Seduce Me in Flames Read Free Page B

catacombs. Let her rot in there for a while. She will quickly become more malleable when she no longer has her daily comforts. I promise you, Your Eminence, she will be forgotten as many before her have been. Most think the banished princess long dead already. But for those who entertain otherwise, let them see just how little power she has. Her precious name will mean nothing in the wet rooms.”
    Ambrea drew in a sharp breath, then forced herselfnot to react in any other way. She would not give that snake the satisfaction of seeing her fear. The catacombs had become quite infamous under her father’s reign, and it looked like their reputation was destined to grow.
    The guards did not lay their hands on her. For all of her destitute state, she was still a princess of the realm. Political climates changed constantly. There was no wisdom, especially in this currently shifting monarchy, in making enemies with someone who might become more favored on the morrow.
    Ambrea held her head high, her spine ramrod straight, and her shoulders aligned in regal elegance. The simple gown she wore was clean and crisp, its frayed seams invisible under the shine of her personal brilliance. She turned in the midst of the guards who surrounded her, but at the last moment she turned back to meet her brother’s eyes.
    “I regret that we have not known and loved each other throughout these years. Perhaps if we had, you would know me better and you would know that I would never wish any harm on you, that I have no aspirations to your throne, and no desire to unseat you. I am, and ever will be, your sister by blood and your sister in my heart.”
    She made no further pleas or arguments. There was really nothing more to be said. Strangely, the first rush of fear she had felt at being ordered to the catacombs was now faded, leaving resignation and practical acceptance in its wake. It wasn’t the first time she’d been unjustly imprisoned, but it was a far more fortunate fate than her mother had met.
    At least today she wasn’t going to die.
    “Out! All of you mutts, get out!” raged Balkin, Regent Tsu Allay.
    The attendants, long familiar with the previous emperor’ssimilar temperament, and knowing just as well the kind of man the regent was, made almost comical haste to do so. The boy was left alone with his seething uncle and no choice but to stand there and watch Balkin pace a furious circuit around him.
    “It’s no matter, Uncle,” he said with a shrug, pausing to scratch at the tight collar of his robe of state. “As you said, no one even remembers her anymore. There hasn’t even been a picture of her in the VidMags for years.”
    “Of course they remember her, you little idiot. And as long as she is alive, this throne will be called into question.”
    “Uncle, you will not address me with such disrespect,” Qua said with a spoiled bravado. He was used to being catered to and having everyone tell him how excellent he was in every way. The whelp’s attitude burned at Balkin’s very last nerve.
    His uncle’s explosive reaction made Qua stumble back away from him as the older man let out a roar and leapt at his face. Balkin’s hands were raised into violent fists, and his entire frame shook with the power of his barely checked rage. But he did check himself. Held himself. He took a breath and lowered his hands, brushing gently at his nephew’s shoulders, resituating Qua’s robes with care and seeming attention to detail.
    “Of course, you’re right,” Balkin agreed gravely. “Forgive me. That girl has been a canker on the ass of this realm all of her life, and then her mother the whore before her. I watched for years as your father was wounded time and again by that entire line of blood. Anything associated with her tends to make me run hot.”
    “O-of course. I understand.” Qua recovered his composure as his uncle did. “But what can we do? We cannot force her to sign. We cannot k-kill her. I … I don’t think I