed him.”

“I’m sorry,” I said, unsure of what else to say.

“I’m not,” Loki said. “But I am lucky that the King didn’t kill me too. Sara took pity on me, and I moved into the palace with them.”

“The King and Queen raised you,” I said.

“They did,” he nodded. “Sara more so. The King’s never been that fond of me, although I don’t think he’s ever been that fond of anyone.”

Silence settled over us, and Loki seemed morose. Bringing up the death of his mother would have that effect.

What happened to him was horrible, not that I had a great childhood myself. I thought back to when he’d arrived in Förening, and I put my hand on the scar on his chest. I’d felt like he was a kindred spirit, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized how alike we really were.

We both had a parent who hated us, and we were left orphaned at a young age. His father wanted him to be King, even though he didn’t want it, and my mother wanted me to be Queen, even though I didn’t want it. And we both shared a mixed bloodline of Trylle and Vittra.

“Why aren’t you like me?” I asked when I thought of it.

“Pardon?”

“Why aren’t you as powerful as me?” I asked. “We’re both Trylle and Vittra.”

“Well, for one thing, you’re the product of the most powerful Trylle and the most powerful Vittra,” Loki said. “I’m the product of a very powerful Vittra and a fairly weak Trylle. My father was a low-ranking Markis. He had hardly anything. I did get his ability to render people unconscious, though, but mine is much stronger than his ever was.”

“But you have more physical strength than I do,” I pointed out.

“Your father isn’t physically that strong,” Loki said. “Don’t get me wrong, he is very strong, especially by Trylle standards. But mostly he’s just… immortal.”

“Just immortal,” I said. “That’s good. That’ll making killing him so much easier.”

“We can turn back,” Loki offered again.

“No, we can’t.” I shook my head.

The car hit a patch of ice and jerked to the side. Loki reached out, putting his hand on my arm to make sure I was safe, before straightening out the car.

“Sorry about that,” he said, keeping his hand on my arm.

“It’s okay.”

His hand felt warm on my bare skin, and I moved my arm so I could take his hand in mine. I don’t know why I did it exactly, but I felt better. It helped quiet my nerves and ease the tightening of my stomach.

I stared out the window, almost embarrassed to look over at him, but he said nothing about it. He just held my hand, and eventually, he started singing along with the radio again.

The snow had lessened by the time we reached the Vittra palace. It looked more like an old castle. I hadn’t really had a chance to look at it the last time I was here. The brick towers and spirals loomed against the overcast sky. Tall trees without any leaves filled the surrounding forest, and I almost expected there to be a moat to cross.

Loki pulled up in front of the massive wooden doors and turned off the car. I gaped at it and tried not to let my nerves get the best of me. I could do this.

“How do I find him?” I asked. “Where’s the King?”

“I’ll show you.” Loki opened his car door.

“What are you doing?” I asked as he got out.

“Taking you inside,” he said and slammed the door shut.

“You can’t go in there,” I said once I’d climbed out of the car.

“The King could do something to you.”

“What kind of tour guide would I be if I didn’t show you all the sights myself?” he grinned at me, but it was weak.

“Loki, be serious.” I wouldn’t walk with him up the path so he turned back to face me. “The King will throw you in the dungeon again.”

“Maybe,” Loki agreed. “But I don’t think he will if you succeed in making a deal with him, and we’re both counting on you to make a deal.”

“I don’t like the idea of you going in there,” I said.

“Yeah, well, I don’t like you going in there either,” he shrugged.

“So we’re even.”

Reluctantly, I nodded. I didn’t want to put him in danger, but he had a point. If Oren agreed with me, which is what I was counting on, I could get amnesty for Loki thrown in along with it. He would probably plan on recanting once I became Queen, but we wouldn’t make it that long.

Loki walked beside me up the pathway to the doors. I tried to open one, but it wouldn’t budge. Loki laughed a little and reached around me. He pulled it open like it was nothing, and then we stepped inside the Vittra palace.

I’d forgotten how cave-like it was inside the King’s chambers. The room was windowless, and the walls were dark mahogany. The ceilings were high, and candelabras cast a pale glow over us.

We sat in elegant red chairs, the only furniture in the room aside from a bookcase and large desk. Loki, Sara, and I sat, saying nothing, and waited for the King. Loki chewed his thumbnail, and his leg bounced nervously. Sara had her hands in her lap, and she stared off with a blank expression on her face.

As soon as we’d come inside the castle, Sara’s little Pomeranian had charged at us, barking. He growled at me, but he was thrilled to see Loki and peppered him with kisses. Sara came right after, responding to the sound of his barking.

When she saw us, she blanched. She only stopped and stared, and Loki asked if she was happy to see him. Instead of answering him, she sent a nearby hobgoblin to get the King, and she led us to his chambers to wait for him.

She handed the dog off to Ludlow, one of the hobgoblins, and motioned for us to sit down. We waited in silence for what felt like a long time but may have only been minutes.

“You shouldn’t have come here,” Sara said finally.

“I know that,” Loki said.

“You shouldn’t have brought her,” Sara said.

“I know that,” he repeated.

“Why did you come back?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” Loki said, growing irritated.

“That you don’t know?” Sara snorted. “He’s going to kill you.”

“I know,” he said quietly.

“I won’t let him,” I said firmly, and Loki turned to look at me.

“Forgive me, Princess, but you are so naïve,” Sara said.

“I have a plan,” I said, sounding more convincing than I felt. “I will make it work.”

“He will never let you go,” Sara said as if to warn me.

“He will,” I insisted. “As long as I offer him something larger than myself in return.”

“What do you have that’s more than that?” Sara asked.

“My kingdom.”

The double doors to the chamber were thrown open when the King walked in. Loki’s leg immediately stopped bobbing, and he dropped his hand to his lap. Oren smiled at us, and it made my skin crawl. Sara stood when he entered, so I did the same, but Loki was slow to follow.