Chapter 12

The sun had long since set and I lay there for hours afterwards waiting for the noises of the castle to calm down. Every five minutes the soldiers marched down the hallway. Apparently, my room had become a spectacle for them to stop and comment on. They joked about messing with death, and in the mood I was in, I'd be happy to bring it to them. Dacio sickened me with his twisted games, and no one here, not even Avalon, stood up to him. I couldn't figure it out. According to Linford, they were just as powerful as each other. So why would Avalon not go against Dacio? What did the King have on him?

Even though the bed was comfortable as hell and the floating butterflies gave the room the atmosphere to make it easy to sleep, I couldn't. The few hours of sleep I'd gotten last night weren't helping me now. I was running on pure adrenaline and fear. But I'd ditched the dress and gotten my vest back on along with my pants and boots. I used the peasant shirt as a bed for Monty at the foot of my bed. I'd laced up everything nice and tight just to keep myself awake. I swung my legs over the side of the bed and eased to a stand. When I still didn't hear soldiers outside, I crept closer to the door. When I pressed my ear to it, I heard nothing. I glanced back at the bed where Monty lay curled in a comfortable ball.

I patted the side of my leg and gave a light whistle. His head popped up and he stared at me, looking like he wondered why we'd ever get out of this comfy spot. I waved for him to come to me. "Now or never, buddy. I gotta get out of here."

He jumped from the bed and soundlessly ran across the floor toward me. I stuck my leg out and he leapt onto it, grabbing my pants with his little paws. He scurried up my body to settle himself on my shoulders. His little tail wrapped under my hair and around the back of my neck. His tiny body was so warm that it was like wearing a heating pad on my neck. He gave a small coo and rubbed the top of his head across my jawline.

"Okay, buddy, let's get our asses out of here." I pulled the door open. It gave a slight creak, yet no soldier came running in my direction. I stepped out into the hallway and looked both ways. I felt like a teenager sneaking out of my room, except this time I didn't have Rhode with me to keep a lookout.

I wasn't sure what direction I was going in, but I figured stairs down would be a good start. I tiptoed down the hall and felt my heart hammering in my chest. The thin crystal windows glowed with an odd blueish-purple light. I paused for a moment, making out two moons in the sky. One looked like the one I saw from Earth, and the other was a breathtaking purple orb. "Two moons."

They were so beautiful I could've stood there all night long just staring at them, but I didn't have time, and I needed out before the next set of soldiers strolled down the hall to patrol outside my door. I hurried farther down the hall and ran down the stairs, praying no one would come up the other side. When I hit the next hall, I hurried as fast as I could toward another set of stairs. Loud voices and carousing came from a room down the hall. It was just before the next flight of stairs I needed to get down. I tiptoed closer, and the voices got louder. I peeked through the crack in the door at a group of soldiers in their break room. They all had their helmets off and were sitting there laughing and joking as they ate.

One held up a glass of dark-purple liquid. "Those Swamp Clan girls are vicious."

"Yeah, but the seaweed dress . . . easy on . . . easy off."

"Nah, I like the weird one . . . that green and black hair . . . like a beauty waiting to be unwrapped."

EW.

"Yeah, and then . . . you die." Another from across the room threw a roll at him. He caught it and took a big bite.

"But what a way to go! She is a comely thing with all those curves." The others all chuckled and waved his words away.

I wrinkled my nose and turned for the stairs, hurrying down as fast I could. I hadn't eaten in nearly two days and only had a swig of poisonous water that, luckily enough, hadn't killed me. Now I didn't know if the next drink I took would be my last. I ran down another set of stairs and stopped at the bottom, pausing to see if I heard anything. Again, there were voices coming from down the hall, but this time it was only two. Monty shivered on my shoulder, not from cold but in warning. I'd recognize those voices anywhere, Avalon and Dacio going back and forth.

"The selection of the queen must have some rules," Avalon insisted.

"Why must it?" Dacio sounded bored with the conversation.

"Because there's no reason they should be killing each other over something like this."

"On the contrary, the right to be queen of our demons is a huge responsibility. I've reigned for fifty years, and in that time, I've had to endure hardships the demons cannot know. The vampire kingdom loathes us. At any moment they could rise over those mountains to finish us all off. A strong, cunning queen is needed. Should one of them not survive due to their lack of smarts, I see no fault in it on my end."

Avalon made a sound in the back of his throat. "We must remember who we are. It was cold-blooded murder. We are lucky no one else died."

Was he talking about me? I paused, waiting for him to say more and wondering why I cared. Avalon hated me, and I was getting very close to sharing his feelings. The King chuckled. "You mean, she should've died, yet she didn't."

"It is curious." It was the first time I'd heard his voice being even remotely soft.

"That she didn't die? Yes, I thought it curious as well." Dacio seemed intrigued by this. "It should have killed her. Much to your failure."

"My . . . what?" Wind whipped through the room. "I do not fail."

"And yet it was luck that she didn't die." Dacio chuckled. "Perhaps watch her more closely. She's one I would hate to lose at this moment."

At this moment?Did that mean he wouldn't mind losing me in the future? What the hell kind of fucked-up world was this?Not one I wanted to stay in. I tiptoed past the door and headed for the stairs. The tiniest of creeks sounded and I froze. The voices dropped to silence, and I squeezed my eyes shut tight. My breath caught in my throat. My heart hammered in my chest, and I decided to sprint toward the stairs.

Green smoke flew up in front of me, and suddenly Avalon was there. I slammed into his chest and stumbled back. The air left my lungs in a rush, and I fought to suck in a gasping breath. He stood before me tall and terrible and too sexy for my own good.

"What are you doing?"

Escaping. "Looking for something to eat."

As if on cue, my stomach growled, and I pressed my hand over it. Avalon rolled his eyes and sighed. "Really?"

No, I want away from you and out of this place."Really."

"Very well." Again, he grabbed my arm and yanked me closer.

"You're getting a little too used to manhandling me."

"I would think it's an old habit for you by now." His green smoke seeped around both of us, and my eyes widened.

"What are you doing?"

"This." He snapped his fingers and flames burst around me. My body felt like it was being whipped through the air. My stomach twisted into knots, and if I had anything in it, I was sure I'd have thrown up on his boots.

Just as fast as it started, it stopped, and he dropped me in my room. I staggered toward my bed and placed my hands on the foot of it to stop the dizziness assailing me. Monty rolled down my arm and flopped onto the bed like a limp noodle. I sucked in a deep breath, trying to not heave on the floor. Sweat ran over my body, sending a cold chill down my spine, like at any second I was going to pass out and then throw up on the floor. I swallowed around the dryness of my mouth. Avalon stood there smirking down at me.

Asshole. My magic rose in me, and purple petals fell from my hands onto the fluffy woven bedspread. He took a step back, and I stood up straight and squared my shoulders. I grabbed a handful of those petals and held them out in front of me. "The next time you touch me without my permission will be the last time you draw a breath."

He lifted his chin. "You wouldn't."

"What makes you think I won't?" I arched my eyebrows at him. I was so tempted to blow those petals in his direction, but he'd only been rude and rough with me . . . hardly worth a death sentence.

"Am I worth killing?" He moved in closer to me, almost challenging me, like he wanted to see if I dared try it.

I dropped the petals back on the bed and tried to calm myself long enough until the purple stopped seeping from my palms. When it finally stopped, I turned toward him. "No, you're not worth it."

His face fell into a scowl. "The feeling is mutual."

My hand snapped out of its own accord and cracked right across his cheek. "That was worth it."His face snapped back toward me, and I smacked him again. "So was that."

"Careful." He caught my wrist and flicked my hand back.

"Oh good." I stepped in closer to him. "Now you'll remember I am not a piece of meat you can fling around."

He growled and his flames erupted around him, and in the next second, he was gone. I sighed and sat back on my bed. "There'll be no escaping tonight, Monty."

My stomach growled once more, and I groaned at how uncomfortable I felt. I was so hungry I was borderline nauseous. A second later, he flashed back into my room in a ball of flames. He held a plate piled high with food of all shapes and colors. He dropped the plate of food onto the small nightstand.

Some food rolled off and rested on the table beside the plate. He narrowed his eyes at me. "Eat."

I opened my mouth to reply, but he cut me off. "No more escape attempts. I'll be right outside your door all night."

"How'd you know I wanted to escape?"

He gave a heavy sigh. "Unfortunately, I know you better than you know yourself . . ."

Before I could ask another question, his smoke seeped around him and he was covered in flames, disappearing from my room and leaving only the food and smell of ash. I hurried over to the food, grabbed what looked like an apple, and took a bite.

I grabbed a grape and tossed it to Monty. He caught it and held it between his little paws like a raccoon and took a big bite. "We've only got one more night, buddy."

Tomorrow, I'm out of here . . .