Crown of Blood and Ruin: A dark fairy tale romance (The Broken Kingdoms Book 3)
Crown of Blood and Ruin: Chapter 20

My friend,

What you suggest, could it truly work? Do you have such power? What will become of my family?

Forgive the many questions, but I do not understand this fury. You insist the false king must remain part of this land, that he will help bring about four queens of fate. I do not understand the purpose of four queens, but if the false king is to live, the thought sours in my mouth. After the pain he has caused, I would like nothing more than to see him gray and bloodless on a battlefield. Still, if keeping his life means my family will see sunrises again, then let him live until he is nothing but brittle bone.

I’ll be at the meet tonight. We shall talk more.

—Lili

“May I join you?”

I looked up from the cryptic letter. Herja stood behind me. “Yes. Please.”

With a gesture at the empty space on the log, I scooted over.

She nestled beside me and stared at the gentle flow of the creek. Nine days in Ruskig had added more color to her cheeks, more meat on her bones. She was strong and lithe. I understood the many tales of Herja Ferus and her blade as she took up a position training our warriors while Halvar developed our strategies over rough maps and drawings of Castle Ravenspire.

“What are you reading?”

I studied the rough strokes of the pen. As the letters went on, Lilianna’s desperation grew clearer in each missive. I handed it to Herja. “From your mother. I take comfort in her writings. Always have.”

Herja read the page, a wrinkle above her nose. “This is when she was locked in Eli’s tower?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“I would imagine it is. He kept her parted from us, demanding she be his consort. He threatened to take me if she did not comply. Until I slaughtered his guards.” She scoffed bitterly. “Then, I think he felt it wiser to keep me locked away, untouched.”

“Do you know the friend she is writing?”

Herja shook her head. “I don’t. She had many friends across the lands. It was my mother’s great strength—her ability to unite people despite differences. The only one she could not convince was King Eli.”

I folded the parchment and gently returned it to a pouch on my belt. Tears blurred my vision. In quiet moments, when the stars brightened the sky, I would allow thoughts to turn to Valen, of his gentle touch, his soft words he spoke only to me. Then, when the harsh sun rose day after day and those tender thoughts became only dreams, I’d return to a dark despair that we were parted.

He was being tortured, no doubt.

“Elise,” Herja said, one hand on my arm. “We are making progress.”

“It is not enough. Not until Valen is free.”

“Halvar is cunning in his positions around the castle, and when your men return with allies—there is no telling what gains we will have. I know something about Alver folk, after all.”

I stared at my hands. “You speak of Laila’s and Gunnar’s father?”

“I do. Alvers are tricky, like fae, but at times more fearsome. Their different gifts are truly terrifying and wonderful. Trust me, if your allies are Alvers, we will have the advantage when they couple with Night Folk and the sheer will of Ettans.”

“Where is he? Your lover, I mean. Wouldn’t he like to know you are free?” I was doubtful about the man. Perhaps he liked his family in captivity. They could not depend on anyone but him if they were locked away.

But my doubts were doubted when Herja’s face paled. “I fear something terrible has happened to him. Fury we didn’t understand kept me locked in the hands of Stor Magnus. For turns Hagen and I tried to break whatever magic kept me there, but nothing ever worked. When my voice returned after living with the curse of silence for so long, I knew—deep inside—I knew something was shifting in the land. Something dangerous.

“I forced Hagen to flee with our children. Hells, the man can argue, and he fought me to the end. But he also fiercely loves his young ones and seeing them free was worth every risk to him.”

“But what risk? Why could he not take them from the beginning?”

Herja played with a few blades of grass for a few moments. “Alvers might live the life of a noble, like Hagen, but they walk a dangerous line if their gifts are rare, or if they step off the line in the slightest. They are traded and used for entertainment, especially the women. But Alver men are taken as well, and from what Hagen described they are turned into monsters. It is the reason he was brought to play for the Valkyrie to begin with. If he won, his family would gain a new level of prestige from the winnings, and they would not fall under the scrutiny of Alver hunters at such a position.”

“So, he played.” My lips pinched into a tight line. “And clearly, he won.”

“No, he did not play. I prepared to kill him the moment he stepped into the tent, but what he said stopped me: May we just talk a while before you kill me?” Herja chuckled. “Silent for turns, and at last someone wished to speak with me.”

“But he kept returning.”

“Yes. He would speak, I would write responses.” She smiled at the trees with a wistful glance. “I fell in love with him.”

“But they would never let him remain with his family?”

She shook her head. “When he survived the first night, they assumed he’d defeated me. As the first—and only—victor, Hagen was allowed to return twice each turn. After our children arrived, Hagen fought to have all of us released. Hells, the coin he paid Magnus to simply consider the thought. But he could only do so much, remember, or risk stepping off the dangerous line in his own kingdom.”

Herja freed a quivering breath and hugged her middle. “Until I forced him to step so far off the line. He planned to run with the children to the South, the West, anywhere to keep them safe. And now he’s been returned to his land and . . . I fear the worst, Elise. I fear I have doomed him to a life of pain and captivity.”

With a quick swipe of her hand, she brushed tears from her cheeks. “If you need another who understands not knowing where the second half of her heart is, then you have me. I know you love my brother the way I love Hagen. But we must believe we will see them again or the fight inside will wither and die. I will not give up on Hagen, and you must not fall into hopelessness over Valen’s absence.”

I grabbed her hand and squeezed, tears on my cheeks. “I won’t accept a life where we do not see them again.”

“Then keep fighting, My Queen.” She smiled softly. “We are close.”

Herja Ferus must’ve had a bit of a visionary in her blood because in the hours before dawn, the bellow of a horn announced approaching ships to the walls of the refuge. I’d given the bed to Laila and Herja and had taken a place on the rug near the inglenook in the longhouse. I did not remember falling asleep, but when the horn sounded, I snapped awake, buried beneath a thick bear pelt.

I rarely dressed in nightclothes now. When war knocked at the gates, keeping blades and boots nearby seemed more prudent.

The belt with my seax and dagger was barely secured when the door slammed open, and the hall was filled with the Guild of Shade.

“Ships,” Halvar said breathlessly, adjusting his own belt.

“Ari?”

“Looks to be,” Tor said, handing me my silver circlet.

“Elise, have they come?” Herja pulled back the fur, half dressed.

“We’re going to replace out.”

“I’m coming.”

“I’ll stay with the child.” Kari materialized from behind Halvar and stepped into the royal longhouse.

Hells, was everyone fully dressed and ready to leap at all times? It was as if my most trusted friends had the fury to appear at my side in a matter of breaths at the slightest change. Truth be told, I took a bit of comfort knowing they were always there.

On the way to the walls, Stieg, Mattis, and Siv joined us. Atop the posts that faced the sea, Brant spoke to the archers, then waved us through to the shore. Beyond the walls the expanse of the Fate’s Ocean filled the brimming dawn.

In the sliver of morning light, four swift longships maneuvered into the fjord. The steady thrum of drums announced their approach. My chest squeezed. On the lead ship, Ari hugged the stempost, blowing into a curled ram’s horn. At his side, Casper rolled the tides to lead them into shore with haste.

The nearer they came, the more folk from Ruskig came out to greet the fleet.

Only then did I catch sight of something different. At the back point of the ships’ formation, a cloud of pitch rolled behind them. Darker than a moonless night, skeins of black slithered across the water like sea serpents.

“What is that?” Siv breathed out.

We were about to replace out. I hurried to the shore as the first ship banked and Ari hopped onto the rocky beach. No hesitation, I flung my arms around his neck. “I beg of you to bring us good news.”

He laughed and ran a comforting hand down my back before he pulled away. “I bring you intriguing news, My Queen. And old friends.”

I looked to the second ship as it skidded over the smooth stones on the beach. A man leaped over the keelson. Atop his thick mat of russet hair, he wore a napless cap. A canvas coat draped over his shoulders, and on his belt were rows of pouches and vials tucked among three knives.

He drew in a long breath through his nose. “No smell of piss here.”

Herja snorted a laugh as we watched him turn back to the ship. Handsome. Young. An unending grin of mischief on his face. The man reached up and held out a hand.

I let out a childish squeal of delight when Junius took his hand and accepted his help onto the shore.

“Junie!” I rushed to her, wrapping her in my arms. She laughed and held tight. “Look at you. You look . . .”

“Fed?” She lifted a playful brow. True enough, she seemed healthier than before. Two silver piercings dotted her cheeks in the divots of her smile, and her long, glossy black hair was braided in gold chains. She wore a flowing tunic and silver bands on her wrists. A different woman than I saw last.

I hugged her again. “I can breathe now that you are here.”

“Elise,” she said sternly. “We should’ve been here long before Valen was taken. Hells, you people are so bleeding stubborn, and you’ve caused a great deal of strife at home. I’ve had my own battle keeping Niklas at bay. Not an easy task since the man has wanted to join this fight since I returned.”

She looked back at the man who’d helped her down as he fitted a strange band of what looked like gold rings around each finger, then flexed and clenched his fingers a few times until the row of rings stayed in place.

They stepped aside with me as the three ships unloaded with men and supplies. Most of their folk dressed like Niklas. Less furs and tunics, and more trousers, boiled leather belts, and heavy boots.

I kept a wary watch on the approaching shadows and eerie beat drums. Doubtless most of these people were Alvers if they lived with Junius, but it still drew a level of unease as the cloud approached.

“Nik.” Junius’s voice interrupted my thoughts. “Meet Elise Lysander. The new queen here.”

“Ferus,” I corrected.

“Ah, right. Your vows. The ones I was not invited to attend,” Junie said, pouting.

“I’m sure you’ve heard a great deal about me.” Her husband stepped forward. “The formidable guild lead of the infamous Falkyns of Skìkast.”

“I’ve heard some,” I said, smiling.

“Only some? Didn’t Junie tell grand tales of my brilliance?” Niklas winked and kissed the back of my hand. “I suppose it is better to see it firsthand. You helped keep my wife alive, Queenie, so you have my thanks and loyalty.”

Junius snickered and elbowed him. “Proper titles. She’s a bleeding queen, my love.”

“Afraid I don’t know much about proper,” Niklas said more to me. “The Falkyns’ kingdom is made of the slummiest of slums.”

I grinned. For the first time since Valen was taken, a wash of hope filled me. “I care little about propriety. You have my thanks for answering our call.”

“Hells, a fight for a bleeding crown,” Niklas said, stretching his arms over his head. “How could we refuse?”

“As I said. He’s been begging to return.” Junie’s smile faded. “Tell us about Valen.”

I closed my eyes. “There is much to tell. Come back to the longhouse, we’ll explain everything.”

Another horn blasted in the wind. My blood chilled. I’d dropped my gaze for a moment and now the shadows had engulfed the shore. Our people scattered, but they were the only ones.

Niklas, in fact, balked, crossing his arms over his chest. “Always insists on making an entrance. I’m starting to think he enjoys the attention.”

“What is it?”

Junius glanced at me like I’d slipped my mind. “The Nightrender. As you asked.”

At her word the shadows drew toward a center point, like a cyclone pulling them away. Between them a dark longship appeared with two young ones beating rawhide drums, and only a few crewmen unloading blades and bows.

When the last drop of shadows died, a man emerged, as if his body had absorbed the darkness. In truth, I was certain it had.

Hooded, dressed in black, he cut a path through everyone on the shore. His movements were swift, sure, and demanding. I held my breath, too captivated, perhaps too afraid to move. At my side, Herja, Tor, and Halvar took a protective stance as the Nightrender pushed forward.

Two paces away he stopped. The hood concealed his top features, but his mouth was set in a sharp, harsh line.

We remained this way for two, ten, a dozen breaths.

Until at last he spoke. His voice came in a soft, eerie rasp. “Are you the queen who is fool enough to think she knows my fate?”

“You’d be wise to show some respect,” Tor threatened. “You do speak to a queen.”

The Nightrender chuckled. There was little affection in it. “Not mine. I serve no royal and never will.”

“I am Elise,” I said, a hand on Tor’s chest when he reached for his blade. “I do not pretend to know your fate. But I will also not pretend your existence was not made known to me through a speaker of fate. Every prophecy she has given has come to pass.”

“And you believe I have some role to play in your war?”

“I don’t know, but you came. You must’ve wondered a little yourself.”

If possible, his frown deepened, but he pointed at the small skeleton crew around his small ship. “I came because the majority of my guild voted to come. I was overruled. As I said, no one stands over another in our world.”

He hated me. Or everyone. But we didn’t need to be friendly allies. We simply needed to replace a way to work together to save the king. Then he could disappear into his shadows again. “Will you tell me why you are called the Nightrender?”

He paused. How much could he see beneath his hood? For it felt a great deal like he was peeling into my deepest thoughts with eyes I could not see.

“I could kill you,” he said. “Right here. Without moving.”

Tor and Halvar stepped forward, but I held up a hand when the Nightrender chuckled.

“Because of them,” he said with a nod at the two Shade. “They fear for your life. I could make their deepest fears reality. You. Dead.”

“Always pleasant, my friend,” Niklas said, rolling his eyes.

Friend? Looking at the Nightrender, friendship, allies, the lot of it seemed wholly impossible. He radiated distrust and disdain for anyone who breathed.

“Are you an Alver? I thought their magic had everything to do with the body.”

“Is fear not fed from our deepest emotions? Reaction to circumstances and experiences? It is those impulses, those thoughts, those rushes of adrenaline where my power lies. I can break into your deepest fears and make them real. Do you know what folk in the east call me? My Kind of Alver, I mean?”

I shook my head mutely.

He closed the space between us. His nearness made me freeze as he pulled back his hood. Wavy, brown hair, mussed over his brow and ears. But it was his eyes that shocked me. Not a glimpse of whites, nothing but pure, inky black.

“A Malevolent,” he whispered. “That is my Kind. Wicked, evil, made of darkness. So sure you want my fate tangled with yours, Queen?”

He was testing me. I’d learned enough to know people like him needed to share a level of confidence in their allies. Weak and brittle would turn the Nightrender away in an instant. I butted his chest with mine. It was only us on the shore. Nothing mattered in this moment but convincing this dark magick to stay.

“I do not care if the hells themselves spat you out. If you question the lengths I am willing to go to save my husband, then you have never loved the way I have—the way I do.”

A small twitch of his cheek proved something about what I’d said lashed at him. But he covered it well, adding more questions I doubted I’d ever see answered.

The Nightrender studied me, scrutinized me, then closed his eyes in an extended blink.

A small gasp came before I could stop it. Where swirling ink had been in his eyes, now bright gold stared back at me. Eyes that made him look utterly normal, but for the sadness. The heavy burden that hinted to a hard existence.

“We do nothing for nothing.” He narrowed his eyes. “We are not warriors, we are dealmakers. Make this worth our time, and you may consider the Guild of Kryv willing to listen to your plans.”

“You wish to be paid?” I arched a brow. This was war, not a bleeding trade deal.

The Nightrender’s mouth twitched. “I do nothing for nothing. I do a great many things if it fattens my purse.”

“You’re serious?”

“Welcome to the Eastern Kingdom, Elise,” Junius whispered, hardly surprised by the barter. She nodded her head at the Nightrender who seemed entirely too pleased with himself.

I scoffed and looked to Tor. “See to it the Guild of Kryv and the Nightrender are paid well for their trouble.”

“We take weapons, coin, and anything worth a good trade,” the Nightrender said with a wink. It wasn’t playful, it was arrogant. As if he’d placed us in the exact position he wanted.

He turned to make his way to his guild, but I stopped him. “If we are to do this, don’t you think I should know your true name? Trust begins at the simple things, Nightrender.”

His expression was unchanged, but with the gold of his eyes exposed the glimmer of light he tried to hide. “We came to fight in your war, Queen. Not trust each other.”

Our conversation was at an end for now. The Nightrender abandoned us for his guild.

“Elise, are you sure about this?” Tor asked.

“No.” True. I didn’t know what the Nightrender, or what the Falkyns could do for us, but I would trust this was the person Calista meant in her daze. I’d trust this was the path fate had chosen for us.

Niklas chuckled and patted my arm. “Don’t fret over him too much, Queenie. He likes you.”

“Oh, does he? Is that why he talked about killing me?”

That only made Junie’s husband laugh harder. “He winked. It’s practically a warm embrace from the likes of him.”

“Can we trust him?” Halvar asked.

Niklas looked at the Guild of Kryv as he slung a canvas travel bag over his shoulder. “Understand the Falkyns and Kryv are not honorable, not in the ways you are, I’m sure. In the east, being an Alver means you are taken by the rich and used until you die. The only trade skill for those who manage to avoid capture? Thieves. Smugglers. Criminals. Or wealthy bastards who can buy silence. Can you trust any of us? Eh, if you have glittering things, we might snatch them. But if we say we fight for you, yes. You can trust that. We’ll stand with you. But we’ll likely rob you blind as we do it.”

With a final wink, Niklas took Junie’s hand. She shoved Halvar’s shoulder, chuckling at his furrowed brow.

Herja was the only one who seemed amused. She folded her arms over her chest and leaned into whisper next to my ear. “Aligns with what Hagen always told me about his homeland. But what do you think?”

“I think our new thief friends are going to be rather put out when they replace we have nothing of real worth to pay them with or for them to steal.” I snorted and linked my arm with hers as we followed the path back to the wall.