Page 196 of Scourged
Footsteps and shouts rang behind the door. Mariah glanced up.
Back.
He didn’t know how he’d heard it. It wasn’t the first time, either. Every so often, their bond would flare with light, and he could hear words pushed across to him.
He wondered if it was the same for her. If he could speak to her in return.
Before he could try, he was following her backward steps, hurriedly rushing away as the door gave a heavy groan and swung away from them. The hinges shrieked and cried, as if they hadn’t been used for centuries.
A guard stepped through the open doorway, clothed in Shawth’s blood red livery. His face was familiar in a way that made Andrian’s shadows dance down his arms and roil with agitation through his blood.
The sickening grin the guard gave Mariah certainly didn’t help.
“It is so wonderful to see you return to us, Your Majesty,” the guard sneered. “We missed you sodearly.”
Anger and terror pulsed down the bond.
Mariahknewthis man. From her time here before, she knew him. And not in a good way.
Andrian’s fingers itched toward the pommel of his broadsword strapped across his back. But a pointed look from Mariah had him holding himself still.
The guard shifted his attention to Andrian, sneer tightening. “And if it isn’t the little lordling. What a waste you were. A pliant little queen placed right in your lap, and you decided to deprive us of a treat. Shame.” He tsked, expression shifting into something sinister as he raked his gaze down Mariah’s body. “I would’ve liked a chance to show her what it’s like to be with arealman for once.”
Andrian saw only red and darkness. A low growl rumbled from his throat, shadows spilling from his palms.
A hand met his arm. Light and warmth danced across his skin, pulling away his shadows. Andrian’s attention sharpened on Mariah as she took a step toward the guard.
And chuckled.
“It is so nice to see you again, Ellis,” she said, voice low and carrying a hint of poison. Her smile widened, light winding around her fingertips. “Glad to see you’re just as desperate for pussy as you were the last time I saw you. Or maybe you can only get it up when the girl is drugged?”
Everything around Andrian stilled.
Had this man… he couldn’t even finish the thought.
But before he could spiral down into his rage, before he stalked forward and cleaved this man’s head from his shoulders right then, Mariah sent him another message down their bond. No words this time, only a feeling.
Calming. Comforting. Assuring.
He exhaled through his nose, masking his relief.
She was merely playing a game.
Ellis took a staggering step back. “You insolent littlebitch?—”
“Ah, ah,” Mariah scolded, lifting her hand. Her magic shimmered in the sun. “That’s no way to speak to your queen.I might not be wearing my crown, but that’s only because it doesn’t travel well; I’d hate to lose it. You understand.”
Ellis froze as if remembering where he was. He straightened, fixing his face back into a condescending sneer.
“Of course, Your Majesty. I assume you are here to meet with our honorable Lord Shawth?”
Mariah lifted her chin defiantly. “YourhonorableLord Shawth took my family. I demand answers and will exact my punishment, if necessary.”
Andrian tried to hide his smirk of pride, but it died as he watched Ellis’s face.
No flicker of surprise. No flash of fear. Only that same insolent smirk, the same sniveling smile.
“Of course, Your Majesty. Lord Shawth has all the answers waiting for you, just inside.” He stepped back through the doorway and into the entry hall beyond. He gestured to them, welcoming them inside. “Please, follow me.”