King of Battle and Blood (Adrian X Isolde #1)(33)
I watched Sorin elbow Isac.
“Look, it’s our queen—the one who stabbed you!”
Miha grinned and Isac glared. “You say that as if I’ve forgotten.”
“I think you do not appreciate the gesture. Who else can say they were stabbed by their queen?”
“Your king,” I said, and the trio exchanged both surprised and amused looks.
Beside me, I felt Adrian’s eyes on me. “I have met my match,” he said.
His comment made me shiver, and I met his gaze, which seemed far too serious. I wasn’t sure Adrian and I were a match for anything but hatred, though I also wasn’t sure he hated me at all.
“We travel until dawn,” Adrian instructed, and as Daroc rode forward, Adrian and I followed while Sorin, Isac, and Miha fell in line behind us. After, the rest of the group joined, which included several vampires dressed in the same feathered, gold armor and mortals, both men and women, who were dressed in regal silk and fur, as if they were not part of an army.
We would travel north through Lara to the border of Revekka. I had not ventured north since I was a little girl. Those territories were beyond the mountain pass, too close to Revekka, and as Adrian’s power had grown and new monsters were born, the visits stopped. Now, only Killian and his soldiers made rounds close to the border near the Blood King’s kingdom.
Despite being with monsters, I was excited to see the villages in the north. They were so far from the castle, they had their own traditions and cultures, but I wondered…would they welcome me?
The wood was dark, but the naked limbs of the trees allowed for a view of the stars, and I found myself watching them, seeking light, mourning that I would not see the sun for a few days.
“Do you miss the sun?” I asked Adrian.
“That is a curious question.” He glanced at me.
“And why is that?”
He was quiet for a moment, and when he spoke, he answered my first question, “I do not miss the sun, not anymore.”
“And what if I miss the sun?”
How bright was the sky in Revekka—what would the sun look like beaming from behind red clouds? Would I even be able to see it?
“Then I will find it for you,” he replied.
Our eyes locked, and I saw a human sincerity in his expression that made my chest and cheeks feel warm. I quickly looked away.
Silence stretched until I noticed a few of Adrian’s soldiers breaking ranks, disappearing into the darkness. My heart picked up pace, wondering what they were doing.
“They are scouting,” Adrian said.
“But we are still in Lara.”
I didn’t see the need to be on guard. Adrian and I had made an agreement, and no matter how angry my people were about the arrangement, they would honor my father.
“Do monsters not lurk in your shadows?” he asked. He was referring to things that lurk in the dark—the strzyga, the virika, revenants, the ker—all creatures that were like Adrian but different in how they appeared and the way they fed upon life.
“Are you not their king?” I retorted, frustrated by his sarcasm.
“I am the king of vampires,” he said. “I am not the king of monsters.”
“There is no difference,” I said.
I did not know Adrian very well, but I could tell my comment frustrated him. That shapely jaw tightened, and I felt triumphant. I’d learned that the true measure of men was how they handled their anger. Would he be like Killian and lash out if I pushed too hard?
“You seem to believe I spawned all dark things,” he said, his voice maintaining that silky quality, and he delivered his words with no hint of frustration.
It was what we were told—that all dark things came from the Blood King. That when he partook of sacred life, the blood that dropped to the earth created monsters.
Beside me, he laughed. “That is a lie.”
“Enlighten me, Your Majesty,” I said.
“I turn humans into vampires,” he said. “But even I have rules. The monsters you know of—the strzyga, the virika, revenants, the ker—they were created by Asha.”
“No,” I said immediately. “The goddess of life would never corrupt it.”
I was not a worshipper of the goddesses, but even I did not think Asha would create such heinous creatures.
“Never forget, my queen, that goddesses are just humans with great power.”
With his comment, he moved ahead to Daroc’s side as if he no longer wished to ride beside me. I watched him, wishing that I could pitch an arrow into his back, but I considered what he said about the goddesses and found that I did not think so differently. There were many others who suffered worse attacks, worse experiences, and yet were far more devout. They wore their hardships like badges of honor and their faith like weapons, and I did not understand it.
I glanced to my left as Sorin meandered up beside me and extended his hand, a piece of dried…something clutched between his fingers.
“What is that?” I asked, eyeing it suspiciously.
“Beef,” he said with a grin. “You want some?”
“Why are you eating beef? Can you eat beef?”
I only knew vampires to sustain themselves with blood. I wondered how long it would be before I witnessed a vampire feed from a mortal, and was not looking forward to the display.