Zodiac Academy Fated Throne - Caroline Peckham Page 0,194

hell did you get that idea?”

I pushed myself up to sit with a growl. “Are you fucking with me right now? You’re in love with a Vega. You and the other Heirs have been working with Darcy for months and-”

“And what? You thought I was just going to stand aside and give them a clean shot at my father? Let them take the throne like I’m some sort of weak Fae who couldn’t claim it myself? They might be powerful, but they aren’t stronger than the Heirs so why the hell would we just give it to them? That’s not how it works,” he said in disbelief.

“It’s not about weakness,” I snarled, getting up in his face. “It’s about what’s best for the kingdom.”

“And you think they’re what’s best?” he asked in astonishment. “You’re the one who’s been training me up all these years to take my father’s place. Now you’re just switching allegiance?” he demanded.

“I’m not switching allegiance,” I said seriously, gripping the back of his head to make him look me in the eye. “I want you in power, Darius. But they’re the rightful queens. My father was a part of the Zodiac Guild, he protected the royals, the queen came to him with a vision that showed him the way.”

“You’ve told me all of this,” he snarled. “But you’re just going on the word of some dead old man who was locked up in Darkmore for years.”

“I had a letter from my father. And you know it’s more than that. The twins have been gifted visions from the stars. They’ve seen the truth. The Savage King wasn’t who we thought. What Hail Vega did was because of Lionel’s Dark Coercion. He’s been biding his time all these years, he constructed it all.”

“I’ve been training my entire life to rule this kingdom,” Darius growled, his eyes turning to the golden slits of a Dragon as smoke plumed between his teeth. “I will take down my father and I will rule alongside the other Heirs. The Vegas will not sit on the throne.”

I fell quiet, seeing the blazing determination in his eyes, the stubbornness that was never going to fade.

“Rule with them,” I begged, but he shook his head.

“No,” he hissed. “And the other Heirs will never stand for that either. We might be friends with the Vegas, Lance, but when it comes to the throne, we will fight them to claim it.”

I released a heavy breath, knowing I wasn’t going to change his mind. I pushed out of bed, heading to the window and running my fingers through my hair.

“I’ll always have your back, brother,” I swore and silence pooled between us.

“I’ll come home for when the moon rises tomorrow,” he said at last.

“See you then,” I said gravely, opening the window.

I cast an illusion over myself before leaping from the window ledge and racing away into the night.

***

I spent the next day alone, anxiously waiting for the sun to set while Darius and Xavier attended the lavish funeral Lionel had put on for Catalina. As Gabriel had predicted, there had been a brief, but very public trial for Christopher and he’d been sentenced to life in Darkmore for abducting, raping and murdering the Queen. I was actually surprised that Lionel hadn’t pushed for an execution, but I was guessing he just wanted it over with and this way he could move on.

I’d watched a little bit of the ridiculously over the top funeral on TV, but the fake grief Lionel displayed had been more than enough to turn my stomach and I’d turned it off after watching the horse drawn hearse leading an enormous procession down the street.

The papers were full of stories about how beloved Catalina had been and how terribly she’d be missed, and I had to wonder what people would think if they knew the truth of the life Lionel had forced her to live.

Geraldine had told everyone that Catalina was well hidden with her father and was settling in just fine, promising to arrange a visit for Darius and Xavier as soon as possible. I was just glad that she’d escaped the hell of Lionel’s company.

Gabriel called to wish me a happy birthday and told me the cards had mostly fallen in our favour today. The night would be clear, the moon bright, but he couldn’t tell me about the details of what was to come in case it changed things. Everything was looking relatively good though. Luckily, Lionel was going to be