A Kingdom of Venom and Vows (Stars and Shadows #3)(7)

I wished I could show her I was exactly like the man she feared so much.

“He wants me because he wants my power, and he will take it from me against my will.” I turned and glared at her. “He will take from us all, Eletta. That’s what Gavril does. He takes.” I shook my head and pressed the dress to my face one last time before laying it at the foot of the bed. “He takes until there is nothing left.”

“You don’t know that,” she whispered, her gaze dropping to the ground as I closed my eyes. “You don’t know what he’s been through and what he’s had to endure.” Her words were soft, but I could hear her belief in them. “He’s the only one who can protect us from the Blood kingdom.” She shook her head. “You just can’t see that.”

“The Blood kingdom?” I moved past her and into the washroom that was billowing with steam from the bath she drew. “You are fearing the wrong kingdom. You are as brainwashed as he wants you to be.”

“What?”

“The Blood kingdom is my home.” I turned to look at her once more with my fingers digging into the wood of the door. “And the Blood prince is my mate. If you are to fear anything, it should be me. You should fear what I am willing to do to get it all back.”





CHAPTER 3





EVREN





M y eyes were glued to the crumbling pages of the book before me, the ink fading and barely legible. I stared down at the words death magic, and I couldn’t bring myself to look away. I had been searching these ancient texts for hours and had yet to find any real answers.

Everything we knew of it was from legends which spoke of its power. Death magic came at a price. It brought great power to the one who possessed it, but it also ate away at one’s soul.

Killing one’s mate would destroy it.

My brother didn’t care what he ruined in his path to gain as much power as he could. He was driven by an insatiable desire for it, and he would destroy Adara if that’s what it took for him to fulfill the prophecy.

He would destroy everything.

Rage stirred in my belly, starving me of the air in my lungs, as I thought of his greed. Having the power of death magic wasn’t enough for him. Gavril wouldn’t stop until he knew no one held the power to defeat him.

And Adara and I together were the only ones who held that power.

Without her fate his rule can’t begin.

His death magic didn’t matter without her because I would destroy him.

“This is useless.” I slammed the book shut with a loud crack and shoved my hands into my hair. My chest ached as I stared around the small room, and my breath felt trapped in my lungs.

Thalia looked up from the book she was currently scouring, and her gaze darted back and forth between Jorah and me.

“I think I found something.” She pushed the book to the center of the table, and Jorah and I both stood to see better. “We’ve all heard that death magic comes with certain powers. The transporting, death touch, but it appears that there is much more to it.”

She turned the page quickly and ran her finger beneath words that marked the page. “In order for someone to gain the full powers of death magic, they must make sacrifices. They must give up a part of their soul that they can never get back.”

My eyes slammed into Thalia’s as she briefly met my gaze before looking back down at the book in front of her. I heard my heart beating, a dull thumping in my ears.

“His mate,” I finished for her, and she nodded before looking back at the book. “What other powers can he gain from that?”

“I’m not sure yet.” She shook her head as if she were as frustrated as I felt. “I need to do more research. This text talks about all-consuming power.”

The door to the library shot open with a loud boom, startling all three of us, and I could feel mine and Adara’s magic thrumming inside me, ready to strike before I could even look up to see the threat.

“Sorin has sent for you,” one of my guards rushed out, and his eyes bounced between the three of us. “There are fae soldiers in the city.”

Anger wrapped around me, suffocated any logical thought, and I stormed toward the guard as I barked out at him, “Where?”

“Just outside the palace. The captain has gone ahead.”

I stormed past him, and I knew that both Thalia and Jorah would be following close behind me without ever looking back.

We had tracked every one of the fae soldiers that had arrived with my brother, and they had all transported back with the coward. For them to be here now meant that more had arrived.

I checked the daggers that lay against my chest as I headed for the door. I didn’t know what we would be facing once we stepped outside, but I hated how unprepared I felt for my brother’s plans.

I had expected him to fight for her, but not like this.

The sound of screams hit us as soon as we stepped outside, and my power began pouring from my fingers before I could stop it. Black smoke swirled around me as I watched the people of my kingdom running in fear.

“Bring them inside the castle.” I barked out the order at the guard who had come for us. “Get as many as you can in the palace and bar the doors.”

He nodded his understanding, and I stormed away from the castle. I saw the relief on some of my people’s faces as I passed, but I didn’t have time to offer them such comfort.