Cold Queen - K Webster Page 0,42

hisses. “Mother promised me so many times. I was to be queen of the Norta Icelands.”

Her betrayal is a worse cut than that of Cavon’s. This one cuts to the soul.

Ryke walks over to her and leans in to inhale her. She relaxes at his proximity. “And now, Princess?”

“I could be your queen too,” she breathes, clearly taken by his handsomeness and decadent scent.

Ryke smiles at her, lighting up the entire room with the warmth of it. “I’d like that,” he croons. “But first, Princess, you must prove yourself to me. Loyalty is huge where I’m concerned. Trust is even bigger.”

She nods rapidly, her breasts bouncing in tandem with her nodding. “Anything, my king.”

A swell of fury sends a wave of snowflakes billowing around the room. Ryke cuts me with a hard glare. I take a deep breath and calm my emotions. He stares at me for a beat longer before turning to her.

“Kill Elzira. Here. Now. And then I will marry you. We’ll rule over both kingdoms side by side.” He smiles at her again. “You almost succeeded, didn’t you? Without my intervening?”

Yanna glances over at me, hatred gleaming in her eyes. “I tried,” she breathes, her neck burning red with anger. “Oh, how I tried.”

“The tonics?” he probes.

She frowns at him. “How did you now?”

“They don’t call me Truth Seeker for nothing, Princess.” He tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “Go on.”

“The billibone tonic takes away the pains in her stomach. The voxin leaf tonic gives her energy. The yellowberry tonic is known for attacking hidden diseases. When taken daily, she could keep death at bay.” Yanna laughs cruelly. “Poison, poison, and more poison.”

“Yellowberry?” he asks. “Honnin drops?”

She smirks. “Your father had them eradicated, but my mother grew them on the castle grounds. We continue to grow and harvest them.”

My stomach lurches, but for once, not from pain or sickness. It’s because I was so stupid all those years. Not until Ryke came along did I begin to see the facts he silently presented me with. He knew of my stubbornness and allowed me to come to my own conclusions. I may have come to them slowly, but I arrived there nonetheless.

“The chilly baths,” she continues, fueled on by her hate for me. “The lack of fire. All ways meant to send her to death sooner. I even tried to starve her.” She glowers at me. “But you just wouldn’t die, sister.”

Another wave of cold rage consumes me.

Ryke stalks over to me and kneels behind me, snarling in my ear. “You will remain on your knees, Punisher. You will obey me.” His fires sear me between my wrists and the smell of burnt hair fills my nostrils. He rises again and walks over to Yanna, taking her hand in his. “Let’s dine together, shall we?”

Icy tears roll down my cheeks. It’s painful to hold back. To not destroy her for her betrayal. Instead, I stay kneeling beside my crown, a queen disgraced.

He pulls out a chair and helps her sit before barking out to the servants to bring the meal. Familiar faces who’ve worked for me my entire life enter the room carrying covered dishes, their sneers fixated on me. When they see Yanna, they smile and nod, proud of her dirty work. Ryke sits on the edge of the table near Yanna.

“These are your loyal servants who betrayed your queen to aid you?” he asks, looking at each one.

“They are,” she says proudly.

The air around us chills as my fury goes unchecked. Steel scraping stone is the sound that can be heard as I produce my diamondblades. I sling them out, aiming for the servants who tried to kill me. Sickening sounds resonate as the blades make deadly purchase, sending them all falling to their feet. Ryke shoots me a malevolent look when he yanks a blade from his shoulder blade. Had he not been sitting where he’s at, the blade would have taken out the rotten, betraying princess. Pity.

“Don’t worry,” Ryke purrs as he lifts a lid from a plate. “I won’t let her hurt you. We haven’t had breakfast yet.” He slides off the table and chuckles. “What? You don’t like pastries?”

She blinks in confusion at the plate. The same plate she offered me all these years when she was trying to get me to eat so I wouldn’t waste away and die. Little by little, she poisoned me with pastries and tea. She sucked out my life with cold baths and no