The King Read online

  The King

  A Wicked Novella

  By Jennifer L. Armentrout

  1001 Dark Nights

  The King

  A Wicked Novella

  By Jennifer Armentrout

  1001 Dark Nights

  Copyright 2019 Jennifer Armentrout

  ISBN: 978-1-948050-74-6

  Foreword: Copyright 2014 M. J. Rose

  Published by Evil Eye Concepts, Incorporated

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination and are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or establishments is solely coincidental.

  Book Description

  The King

  From #1 New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jennifer L. Armentrout comes the next installment in her Wicked series.

  As Caden and Brighton's attraction grows despite the odds stacked against a happily ever after, they must work together to stop an Ancient fae from releasing the Queen, who wants nothing more than to see Caden become the evil Prince once feared by fae and mortals alike.

  **Every 1001 Dark Nights novella is a standalone story. For new readers, it’s an introduction to an author’s world. And for fans, it’s a bonus book in the author’s series. We hope you'll enjoy each one as much as we do.**

  About Jennifer L. Armentrout

  # 1 New York Times and International Bestselling author Jennifer lives in Shepherdstown, West Virginia. All the rumors you’ve heard about her state aren’t true. When she’s not hard at work writing. she spends her time reading, watching really bad zombie movies, pretending to write, and hanging out with her husband and her Jack Russell Loki.

  Her dreams of becoming an author started in algebra class, where she spent most of her time writing short stories…which explains her dismal grades in math. Jennifer writes young adult paranormal, science fiction, fantasy, and contemporary romance. She is published with Tor Teen, Entangled Teen and Brazen, Disney/Hyperion and Harlequin Teen. Her book Wicked has been optioned by Passionflix and slated to begin filming in late 2018. Her young adult romantic suspense novel DON’T LOOK BACK was a 2014 nominated Best in Young Adult Fiction by YALSA and her novel THE PROBLEM WITH FOREVER is a 2017 RITA Award winning novel.

  She also writes Adult and New Adult contemporary and paranormal romance under the name J. Lynn. She is published by Entangled Brazen and HarperCollins.

  Also from Jennifer L. Armentrout

  Forever With You

  Dream of You (a 1001 Dark Nights Novel)

  Fall With Me

  Fire In You

  By J. Lynn

  Stay With Me

  Be With Me

  Wait For You

  The Covenant Series

  Daimon

  Half-Blood

  Pure

  Deity

  Elixer

  Apollyon

  Sentinel

  The Lux Series

  Shadows

  Obsidian

  Onyx

  Opal

  Origin

  Opposition

  Oblivion

  The Origin Series

  The Darkest Star

  The Dark Elements

  Bitter Sweet Love

  White Hot Kiss

  Stone Cold Touch

  Every Last Breath

  The Harbinger Series

  Storm and Fury

  A Titan Novel

  The Return

  The Power

  The Struggle

  The Prophecy

  A Wicked Novel

  Wicked

  Torn

  Brave

  Gamble Brothers Series

  Tempting The Best Man

  Tempting The Player

  Tempting The Bodyguard

  A de Vincent Novel Series

  Moonlight Sins

  Moonlight Seduction

  Moonlight Scandals

  Standalone Novels

  Obsession

  Frigid

  Scorched

  Cursed

  Don’t Look Back

  The Dead List

  Till Death

  The Problem With Forever

  If There’s No Tomorrow

  Anthologies

  Meet Cute

  Life Inside My Mind

  Fifty First Times

  Acknowledgments from the Author

  Thank you to Liz Berry, Jillian Stein, MJ Rose, Kim Guidroz, Chelle Olson, and the wonderful powerhouse team behind 1001 Dark Nights. Thank you for allowing me to continue to be a part of the family.

  And thank you, the reader, always and forever.

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights

  Click here to explore

  COLLECTION ONE

  FOREVER WICKED by Shayla Black

  CRIMSON TWILIGHT by Heather Graham

  CAPTURED IN SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  SILENT BITE: A SCANGUARDS WEDDING by Tina Folsom

  DUNGEON GAMES by Lexi Blake

  AZAGOTH by Larissa Ione

  NEED YOU NOW by Lisa Renee Jones

  SHOW ME, BABY by Cherise Sinclair

  ROPED IN by Lorelei James

  TEMPTED BY MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  CARESS OF DARKNESS by Julie Kenner

  COLLECTION TWO

  WICKED WOLF by Carrie Ann Ryan

  WHEN IRISH EYES ARE HAUNTING by Heather Graham

  EASY WITH YOU by Kristen Proby

  MASTER OF FREEDOM by Cherise Sinclair

  CARESS OF PLEASURE by Julie Kenner

  ADORED by Lexi Blake

  HADES by Larissa Ione

  RAVAGED by Elisabeth Naughton

  DREAM OF YOU by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  STRIPPED DOWN by Lorelei James

  RAGE/KILLIAN by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  DRAGON KING by Donna Grant

  PURE WICKED by Shayla Black

  HARD AS STEEL by Laura Kaye

  STROKE OF MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  ALL HALLOWS EVE by Heather Graham

  KISS THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  DARING HER LOVE by Melissa Foster

  TEASED by Rebecca Zanetti

  THE PROMISE OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  COLLECTION THREE

  HIDDEN INK by Carrie Ann Ryan

  BLOOD ON THE BAYOU by Heather Graham

  SEARCHING FOR MINE by Jennifer Probst

  DANCE OF DESIRE by Christopher Rice

  ROUGH RHYTHM by Tessa Bailey

  DEVOTED by Lexi Blake

  Z by Larissa Ione

  FALLING UNDER YOU by Laurelin Paige

  EASY FOR KEEPS by Kristen Proby

  UNCHAINED by Elisabeth Naughton

  HARD TO SERVE by Laura Kaye

  DRAGON FEVER by Donna Grant

  KAYDEN/SIMON by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  STRUNG UP by Lorelei James

  MIDNIGHT UNTAMED by Lara Adrian

  TRICKED by Rebecca Zanetti

  DIRTY WICKED by Shayla Black

  THE ONLY ONE by Lauren Blakely

  SWEET SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  COLLECTION FOUR

  ROCK CHICK REAWAKENING by Kristen Ashley

  ADORING INK by Carrie Ann Ryan

  SWEET RIVALRY by K. Bromberg

  SHADE'S LADY by Joanna Wylde

  RAZR by Larissa Ione

  ARRANGED by Lexi Blake

  TANGLED by Rebecca Zanetti

  HOLD ME by J. Kenner

  SOMEHOW, SOME W
AY by Jennifer Probst

  TOO CLOSE TO CALL by Tessa Bailey

  HUNTED by Elisabeth Naughton

  EYES ON YOU by Laura Kaye

  BLADE by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright

  DRAGON BURN by Donna Grant

  TRIPPED OUT by Lorelei James

  STUD FINDER by Lauren Blakely

  MIDNIGHT UNLEASHED by Lara Adrian

  HALLOW BE THE HAUNT by Heather Graham

  PRINCE ROMAN by CD Reiss

  THE BED MATE by Kendall Ryan

  DIRTY FILTHY FIX by Laurelin Paige

  NO RESERVATIONS by Kristen Proby

  DAWN OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  COLLECTION FIVE

  BLAZE ERUPTING by Rebecca Zanetti

  ROUGH RIDE by Kristen Ashley

  HAWKYN by Larissa Ione

  RIDE DIRTY by Laura Kaye

  ROME’S CHANCE by Joanna Wylde

  THE MARRIAGE ARRANGEMENT by Jennifer Probst

  SURRENDER by Elisabeth Naughton

  INKED NIGHTS by Carrie Ann Ryan

  ENVY by Rachel Van Dyken

  PROTECTED by Lexi Blake

  THE PRINCE by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  PLEASE ME by J. Kenner

  WOUND TIGHT by Lorelei James

  STRONG by Kylie Scott

  DRAGON NIGHT by Donna Grant

  TEMPTING BROOKE by Kristen Proby

  HAUNTED BE THE HOLIDAYS by Heather Graham

  CONTROL by K. Bromberg

  HUNKY HEARTBREAKER by Kendall Ryan

  THE DARKEST CAPTIVE by Gena Showalter

  Also from 1001 Dark Nights:

  TAME ME by J. Kenner

  THE SURRENDER GATE By Christopher Rice

  SERVICING THE TARGET By Cherise Sinclair

  TEMPT ME by J. Kenner

  Sign up for the 1001 Dark Nights Newsletter

  and be entered to win a Tiffany Key necklace.

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  As a bonus, all subscribers can download FIVE FREE exclusive books!

  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  About Jennifer L. Armentrout

  Also from Jennifer L. Armentrout

  Acknowledgments from the Author

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights

  Foreword

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Six

  Discover More Jennifer L. Armentrout

  An excerpt from Wicked by Jennifer l. Armentrout

  Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights

  Special Thanks

  One Thousand and One Dark Nights

  Once upon a time, in the future…

  I was a student fascinated with stories and learning.

  I studied philosophy, poetry, history, the occult, and

  the art and science of love and magic. I had a vast

  library at my father’s home and collected thousands

  of volumes of fantastic tales.

  I learned all about ancient races and bygone

  times. About myths and legends and dreams of all

  people through the millennium. And the more I read

  the stronger my imagination grew until I discovered

  that I was able to travel into the stories... to actually

  become part of them.

  I wish I could say that I listened to my teacher

  and respected my gift, as I ought to have. If I had, I

  would not be telling you this tale now.

  But I was foolhardy and confused, showing off

  with bravery.

  One afternoon, curious about the myth of the

  Arabian Nights, I traveled back to ancient Persia to

  see for myself if it was true that every day Shahryar

  (Persian: شهريار, “king”) married a new virgin, and then

  sent yesterday's wife to be beheaded. It was written

  and I had read, that by the time he met Scheherazade,

  the vizier's daughter, he’d killed one thousand

  women.

  Something went wrong with my efforts. I arrived

  in the midst of the story and somehow exchanged

  places with Scheherazade – a phenomena that had

  never occurred before and that still to this day, I

  cannot explain.

  Now I am trapped in that ancient past. I have

  taken on Scheherazade’s life and the only way I can

  protect myself and stay alive is to do what she did to

  protect herself and stay alive.

  Every night the King calls for me and listens as I spin tales.

  And when the evening ends and dawn breaks, I stop at a

  point that leaves him breathless and yearning for more.

  And so the King spares my life for one more day, so that

  he might hear the rest of my dark tale.

  As soon as I finish a story... I begin a new

  one... like the one that you, dear reader, have before

  you now.

  Chapter 1

  “I don’t think this is wise,” Tink said for what had to be the hundredth time since he realized I was getting ready for a night out. “Like I think this is very poorly thought-out, if you ask me, Lite Bright.”

  “I didn’t ask you, Tink.”

  My uninvited roommate of sorts hovered outside my bathroom. Tink wasn’t human, but right now, he looked like any normal twenty-something guy. Well, if normal, twenty-something guys had natural, shockingly white hair and were beautiful in a way that almost seemed fragile.

  This was his full-grown Tink size, something I was still—even after all this time—getting used to. I was more accustomed to pint-sized Tink with the translucent wings. After all, he was a brownie.

  After the attack that had taken my mother’s life and should’ve ended mine, he’d basically moved in with me. He’d been here for the last two years, something Ivy’s husband pretended to be grateful for, but in reality, I knew he secretly missed the dude.

  “You should ask me,” he replied. When I glanced over at him, I got a little distracted by the dazzle…emanating from the sequin tank top he wore. It was so shimmery that I wondered if he was using some of his magic.

  Tink may be a goofball, but he was also one of the most powerful creatures in our realm.

  Thank God there was only one of him.

  “I am a wealth of amazing advice,” he continued. Dixon, the cat he’d named after a Walking Dead character that Tink called “the hottest redneck eva” slinked around Tink’s ankles. The cat was all gray except for his tail, which looked like it had been dipped in white paint.

  I snorted. “When have you ever given me good advice?”

  “When I told you two weeks ago not to eat the whole carton of beignets because you’d get sick and you did,” he shot back.

  I winced, picking up my mascara. I had gotten sick, but I deserved that carton of sugary, fried goodness. That day…

  I didn’t want to think about that day.

  “And what about when you ordered that supreme pizza and ate almost all of it?” he said. “I told you that it would probably make you feel bad later.”

  Nose wrinkling, I tried to remember what night he was talking about. There were a lot of Friday nights—pizza night in my household—that I ate an entire pie and felt terrible afterward.

  “Or how about that time I told you that the seared ahi tuna
looked a little gray for my liking? But, oh no, Brighton knows better.” He reached down, scratching Dixon between the ears. “You ate it all, and then I spent the night cleaning up your puke.”

  Ew.

  I hadn’t eaten seared ahi tuna since then.

  “And let us never forget when you ate the whole bag of—”

  “Why do all your examples involve me pigging out?”

  Tink raised his brows.

  I rolled my eyes. “Whatever. You know, you used to totally support me going out there and finding the fae responsible for killing my mother.” I twisted toward him just as Dixon scampered across my bedroom, launching himself onto my bed. “I have a name now. The Ancient who was with the fae that night. The one who ripped my mother’s throat out and tried to gut me.”

  “I know, and that’s all the more reason you shouldn’t go out there looking for him.”

  “I don’t understand your logic.” I pointed the tube of mascara at him. “I’ve been searching for him, and now he’s here, somewhere in this city. I’m going to find him.”

  “Aric’s an Ancient, Brighton,” Tink argued. “They are not easy to kill, and they’re incredibly dangerous. Way more powerful than an ordinary fae.”

  “I know that. Look, after I saw him at that bar Thieves, no one else has seen him. But Neal has been sighted at Flux. Neal is working with Aric.” I turned back to the mirror, and heavily lined eyes stared back at me. “If anyone knows where to find Aric, Neal will.”

  “And you think you can make him tell you?”

  “You don’t need to sound so shocked by the idea,” I muttered, opening the mascara.

  “Neal is an Ancient, too. He’s been alive for hundreds—”

  “I know what an Ancient is, Tink. Look, they’re doing something to the Summer fae younglings, turning them evil. This isn’t just about me.” And that was true. I suspected that I knew what was responsible, a substance called Devil’s Breath. It was similar to one of the world’s most powerful drugs derived from a borrachero tree—scopolamine, South America’s zombie drug. Harris, who had since passed, wrote about it in one of his journals, saying that a white, powdery substance had been found in nightshade, a drink the fae favored. The only way to be sure that it was responsible for what had caused the youngling to turn as he had was to catch one who was infected or get my hands on the drink.