Obsidian Ridge - Jess Lebow [55]
"I was… I was… with my grandson. He… he's sick. And… and he needs medicine, and I couldn't-"
Korox interrupted her. "You know what I think, Genevie? I think you're lying. I think you helped Whitman concoct this whole plan, and that you were in on it from the beginning."
The king gabbed a wooden bucket from one of the shelves and slammed it to the ground. It shattered as it hit the stone floor, pieces ricocheting all over the closet. Genevie tried to pull herself up even tighter into the corner, tucking her head into her lap and covering herself with her arms.
"You know what else I think?" shouted the king. "I think you might actually be the Matron. I think all of this is some sort of plot to take over my kingdom. And I think that you just might try to hurt my daughter if it meant you could seize control of Erlkazar."
From out in the hall came a great commotion. People were running back and forth, and there were shouts.
The king turned his attention away from Genevie. "What's going on out there?"
He stepped away, and the half-elf could see one of the soldiers at the door shrug. Then someone arrived, shouting for the king.
"King Korox! My lord! You must come quick. Another obelisk has arrived."
Genevie couldn't see the messenger, but she was thankful for the reprieve.
"Watch her!" ordered the king, his meaty fist poking in from out in the hall, one of his sausage-like fingers pointing down at her. "Don't close the door. Don't take your eyes off of her. Ward the room against any of her magic, and if she tries to escape, cut her arms and legs off. I need her head still attached, so she can answer questions, but the other limbs are expendable."
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King Korox didn't know what to think.
He marched down the hallway to the great hall.
None of this made any sense. Where had Genevie been? A sick grandson as an explanation? She disappears as the princess is kidnapped, and her excuse is that her grandson is sick? Perhaps Korox's instincts were right. If she was conspiring with Whitman, and her returning now, of all times, was all part of their plan, then they had miscalculated. If she was the Matron, it would explain how Mariko was seemingly so easily captured. But why would Genevie come back here? She had what she wanted. Did she get nervous when she didn't hear from Whitman? That wouldn't make any sense either. Why risk coming into the palace without guards or mages? Wouldn't she want to negotiate the terms of her offer to help? Was she here to kill the king? The Claw had overheard the Tasca brothers talking about a plot on his life, and so far they hadn't seen any attempt. Then how did Mariko's disappearance factor into all of this?
There were just too many questions and not enough answers.
The messenger led him to the front gate, where a group of people was once again gathered.
"Make way for the king!" shouted the messenger.
Storming out onto the drawbridge, Korox tried to pull himself together. Twice in one day he'd raised his hand against people whom only a few days before he had considered trusted allies. His confidence in the people around him was eroding quickly, and he was starting to act like a desperate man-not a commanding, confident king.
Stepping out onto the wooden slats, King Korox looked up once again at a huge obsidian obelisk.
One of the soldiers standing by greeted him. "King Korox," he said, bowing. "Unlike the last one, this stone appeared right in front of our eyes."
The king nodded, approaching it and placing his hand on its side. The jet black stone was slick and warm to the touch. Two words were chiseled onto the face of the stone.
Moonrise tonight.
"The first message said four days," whispered the king. "It's only been three."
The crowd behind him let out a collective gasp, and several people pointed off to the east, toward Shalane Lake. The king turned too, watching in horror as the Obsidian Ridge moved. It swept past the docks, gliding to a stop over the fields at the