Richelle Mead - Shadow Heir

“Yes,” I said, my heart sinking. “But they would all willingly die to prevent the enslavement of countless other kingdoms or abuse of the Iron Crown.” I knew the words were true as I said them, but they still hurt. I’d held back on using magic, not just because my friends’ lives were on the line, but also because I didn’t have an entirely clear plan on what to do with my magic. But something like this? Varia’s world domination? No question. None of my companions would be able to live with themselves knowing the scope of what their freedom had cost others.

“At some point, you have to decide what number of lives tips the scale. So, you’re saying these, what, six or seven individuals aren’t worth the crown’s cost? What about your kingdom? Kingdoms? What I offered to do to the Willow Land—by focusing the enchantment—can be done to yours instead.” Her smile grew particularly cunning. “Or maybe it’s less about quantity than quality. Your children are out there somewhere. Do you think they can stay hidden forever? Even in the human world, I can find them. I have many subjects, and you and your sister aren’t the only ones who can pass through with ease.”

The room threatened to spin around me, and I had to focus myself to stay calm and not give away how hard her words had hit. “Are you really so heartless?” I demanded. “Listen to yourself! You’re threatening to wipe out two entire kingdoms and hunt down my children!” Seeing her smirk, I had to restrain from clenching my fists. “Do you enjoy this? Do you get some kind of sick thrill from these kinds of psycho threats?”

“No,” she told me, still smiling and petting the dogs. “I simply take satisfaction out of pointing out the obvious, and it’s exactly as I already said: you hold nothing here, and I hold everything.”

Then, much as though I were a naughty child, Varia told me she was sending me back to my cell to “think about what I had to do.” Before I left, she added, “And lest you think me too lenient, let me emphasize to you that I’m most anxious to have this friendship of ours settled. I don’t like loose ends. Besides, some of these kingdoms are becoming an absolute nuisance. Much tidier for all of us if we can take care of this soon.”

“Noted,” I muttered as the guards grabbed my arms to lead me away.

“And so,” she continued, “when I say I’m going to emphasize the point to you, I mean that I will soon start taking action to encourage you to do the right thing. Starting with the elimination of your lesser companions. Then moving on to your kingdoms. Then your children.”

“My friends haven’t done anything to you,” I said, panic seizing me over how quickly the threat had escalated. “They’re potential subjects.”

Varia shrugged. “I have plenty of those.”

“Can I at least talk to them?” I asked. “Make sure they’re okay so I know you haven’t killed them already?”

She gave me a tight, knowing smile. “My dear, how foolish do you think I am?”

And with that, I was led out of the throne room. At the door, we ran into a slight traffic jam. A number of petitioners were lined up to see Varia, but a sentry held them all back and explained why they couldn’t be allowed entrance.

“Her Majesty has a meeting with the Oak King,” the guard said. “That takes priority. She will see no one else until after that—and that’s if she feels up for it. She’s had a very taxing day, so you may have to wait until tomorrow.”

The Oak King. I would’ve killed to be a fly on the wall for that audience and wondered if Dorian would opt for charm or mockery. Sometimes with him, there was a fine line between the two. I was also skeptical of just how “taxing” Varia’s day had been. Considering the impracticality of that dress, it didn’t seem like she could even walk without assistance. I really wouldn’t have been surprised to learn she and her dogs were carried around in a sedan chair.

Among the disgruntled petitioners were my “pals” from the Hemlock Land. They appeared as though they too had done a bit of hasty cleanup but otherwise possessed the same worn appearance they’d had on the road. Orj’s face hardened at the sentry’s words but nonetheless managed stiff politeness.

“We were told that if we assisted Her Majesty in her task ...” His eyes flicked nervously to me and then back to the guard. “We were told she’d release our king and allow him to return to our land. We did all she asked.”

The guard looked unconcerned. “Then you’ll get him tomorrow. Or the next day.”

Alea stepped up beside Orj. “But he’s been imprisoned for two months! He and the land are both suffering from being apart. What good is it being freed of the curse if our land is simply going to die off this way?”

“If it makes no difference then,” said the guard, “I’m sure Her Majesty would be happy to return the Winter Enchantment to you.”

I heard no more because my guards finally managed to push me through the bottleneck. I was taken without incident to my cell, but as the guards unlocked it, I glanced at the other closed doors in the hallway. I knew Dorian was there somewhere. Was the Hemlock King as well? These were the “nicer” chambers, after all. How many monarchs were imprisoned around me? It may have been egotistical presuming all these guards and magic users were just for me. Varia couldn’t maintain her subjugated kingdoms without the monarchs occasionally bonding with the land, but keeping them apart for great lengths of time certainly created a new element of vulnerability that she could manipulate. She also now had a hostage system that probably worked well to keep the conquered kingdoms in line. Most gentry loved their rulers with fierce devotion and, as Orj had shown, would go to considerable lengths for them.

As soon as I was locked up and alone again, I summoned Volusian with the makeshift wand.

“Are there other monarchs locked up in this corridor?” I demanded. “Aside from me and Dorian?”

“There are other shining ones here, yes,” Volusian said. “Ones I can sense considerable power from, though they are forced to wear their iron, even when locked up. They apparently don’t have the luxuries you do.”

I sighed and sat down on the cot. “I might as well be in iron for all the good I can do! That bitch was right. She has everything, and I have nothing. And now she’s threatening to destroy my friends, my kingdoms, Isaac and Ivy... .”

My heart lurched at that last one. I valued my own life, certainly, but I never went into any of these crazy Otherworldly missions without the understanding that I might not come back. It was something I’d had to come to terms with a long time ago. I didn’t relish the thought of my traveling companions dying—especially Jasmine and Pagiel—but I knew they too had accepted certain dangers.

The twins? They were a different matter. They were innocents. They had nothing to do with any of this, and just thinking about Varia hurting them filled me with a mix of rage and fear. With the prophecy taking backseat to the blight, I’d thought Isaac and Ivy were out of danger, but it seemed, once again, someone wanted to use them against me.

“There are guards and magic users out there,” I murmured, thinking aloud. “Obviously enough to subdue an escape—or so Varia thinks. But she can’t be thinking past a single person trying to break out. What about all of us? If we managed to free the other monarchs here, we’d have a force of some of the most powerful gentry in this world. The guards here couldn’t stand against that. This palace couldn’t stand against that. Plus, there’d be such a commotion that my friends in the dungeon would probably be low priority.”