A Storm of Shadows (Fates and Fables #3)

46. Dryston

Chapter 46

Dryston

“ W e strike now, before they have a chance to gather forces,” Makel said, slamming her fist against the table.

Dryston rubbed his forehead, taking in a deep breath. It had been like this all morning. A meeting to decide what they were to do for the upcoming conflict. There were a lot of opinions. A lot that Dryston needed time to look over and think about. He also needed to talk to his allies. But he didn’t know how to. He’d already sent missives asking for their feedback. What more could he do? He certainly couldn’t step foot in Nemus again for a while. It was too dangerous.

He was also less inclined at the moment. Things were going well with Onora. He didn’t want to start a bloody conflict with her people, potentially dragging in ones she loved. He wanted to wait and see. There was a good chance that all this talk of war and attacking from King Olan was just bluster. Someone trying to rile others up in an attempt to cause more issues for the demons.

“We need to think rationally,” Salen said. “Let’s start with the Realm of Light. See if we can’t get a diplomat to go to Nemus and see what our allies there feel.”

“That will make us look weak,” another chieftain said. “Sending a seraph to do our work? It will show everyone that we doubt the strength of our bonds with our allies.”

“We do,” Dryston said, his echoing voice silencing all of them. “We do doubt it because King Leeth has remained silent, and Lord Killgan hasn’t answered any of my letters. It would be foolhardy to send a demon there now. I don’t have anyone I’m willing to sacrifice for it.”

It was silent around the table, and he drew in another breath. Many sitting at the table had an old way of thinking. They believed he should do a show of force, convince others that they would simply crush them if they came against them. That would be effective to a point. But he needed to disband the bitter taste others had in their mouths at the mention of demons.

He needed to be a diplomat.

Which he was terrible at.

“Is Onora causing you to hedge your decisions?” Makel asked.

Dryston frowned, looking around and seeing the others not quite looking him in the eye. They had already discussed this, it seemed.

“No, she’s not. I’ve worked for a long time to get other realms and rulers to trust us. It’s been a hard road, and only recently have we succeeded in garnering the favor of other leaders. This is a huge setback. If I don’t handle it perfectly, it may take many more years before we can get the alliances we need.”

“Can we trust Onora?” the chieftain asked.

“Of course. She has more honor than anyone I know.”

She’d been training every day for the last month with the royal guard. She kept up in most ways and made up in other ways when she couldn’t. Kalen was still grouchy with her but had begrudgingly admitted that she was an excellent warrior and that she had a great deal of integrity to her. Mandel had had a glowing recommendation of her, and Dryston had slugged him, jealous and angry, only for Mandel to tell him that he was sorry for taking her to the rite. He’d been pissed by his attitude earlier and wanted to get under his skin.

So Dryston had quelled the urge to wail on him again and instead apologized.

Enid and Avenay still hadn’t returned and he hadn’t heard from them, other than a quick letter saying they were making interesting discoveries and they would tell him soon.

“She could be a fox in the henhouse, Drys,” Makel said, uncharacteristically soft. “Be careful.”

“I am. She’s earned my trust. I know it will take longer to earn everyone else’s, but she’s working toward that.”

“I’ve seen it,” Salen said. “I can’t say I fully trust her, but I trust you and I see the effort. It doesn’t hurt that she’s your mate. I’m sure that’s a good motivator for her.”

Dryston shot him a glare, and Salen threw his hands up. “I know—we aren’t supposed to bring that up. You have to talk to her at some point. Regardless of her response, she has power over us because of it. It’s in our nature to obey leaders, and even if she wasn’t magically marked as ours, she has a leader’s heart. People will fall behind her naturally, and she has a right to know about it.”

Dryston clenched his jaw. “I know. All in good time. This isn’t the most normal or ideal situation for finding a mate, and both of us are making the best of it.”

Or he was. She’d been sleeping in his room every night since the moon rites. He loved it, and they’d fallen into a rhythm, but they hadn’t spoken once about what they were, and he could tell she was still shy at times of being affectionate in public.

Was that her nature, or because she didn’t see it as serious and felt the public display of it was too permanent? He didn’t know, and he was too afraid to ask. He kept waiting for some marker, something to happen between them or for enough time to pass so that he felt confident talking to her about it.

But their couplings were so wild and passionate, their cadence so natural that he couldn’t tell if it was just a burst of passion from her end that would inevitably burn out.

“We need to decide, and soon, what our actions will be,” Makel said.

“I think we need to send scouts first. If seraphs will aid us, that’s best. They won’t be shot on sight,” Dryston said.

“I’ll talk to the Lord of Light,” Salen said. “I’m sure he will be amenable to it. Enid has become the gossip pages darling now, and Avenay is their prize, so they have some motivation to keep us around.”

“Thank you,” Dryston said.

Dryston knocked on the heavy wooden door and heard a baby cooing, then footsteps before the door opened with Kaemon and Emilia. They grinned on seeing him and he scooped Emilia up in his arms as she babbled to him, grinning like he’d hung the moon and stars, grabbing and holding the finger he offered her.

“She isn’t helping my ego any,” he said as Kaemon brought him into the parlor, where Melina was sewing a quilt by the fireplace. “I swear I can do no wrong with her.”

“Well, she’s just a baby. She doesn’t know any better. Give her time,” Kaemon said, and they both laughed.

Melina looked up and gave a wave. “Where’s Onora?”

“She’s training.”

“She’s very dedicated to that,” Melina said, something like pride in her voice. The two women had been spending a lot of time together lately. Dryston would drop by and find Onora here, chatting with Melina and awkwardly waving at Emilia, who grinned at her but hated being held by her.

“She is indeed,” Dryston said. “She’s been impressing Kalen, even.”

Kaemon whistled. “That’s a difficult thing to do.”

Dryston nodded. He had come here for a specific reason, but as Kaemon handed him a cup of warm tea, he found the words sticking in the roof of his mouth.

“You came to ask us something?” Melina asked. She somehow caught on to everything.

He cleared his throat. “How does the mate bond work between a human and demon?”

“Very similar to how it is with demons.”

“Do you feel the same drive and desire that demons do?”

She shrugged, but Kaemon answered. “It’s hard to know. But she does feel the bond and the drive. Your souls are connected, you’ll feel that regardless of magical affinity.”

“I started feeling it more strongly after the well was opened,” Melina responded. “I think my magic responded to it, and I was able to locate Kaemon better with it.”

Dryston rubbed his jaw. “So you do feel the desire to be with him because of it?”

Kaemon and Melina looked at each other, the love in their eyes so intimate that he looked down at his tea.

“No,” Melina said. “I feel that because I love him. I know people think that’s the bond, but it’s not. I can feel the difference. The bond is a wonderful and heady thing, but it’s not how I love him. I love him because of who he is and because I choose to. The bond just gives it different shading.”

Kaemon squeezed her hand. “I feel the same.”

“Are you asking because of Onora?” Melina asked.

He choked on his drink, and Kaemon raised a brow. “It’s obvious to everyone, Drys. Especially after the moon rites.”

“How the fuck do you know about that?” he asked, incredulous.

“The report was that you almost killed Mandel so ...”

He rolled his eyes. “That’s hardly even close to what happened.”

He sighed, taking in another breath. “Yes, it’s about Onora. I’m scared to tell her about the bond because she may cut and run if she feels like she has to be with me because of it.”

“Then tell her you love her instead,” Melina said.

He was silent as Melina looked at him as if it were the easiest thing in the world.

“That,” she added softly, “is also very obvious to everyone.”

There was no doubt about it. He was crazy about her and had been from the moment he saw her at The Tipsy Tavern. He knew that now. All those months of torment, his mind bent toward her—it had been his admiration desperately asking him to yield to love. Now that he had, it was the most obvious thing.

But how in the darkest pit was he supposed to tell her that?