The Kingdom's Crown (Inheritance of Hunger #3) - Kathryn Moon Page 0,101

as if she were pained. "Bryony, I—" She swallowed, glancing briefly around us, aware of the growing silence. "I challenge you to the northern crown, Your Majesty."

Even then, even perfectly aware of what she said, it was as if my ears were full of water, the words not fitting together. My court. Griffin wanted to steal my court from—

No, I realized, thinking back to what Aric had said. I might have to give up one crown before I could seize the other. He'd been trying to warn me. I'd taken the northern court by accident. I hadn't wanted it, and I'd tried to give it back to Aric straight away.

But Aric couldn't be the king and my Chosen, and he'd picked his side. I couldn't be Kimmery's queen and the thieves' king. Stars, I wasn't even managing to be a princess at the same time.

"I see," I said slowly, holding Griffin's gaze. She seemed to relax by a small fraction. I did see. Griffin had to take this crown from me, I couldn't gift it to her any more than I could've handed it back to Aric. She had to win it in the challenge just as I had. At least she knew what she was doing.

"Do you hear that, folks?"

I jumped at the sudden and boisterous tone of Cassius Thatcher. He was leaning back from the bar, arms raised up at his sides and his voice ringing fully around the room.

"Our Birdie wants a crown of her own!"

The room cheered, and my eyes widened. Damnit, I wanted to be digging gossip out of Griffin more than anything right now.

"Birdie?" Scrapper hissed with a laugh.

"Don't you dare pick it up, Scrap," Griffin ground out of the corner of her mouth.

Sam's lips quirked, glancing between the pair.

"Funny you never asked me for mine, Birdie," Cassius said, falling forward with his elbows to the bar, his voice lowering to just us crowded together.

"I don't need your help, Cass. I just needed the audience," Griffin said, glaring at the man. There was fire in her gaze, his too, I noticed. Ohh, they were absolutely lovers once. I wanted every sordid detail of their history. And I wanted to subject Griffin to the wonderful misery of my pestering her for it all. It would be a act of suitable revenge for her springing this on me.

"You may have whatever you please," he answered, Griffin's nostrils flaring in annoyance at the silky seductive tone of the words. He stood straighter and turned back to the room. "As challenger, Griffin has the right to choose the method."

"No magic," Griffin said to me immediately. "And no blades."

My eyes widened. "What?"

Griffin shrugged, and finally there was warmth in her smile. "I'm not an idiot, Bry. You're too good."

"Flattery and treachery in one go. And I wasn't prepared for either," I answered back, a little tart.

Griffin just grinned at me. "Let's stick to our profession. First of us to steal a precious item off the other's person wins."

I stepped back immediately, and Cassius chuckled, the room quick to follow suit. Griffin's lips pressed together to hide her own smile. I wanted to shout that that wasn't fair at all, I wouldn't even have begun to know what was precious to Griffin, let alone how to take it off her. But it was her right to challenge. And anyway, I needed her to win, didn't I?

Yes, but…

"I'm not going to make this easy for you," I said, glaring.

"I don't need you to," Griffin answered.

"We'd better make this fair," Cassius declared, jumping up onto the bar. "Ladies, gentleman, make an arena."

The crowd was quick, people hurrying out of their seats, dragging away tables and chairs to the edges of the room. Griffin melted into the crowd opposite me, and Aric pulled me away from the bar before we were trapped in the crush.

"You knew she'd do this," I hissed to Aric.

"I knew she'd feel like she had to. I didn't know until her letter arrived if she would go through with it. To be honest, I thought she might wait until our return. Things must be bad in the north." Aric pushed me forward through the bodies, my Chosen a tight cluster around me. "Do you want to keep it?" he whispered in my ear. "If you do, I can—"

I shook my head. "No, this is right."

Aric kissed my temple as we reached the edge of the new ring of open space at the center of the room. "It'll be a