Ruins of Chaos (Legacy of the Nine Realms #3) - Amelia Hutchins Page 0,145

heart raced with the words being admitted out loud. Knox knew where my family was hidden, and he’d left them alone because he hadn’t needed them to force me. If I refused to marry him, he would use them to tie my hands. It was better this way, for them and me. I lifted my leg, washing it while Soraya and Siobhan sat beside me, frowning.

“You understand that you’ll be connected to him forever, right? Should you follow this path, the king will be able to control your power, your magic, and you can never harm him. If your bond goes deeper, like mates, and you fully merge, your souls will bind together. You get that, correct?”

“I don’t have another choice, Siobhan. He knows where my family is hiding. If I don’t marry him, he will use them against me until he gets his way. Knox has ensured that I will follow through with what he wants from me. If I don’t do this, he will kill everyone I love.”

“I get it, I do. Sometimes you have to make hard choices as the queen, and Aria, you’re the Queen of Witches, even without your throne. Watch the witches. Watch how they look at you. You already have them following your lead. What you do next matters,” Siobhan whispered, but there was an undertone of accusation in her voice that rubbed me the wrong way.

“You’ve fucked him. Maybe we should trade places,” I snapped, glaring at Siobhan while my emotions ping-ponged through me violently.

She snorted, shaking her dark head. “King Karnavious hasn’t even turned his eye on another woman or taken one to his bed since he returned from meeting you, Aria. I thought you were this mythical woman, and yet you’re rather normal.”

“Ew. Never say that again,” I shivered. “I try very hard not to be normal.”

Siobhan frowned, her forehead creasing in worry. “I just meant that I wasn’t expecting someone like you. You care about us. I know that King Karnavious has tied your hands, but there are ways around this being legal. You’re a queen, one who is being coerced through threat into a marriage you don’t want.”

“And who would argue it against King Karnavious, Siobhan? Ilsa? I intend to murder that bitch, and once I have, I will seek to remove the darkness she has unleashed on this land.”

“Will you murder the witches upon who she forced her darkness?” Soraya asked, and I swallowed at the pain, lacing her words.

“That depends, Soraya. If they’re evil and cannot be saved, then they too shall be put down. Once they’ve killed another living being, I cannot withdraw the darkness from them. This is my understanding of how Hecate explained the process in our grimoires.” She lowered her head, hiding a frown before smoothing out her features. Standing, Soraya moved to grab the drying cloth. “Ilsa has someone important to you, doesn’t she?”

Soraya shook her head, exhaling slowly before she turned to face me again. “It doesn’t fucking matter, does it? You can’t fix anything. You’re marrying our enemy, one who intends to magically neuter you before you pose a threat to him or anyone else.”

“Ouch, that almost hurt my fucking feelings,” I grunted, standing to grab the cloth from her. “I’m sacrificing myself to save others, too. Just so you are aware. He promised to save other witches who hadn’t accepted the darkness into them yet.”

“You’re a fucking savior,” Soraya sneered.

“Enough, Soraya. If the king had your family within his grasp, you’d do the same. We’re witches, and witches always protect those we love from harm. They’re our weakness,” Siobhan swallowed. “Aria, if you sit, I will fix your hair. How do you want it?”

“Up, because he prefers it down,” I chuckled at the odd way their lips turned up at the act of defiance.

“Don’t let the king break you, Aria. Too many depend on you saving us for him to win that fight,” Soraya said, not turning toward us while her fingers trailed over the dark onyx, sapphire, and diamond tiara that Knox had sent into the tent with Siobhan.

“Even if I could escape him, he’s written his name on my flesh, which allows him to track me down no matter where I hide,” I frowned, peering at my reflection while Siobhan smirked, her eyes holding mine like she had a secret.

“You’ve seen the chest and the picture of his wife?” she asked, holding my stare. “Thought so, which means you know that once he figures out the