Forest Of Wolves by Chelsea Luna

Author:Chelsea Luna [Luna, Chelsea]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2016-06-30T21:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Václav Novák.

The man I’d thought was my father for seventeen years. The man who had murdered my mother and convinced a kingdom, and me, that she’d killed herself. Who’d ordered Marc’s public whipping. Who’d forced me to marry Radek. The man who now led the Inquisition in killing and torturing Protestants.

I don’t know why I was so shocked to see him in person; it was the perfect job for him. Who else but him? Václav was evil enough to torture—he probably enjoyed it.

Two guards escorted Václav to the middle of the square. A wrinkled, yellowed hand caressed the torture machines the way a mother would touch a child.

My stomach lurched.

He didn’t look well. Václav’s normally sickly appearance seemed worse than it had the last time I’d seen him. His frame resembled a skeleton, with saggy, crumpled skin hanging from the bones. His wreath of white hair had lost its thickness. The white strands were barely there, making him appear mostly bald. Dark age spots covered his face, neck, and hands. Swollen fatty tissue puffed below his eyes and there was a slight hobble to his walk. He didn’t have much time left.

“I would’ve preferred Radek,” Marc mumbled.

“Me too,” I said.

Marc was right. There was a slight chance I could’ve negotiated our way out of this situation with Radek. There would be no such luck with Václav.

I frantically studied the crowd, looking for any sign of Radek, but I didn’t see him. Hadn’t Urek sent for him already? Why wasn’t he here yet?

Urek hopped off his horse.

I didn’t waste any time. “Urek, where is Radek?”

“He’s on his way, but your father was eager to start the day’s festivities. Don’t worry, blue eyes, the duke will be here soon. Stand up, all of you.”

The men pulled us to our feet before we had the opportunity to stand for ourselves. We were led off the wagon and to the center of the square, Marc behind me and Henrik behind him.

I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t plead for our lives; Václav would show no mercy. I’d lost my status in the castle when I fled.

I had nothing to bargain with.

As we neared Václav, my hatred for him grew. He was the one who’d taken Branka’s hand. He’d sent the package to deliver his message to me. I should’ve realized he was heading the Inquisition in Bohemia when he sent me the letter.

Václav was in charge.

He now had free rein to punish people who didn’t believe as he did. He no longer had to conduct sham trials to condemn someone. He no longer had to hold to false pretenses. Now he could kill whomever he liked whenever he wanted. And the entire Kingdom of Bohemia, the Holy Roman Empire, the Habsburg dynasty, and the Catholic Church were behind him.

It was frightening.

The men lined us up side by side in front of Václav. He hadn’t looked up from the tools on the table yet. He was admiring a particularly sharp crescent-shaped battle-axe made of wrought iron; I immediately had visions of crushing his skull with the razor-edged blade.

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