Chapter 11
Chapter Eleven
Bastian
Nobody has faster reflexes than a feline shifter, which was why I was moving the second I entered the quarters Rynn and I were sharing that evening. Getting my family jewels kicked in again was not something I wanted to experience tonight. Or ever again really.
Just as I got to the other side of the room, Rynn’s arm snapped forward and something silver flew through the air. A knife sunk into the wall to my left, missing me by almost a foot.
“Guess Samara never taught you how to throw daggers, eh?” I smirked at where Rynn still stood by the door.
Rynn narrowed her mismatched eyes at me and took a step forward.
I held up a single finger and then pointed to the silencing glyph on the wall. After glowering at me for a few more seconds, she turned and snatched an emerald gem off a small table and slapped it into the glyph. Immediately, the gem let off a faint glow as the spell activated.
Then she turned back around to face me with her arms crossed. “What the fuck was all that about? You’ve never acted like that towards me before.”
“Apologies for my overall behavior and the whole making you sit on my lap thing.”
I walked over to the wall and plucked the knife out. It was from the dinner table. I hadn’t even seen her hide it. She might be shit at covering her emotions and lying, but apparently, our little princess was good at stealing.
Good to know. I tossed the knife on top of the dresser
“And all the kissing,” she growled. Actually growled. It was adorable.
“Kissing?” I turned to look back at her and arched a brow. “All I did was brush my lips across your neck and cheek a few times. If I ever kissed you, Princess, you would enjoy it and beg for more. With much enthusiasm.”
Rynn’s arms fell to the side as she gaped at me before her fingers curled into fists.
“As I’ve told you before, I wouldn’t kiss you if you were the last person in all of Lunaria, you arrogant fu—” Rynn’s words cut off as her nostrils flared and her gaze snapped to the door.
With the silencing spell, nobody could hear us and we couldn’t hear them either, but scents made it through just fine.
I caught Sorin’s scent a couple of seconds after she did.
“Great,” she muttered and moved closer to the door, yanking it open.
Sorin blinked at his sister. “Ry—”
She grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him in. Sorin stumbled but caught himself as Rynn slammed the door closed, and then both siblings glowered at me.
“You know, for twins, you two look nothing alike.” I cocked my head and studied them.
Sorin’s hair was golden blond, reminding me more of Ivan than Rynn.
It was only upon closer inspection that I could pick up the resemblance.
Same narrow nose and high, sculpted cheekbones.
Sorin’s deep brown eyes were the same shade as Rynn’s left eye.
It was just his broader build and fair hair that threw me off at first.
“We’ve heard,” they both said at the same time.
Rynn sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Why are you here, Sorin? Father won’t like it and you know it.”
“Why?” I cut in. “What’s wrong with a brother checking in with his twin sister, who he hasn’t seen or spoken to in almost a year?”
Sorin glanced at Rynn, some silent conversation clearly happening between them. Annoyance drummed through me. I didn’t like being left out.
“Does it have anything to do with how Rynn seems to be viewed as an outsider of your pack?” Both siblings went perfectly still and slowly turned their gazes to me.
I gave them a close-lipped smile. “When we rode into town, almost everyone addressed me, not Rynn, and during dinner, it was the same.
People were polite to her only if they had to interact; otherwise, she was ignored.
“I told you,” Rynn said cooly, “sacrifices had to be made in order for me to join your precious Alpha pack. You assholes might have officially exiled me from the Narchis Order, but trust me, I’d been an exile in spirit for far longer than that.”
“Where is your room here?” I asked, because it had been one of the many things bothering me since dinner when I’d offhandedly mentioned retiring early to her quarters.
Altair had been quite insistent on us staying in the guest quarters I normally stayed in when I was here.
He’d said something about remodeling happening in the wing where Rynn’s quarters were.
“Don’t worry about it,” Rynn said dismissively. The annoyance I’d been feeling sparked into hot irritation. Why did she have to be so difficult about everything?
“What happened after I left?” Sorin asked before I could push Rynn for answers. That was fine. He’d be gone soon enough, and it would be easier to get her to talk to me alone.
The trick to getting the truth out of Rynn was to get her flustered. And I was quite good at that.
“Same as usual,” Rynn said tightly. “The rumors about Samara are getting worse. Particularly the one about her secretly possessing the ability to bend wills to her control and that I’m basically her thrall.
” Anger flashed in her eyes. “You know neither our uncle nor our father ever approved of my friendship with her. I think Altair half believes the rumors and dad is still pissed I refuse to publicly denounce her. He thinks I’m being insolent as a way to get back at him. ”
“For what, exactly?” I asked in an even tone.
Rynn hesitated for a moment. “When I learned I was to join the Alpha pack, I refused,” she said tonelessly.
“I was fifteen. I didn’t know any of you.
Just your reputations for being ruthless and occasionally cruel.
My father was humiliated and told my uncle that I would go. That he would see to it.”
“He made you an outcast?” My brows furrowed together. “We never heard about this.”
“You didn’t meet me in person until Drudonia, and things were different there.
Besides, it wasn’t a public proclamation or anything.
” She shrugged. “But word got around, and it was made very clear to me that I no longer had a home in the Narchis Order. Only people like Anita interacted with me and only because they wanted something. Everyone else kept their distance.”
Rynn’s gaze remained on me, but I caught the way her brother looked at her with sadness etched in his features.
He clearly cared about her, but something must have happened to drive a wedge between them, because Rynn definitely had her guard up around him, and I knew the signs of a guilty conscience when I saw it.
“What was Altair saying to you when I arrived?” I gave Rynn a pointed look. “And don’t try to lie to me. You’re terrible at it.”
“Multiple outposts on the border have been attacked. All signs point to Fervis as the culprits.”
“I saw the reports. The evidence doesn't clearly prove it was Fervis. Monster attacks have increased across all of Lunaria.”
Truth be told, I suspected Fervis was involved somehow, but it didn’t matter. All-out war would mean death for our people. They’d either perish in the fighting or starve to death in the winters when we no longer had enough crops or hunting parties to provide food.
“My uncle recited the names of the children who died.” Rynn’s voice was hollow. “He holds me personally responsible for not getting the support of the Alpha pack.”
“We are supporting the Narchis Order,” I countered. “The alliance has been a boon for everyone.”
“It’s not enough. You know what he wants.” She swallowed. “War. And both he and my father believe I’m not doing enough to save our people.”
“And what exactly does he expect you to do?” I scoffed. “Samara doesn’t have the ability to control people’s minds, and you sure as fuck don’t either.”
“According to our uncle,” Sorin drawled, “Rynn is supposed to earn your loyalty on her back, which she’s always been very adamantly against.”
“Something I made quite clear again today.” Rynn cut me a withering stare. “But it was undermined by all your manhandling. No doubt both my uncle and father now believe we’re already fucking.”
“But you’re not . . . right?” Sorin looked at his sister.
She gave him a flat look. “I have zero interest in Bastian and his misshapen abs.”
“I do not have mishap—”
“And Warrick would sooner kill me than fuck me. Cade definitely doesn’t care for me like that. And Ryker . . .” Rynn grimaced. “A person would have to be insane to get involved with Ryker.”
Sorin visibly relaxed.
“Great.” I rolled my eyes. “Glad it’s sorted that Rynn isn’t fucking any of us. We don’t have any interest in her either, for the record.”
“The Alpha pack has made it quite clear where I stand with them,” Rynn said flatly.
Sorin glanced back and forth between us. “What does that mean exactly?”
“Nothing.” I walked over to sit on the bed and toed my shoes off. “Rynn’s just crabby from traveling the last few days. Was there something else you needed, Sorin? As you can see, your sister is just fine. I’ll keep her safe.”
Rynn snorted at that. “I’ll keep myself safe, thanks.”
“How long are you two planning on staying? Altair wants to discuss things more tomorrow.” Sorin looked at me. “He’s never going to stop pushing for war against Fervis.”
“He can push all he wants,” I said honestly, “but it’s not happening.”
“The rumors about the Moroi are getting worse.” Sorin rubbed his face. “Not just the Rynn and Samara thing, but also that the Blood Sovereign have secretly allied with the Fervis Order.” He dropped his hand and gave Rynn a questioning look. “Which they haven’t . . . right?”
“Yes, Samara doesn’t have enough to deal with, so she decided to add war with the Velesians to her to-do list,” Rynn deadpanned.
“I was just asking.” Sorin threw his hands up.
“Don’t ask stupid questions!”
The two siblings glared at each other.