The Darkest Crown (The Eternal Darkness Duet #2)

Chapter 18

Chapter 18

“ T hey all hover. They’re like a bunch of helicopter moms. Dads. Whatever. You know what I mean.” I glanced at Marius’ tomb before turning around to walk back in the other direction.

I’d been pacing the length of the cellar so long, I was surprised I hadn’t worn a path in the stone floor. But I had to keep moving. Had to stay awake.

I had the shadow of another living inside of me. Phaedra, the original vampire. Her memories haunted my dreams, making me rage against a goddess I’d never heard of, and mourn a man I barely knew. It was exhausting.

“They think they know what’s best for me,” I grumbled, as I trudged forward. “How would they know, when I don’t even know? You know?” I glanced at the tomb again, as if expecting an answer.

“They want me to lead them? What do I know about being queen? I couldn’t even keep my electricity turned on. No one’s gonna listen to me. Even Julian and Adam don’t listen. I told them to leave, but they didn’t.” I shook my head, and a wave of dizziness swept over me, causing me to stumble and almost fall. I stretched my arms out to balance myself before continuing on.

I turned on my heel and started walking back towards Marius. “I know they’re still here. They think I don’t know? Well, I know.” I shook my finger for emphasis. “I can feel them, lurking in the woods, spying on me like a couple of stalkers.” I rolled my eyes. “I know they just want to help. Fine, they’re not stalkers. They’re a couple of mother hens, clucking at me. Always clucking.”

I continued to shuffle across the room, each step harder than the last. When I reached the tomb, I stopped and leaned heavily against the side. “I just need a second,” I whispered, letting my eyes close.

I jerked awake, my eyes flying open. I slapped my face as hard as I could, then winced as pain lanced through my head. “Fuuuuck,” I groaned, pressing my hands to my throbbing forehead. I didn’t know vampires could even get headaches.

I frowned. “What were we talking about?” I pushed myself off the tomb and resumed pacing.

I’d lost track of how long I’d been down there, but I knew it had been days since I slept. I didn’t know how long vampires could go without sleep. I was astonished I’d made it as long as I did. I hadn’t fed either. Not once since Marius. No. Don’t think about that.

I focused my vision on a crack on the far wall. A crack that appeared when I screamed that night. The entire castle had shook. Stones rained down from the ceiling, crushing several vampires, and everyone in the cellar knelt, deciding in that instant that I was their new queen.

Word spread through the castle like wildfire, and half of the wedding guests fled before the night was over. Eskel told me they were the ones I needed to worry about. The ones who remained were supposedly loyal. And what had I done to earn their loyalty? Nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Marius’ power raged inside me. It felt like my veins were on fire, and when I closed my eyes, I heard the screams of a thousand men. The first time I slept I dreamed of Phaedra and Marius. It was a memory; I knew that now. A memory of the night Phaedra died. My screams woke everyone in the castle. The remaining wedding guests left after that, and I was glad to see them go. Their thoughts were deafening.

All that remained after their departure was Allie, Julian, Adam, and the King’s Guard, now the Queen’s Guard. I wanted them all to leave as well. My powers were unpredictable, and the screams caused by my dreams each day brought stones down from the ceiling. I didn’t need anyone to get crushed to death in their sleep because I couldn’t control my emotions.

Eskel convinced me to let him and his men stay. Not for my sake, but for Allie’s. He reminded me that not everyone was happy with my ascension to the throne. I had enemies who were even now plotting against me, and Allie was my biggest weakness. They would use her to get to me. So I let them stay, on the condition that they guarded her and left me alone. They were to keep Allie away as well. The thought that I might accidentally hurt her was more than I could bear.

Julian and Adam refused to leave my side, so I made them. I don’t know how I did it. I could still picture their expressions as their bodies followed my command, carrying them away from the castle. Adam looked heartbroken, but Julian was enraged. I felt guilty afterwards. I remembered how I felt when Julian or Marius had taken control of my body. Violated, and helpless. But I couldn’t deal with either of them right now. I needed to be alone.

So now I was hanging out in the cellar, with only Marius’ ghost for company. I reached the far wall, coming face to face with the crack, before turning around to head back in the other direction. I was so tired I wanted to weep, but there were no tears left in me.

You need to rest. Marius’ voice whispered in my mind.

I shook my head, stumbling forward. “No.”

Sit down before you fall down.

“Need to stay awake.” I stumbled again, but was unable to catch myself. I fell to the floor, landing hard on my hands and knees.

I told you.

“Shut up,” I mumbled, rocking forward on my hands. I tried to push myself up, but didn’t have the strength, so I crawled the rest of the way to Marius. When I finally made it, I leaned back against the side of his tomb, breathing heavily.

“This is all your fault,” I mumbled, my words slurring. I let my head fall back against the hard stone surface and finally allowed my eyes to close. “If you let me go when I asked, none of this…”

Shhh. Rest my love. I will watch over you.

I felt strong arms envelope me, lifting me from the floor. I struggled to open my eyes, but couldn’t. “Julian,” I mumbled, snuggling against his chest, comforted by the sway of motion as he carried me up the stairs.

“No, My Queen. It is Eskel.” His words barely registered as sleep finally took me.