Vampire Queen

Chapter twenty four

Cassius prepared a small surprise for the lords and ladies of his inner court that night. And he invited the whole palace to watch it.

They tied them to wooden columns. Wood was stacked around them. It was obvious what he wanted to do with them. There was fear in their eyes. They tried to tear the ropes that bound them, but they were too tight. Anxiety reigned in the court. Such large executions were an exceptional event even under Cassius' rule.

"What have we done this time, Your Majesty?" lord Broderick asked him quite calmly.

It was strange how calm he was. As if he would be used to Cassius trying to burn him every now and then.

"Few days ago someone tried to assassinate Dragomira," Cassius replied. "I'm sure one of you has a hand in it. Several of you. An attack on my betrothed is an attack on me, and therefore you will be punished."

"But why don't you punish only the guilty ones?" said Lord Broderick.

"I don't know the exact culprits, but I'm sure all of you do. I know nothing is hidden between you," he smirked wickedly. "That's why I'm going to make you an offer. You either tell me who did it or you all burn for hiding them.''

"And what if we don't know those who tried to kill her?" asked Lord Michael. "Are we going to be burned for your amusement? The guilty will let us burn with them."

"I'm feeling generous today, so I'll make a bargain with the guilty ones as well," Cassius said, acknowledging Lord Michael's words. "If you voluntarily confess to your crimes, I will leave you free. However, you will be banished from Toska, and if you ever show up here again, I won't promise you your life anymore.''

"How do we know that you'll keep your word?" lady Brenna asked him.

Cassius approached her. He looked at her with disgust. "I have no doubt that it was you, Lady Brenna," he said. "But I always keep my word."

"I confess I tried to poison your betrothed." Lady Brenna said without hesitation, taking advantage of his offers. "She deserves to die and my only regret is that I didn't manage to kill her. You may not see it, but she is worse than you. Even if she's playing a saint."

"Who helped you?" Cassius demanded an answer. He didn't want to let anyone get away with it.

Lady Brenna betrayed everyone who was helping her with the plan to kill me. It turned out that of the fifty-three members of Cassius' inner court, only an eighth was innocent. Even some members of the royal guard were involved. That's how they managed to get into my chambers. They let them go.

Cassius had the innocents released and the traitors bound in their place. He turned to me. He found me hiding in the crowd with a glance. He held a torch in his hand. Its light broke the thick darkness of the night. In his face were flickering shadows.

I stepped out from the safety of the crowd. I approached him. I took the torch from his hands. I snatched it from his hands.

"Liar!" lady Brenna said as I walked towards her with fire in hand. "You said you'd let me go if I confessed."

"His Majesty left you with your life, Lady Brenna, but I didn't," I said coldly, throwing the torch onto a pile of wood.

The wood burst into flames. The fire spread quickly. It swallowed the wood. It climbed higher and higher. The tongues of fire tasted their victims before devouring them whole. Their screams echoed wide and far. The smell of rotting meat wafted through the air. The courtiers looked on with horror at the deadly spectacle. The fire, like a voracious raven, reached for the night skies and tried to devour it as well. I watched it with fascinated pleasure.

Alexei approached me. "I've never seen you like this before," he said quietly.

"Like what?" I asked him.

"So cold," he replied. "And cruel."

"You yourself know very well that I can be the same as the king, maybe even worse," I said. "You witnessed it."

"You were hurt," said Alexei.

"We both know it's in me," I countered.

"What are you talking about?" Cassius asked us.

My brother looked down and stepped back. He left me alone with the king. Cassius gave me a look.

"So is it true, what Lady Brenna said?" he didn't give up on getting his answer. "Are you worse than me, Dragomira?"

"Remember when you once sent the royal guards to hunt down a vampire who was leaving the corpses of hunters in the streets? At least the remains of them."

Cassius nodded. "That vampire provoked the hunters and attracted their attention. But he was never caught and disappeared of his own accord."

"I was quite creative in the condition I left those hunters' bodies in." I grinned.

Cassius looked at me in astonishment. A smile graced his lips. "So it was you we were hunting."

"You hunted me along with the guards?" I wondered.

"Yes," he said. "How did you manage to escape us?" he asked.

"Alexei found me first and helped me," I replied.

"Your brother is truly loyal to you," Cassius remarked.

"He's my brother."

"Now that you're queen, his allegiance will finally be fully to the crown."