Chapter 42

Béke Day Eleven

Iknocked on the door to the Crystal Fae's temporary residence after breakfast, having slept so late I nearly missed it. I'd been up all night again with Taya, whose sexual appetite was nearly insatiable. It was a good thing I had my own pent-up sexual frustrations to work out, and she was a good substitute for the female I truly wanted.

King Airre had asked me to come alone, so I snuck away from Endre, Viktor, Vadim, and Kaztar, who were all off gallivanting about the Iron Realm doing shit I didn't care for as Ruslan continued to flash his obnoxious wealth for all the realms to see.

King Airre himself opened the door, much to my surprise, and he ushered me inside before peering up and down the hall, no doubt to ensure no one would be eavesdropping at the door. I strode into the room, brimming with self-confidence until the sight of Queen Viktoria and King Consort Geza stopped me in my tracks. Recovering myself, I said, "Ah, Queen Viktoria, King Consort Geza, I wasn't expecting to see you here."

"Please, have a seat," King Airre said from behind me, and I squared my shoulders before dropping onto a leather couch across from the monarchs of the Day Realm and adjacent to the chair Queen Immonen perched in. King Airre settled himself in a chair opposite his wife, and suddenly, the visit seemed more like an interrogation than a friendly chat.

"Is King Ruslan joining us?" I asked, trying to keep my tone neutral. Glancing around the room, I noted the absence of the Crystal Realm's High Lords.

"No, it will be only us talking," Queen Viktoria said, her eyes holding a hardness to them I'd never seen before.

The binding magic slumbering in my chest woke as I sensed a looming threat. Running a hand over my face, I tried to appear calm and collected as I reclined back against the couch. "What would you like to discuss?"

King Airre leaned forward, bracing his elbows on his knees as he leveled his gaze on me. "Kazimir," he started, trailing off before clearing his throat and straightening. "You have not been completely honest with us."

His informal use of my name irked me, but I waited for him to continue. When he didn't, I asked, "How so?"

"Did you receive any new magic recently?" King Consort Geza's tone was flat and directed at me like a well-thrown spear.

"How recently?" I asked, lifting a brow.

But Queen Viktoria was having none of my games. "Cut the shit, King Kazimir. You may be a ruler now, but when you came to us, you were a High Lord. We put the lives of our people on the line for a cause you convinced us to join, and yet you didn't reveal all your information."

Who fucking told them about the binding magic?

Gritting my teeth and shouting down that black beast rumbling in my chest, I retorted, "Because what I gained was extremely valuable and would help us in the war. If Ruslan had found out before we launched our attack, it would have put us at a disadvantage."

"So you do admit that you gained new magic?" King Airre pressed.

"Yes," I spat out like it was venom, my vision darkening as that magic thrashed in my chest, begging to be released.

"And what is it?" he asked again, his tone condescending.

How dare they corner me and scold me like a petulant child.

With a wave of my hand, I released a snake-like rope onto the table separating us, expanding it so it engulfed the table, wrapping around itself. Making a fist with my hand, I commanded it to squeeze, and moments later, the metal groaned until it collapsed inward with a screech.

"Binding magic," Queen Immonen hissed, looking from the table to me with utter disgust.

Banishing it with a dismissive wave, I turned my attention to her, King Airre stiffening on the fringes of my vision. "Yes, binding magic. I can throw these ropes around Ruslan and the other mongrels, suffocating their magic until we can slaughter them all. We will win because of this."

The queen of the Crystal Realm's eyes turned white, her head dropping back as her empty gaze fell toward the sky. King Airre burst by me moments later, supporting his wife as the sight claimed her. The monarchs of the Day Realm gripped the edges of their seats, waiting for Queen Immonen to return to us. I half rose, planning to leave, but a sharp look from Queen Viktoria stilled me.

Several minutes passed before Queen Immonen gasped, clutched her chest, and whipped her head forward. "What did you see, my love?" King Airre asked, stroking her platinum hair as he kneeled beside her.

She shook her head. "I need time to make sense of what I saw. There was… so much."

His brows pinched, but he nodded. "Later, then."

Scooting along the edge of the couch, I took King Airre's former seat, allowing the mated pair to sit together on the couch, and finally I felt like I had some power over the situation unfolding before me.

But Queen Viktoria sliced right through it. "The Fates are seeking to manipulate you, King Kazimir, and I want no part of their games for my daughter." Her hands covered her swelling belly as if the simple movement could protect her unborn child from the evil lurking within me.

"So, what, you want to break our alliance?" I growled, gripping the arms of my chair so hard the wood beneath my fingers protested.

"The Day Realm will not fight with the Night Realm should you decide to attack the Iron Realm," she declared, and her husband made a noise of affirmation.

The wood snapped as I dragged my attention to King Airre. "And what of the Crystal Realm?"

He glanced from his wife to me, then back before finally blowing out a breath. "We will not fight against the Iron Realm either."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I seethed, my anger rising like a tidal wave and smashing into me before I could even begin to control myself. "Who told you about this? Who betrayed me?"

King Airre pressed his lips together, and I ripped my focus to Queen Viktoria. "Your malevolent magic is not the only information that helped us arrive at this decision," she said sternly.

"Oh? What else is there?" I ground out through clenched teeth. My leg bounced as I tried to banish the overwhelming urge to rip every piece of furniture in this room to shreds.

"We heard that you attacked Princess Izidora," she replied, her eyes narrowed on me and disapproval emanating from her pores.

The muscles in my jaw worked overtime as I forced myself to breathe through the darkness threatening to suck me under. "From whom?"

"You did it in the middle of the day, in a courtyard filled with people. Did you really think no one would notice?" King Airre snapped, his patience worn thin. He pinched the bridge of his nose, giving his head a slight shake. "Willfully harming a female is one of the most frowned upon actions in the entire continent. We cannot stand by you now that we have definitive proof of what you've done."

Yet, none of the Night Fae knew what had happened, and I had ensured no one was around by the time I cornered Izidora. Which only meant one thing…

This was entirely Ruslan and Izidora's doing.

Somehow, the two of them had uncovered the exact nature of my magic, and that, combined with Izidora attacking me with her empath magic, had swayed the other monarchs to betray our cause.

Snakes, every last one of them.

I had fucking hated King Zalan for this very reason – all the political bullshit, backroom deals, and self-interested maneuvering he'd done with the other realms, especially within his own. There was no redeeming the other realms, and I didn't need shit from them to win this war. I would do it all on my own and prove to them they shouldn't have broken our alliance.

Backstabbing bastards.

"Did she tell you she tortured me?" I growled, the memory of the whips stinging my back still just as fresh as the day it had happened.

"Who tortured you?" Queen Viktoria questioned, the disbelief in her tone only serving to piss me off more.

"Izidora. She's an empath, you know. Her magic is just as deadly as mine," I pointed out.

"Her magic is only deadly if she uses it for the wrong reasons, and from what I know of her, she would never willingly harm someone unless her life was in peril," Queen Immonen rebuked, finally recovering from her vision. The glare she offered me was lethal, like she wanted me to freeze to death on the spot, and I was certain if no one was around, she might have done just that.

Shooting to my feet, I towered over the seated monarchs, fists clenching and unclenching rapidly. "So that's it then? You're choosing them over me?"

"We never said that," King Consort Geza placated, raising his hands in the air as if he were trying to calm a wild beast. "Only that we would not fight with the Night Realm against the Iron Realm."

"Fine. Then I guess we are finished here." Without waiting for a response, I stomped through the room, throwing the door open with a bang, and stalked down the hall until I found myself in the stables, with a wide-eyed stablehand rushing to fetch Fek.

All I saw was red as anger and malice battled for control within me, and without even acknowledging the stablehand, I snatched Fek's reins and spurred him on. We flew down the path leading into Radence, and I didn't stop until we reached Taya's house. Flinging the reins over the hook outside, I banged on the door until the female appeared.

"Kazimir–" she started, but I shoved the door open and captured her in my arms, kissing her roughly as I backed her to the bed.

I sucked her lower lip into my mouth, biting hard enough to bruise, and she whimpered, her nails digging into my back and raking down, bidding me to give her more. Without warning, I broke our kiss and shoved her backward, splaying her out for me. All she wore was a silver dressing robe, and I ripped it open, bracing my hands on either side of her as I sucked a nipple into my mouth. She cried out, arching into me, and I used my teeth to rake across her nipple before moving on to the other one.

Her hands grasped at my tunic, and I broke away momentarily to rip off my jacket and tear my tunic over my head. Pushing her flat against the bed with one hand, I used the other to cup her center. "So fucking wet already, Taya. I need to be inside you. I need to fuck you hard. Can you handle that?"

She whimpered as I stroked her folds. "Yes. Fuck me as hard as you want."

Slapping her core, I said, "Good girl. Grab the headboard."

Without hesitation, she slipped out of the arms of her robe and turned to her knees, both hands gripping the metal posts propping up the back of the bed. She remained there as I unlaced my pants and heeled out of my boots. The mattress dipped as I put my weight on it, and I wasted no time lining my hardness with her swollen center. The dried cum stains from our fucking the night before remained on the inside of her thigh.

"You didn't wash me off."

"Never," she moaned as I swiped the head of my cock up and down her slit.

With my free hand, I slapped her ass, hard, leaving behind a red handprint that would surely bruise. Something between a yelp and a moan left her lips. "Again," she begged.

I repeated the motion on her other cheek, leaving matching handprints for her to remember me each time she sat.

"Keep going," she begged, and I spanked her five times in quick succession, each strike harder than the last. The wetness that poured out of her core dripped onto my cock, mixing with the moisture beaded there.

"Beg me to fuck you," I commanded, and her pussy clenched in response.

"Please, please fuck me, My King," she whined.

"Why?" I asked, giving her center a few lazy strokes with my fingers.

"Because you're my king, my hero, my savior, and I want you to make me come."

I couldn't deny that.

Without warning, I speared into her from behind, seating myself fully without giving her time to adjust. She cried out, knuckles whitening as she gripped the poles for support. The pounding I gave her was relentless, violent, and shook the whole bed. If it weren't for her grip, we probably would have broken the wall.

I punctuated my thrusts with slaps to her ass, letting the force of my strikes satiate the sting of betrayal from my alliance falling apart and Izidora being the cause of it. My nails dug into Taya's hips as I gripped her harder, yanking her down on my cock as I thrust it into her, imagining I was doling out the punishment to Izidora instead.

She'd been so fucking bad, and I'd allowed it to go on for far too long.

Taya panted as I brought her closer and closer to climax, her cries becoming broken and desperate as she called my name over and over. "Kazimir, please, I–"

"You may call me my king, my savior, or my hero – nothing else," I growled, spanking her for her insolence.

"Yes, My King," she mewled, arching her back as I ground my hips into her.

"You take my cock so good," I praised, and she lowered herself further, still gripping the poles, so I could deepen the angle. The position bared her puckered hole to me, so I spit onto it, then gathered some of the wetness from her thighs and circled the mixture there. "I'm going to fill your ass with my fingers."

"Please, My King. Give me everything you've got. Make me come."

I worked a finger in, and she pushed back shamelessly into me, her ass sucking my digit down before pushing it back out again. Through her inner walls, my cock and finger rubbed against each other, adding to the already incredible sensation of her tight holes. By the time I worked a second finger in, she was vibrating with barely restrained tension, moments away from coming.

"Don't you dare come until I tell you," I growled, seating myself fully inside her.

"Yes, my hero. I will wait for your command to come," she panted, hands trembling around the bars.

With my one free hand, I slapped her ass again, the red beginning to deepen to purple. "Tighten your grip."

She did, and the combination of my fingers in her ass and the tightness of her pussy caused me to see stars. "Yes," I hissed, driving my hips harder and deeper. My balls tightened with my impending release, and I thickened inside her. Her walls began fluttering in response, and I chased her to the edge before allowing her to let go.

"Come for me," I growled, releasing ropes of my seed inside her as I plunged my fingers in and out of her ass. Her center milked me dry as she came, crying out and arching her back so deeply I swore my cock was in her stomach.

Dropping her hands from the bars, she panted, unable to move. I pulled out of her, then went to wash myself quickly in the adjacent bathroom, returning to her bedroom once I heard her shift off of the bed. She was wrapping the robe around herself, and I closed the distance between us, capturing her for a bruising kiss before allowing her to fasten it.

As my heart rate returned to normal, so did the rage that had neared a boil within me. I quickly redressed, then wandered into the living space, where she stood in a small kitchen pouring herself a glass of wine. "Want any?" she asked casually, like I hadn't been screwing her senseless minutes before.

"No thanks. I need to get back."

"Will I see you tonight at the lantern release?" she questioned, a hint of hope in her voice.

"Sure, we can release ours together," I offered. It wasn't what I truly wanted to do, but I could play along in hopes of flaunting it in Izidora's face.

A smile spread slowly across her face. "See you then."

I nodded, then returned to the bitter cold and my waiting mount. Maybe stringing Taya along with the promise of more was wrong, but she was always willing to let me sink into her pussy and forget everything else, and that was exactly what I needed.

But I also needed to address the real problem if I wanted a solution to it, and that meant getting Izidora alone. Plotting how to do exactly that filled my thoughts as I returned to the citadel.