Page 68 of King of Serpents

“Wait? Did someone remove the flowers from this part of the palace?” she whispered.

Naturally, there was no response, but her question made her double back to where the shadows gathered thickest, just beyond the reach of the last cluster of flowers. Resting her hand against the wall, she descended once more. Her fingernails scraped over rock, tracing over them until her fingers caught on a rough edge of stone. Alex’s eyebrows winged upward, and she turned toward the wall to run her palms over it. There was something there! Rought stones lay crumpled together as if intentionally barricading the way.

Alex bit her lip. Why would it be blocked? It was clearly intentional. Between the flowers ripped from the walls and the closure of the corridor, it couldn’t be anything else. What was behind the wall? If he were there, Therxian would demand that she retreat to a safe spot with the nature of the barricade being unknown. But... what if it held an important clue? Could she really wait and take the risk that Therxian might consider it unsafe to venture into and decide to leave it unexplored?

“Well, crap,” she sighed.

Her beloved mate really wasn’t going to be happy with her.

Chapter 48

“Yilada. I have not heard that name in a long time. And I had hoped never to hear it again. I knew I still had dissention within the families of the noble matriarchs, but I did not believe that my sister would continue to haunt me after so many revolutions,” Zathexa muttered wearily. “Despite their displeasure with my rule, I never would have imagined that there would have been those among my court who would have dared to hide and support the rule of her progeny.”

“Would you recognize her daughter if you saw her?” Therxian asked.

His mother dipped her chin. “I rarely saw her. She was still a young nestling back then, and young females do not come to court until they reach a certain age unless they are too young to be separated from their mother. My sister and I did not enjoy normal familial bonds, which normally would have ensured that I would have been part of her daughter’s life from her hatching day. At that time, I thought she was merely oddly reclusive and that her occasional overtures to rule were nothing more than sisterly concern for my unique situation. I never realized how much she hated me until it was too late.”

“Even if you had seen her dozens of times, it would have made little difference,” Elder Goyu interjected with a heavy sigh. “You do not always realize it when you are watching them grow day by day, but everything from facial shape to the color of their scales can change significantly as they grow into adulthood. After so many revolutions, no one who had ever seen her before would recognize her.”

Therxian frowned. He had seen so many hatchlings grow among the Vehal, how did he not consider that?

“She could literally be anyone,” he rumbled. “Even one of the matriarchs pushing their daughters onto me, if she mated and bred young.”

Zathexa stared inwardly, her thoughts visibly haunted. “It seems that there was no saving my mother-line. Every effort since the beginning just served their purpose by keeping me in line and providing heirs by which they might secure their legitimacy. Is it possible that they were responsible for Vorahna’s condition?”

“I would not put it past them,” Elder Goyu grumbled as she exchanged a look with her mate.

The elderly male inclined his head in agreement. “It is clear that someone on the council is not above using poison to accomplish their means. A slow poison would have been a means for keeping control until it was convenient to eliminate her to complete the transference of power.”

Zathexa frowned. “But that does not make sense,” she whispered in a hoarse voice. “No one attempted to take the throne following her death. Vekatha intensified her pursuit of Slengral, but otherwise there was no change within the council.”

Therxian twitched awkwardly and glanced over at Jathella. The female’s eyes widened as she quickly deduced his intention, and she dipped her chin vehemently. His jaw tightened. She had a right to know.

He reached over and placed his hand over his mother’s. “Mother, there may have been reason,” he murmured. “Vorahna... she was meeting someone in the elder palace.”

Her brow drew down in confusion. “Who?”

“According to what she left behind... she was meeting a male. An Uralial male,” he replied.

Her mouth parted in shock. “An... Uralial? Are you certain?”

He gave Jathella a meaningful look, and the female sighed. “It seems to be the case,” she reluctantly agreed. “Therxian gave me a scroll that he found exploring the elder palace. It was her handwriting, and of the two figures painted, the female was recognizably her. The other was a male Uralial.”

Zathexa sank back further into the pillows cushioning her. “No wonder,” she whispered. “They intended all along to destroy my line. They just bade their time and kept me beneath their claws while weakening my legacy and destroying it bit by bit. My sons... my daughter. Such cruel fates. They never intended for any of them to live.”

“It is quite probable that even Therxian would have eventually met his demise after he fulfilled his purpose, regardless of what agreement they reached with you,” Jathella acknowledged.

Therxian drew a deep breath as he let that piece of knowledge sit with him. She was right. The council found him useful for only one thing. Once he outlived his usefulness to them, he would have had the same fate as his brothers.

“And now the high queen has been attacked,” Elder Goyu murmured. “Is Yilada’s heir preparing to shift their attack?”

“They will not kill her. Not yet. She is still useful to them. I am still her son, and as my mother, she has ultimate authority over securing her heir through me outside of the normal matrilineal lineage. The people will not accept any offspring of mine without her acknowledgement of the female.”

“And, as Yilada and her entire line were outcast and exiled, they no longer possess any legitimate ties to the throne,” Elder Goyu affirmed grimly. “They have no choice but to accomplish this.” Her mouth tightened. “I am curious, though. Clearly all your other sons were tried, whether stolen or taken under false pretenses, why were they killed before producing a daughter?”

“A mystery that I will likely have no answer to,” Zathexa quietly replied.

“Perhaps we should at least consider a more secure location for Mother. Whether the council tries to take power or not, none of them will be able to establish power without her confirmed death—and even then, the entire shinara would likely descend into chaos which is likely why no one has tried to assassinate her after Yulada failed to kill my father,” Therxian observed. “Removing her outside of their direct ability to control her, and the shinara through her, should be our next step.”