AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter1
KALLIE
Kallie gripped the railing,her weight pressing onto her wrists as she stepped across the chasm between the ship and the dock. Darkness had blanketed the sky hours ago, and the midnight breeze did little to cool her hot, sticky skin as the remnants of salt and fish lingered on it.
The boat ride from Pontia was excruciating. Without anyone to help her sleep, Kallie turned to the next best thing: whiskey. By the time the ship had docked in Frenzia, there wasn’t a drop of alcohol in the decanter. The burning liquid, however, had done little to quench her nausea or dull her raging thoughts.
In truth, what Kallie needed was an outlet, a way to release her emotions.
An outlet the boat could not provide, unfortunately. Not with the prying eyes or the thin floorboards. Kallie couldn’t even confide in her best friend without fearing that someone might overhear.
For the past couple of months, Kallie had tucked away any thought that might reveal her true motives to the Pontians or the man who could read her thoughts. In the months leading up to the choosing ceremony, Domitius had taught Kallie how to shield her thoughts.
Of course, Kallie no longer had to worry about the mind reader infiltrating her thoughts because Fynn was dead. Herbrotherwas dead. All because of the choices she had made.
On the ship, she had yearned to lean on Myra, to seek solace in the one friend she still had. Yet she had remained silent. She would not give Domitius any reason to think she was a traitor. Blood or not, he was her father. He was the known, the familiar. The Pontians were nothing but strangers.
And yet . . .
Kallie inhaled, forcing the creeping feeling away. The smell of sea salt and fish was poison on her tongue, but at least she was on land. She needed a new distraction, a mission.
Beyond the pier, moonlight seeped through the blanket of fog. Somewhere in the castle upon the hill was her new target.
This time, she would not let her heart get in the way. She would focus on what she came here to do: capture King Rian’s heart and steal his throne.
Leaning on the railing, she stumbled down the dock, yearning for the solid, unmoving ground. Kallie longed for a hot bath and a solid night of rest. Sebastian, on the other hand, had not stopped talking. Currently, he was bragging to Domitius about accomplishments Kallie could not care less about. During the voyage, the two men were often found lounging on the ship with drinks in their hands. Sebastian was not the only one reminiscing. Domitius also took advantage of the opportunity to relive past adventures.
At all hours, their voices seeped through the cracks of the old wooden beams of the cabin. Every time they rejoiced in their small victory over the enemy, nausea formed in Kallie’s throat.
Did they not realize that they had started a war? Or did they not care? Perhaps they didn’t. Perhaps they were too ecstatic about their victory over the unruly islanders. At first, Kallie had tried to join in on the revelry. Or at least she had pretended to until the seasickness claimed her, forcing her to crawl back to her room, drained and green. Even the pride oozing from her father’s brown eyes couldn’t keep her standing beside him.
But this was what she had wanted. For years, she had wanted to earn her father’s respect, to be enough for him, and to celebrate their shared victory. How could she celebrate when sour guilt clogged her throat?
Kallie had betrayed the Pontians in the hopes of changing her father’s opinion of her. Now, her body betrayed her in turn, and she only had herself to blame.
She had been grinning and bearing it for months. She needed a moment, one second, to let the mask fade away.
Unfortunately, now was not the time. So, with every step down the dock, Kallie buried those thoughts deep in her mind.
It was a habit of hers to let her mind wander to places it shouldn’t, but she would get control over that little hiccup soon enough. Soon, she would have a queen’s crown on her head and the Frenzian throne beneath her.
A hand fell atop hers, and a calmness seeped over her instantly at her friend’s touch. Kallie met Myra’s hazel eyes, and a soft smile graced her friend’s lips as Kallie squeezed her hand. An instant rush of relief soared through her veins. While she hadn’t had the time to talk to Myra openly yet, Kallie was grateful for her friend’s unexpected presence nevertheless. On the ship, Myra had been a welcome companion. While Kallie was weak and tired, Myra’s mere presence had quieted the raging sea that roared beneath the boat.
Peering at her handmaiden and friend, Kallie’s mind cleared. She removed her hand from beneath Myra’s.
She was on Frenzian soil now. It was time she stepped into her new role.
If Kallie wanted her father’s respect, she would prove to him that she wasn’t this fickle human who would let the sea break her. She was fire, and she would make the sea burn.
As she rocked her head in a small circle, the movement released the tension in her muscles. Her gait grew steady; her breathing became even. Then, masking her face with the indifference she had perfected long ago, she slid into the open space between the two men. It was time she stopped hiding.
Gaze forward and footsteps even, Kallie tipped her chin higher. She saw King Domitius’s mouth twitch upward from the corner of her eye, approval embedded into the movement.
Beside her, Sebastian cleared his throat. “I’ve sent a messenger ahead of us to notify my brother of our arrival. It is later in the night than I had hoped we would return, but I am sure he will still want to greet both of you.”
“Very well,” Kallie said, flicking off a piece of dust from her shoulder as her heels slapped the brick road. She pushed her shoulders back. “In the morning, we shall meet and discuss our plans. You may think them naive, but sooner or later, Pontia will retaliate,” Kallie said, her attention forward as she gained a slight lead in front of the men.
Sebastian’s pace quickened. “King Domitius and I already—”
