Chained by Hades, the Underworld King novel · Chapter 20 of 24
Chapter 20: What the Tree Wants
Ingrith crushed the paper in her fist and went back down the Stair without a word.
Kaelor walked beside her, but not far.
Twice she caught him with a shoulder against the wall.
By the time they reached the grove, his steps had gone uneven.
The tree stood waiting.
Three gray branches hung dead in the silver light, and the bark where she had pressed her hand was still warm.
"It has been calling since you left," the raven said, hopping down the roots. "Listen."
Ingrith held her breath.
Under the silence she heard a slow, low sound.
"It wants your blood," the raven said. "It has tasted the king's for seven hundred years. It has never tasted a queen's."
"And if I give it?"
"It gives back. Not a branch. The king's years, the ones it has already taken."
"All of them?"
"As many as the queen gives freely."
"No," Kaelor said, from where he leaned against a pillar. "I forbid it."
"You can't forbid it. I wear the crown."
She crossed the cavern and put her palm flat on the bark.
The mark of the Halvane hawk was still raw on her hand.
The rest of this chapter is part of the paid portion of the series. Chapters 1–12 of Chained by Hades, the Underworld King are free to read — start from the beginning, then unlock the rest with coins in the app.
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