The Tangled Tree Read online

  ‘How dare you decide what her life and happiness with me is worth?’ Kohén snarled. ‘She is MINE! And she was never supposed to be yours! She wouldn’t be in this predicament if you had just stayed on that island where you belonged! You tried to take what I had and I fought back for it and here we are. I agree it’s fucking awful and that she is the one that has suffered the most for it, but I will not shoulder all the blame for it!’

  ‘Both of you shut up!’ I said, standing up and putting my hands between them when I saw Elijah gnash his teeth in anger. ‘This is my fault, all right? And passing the buck of blame won’t fix anything but make me despise you both!’ I looked at Elijah and shook my head. ‘Karol’s been after me since I was fifteen, and the twins since I was sixteen. I knew there was no way I was getting out of here as a virgin-’

  ‘You were never suppose to-’

  ‘I know!’ I screamed, cutting the king off. ‘But I couldn’t tell them that, so I worked on plans of my own! You cannot educate a woman two hours a day on how to use feminine wiles to improve her station- and then punish her for using them to improve her station!’

  ‘Touché…’ Kohl muttered, smirking at me.

  ‘Karol has been after you for that long?’ Constance demanded, and I nodded, without taking my eyes off Elijah’s. ‘Oh, God, I can’t keep denying his sinful nature, can I?’ she looked to her spouse. ‘Our boys are afflicted, Elijah! This harem nonsense must stop!’

  ‘They’re not afflicted, but infected- by her!’ Elijah tore off his captain’s hat and advanced on me. ‘Who do you think you are? All along you’ve led me to believe that you were in love with my son, and yet all along you were manipulating all three of them into finding a way out of here! And to go over my head like that… to ask my son to help your friends cover a crime? It’s deplorable!’

  ‘But it’s also something you’ve just proven that you will do without hesitation to save the people that YOU love from disgrace!’ I screamed. ‘Lindy and Coaxley are the only people that have ever shown me kindness without expecting someone in return and I am NOT sorry that I got them out of here! I am glad- glad that I have made it possible for their child to grow with a other and father who love them and not tossed to the wolves here!’

  ‘Oh Karol…’ The duchess was wiping at tears. ‘I just can’t believe that he would make such greedy arrangements…when I see him I’ll...’

  ‘That is your fault, duchess because I warned you, remember?’ my voice broke. ‘I came to you that day in the garden and tried to voice my fears, but you cut me off cold, saying that your sweet, eldest boy wouldn’t mean anything real by his flirtations, remember? But that promise had been made well over a year before then, and Karol took every opportunity he could to remind me of it after, even on Tuesday after he freed me! Cry if it makes you feel better but it changes nothing- your eldest son isn’t prince charming- he’s a glutton!’ I took the letter from Kohén and handed it to the king. ‘You don’t have to believe me, but there is a signed declaration right there in his hand!’

  ‘It’s all true,’ Kohl said simply. ‘And the only reason why Kohén and I haven’t torn one another limb from limb this week is because we decided to unite against him.’ He glanced at me sadly, and he was truly an angel. ‘To protect the girl that we both love, even if only one of us is capable of being loved by her in return.’

  ‘Oh no… oh no...no!’ Constance sank to her knees and held her head in her hands. ‘What will become of us? Surely, this family is as evil as though we were Satan’s spawn!’

  ‘Do not use her name in here!’ Elijah snapped, still staring down at the letter.

  ‘Why not? She is everywhere! And it is our fault!’

  ‘Not in our hearts, she is not!’ The king looked to me, and every muscle in his face was tight and hard and without emotion. ‘So you believe that pardoning Coaxley and Lindy will restore your right to finagle your way out of the deal you made with the crowned prince?’

  ‘She’s not denying him because she’s not a woman of her word or trying to finagle anything- she’s denying him because her word is not hers to give anymore, thanks to Kohén,’ Kohl said loyally. ‘And I don’t think Kohén’s going to agree to let Karol borrow her any time soon without starting World War four first.’

  ‘Is that true?’ Elijah looked to Kohén. ‘You will refuse to escort her out there even now that she has this pardon, because you fear that Karol will risk everything to have her anyway?’

  ‘Everything that he currently has,’ Kohén said crisply. ‘I was willing to let her go out earlier before, if you’d agree to keep T’are at her side until I am done with my duties. But that was before I saw that letter…’ he shrugged. ‘So, no. Unfortunately, though there is a punishment for touching another sibling’s Companion, it’s never happened before so the rules say that the offenders will be stripped of their own Companions and whipped… and what does Karol care? He’s already released them!’

  Elijah furrowed his brow. ‘That’s incorrect- any man that touches a Prince’s Companion will be branded as thief, and if the offender is another member with access to the harem, they can be disinherited! That law is there to protect the girls and uphold the fact that they are Companions to one Barachiel and one alone!’

  Kohén sat down beside me and pulled me to his side. ‘Only after they have been branded in gold father and declared a permanent resident of the harem, and Larkin is not. Therefore, she isn’t protected by that-’ he stopped talking as my heart skipped a beat and I heard the king exclaim:

  ‘Then brand her! Brand her in gold and you’ll never have to look over your shoulder again- not to your twin, and not to your eldest brother! It will solve all of our problems! Look-’ Elijah kicked the leather satchel across the ground to Kohén’s feet. ‘I have everything you need to do it, right in here. Brand her Kohén and you will never have to worry about losing her again.’

  My lungs expanded on what felt like acidic air. It would solve all of their problems, all right… but it would also make it impossible for me to make another move in life without Kohén’s written consent. Other favourites had fared okay after getting one before- but there princes had usually released them anyway, whereas I knew that would never be the case with Kohén. The silver brand that my friends had gotten earlier that afternoon declared what caste they belonged to- but mine would declare who I belonged to, forever- and my owner would never let me out of sight ever again.

  And I would die if it were fastened to my flesh. One look into Constance’s anguished eyes told me she knew that, and my answering one said goodbye.

  ‘No,’ Kohén said simply, shaking his head and pulling me closer, but I’d already turned to ice. ‘I have vowed to Larkin that I will never brand her. She is here because I love her, and she will stay because she loves me- and that is what will keep her here- not a scalding iron!’

  ‘You cannot be serious!’ Elijah raged, kicking the bag again so that a velvet box fell onto the floor. ‘Do it, and let’s end this! We could be out in that ballroom in mere moments!’

  End me, I thought, feeling as though I were already fading away. It will end me…

  ‘No we could not, because Larkin won’t go!’ Kohl shouted, getting to his feet. ‘You will ruin her forever father! You will be forcing Kohén to break the only promise that he has a hope of keeping towards her- to earn her love, not steal it!’

  ‘A promise that needs to be broken so she learns her fucking place- which is at his side whether she LIKES it or NOT!’ Elijah reached down for the box but Constance reached forward and snatched it out of her hands. ‘We have looked after her for twelve years! Now, it is her turn to take care of you!’

  ‘Elijah think!’ Constance cried. ‘I know you are furious, but think of how this girl has suffered because the men in our family are obsessed with her! Is it not enough that she has had her virginity stolen from her, been locked up in this hell hole for a week and starved to the point of heart failure- now you’d make her worst fear come
true and jab her with fire as well?

  ‘She has fed their obsession with a series of outfits, exploits and promises that even I would find overwhelming!’ Elijah cried. ‘You’ve said all of this yourself time and time again, and now finally when I agree with you- you decide to act like a mother for once?’

  Constance slapped him. ‘Act like a father for once, instead of a king!’ her icy eyes flashed as Elijah cupped his face and gaped at her. ‘You are the one that has taught him that woman are there to serve the purpose of friend or lover but never both! Go out there, drag Karol in here by his earlobe, bring him to a heel and make him sign away Larkin’s IOU NOW!’

  ‘So he can make a scene? Throw himself at her? Refuse to marry Ora and fuck up everything else for us over this bloody child?’

  ‘You’d better!’ Kohén raged. ‘If you want Larkin out there looking happy and content than you’d damned well better!’

  Elijah whirled on him. ‘I am trying to give you what you want- I am trying to give you ALL what you want but you are never satisfied! You’ve asked me to break so many rules and look the other way on so many infractions tonight, but I will comply no more- I am a man of God and I will do only what is just, fair, lawful and deserving!’ He pointed at me. ‘Brand her now, and ask for her forgiveness after. Spend the rest of your life making it up to her if you will, but remember who you are and what she can never be to you!’

  ‘An equal?’ I croaked.

  Elijah looked at me with flat, unmoved eyes. ‘Exactly.’

  I lowered my face, and the flag.

  I should have taken Satan’s hand. It would have burned less than putting my heart in the hands of a man of god.

  ‘No!’ Kohén sounded like he was about to cry and Kohl had wrapped his arm around me and was whispering that he wouldn’t allow it to happen, but I couldn’t feel his touch or hear him through the roar of fire in my head and Kohén’s hollering. ‘You need her to redeem us, not damn us! If we brand her, she will run out there blistered, bloody and teary-eyed!’

  ‘No, she won’t.’ Elijah held up the IOU. ‘Not if she wants this delivered to her friends.’

  ‘Elijah…’ Constance sounded beside herself and I lowered my head further until I could feel the mist shrouding my face. ‘How could you? She asked for that before you knew of any of this.’

  ‘And now that I know why, I understand that it is not something that should be handed over so easily, and that’s what makes the difference between being a love-struck adolescent and a king- the ability to think a deal all the way through. Larkin will take the brand and thank us after, then go out there with a smile on her face and a spring in her step, or I’ll have that third-born child deported and its parents Banished!’ Elijah stepped back and I felt as though he’d crushed my heart under his heel. ‘You have exactly five minutes to brand her. When I return with her healer, it will be Karol. We will have a nice little chat about how we’re all going to get along from now on and then we’re going to put all of this behind us.’

  ‘I won’t allow it to happen.’ Constance said, and I heard her skirts rustle as she stood up. ‘Elijah I-’

  ‘No, you won’t allow it to happen, you will do it yourself. And once you have proven that you have what it takes to be a wife: devotion, respect, submission and faith… I will make you one.’

  I looked up now, jaw dropping, and saw that Constance had cupped her face. ‘What?’

  ‘I will propose before the fireworks, and leave Karol to do the same to Ora after.’ Elijah lifted her free hand and kissed it, and I saw her sob gently. ‘You want to do the right thing, don’t you my love? Make the girl you care so much for belong here- so that you can watch over her forever without ever again fearing that she will come between your sons, or put their souls at risk.’ He stepped back, looking at all of us, but his final gaze landed on Kohén. ‘You have five minutes. Work as a royal family ought to for once, or you can all kiss the chance of ever having a title goodbye. I will promote Karol’s firstborn son above you both…’ he glanced at Constance, ‘and kick you to the curb the moment these two turn twenty-one. If they make it that far!’

  ‘Because you know it will be a son, right?’ I croaked, glaring daggers at him. ‘It always will be, won’t it? You’d kill it otherwise, like you killed Martya!’

  Elijah shook his head. ‘I didn’t touch Martya so your accusations don’t penetrate my heart. And I always wanted a daughter Larkin, but sadly, I did not get one and it was through no fault of my own.’ He glanced at his wife once more and smiled gently. ‘A fact you can remedy right now, my lovely queen. Just think- by morning we could have both Larkin and Ora committed to staying here with us forever!’

  ‘I wouldn’t be your daughter!’ I hissed. ‘I’d be your possession!’

  ‘Same thing.’ He began to saunter away, balling up Kohl’s letter and throwing it over his shoulder. ‘Only the prince gets a harem, Kohén, remember that! Follow your heart and watch it break, for she will be sold to Yael if I return here and find her unbranded, and you will get a nice little duchy somewhere bereft of electricity in lieu of a crown!’

  ‘Sit down, Larkin,’ Constance said as we heard Elijah’s footfalls begin to fade. ‘You wanted a queen? Well, you’re about to get one.’

  ‘That’s my girl!’ Elijah remarked, and then the mist that had parted for his exit closed up around him, leaving me in the room with two people that had everything to gain by making my worst nightmares come true, and one who had everything to lose- again, but no way to fight against that.

  And not a mirror to be seen.

  My time was up.

  23.

  We all remained frozen until we heard the door slam shut behind Elijah, and though tears were running down Kohén’s face, he took my hand and led me back to the edge of the pool. ‘Sit down, sweetheart,’ he said huskily. ‘We’ll make the preparations, but we’ll not actually brand you until we hear him come back in. That way, you won’t have to suffer the pain for more than a second, and Karol will have to witness what he has done to you.’

  ‘What Karol has done to her?’ Kohl demanded. ‘Are you serious?’

  ‘We would have made it through this night if you’d kept your hands off her, but you did not so don’t even try to turn this around on me again!’ Kohén spat, rubbing my hand gently and leaning in to rest his forehead against the side of my face. ‘I’m sorry, my love. I’m so sorry. But I have no choice!’

  ‘Oh you have a choice- choose to let her run with Kohl now, son!’ Constance cried, and we all rotated to look at her with shock. She’d pulled the brand out of the bag but pointed it towards the passageway instead. ‘You have five minutes- they can get to the stables in five minutes and put some distance between them and this place!’

  ‘What?’ I asked weakly. ‘You’re not going to brand me? But Elijah offered you-’

  ‘Something that doesn’t seem as grand as it once did,’ Constance said quickly, waving her hand. ‘I wanted to be married to the love of my life, not the bastard that did what he did to Kohl and then swaggered out of here like he was the second second coming just now!’ She came over to me and lifted me up, pulling me into a hug before pushing me towards Kohl. ‘I’m sure he’ll make me regret it, but not as much as I’d regret branding you so go! Go now!’

  ‘No!’ Kohén reached for me before I could thaw out and yanked me back to him. ‘She can’t go, and not with him! They’ll be caught!’

  ‘These are two of the most intelligent young adults in the world, Kohén! They can find a way out of this together! And if you love her as you say you do, then you need to let her go!’

  ‘SHE’S NOT GOING ANYWHERE!’ Kohén hollered, pressing me to his chest and sparking and shaking all at once. ‘I love her! I can’t live without her! And I know you’re not doing this for her sake, but for HIS! Just like you’ve always done!’

  ‘Kohén, no! I am doing this for your soul!’

  ‘Bullshit!’ My Indian Brave was furious- and not brave at all.
In fact he was trembling. ‘You couldn’t give him a crown, but you’d give him the very thing that I’ve built my world around and buy yourself some peace with it, wouldn’t you?’

  ‘At least I’d take her instead of the crown!’ Kohl growled, yanking for me. ‘Let her go, Kohén! Open your fist before the firefly loses her light! If we run we will be blamed, your fury will be clear, father will consider you allied against us again and we’ll both get something we want!’’

  ‘Do you think I want that crown without her? Do you think the king will hand that pardon over to Lindy and Coaxley if he comes back here and discovers that she’s fled? And think of the uproar from our people when they discover that she felt the need to flee! You won’t leave me with a crown- but with ruins!’

  ‘Our people are entitled to roar over injustice and it is your job to listen to them until they have lost the urge to revolt! We are supposed to be serving them, not using them as servants!’

  ‘No, Kohén’s right!’ I whispered, pulling away from Kohl. ‘Thank you for thinking of me, but I won’t save my own skin if it causes them pain. It would make everything I’ve done for nothing!’

  ‘Everything we’ve done together Larkin!’ Kohén turned me to face him. ‘We’re an us, surely that won’t change because I have to stand aside and allow my mother to do what my father has ordered?’

  I lowered my eyes. ‘I love you, Kohén…’ I swallowed hard. ‘But I have already told you what I will do if I am branded, and that has not changed.’

  He gasped. ‘You’d… you’d die?’

  I said nothing, merely stared at the floor.

  ‘And I’d take whatever you’ve threatened to do to me if she does, and with pride,’ Kohl said coldly. ‘Let her run Kohén, or you will lose us both anyway!’

  ‘You’re bluffing,’ Kohén’s voice cracked as he forced me to stare up at him. ‘You wouldn’t! You love me! Our love is worth living for!’