Cora weaved through the crowd, chasing after a boy with a long red braid. He quickly glanced back at her. There was no doubt about it this was Prince Lyon.
"Lyon!" Cora cried out.
His pace quickened upon hearing his name.
Cora sped up desperate to catch up to him.
He darted down a dark alleyway and Cora followed.
After what felt like a labyrinth of twists and turns she finally caught up to him.
He leaned up against the wall gasping for air "Prince Lyon!" Cora cried out as she ran over to help him.
"You shouldn't have followed me her he snapped!"
Before she could question why heavy footsteps approached from behind her. She turned to see... Dimitri? He grabbed her by the neck and forced her into a sleeper hold. She tried to pry his arms off of her but her attempts were fruitless.
She woke up seated at a long banquet table. The only light in the room was the faint glowing of the fireplace.
"Sleeping Beauty is finally awake." Prince Lyon stood by the fire holding an open book in his hands.
"What happened to Dimitri?" Cora asked though she was afraid to hear the answer "Don't worry, I took care of him you'll never have to worry about him again."
Why would Dimitri try to hurt her? They hadn't talked much recently but how could someone change so much so fast? She needed answers. She tried to stand but then she realized her hands and feet were tied to the chair.
"Untie me," she said, her voice was firm and demanding.
"Calm down. There's nothing to worry about," he walked towards her and picked up a goblet off the table. "You look thirsty you should have a drink." He placed the goblet on her lips. It was filled with a bright pink liquid. The scent was vaguely familiar to her. The taste was sweet and warm, it was intoxicating ,the more she drank the more she wanted. Her tastebuds were overwhelmed by the flavor of cherries.
In an instant everything made sense. She spat out the the drink back into the chalice. "You've been using a love potion on me!"
"Where would you get a ridiculous idea like that?" Prince Lyon laughed, but you could hear a twinge if nervousness in his voice.
"You've been putting it in the tea the whole time, haven't you? You've been trying to seduce me!"
He threw the goblet against the wall in a brief moment of rage. His eyes flickered a shade of yellow. "You didn't respond to my threats so I had to make you talk a different way."
Prince Lyon was the King of Shadows? Didn't the King of Shadows attack him on Mt. Nevado? Right now she needed to focus on calling backup. He had forgotten to take her earpiece, but she couldn't reach the distress button. She needed to stall for time.
She felt a steal blade brush up against her neck. "Honestly, I was hoping you'd be a good girl and I wouldn't have to kill you, but now you know too much. I should kill you now, but I'd much prefer to make the Blood King watch helplessly as you perish. You aren't the first woman I've taken away from him, but you will be the last."
Cora forced herself to put on a brave face. "Who are you?"
"I suppose there's no harm in you knowing the truth it's not like you'll live to tell the tale. My real name is Galen Rivero, but you may also know me as the King of Shadows and I'm here to make the Blood King pay for his sins."
"How are you still alive after all this time?"
"The same way the Blood King survived by incasing myself in crystals. You see, my parents where a pair of traveling magicians, but eventually they decided to settle down in Golden Crest. They tried to warn me about the Blood King, but I wanted to believe he was my friend. My parents fought in the rebellion against him, the Blood King showed them no mercy. I came up with my own plan to kill the him. Everything went according to plan. After I thought I'd killed the Blood King, some of his relatives took his remains to a secret location. Queen Lilliana promoted me to second in command, I thought I'd finally had my revenge, but I still wasn't satisfied. I didn't sleep for a month. One night it hit me; what if, somehow, the Blood King had survived. His family refused to tell me where they were keeping him, I searched everywhere, but I had no luck. Lily tried to assure me there was no possible way for him to have survived, but I knew better. I had to know if someone could actually survive being trapped in crystals, so I started a little experiment with some of our war prisoners. To my astonishment not only can you survive being trapped, but you come out looking younger and more beautiful than you were before. The process was extremely painful. Sometimes I wished I was dead, but the results were worth it. I'd discovered how to live forever. After Lily passed away, finding the Blood King became my obsession. I hired a guild of elite warriors to search for the Blood King, but no one ever found him. I was getting old and weak. I did what I had to do to stay young. I sealed myself away and ordered my guards to wake me every thirty years. After almost two thousand years, I was ready to quit. But one day I was going through the warrior archives and found a very interesting transaction. The Bowman family had been hired to protect something large and important. The records were very secretive about what exactly it was. I convinced myself this must be the Blood King so I chased this lead and eventually it brought me here."
Cora kicked off her boots, which helped her slip her feet out of their restraints, but her hands were still bound to the chair. She caught a glimpse of a knife near the center of the table. She just had to keep him talking. "What have you done with Prince Lyon"
"Currently his corpse is rotting in a cave on top of Mt. Nevado." He chuckled to himself like he had just told a hilarious joke.
She remembered seeing the remains of someone in the Tibicenas' den. It was one of the few things she could remember about that experience. "How did you manage to take his Lyon's place without anyone noticing?"
"The palace was in a state of mourning. After the death of Prince Liam, their minds were weak, which made them susceptible to my magic. No one even noticed the difference."
"You killed Prince Liam!" Cora snapped. She slammed the table in her rage which knocked the knife on the floor.
"No, I didn't. I'm not a monster, I'm just making sure justice is served."
Cora was furious, but tried her hardest to regain her composure. "What about your guards? You killed them just to intimidate me!"
"They were planning to betray me! I did what I had to do!"
"Ray is twice the man you'll ever be."
The King of Shadows walked towards the bookshelf in the corner of the room. This was her chance! She kicked the knife up and it landed perfectly on her lap, just like she had learned in warrior training. It was finally close enough for her bound hand to reach. She cut through the rope as fast as she could, but it proved to be difficult with her hands tied. After roughly a minute of struggling her right hand was finally freed. She quickly grabbed the device out of her ear and was about to press the button.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you."
She glanced up to see the King of Shadows holding her grandmother's book over the open fireplace.
"If you press that button you'll never see this book again."
She stood completely frozen. The book was the only connection with her grandmother. What would she do without her there to guide her?
Cora closed her eyes so he couldn't see her tears. She pressed her thumb into the button as hard as she could.
He raised his eyebrows, clearly surprised by her decision. He ripped out every last page and dropped them into the flame, then threw the empty shell on floor. "You remind me of your grandmother you're stubborn just like her. Don't worry you'll be reunited with her soon."
Without hesitation she rammed her fist into his face.
He let out growl as he rubbed his cheek. "I'd love to stay, but I must get ready for the Blood King's arrival, don't worry, you'll have a friend to keep you company."
Dimitri entered the room with his sword in hand.
"I'll leave you to be reacquainted." Rivero walked out the door.
Dimitri rested the edge of his sword on her throat. "I'm so sorry, Cora."
