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CHAPTER 3
The ease with which this man carried me over his shoulder revealed his brute strength. He didn’t even appear winded in the slightest as he kept me helpless and dangling over his broad shoulder as if I were simply a cloak on his back.
Troylus.
Yes, that was the name of my captor.
He would be the first of the kingsmen to pay. Pay severely with his life. But not before I had some fun torturing him for even daring to think he could compete against my power.
As the blood rushed to my head, I tried to lift it enough so I could see where they were taking me. It was a fortress located outside the forest that looked like so many I had seen and conquered before. Large blocks of stone, tall turrets to make their insignificant building appear mightier than it truly was against powers as strong as mine. A drawbridge entrance that, for some reason, the humans believed would keep their foe at bay. When would they learn that man-made structures or defenses had no hold over me?
Gasping as Troylus’ shoulder jabbed into my middle, I noticed something around the fortress I had never seen before. The purple haze that the kingsmen had used to capture me in the forest blanketed the dark gray stones. It rested heavily over every crack and every squared edge, giving off an eerie aura that I couldn’t help but find fascinating.
What had these kingsmen found?
What magic had they conjured?
“What is this place?” I asked as I arched my back even more to fully take in the fortress.
“Your new home. But rest assured that it is truly befitting of a queen such as you,” Troylus said as he and the other men waited for the drawbridge to lower before riding inside on their steeds.
“Release me at once, and I will consider sparing your lives,” I said as I tried to wiggle myself from his shoulder to little avail.
Troylus chuckled. “Just a little bit further, your highness. I will be releasing you soon enough.”
It wasn’t long before the horses were moving forward again, and as we entered the thick purple haze, a sizzling fire burned within my core. The unfamiliar sensation brought tears to my eyes and captured what little breath I had left from the bouncing of our mount which drove Troylus’ shoulder deeper into my stomach with each move.
“What witchery is this?” I asked more to myself than to Troylus because I knew he wouldn’t reveal their attack strategy.
The thick, amethyst smoke was clearly my undoing right now. With every breath I took, my power became more and more suffocated. I was nothing but a weak maiden in distress cast over her captor’s shoulder with no ability to fight. It was then that a new sensation grew from the depths of my belly.
Panic.
Looking out onto the horizon one last time before I was carried fully into the heart of my prison, I searched for any sign of Hrafn. Nothing.
Closing my eyes, I silently sent out a call for help. My only hope was that this encompassing fog could not hold back the connection I had with the one who could be my only savior.
A dungeon. Yes, that is where I sat.
Dark, damp, cold and what could become deadly if I could not come up with a way to regain my strength. Sitting tied to a chair, I had already come to the conclusion that without my powers, there would be no escape. The kingsmen had left me alone, so confident that with only a small, barred window near the ceiling and metal shackles around my ankles and wrists, I would be going nowhere. They were correct in that assessment. No matter how hard I tried to remove my bonds or lift the purple haze spell that enchanted this fortress, there was nothing I could do.
The heavy stomp of boots announced Troylus’ presence without me having to turn my head to see him enter my new, forced domain.
“Queen Zelladine, I hope you find your accommodations suitable?”
The jest in his tone had me grinding my teeth to resist the urge to counter in any way. I may have lost my strength in magic, but I had not lost my strength completely. These kingsmen would soon discover just how much of a force I was regardless of what mystifying spell they had conjured.
Troylus slowly walked around me and stood with his arms crossed against his chest with a smirk on his face. I stared up at him, directly into his eyes. I refused to show anything but complete control and composure.
“Let me begin. You will tell us where we can find Briar Rose’s body, so she can receive a proper burial. This is nonnegotiable and only one of many demands we will make upon you,” he said, not moving, and not breaking the eye contact we both refused to back down from.
