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Casja
LORD MERICK GRINNEDas he stared down at King Duncan. There was a hungry look on his face. His lips were pursed so hard that there was no color in them. The wrinkles on his face had almost disappeared with the sheer look of achievement all over him.
“Good,” he said. “It’s time the crown finds its proper king.”
He grabbed King Duncan’s crown and lifted it off his head. There was no one to stop him. I wanted to scream at Lord Merick to stop as King Duncan gracefully sat still while still on his knees, but as soon as she felt the tendency, Lady Queill stopped that urge in me. Perhaps she did not want me to ruin the moment since there wasn’t anything I could do to stop Lord Merick as he took the crown from the King of the Unseelie and gently placed it atop his head.
King Duncan’s grimace remained, but he did not look at Lord Merick.
“My king,” Lady Queill took a few steps to stand before Lord Merick. “We still have things to do.”
“I’m simply enjoying the moment, Lady Queill,” Lord Merick said. His tone carried an edge. “We will always have things to take care of.”
“The lords and ladies of the realm who are loyal to the fallen king will not allow him to be replaced so easily,” Lady Queill said despite Lord Merick’s attempt to dissuade her. “If you will, allow me to sort through them, and I shall take care of any dissidents. We can imprison and control the lords and let the sons rule. It would be wise to have them...”
“I will not allow their sons to rule,” Lord Merick said while glancing at the mirror beside him. The bed behind him was messy; they must have captured the king while he was still sleeping. “Executions will be most appropriate for those who wish to rebel. For the others, I am certain that we can reach an agreement with most of them. No smart man would insist on loyalty when it is against his interest to remain so. They will see it more profitable to be on my side.”
I knew Lord Merick had an inclination toward trade. He was involved in various successful ventures that allowed him to become the lord of the large estate he held. I wished I had done better research on him, but I at least knew that he was one of those men who did everything possible to reach the top. And he had reached the top. The very top...
But it still irked me to hear about his ideas relating to loyalty. It was clear that he did not grasp the concept well.
“Please, my liege,” Lady Queill did not move at all but even staring at her from behind, I knew she was exceptionally serious about this. “They might try to hide their true intentions. If you don’t want us to imprison them, at least let us imprison some of the lords’ offspring. We need leverage.”
“Why won’t we let the former king speak?” Lord Merick said to Lady Queill as though she hadn’t said a thing. “I want to hear what he thinks about all of this.”
There was a spark in his eyes. Lord Merick wanted to gloat. By keeping King Duncan silent, Lady Queill was taking away that pleasure.
Lady Queill must have thought appeasing the false king was the best option she had to make him listen to her suggestions. She did not move nor did anything to suggest she was obeying Lord Merick’s instruction, but the tensing of King Duncan’s body stopped at once.
“You will pay for this,” King Duncan said calmly.
“Who will make me?” Lord Merick smacked his lips as if this conversation was a delicious meal he would enjoy immensely. “Your son? Your daughter? I’m afraid they’re both prisoners of the Queen of Light. It’s a shame. They were so young.”
My respect toward King Duncan grew as he remained unmoved despite the shadow of grief passing through him. He would not give Lord Merick the pleasure of seeing him lost.
I could not be as brave. I felt my eyes tingling, but Lady Queill was still in my mind, making it impossible for me to do anything opposing her wishes.
“Lady Queill,” King Duncan said. “You have hidden well. Tell me, which parent was it?”
I did not understand what that meant. The king’s gaze briefly darted my way.
“She did hide her true self,” Lord Merick said, smacking his lips as he spoke. “You didn’t know it at all, did you, Duncan?”
“I did not,” King Duncan replied, darting his gaze away from me. He did not seem to be waiting for a response to the question he’d asked Lady Queill. “I thought she was an earth elemental.”
“She is that, too,” Lord Merick said as Lady Queill remained silent. “Don’t blame yourself for it. Double-skill is very rare.”
“It wasn’t always,” King Duncan said.
I tried not to think about what they were saying. Lady Queill was still inside my mind, so she could purse my thoughts if she thought they were interesting enough. If I somehow survived this, I would have the time to think about what King Duncan meant. I pushed the image of Jasmine off my mind. Lady Queill did not need to know what I had been thinking. Luckily, she was preoccupied with what was going on in the room.
“Perhaps I will keep your daughter,” Lord Merick said once King Duncan stopped speaking. “Marry her to my son, and our grandchildren can rule the realms after our passing.”
“That would be very wise, my king,” Lady Queill said gravely.
“I know,” Lord Merick glanced toward the woman. There was contempt in him, which did not make sense since they seemed to be working together quite well. “I don’t need you to tell me what is wise and what is not. I am not planning on keeping any ladies as my advisors. Men should take care of manly business.”
“I am sure the Queen of Light would love hearing more of that, father,” Lord Lugh’s voice reached me from behind.
