Blakeshire (Insight #9)(95)
Six men led by none other than Xavier himself entered the room. Just like before, Xavier and Britain were the only ones who had clear faces.
Xavier looked over our stance with disgust. “You, sir, are charged with treason by Prince and Destined King Blakeshire.”
Britain slowly lowered his arms from my side as the look of shock consumed his image.
“Take her, too,” Xavier said to the men. “Our ruler should know who we found with him in his quarters.”
“Cover her,” Britain said to the men as they bound his hands behind his back.
Xavier smiled wickedly. “No. He will know exactly how we found her. And where. Matters not. Your execution has already been ordered.”
My hands were bound fiercely behind my back, then I was forced to walk side by side with Britain outside of that room.
Dare I say I felt the vibration of fear wave across me when I thought of what Drake may say or do when he saw me like this—when they told him who I was with.
Chapter Twenty
Drake
Zander was at my side when I left after the speech I had given to my people. I had managed to save the priests in that city and look like a hero to the entire dimension, but I knew this was not over. I was uneasy. Tormented with jealousy and rage. I could feel the distant strains that Landen, Phoenix, and Draven were going through, and there was nothing I could do to help them.
My brothers were at Landen’s side, therefore, Zander was in control of the palace. I only had time to give him one command before I stood in front of the dimension, and that was to tell him to send Xavier, the resident executioner, to dispatch Britain. Of course, that was a test. I knew he wouldn’t do it, but at the very least Britain would be placed in a cell. But they needed to know that I was aware of the games they were playing. I didn’t force the fact that I knew Britain had been tormenting Madison and her friends across multiple dimensions. My reasons for execution were that he disrupted the dinner last night and that he tried to breach my royal hall. It didn’t take much to be sent to the gallows around here.
I was being escorted back to my office to sort out the mayhem that had happened this morning. Everyone seemed to have his own opinion on who was behind all of this.
Zander and I walked before the others.
“Troubled?” he said quietly to me.
“I’m full of rage and jealousy at the moment. Not to mention my normal lack of trust has been amplified.”
“Sounds to me as if you found a remedy to your cold vein issue.”
I glanced to my side at him, having a hard time hiding my satisfied grin. Madison Marie was in my veins now, and I liked it that way. I was sure Zander’s little flask had triggered a mild episode so that she would be present when it occurred. I should be furious at him, but I could not argue with the result. Whatever he gave me kept the worst of the cold from surfacing. It was nothing more than a bad dream, really; if Madison had seen the full effects of what Donalt had done to me—she would have no doubt run from me.
“I’m uneasy. I need to know if the others are all right.”
“Others?” he questioned.
I flinched my jaw. “My fellow kings.”
“Did we do some bonding last night?”
Last night, I had a very eye-opening meeting with Landen, Draven, and Phoenix. It wasn’t hard to see that all of us had a future that was not Earthly before us. That we had been chosen to be the replacement of evil kings such as Donalt that were currently in place. The only problem was we had to play Earthly games to take that control, and we were all bound by dark spells and forgotten pasts.
“I sense their turmoil.”
“But not their failure. Be at ease, my king. Right now, you need to find calm. Focus on your own war.”
“What war?”
I knew there was more than likely another explosion set to go off at any moment, but I didn’t see that as a war.
We had reached my office at this point, and members of the court were filing in. “Let her jump. Trust her,” Zander said to me under his breath.
I didn’t hear anything else after that point. I was inwardly focused on Madison Marie, doing everything I could to calm myself down—she was safe in our wing, hopefully sleeping soundly.
Madison
My eyes shifted between the glances that Xavier and Britain were passing to each other. I had a hard time conceiving what was real and what wasn’t. I knew Xavier and Britain were working together, but right now the energy I felt between them would lead me to believe anything but.
I was furious with Drake, too. Whether Britain deserved it or not, Drake had no right to order an execution. I had to question if he even would have told me this was taking place or if he would lead me to believe that Britain was just asked to leave the palace—which led me to wonder if that Horace guy had really left the palace like Drake had said, or if he had fallen victim to this fate that I was now staring at.
That couldn’t have been right, though. The fact that we had a book with that name on it must mean that guy was supernatural, hard to kill at least.
The walk down the palace halls was near mortifying. The front of my jeans were ripped, half my tank top was missing, and my boots were soaked. I was certain that by now I reeked of sulfur.
I was worried about Aden. I didn’t know where he was or if he had even gotten away from those men. The thought of losing him caused a grief that I shouldn’t feel to emerge within me.