Throne of Secrets (Prince of Sin #2)

Eleven Prince Gluttony

T HE FASCINATING, QUICK-WITTED female exited the Seven Sins, and I forced myself to remain on the roof and not follow her home. Uncovering a guest’s identity was against club rules, but I found a thrill in breaking even the strictest decrees. Especially since I’d declared them to begin with.

The glamour made it impossible to tell from her voice or physical appearance, but I needed to know who she was—the only one in years who’d reminded me my sin hungered for more than adventure. A small suspicion crept in, but I kept dismissing it.

Still, the desire to track down the truth, to unravel her secrets, was almost as alluring as the royal hunts I organized each month. If not more so.

She captivated me in a way that spelled disaster.

In a time when all I should be focused on was my court’s safety, winning my war with Adriana, and the bridal competition about to be launched, Lady Frost crept beneath my skin, infected my thoughts. I blamed it on the fact that I hadn’t taken someone to my bed in years.

There had only been one other time I’d been initially consumed by a potential lover. Her crystal blue eyes had been bottomless pools I’d wanted to dive into. They’d turned to ice when she’d noticed my attention, and I realized then and there I’d never survive the plunge.

That realization hadn’t stopped me from dreaming, though.

I ran a hand through my hair, cursing. If my hunch proved true… complicated was certainly one word for it, though it might end up solving one of my problems. Even if it created a slew of other issues. I had to be wrong. Adriana Saint Lucent couldn’t be the mysterious Lady F.

Fate wouldn’t be so cruel as to offer me a taste of all I’d craved only to reveal it was poisoned and I’d been a fool once again.

If I unfurled my wings and took to the air right now, I could solve one mystery tonight, then fly the sixty or so miles over to Merciless Reach for an update on the dragons.

Indecision warred within. I suspected I was looking for threads to tug that didn’t exist.

For some horrendous reason, I liked imagining it was my enemy moaning softly against my mouth, finally submitting to my domination the way I craved. Which was probably why the club’s glamour had chosen to give her the hair color of my rival tonight.

I’d been fixated on Adriana all day, wanting to devise a plan to keep her close. It made sense that the club’s magic would pick up on that, giving her pale blue locks to torment me.

One thing patrons were unaware of about the magic that concealed them was that it often played into their hidden desires. They couldn’t see what they looked like to anyone else, but to their partner for the night, they took on cravings too scandalous for them to verbalize.

That my lover had pale blue hair was an indication of madness. Or my sin at play.

Not many in my circle knew my true nature. It was one more secret I kept hidden, choosing who to share it with after careful consideration.

My favorite pleasure was inflicting a delicious sort of punishment during consensual bedroom games. I had an unquenchable desire to dominate, to have my lover submit to every depraved whim while begging for more. Chains, riding crops, spanking a lover when the mood struck—some might confuse it for an affinity to House Wrath, which would be scandalous for a prince who ruled a different sin. But my desire wasn’t anger based, it was indulgence in its truest, darkest form.

Imagining my enemy—the one female in the entire realm who refused to submit to my charms—coming apart in my arms, bending to my will… it turned me on more than it should.

Indulging in fantasy fed my power, and I certainly needed to be at full strength if another attack occurred. Which explained my abhorrent fixation.

I stared as the mysterious Lady F strode with confidence down the cobbled street, tugging her fur-trimmed cloak up to protect herself from the gently falling snow.

I dragged my attention away from her retreating form just as she turned onto the nearest cross street, leashing my inner urge to follow. Her identity shouldn’t matter right now.

My focus needed to remain on the ice dragons and my plot to bind Adriana from discovering the truth.

With an impressive amount of restraint for a prince ruled by excess, I turned from the railing and headed for the door, intending to grab a drink before I left.

Val burst onto the roof, a wild look in her eyes. She wasn’t in glamour, and the terror radiating off her would bring a lesser demon to their knees.

A sinking, cold feeling swept through me. Either Adriana had broken the story about the first incident, or the dragons had attacked again. Neither scenario was good.

I was in motion, standing before my second in two long strides.

“Here.” She thrust a letter at me. “This just arrived from Merciless Reach.”

“By courier or—”

“They used magic.”

That meant whatever happened had occurred only minutes before, not hours like if they’d sent a missive by horse.

I ripped open the envelope.

Battle in progress, Jackson taken. Bring help.

“Send word to Houses Wrath, Lust, and Envy at once.” My wings erupted from my back, beating the air as I lifted from the rooftop. “Tell them to transvenio to Merciless Reach now. ”

I didn’t wait for Val’s response.

I shot through the stormy sky, ignoring the ice pelting my face, hoping against all odds I wouldn’t soon be witnessing another ice dragon massacre in the making.

Chaos greeted me the moment I touched down outside the giant raised portcullis of Merciless Reach. I strode through the courtyard gate and past the fortress’s double doors, which were flung open, my attention scanning the hellscape before me.

It looked like what it was—the aftermath of war.

Bodies were strewn along the stone floor in various states of injury, lining both sides of the huge entrance hall. I took them in quickly; all seemed to be breathing. No deaths that I could see so far, though death would have been a mercy for some.

Hunters writhed on the floor, some burned by the icy dragon fire, others dripping blood. The air was scented with piss and other feculent odors from the surprise battle.

Agonized cries drowned out almost every other sound. Dragon fire acted like poison, slowly sinking in, continuing to burn an ice-cold swath until its victim had frozen from the inside out. Cures were possible only if they were administered early on.

Helga, the on-site healer, was in the thick of things, barking orders to her assistant while tying off wounds and smearing herbal pastes.

“Get the dragon bane! Heat the wound!”

She spared me one look before diving back into her work, healing those she could.

“Dear gods, make it stop!”

A young huntress screamed as Helga pressed a cold compress to her face, trying in vain to save the woman’s eye from the dragon fire scorching its way under her skin.

Little black veins of poison fire traveled higher, slowing marginally as Helga made an incision and pressed the dragon bane to the wound.

Another hunter clutched his side, gasping. It looked like he’d been clawed, his leathers hanging in tatters off his thick frame.

I stripped off my suit jacket and tore it into strips. “Hold on.”

Taking extreme caution to not injure him further, I rolled him gently, then tied a length of my jacket around his middle, staunching the blood flow the best I could.

I moved down the line, doing whatever was in my power to assist.

Demons reached for me, clawing at my hands, my trousers, begging for relief.

Felix burst into the chamber, dropping another injured hunter on a cot someone had just brought in. He saw me and hurried over, issuing a quick report.

“A sudden attack on our camp began nearly an hour ago. Five dragons ambushed our training party, two miles west. One moment we were sparring in hand-to-hand combat, the next we were in full battle. I would’ve sent word sooner, but it took time to get the injured to safety.”

His gaze swept through the makeshift triage.

“No deaths in the field. Several injured as you see.”

Felix was in his fifties—still very young by demon aging standards—but the fine lines around his mouth had deepened drastically, as if he’d aged tenfold tonight.

“Jackson?” I prompted.

He shook himself from his thoughts.

“Was taken thirty minutes ago. Due north of the wall. Looked like the dragons were heading toward the barrens.”

The barrens were located just beyond the mountain range—a frozen tundra that mortals would liken to the arctic region in their world. It was flat, covered in ice, and almost uninhabitable except for a few creatures like dragons, hell wolves, frost bears, and tundra deer.

“He was still alive?”

Felix wiped his brow, ignoring the blood dripping from his own head wound. “He was still fighting.”

“Lock the building down. Keep everyone inside the fortress until further notice. Understood?”

The outpost was well fortified, made of stone slabs too thick for the dragons’ fire to penetrate and warded by magic as an added precaution. There was only one area of weakness—the windows, but they were strategically placed to avoid any true harm.

The command I issued also served a less noble factor I needed to consider. Depending on what we discovered, I might need to wipe the hunters’ memories. A decision I loathed to make, but I couldn’t risk another breach with so much at stake.

“For the good of the realm” was a motto I was growing to despise.

Felix seemed to read what I hadn’t said, his expression turning stark but understanding.

Duty. Loyalty. Honor. It was the vow each hunter took when being admitted to the guild. And that very notion had the hunter hitting his chest twice to prove he stood with me.

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Magic burned the atmosphere, prickling my skin. Thank fuck. I swung my cloak over my shoulders and headed for the door. Seconds later, shouts rang out in the courtyard.

My brothers appeared in smoke and fire, one after the other from their circles, using the transportation magic similar to when Fae shifted from one location to the next.

Each wore a similar expression: vengeance.

They stalked forward to meet me, their dark cloaks billowing behind them like shadows of death. I strode out to meet them, leading them to the area where Felix said the dragons had fled.

“This way.”

We didn’t move like mortals through the pass. We used the strength and speed that made us Other. The qualities that made us feared realms wide.

Within seconds the four of us had traversed several miles, finally picking up a trail at the base of the mountain. The disturbance in the snow indicated the dragons had separated into two groups. Or best-case scenario, Jackson had gotten away and raced off on his own.

“Lust, Envy. Go around the western side. Wrath and I will continue directly up.”

Our group veered into different directions and carried on the search.

I flipped the hood of my cloak up, the thick wool doing little to stop the wind from lashing out as snow fell hard and fast around us, obscuring a clear view of the star-pricked sky.

It was the perfect night for an aerial attack. Especially for creatures whose frosty scales blended in with the wintry elements.

I closed my eyes and inhaled, the crisp scent of pine mingled with faint traces of musk. And something worse.

“Hear that?” Wrath asked, voice pitched low.

I nodded.

My grip on my House dagger tightened, the sound of our enemy growing closer. Leather snapping down from a punishing altitude along with a high-pitched shriek broke the otherwise peaceful silence of the night. At least one ice dragon was circling high above. Maybe two.

They weren’t far ahead of us, and the hope that we weren’t too late drove me forward through the punishing terrain, my brother right on my heels as we tracked the creature.

I couldn’t stop wondering which dragon had been infected now. Silvanus? Symon?

There was no good answer. Whoever it was, the alpha would put them down if we didn’t get to them first. The thought made my stomach clench, even knowing it had to be done for the good of the realm. Questions I had no answers to swirled through my head as we marched onward. How had this dragon been infected? Had he or she been in contact with Hectaurus?

I shut all thoughts and worries down, save for the hunt.

The treacherous woods beyond Merciless Reach were usually a quiet, eerie place at night. But this wasn’t a typical evening.

Now my brothers and I forged ahead with our recovery mission.

There were no other signs of Jackson struggling.

Which didn’t bode well for him or for our realm. I cursed myself for not taking Felix aside earlier in the day, ordering him to train the new initiate hunter at House Gluttony before he set off for Merciless Reach again.

He was young, so much yet to learn, so much growing left to do.

It had been a long time since I’d prayed, but I asked the old gods for mercy.

Wrath studied the woods to our right, his muscular body primed to attack. Out of all our brothers, he was the one who thrived on discord the most; it fed his sin and thus his power. Whatever injury he’d had left from his attack was gone now thanks to the battle-inducing magic.

A small gift amid the nightmare.

We trudged our way up the steep incline, the snow mixing with sleet at this elevation adding a complication we didn’t need.

Snow crunched underfoot, alerting anyone or anything nearby to seek shelter. Aside from the occasional beat of dragon wings, it had been a while since I’d last heard any other creature fleeing our path.

Between us Princes of Sin and the restless dragons, nothing good would come from lingering here tonight. Even the fiercest solitary Fae that called this place home knew to run.

I scanned the forest, the shadows beckoning like bony fingers for us to move deeper within the woods. A few lone moonbeams broke through branches laden with snow and ice, illuminating the evergreen canopy above us with a silvery pallor.

Everything about this night felt haunted. I wondered if it was the spirit of the hunter I’d failed, coming back to curse us all. I banished the thought. I had to believe Jackson was alive.

On the western edge of the mountain, I sensed Lust and Envy already moving in, their violence thrumming like a battle drum within my own chest, a call to arms.

My attention landed on a dark splatter several feet away on the ground, my stomach tightening at what I suspected I’d find. Or rather who.

I motioned to Wrath, then picked my way carefully to the spot, already dreading being correct. I scented the blood before I was certain we were standing near remains.

I knelt at the base of the gnarled tree, dusting the thin layer of snow from the leathers. My House Crest was splattered in gore, and five large claw marks scarred the leather chest plate.

It had been all but shredded.

I moved aside, allowing my brother a clear view. A steaming pile of entrails and the tattered battle leathers were all that was left. It was a miracle we’d found that much.

I swore. Given the warmth still clinging to the leather, we’d likely missed them by moments. Seconds, perhaps.

Which meant the dragon had purposely left this for us, planning its attack for the biggest emotional impact, knowing we’d figure out it had waited to finish its prey until we were close.

Wrath’s sin slipped its leash, the ground rumbling beneath our feet, shaking the snow from the heavy branches. He’d come to the same conclusion, and if he didn’t control his legendary anger, he’d start an avalanche.

From the opposite end of the forest, Lust and Envy cursed under their breath. With my senses heightened to my full power, I heard them clearly as they shifted course and quickly made their way up and over the mountain to us.

My own rage rattled its cage, but I shoved that emotion deep down, forcing a controlled calm to descend.

“Hunting guild.”

There were only about eighty official guild members, made up of the best males and females in my circle. Each year five or six hopeful initiates tested, but only the best were granted entry. Some years we didn’t add any new members to the guild. With more training, it was very possible Jackson would have eventually sworn his oath.

I pulled what remained of the fighting leathers from the snow, flipping them over to read the name etched into the inside of the chest plate, confirming what I knew.

“It’s Jackson.”

Wrath’s expression didn’t shift, but the burning rage in his gaze flared.

This time, the ice dragon didn’t simply attack; it had killed. And it had done so in the most provocative way, its mission to start a war between us clear. This wasn’t like the first attack—there was no bloodlust or chaos. The dragons struck the guild and picked off the weakest link, driving him north and toying with him until we’d closed in.

That proved they were aware of what they were doing.

The alpha’s claims that it had been solely due to madness seemed like one more clever ploy. I hadn’t detected a lie, but sensing that sort of deception with a dragon wasn’t the same as knowing when another demon, Fae, vampire, witch, or mortal lied.

Even we Princes of Hell had our limits.

I expelled a long breath, concentrating on breathing in slowly, then exhaling. The more I controlled my reactions, the clearer my mind remained. And I needed to keep my emotions under control—otherwise I’d focus on just how crushing this was. Beyond the horrible loss of my initiate hunter, the potential loss of power and weakening of my court could be astronomical.

After this murder, there was no chance for a hunt next month. Which meant I had to make it through several more weeks without my greatest supply of power.

My attention snagged on the giant prints left in the snow. “Three dragons.”

Wrath’s hands curled into fists, his focus shooting skyward as a dark shadow passed over us, a taunt and perhaps a dare.

We’d been watching the sky when a sudden shout broke the stillness.

“On your left!” Envy yelled.

I spun as the first dragon seemed to be born out of nothingness, stepping from the shadows of the forest, towering at least ten feet above me, its crimson eyes glazed over with a vacancy I’d never seen in an ice dragon before.

I froze.

Ice dragons’ irises were iridescent.

There were no variations in color. Ever.

“See that?” I asked.

“Any idea what it means?” Wrath asked.

I shook my head. “Maybe a spell or hex.”

Our conversation halted as the dragon took another threatening step in our direction.

It took a moment to spot the scar carving a swath along his chest. Silvanus.

My breath lodged in my throat. Whatever looked out from Sil’s eyes wasn’t familiar. Hatred and madness burned bright. His gaze narrowed on me, nostrils flaring.

No hint of recognition flickered in his eyes. Only a ravenous fury, aimed directly at me.

I mourned my old friend, the little hatchling who growled even when nudging his head against me, quietly asking to be petted.

Shiny ruby-red blood coated his snout, fresh from his kill. That deadly mouth opened wide, his shriek piercing the night. Silvanus was calling in his packmates. Whether they were infected or not wouldn’t matter—they’d all descend into the madness of the kill.

Adrenaline rushed through my veins.

“Sil?” I yanked my dagger from its sheath, slowly pivoting as the dragon circled us. “You in there somewhere?”

Silvanus’s eyes remained vacant as he shook his head, his scales sending prisms of light bouncing through the forest.

Wrath and I exchanged looks.

The dragon’s unfocused gaze was also at odds with the cunning he’d shown moments before with his kill. We didn’t have time to consider the implications of that or his eye color.

Three more dark shapes appeared from the night sky, growling and snarling and spewing white flames of ice, their eyes shining with an unholy light as they descended upon us.

Whatever hope I had left of this ending with the smallest amount of bloodshed vanished.

The dragons hovered for a few moments, their beating wings sending out arctic gusts that would have killed a mortal.

Thankfully it did nothing but fuel me to attack.

My House was at stake.

My demon murdered.

No matter that I’d raised these dragons, that I’d considered them my friends; I would do what needed to be done for the good of the fucking realm.

Even if that meant I needed to destroy them all.

I bared my teeth, a feral snarl tearing from my chest as I sprung at the first beast. Because that’s exactly what Silvanus was now—a feral creature who wished to eradicate me and my brothers from this realm.

My House dagger glowed like a fallen star as it arced through the night, aimed straight for the dragon’s heart. He lunged at the last moment, deflecting my blade.

I spun and slashed, my death dance well choreographed and brutal.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw my brothers locked in their own battle dance, their unforgiving expressions illuminated by flashes of light that glinted off their weapons.

They’d put together what I had; they knew our only way out was to kill. And we were born to obliterate everything that dared to stand in our way.

Blood and fire, tooth and claw, demon blades and untapped rage left one dragon severely injured, three more escaping into the sky before we could set off after them.

Wrath’s wings erupted in a fit of rage. But I needed him here.

“Halt!” I looked at my brothers, at their blood-drenched clothes, their glowing blades. Then I jerked my head at the dragon lying at my feet, Silvanus. “Help me get him up.”

Wrath magicked his wings away, then stooped down to the dragon, a look of worry marring his stoic face. “Will he make it?”

Silvanus’s chest heaved from exertion and injury. He tried to get up, then collapsed.

He wasn’t dead, but he would be if I didn’t get him to a healer soon.

“We’ll take him to House Gluttony, get him healthy, run some tests. I’ll keep him locked away until we figure out what’s going on.”

Envy wiped his dagger across his trousers, then sheathed it. “How, exactly, are we going to sneak an injured thirteen-thousand-pound ice dragon through your circle?”

“Clean him up, put a party hat on him, and tell anyone who asks that he downed a field of demonberries?” Lust offered.

Wrath shot him an annoyed look.

I bent down to where Sil struggled for breath, my own chest aching at the sight, and ran a gentle hand along his flank. “I’ll send word to the witch.”

Lust shook his head. “I don’t like it.”

I understood why. The way the dragons behaved tonight made it hard not to wonder if witches were involved. Their behavior was so erratic, so unnatural, it reeked of witchcraft.

“Have any other ideas?” I asked.

Envy glanced at Wrath, his brows arched high.

The general of war sighed. “I’ll ask my wife.”

I nodded in assent. Emilia’s mortal family had been witches, so she knew spells and could work them better than any other magic wielder I’d met. Without delay, Wrath magicked himself back to his circle. Envy crouched beside me while Lust stood with his arms crossed a few paces away, his attention locked on the injured dragon.

“If it’s caused by magic,” Envy said quietly, “we need to let Pride know.”

I raked a hand through my hair, cursing. “We’ll call a summit.”

Smoke swirled through the snow, crackling like fire. Once it cleared, Wrath and Emilia stood hand in hand, dressed in their signature black and gold.

Emilia’s hair was woven with flowers, the dark curls falling loosely down her back. Under her cloak she wore a long, billowing gown that wasn’t at all designed for the frigid temperatures of the north. She must have been in the middle of tending to some House affair and had left at once. I wanted to gather my sister-in-law in my arms, twirl her around, and share a laugh. But I couldn’t. Not with Sil barely clinging to life and an initiate hunter who’d been slain.

Emilia’s expression fell when she saw the blood-soaked leathers.

Then she noticed the dragon.

She dropped her husband’s hand and rushed to its side, going to her knees before the giant beast, uncaring of the snow that seeped through her skirts.

My brother fisted his hand, probably to keep from dragging her back, even though Emilia was by no means mortal, and she’d likely go to war with him if he tried.

Her rose-gold eyes met mine. “You raised him, Gabe?”

I swallowed thickly, nodding.

“I’m so sorry.”

She turned her attention back to the dragon. Her eyes flared with her power as she scanned him from head to tail.

“I don’t see any spells but need more time to really work.” Emilia glanced back up at me. “I can transport him to the dungeon, but you need to go there first. Use this.” She handed me what looked like a small gold coin. “It will act as a way for me to locate you once I begin the spell.”

I closed my fist around the coin, shot Silvanus one last look, then magicked myself to the dungeon to wait.