Chapter 41

Chapter

Forty-One

Rose

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this." Magnus hesitated before he approached the guards blocking the entrance into the castle.

"It was the only way. Trust me. If we portal inside, that will be seen as an act of aggression, and he will have a full regiment waiting for us. We've already proven we can't get to him like that. With this plan we will kill him with kindness."

Magnus looked up at the towering building, a frown slashed across his scarred face. I was sure he would hate every second of this right up to the point it worked. At least that's what I hoped. I'd followed everything my mother had ever taught me about these spells and I had to believe that was enough. I'd never proven this in a lab, and there'd been no time for a trial run. It was now or never according to Magnus.

"I could burn the building and everyone in it now. That would save us a lot of trouble and risk."

I violently shook my head. "You know he thought of that. That's why the castle is filled with all those innocents from the village. I don't think even you could live with that much blood on your hands."

"You think too highly of me," he whisper snapped before making his final approach.

I swallowed thickly. I didn't care what he said. His actions spoke far louder than his words. If he truly thought he could live with all those deaths on his conscience, then that building would already be alight.

"I am here to see my uncle. Open the gate."

The guard shook his head. "We have strict orders against it. The only place we are to escort you is the dungeon."

"Fuc—"

"Magnus," I started, making my own approach. "Maybe we should do what they say. I'm sure the king will see reason." I lifted the basket of homemade honey buns in front of me, jostling them just enough to allow the aroma to make its way to the guards blocking our way. And if they were hostile towards Magnus, we were to switch to a bad guy, good guy routine.

"This is no way to treat me," he snarled. "I could release the dragon and you'd be helpless against him. It would take no effort at all to reduce you to a pile of smoldering ash."

I placed my hand on his arm in a gesture that would show how I soothed him. "If the king doesn't want to receive us today, we could try again another day."

Magnus snarled, still looking the guard who'd spoken in the eye. "You tell my uncle that I'm going to remember this. And when word gets around about how he treated the first omega in his kingdom in decades, there are going to be a lot of angry villagers."

The guard’s eyes widened. "She is an omega?"

Magnus leaned closer to the guard, and I prayed he stayed on script. He really did look like he was about to rip the guy's throat out. "I'd invite you to inhale deeply, and see for yourself, but you aren't worthy. Just pass on the message, and if the king changes his mind, then he knows where to find me. Otherwise, we are leaving tomorrow."

"But—"

"No buts," Magnus roared, his dragon clearly just beneath his skin as he practically glowed with the fire he kept barely contained. Not to mention the heat nearly scorching my hand. "Unless, of course, it is your wish to become that pile of burnt ash.”

The guard took two steps back and raised his hands. "Just go. If you come any closer, we'll be forced to?—"

Before the guard could finish, the gate swung open and someone boomed, "Let them in. And bring them to the throne room."

I gasped. "What the hell? Who was that? And I thought you didn't use electricity here?"

"We don't, that gate is warded and operated by magic. The king's magic," Magnus muttered. "You don't become king of one of the four realms without power and my uncle is one of the most powerful ever born. He can telegraph his voice for miles."

"Great. Just what the world needs. Someone yelling at you from miles away."

Magnus didn't say more, but he did grab my hand before he moved to follow the guard. Something about him had changed, although I didn't know how to explain it. His posture had gone rigid, and his movements were jerky and unnatural.

With that information in the back of my mind, I turned my attention to the castle looming before us. Its ornate grandeur a stark contrast to the humble village. As we wound our way through the maze of gardens and then the cavernous halls inside, my footsteps echoed against the marble floors.

"This place is huge," I murmured, awestruck.

"Our ancestors built it to accommodate dragons," Magnus's voice was tense. "When we are young, we aren't always great at control." He squeezed my hand. "Stay focused."

I nodded, picking up my pace to match his as best I could. The sooner we reached the throne room, the sooner this confrontation would be over. Despite this ruse, we weren't here for a visit. Nor was I being taken on the grand tour.

"How far is the throne room from here?"

"Far enough."

"Enough for what?" I swear I had more questions than we had time, but I couldn't help it.

"Far enough away from the exterior that an outside attack won't get near him, but not so far that he can't escape from within either." I nodded, although it made sense, it was difficult to comprehend. I couldn't imagine having to design your home to survive an attack. There may be a lot of dangers to fear in the human world, but they were nothing compared to this one. I wasn't sure if I could get used to it.

I followed the men in silence the rest of the way, the knots in my stomach tightening the closer we got to the King. But it wasn't until my vision wavered slightly that I finally realized the air in here had changed. "Magnus, my eyes..." I said, pulling on his arm.

It's the wards he uses to protect himself. You'll be fine, but they are designed to disorient."

"Don't they affect you?"

He shook his head. "No. My body adjusted to them when I was a boy. Although not without suffering the sickness that long-term exposure can cause."

"That's disgusting. Why would he put you through something like that?"

"To toughen me up. He has no tolerance for weakness. Family or not. He has strict standards of those around him. So no matter how or what you feel in there, don't let him see it. If he suspects you are anything but what we represent, he'll run."

"I'll be fine." Hopefully. The nausea assaulting me said differently, but I would push through. What choice did any of us have? We'd either fight this bastard and win or he'd imprison us and?—

I shook my head to knock those thoughts loose. I didn't want to think about the alternative, or any of the scenarios of what our future would hold if we were wrong. I refused to watch Magnus die again.

Unfortunately, by the time we made it to the area of the castle I actually recognized, my stomach had begun to churn, and I figured it wouldn't be long before I lost it. I could understand why his magic would be suppressed in here. His uncle would obviously do anything to keep Magnus's dragon at bay.

Magnus grabbed my hands and pulled me close. "I trust you," he said, and I nearly cried out on the spot. I knew those words didn't come easy to him, and every time he said them I took them for the depth they were meant.

The doors opened, and we were ushered into the exact room that I'd been in earlier. Only this time it wasn't quite as chaotic. People lined up on either side of a walkway, and I could see an older, handsome man lounging in a large chair on a platform at the far end of the room. His throne I presumed. I ground my back teeth together to keep from giving anyone a sign of what I might be thinking or feeling as we were drawn closer.

The king seemed relaxed, with his arms draped over the arms of his chair and a distinctly bored look on his face. But I could sense the tension in the air that he tried to mask, and instantly knew he didn't trust us and was on high alert.

But as we moved closer, another strong wave of magic engulfed us and my gaze shot to Magnus. What I found made me realize why he'd been unable to fight in our previous attempts. His face had gone pale, and his skin clammy against my hand. His uncle was using far more magic than Magnus was used to.

When we stopped in front of him, Magnus dipped his head, and I bent at the waist as he'd described I should. When I looked up, I was again facing that bored expression, only this time I could see a new light in his eyes. As we'd expected, my Omega status had likely intrigued him. I only hoped he spared us enough time before he commenced with whatever nightmare he'd planned for me.

"After your utter betrayal, I'm surprised you would show your face in this castle again without my bride." The pointed tone in the King's voice sent a shiver of ice racing along my spine.

"Kitra always was resourceful," Magnus supplied. "And now that she has her mother's magic, she has disappeared from the realm."

"Then you should have gone after her."

The king leaned forward and stared at me instead of Magnus. It took everything I had not to squirm beneath his gaze. Or run from the room. Especially when he breathed deep, and his nostrils flared in my direction. His reaction was every bit as disgusting as if he'd stuck his tongue out and licked me. "Where on earth did you find an Omega? They were all claimed long ago, and I haven't heard of a new one being born in many decades."

"She found me."

The King turned a skeptical eye towards Magnus for a moment before returning his attention back to me. "Where?"

"In the outlands. She was taken in by garden witches with no memory of where she comes from."

"Is that so, girlie?" he asked me directly.

I nodded, remembering to keep my response to him as brief as possible. The less I said the better. The last thing I needed was to be caught in a lie.

"Astounding." He stood to his full height, forcing me to crane my neck. He was as tall or taller than Magnus, but his slender build did not have the menacing presence or aura of strength of his nephew. I immediately got the sense that he had but a fraction of the power that Magnus carried. No wonder he spent all his time doing everything he could to keep Magnus under his thumb.

Remaining still as he approached, his eyes traveled up and down my body, and I willed Magnus to stay calm. I'd already witnessed how possessive he could be and for him to lose his shit now would not bode well for any of us. I needed time to get this spell to work.

"Not the best Omega specimen I've ever seen, but still quite good. I look forward to exploring her." He'd moved so close I nearly spat on him. "If she is what you say she is, I might eventually find a way to forgive you."

"We brought you an offering," I said sweetly, pretending to the best of my ability that I didn't want to grab the knife hidden in my belt and slit his throat from ear to ear. "I didn't have much, but my parents passed on their kitchen gifts to me, and I've been told I am quite good.”

Again his eyes lit up, but I was pretty sure it had nothing to do with the contents of my basket. At least until I jostled it under his nose and lifted the blanket containing the sweet magical scent no living creature would resist. I'd taken the recipe my mother had given me to lower inhibitions and ramped it up tenfold. With any luck and a dash of time, he would be neutralized long enough for Magnus to stake his claim and mete out punishment.

He peered inside and his lips curled into a smile. "Have you now?" He took the basket and passed it to the guard standing next to him. "I have to say, Magnus, this young lady has far better manners than you."

I held my breath, praying that Magnus stayed calm. So far everything had gone exactly as Magnus had laid it out, including the king handing over the basket of food to his right hand. The idea that he had to force someone else to sample all his food first to be sure it wasn't poisoned sounded right out of some weird fantasy novel and still made me want to roll my eyes.

In fact, it served as a reminder that I wasn't in Scotland anymore.

I kept my eye on the King as he waited for the okay, but I couldn't help but watch the man eating the buns from the corner of my eye. Soon enough he and the king would be disabled. As long as it didn't kick in too soon.

"What is your name?"

"Rose." I kept my answer brief, not wanting to give this vile man any extra opportunities to get to me.

His gaze raked over me, and I fought the urge to squirm under his scrutiny. "And are you here to serve your king in any way I see fit?"

I lifted my chin, refusing to back down despite the trembling of my insides. There was no way I'd publicly swear fealty to a man like him, no matter how meaningless it might be.

"You are not my king."