36. Whispers of the Wolves
A drian listened to Aldric vent, but he didn’t need any of the wolf’s proofs and didn’t bother glancing at any of it. He’d sat on the councils that had made those changes and drafted those laws. He’d had the same view as his father—that the dogs took up too much space the vampires could use more optimally, and they were a menace. Reports of them terrorizing and scaring the locals constantly came into the palace.
Everything he’d seen in Silvershade so far supported that. Aldric was an intimidator, using his size and aura to get his way. When that didn’t work, he called in his wolves to gang up on the enemy.
But he understood the threats were not idle. On the table spread before them, five other packs were represented; Aldric’s allies, ready to fight with him. Theirs was no small alliance, especially as most, like Lea Valley, were decent in size with a notable warrior force. They could do some damage if they marched on the capital unified.
The royal army would shut them down, but it would set a precedent.
“What do you want? ”
“I want the boundary moved back. I want my land given back to me. I want you to give back what belongs to my fellows. Rescind the laws that limit us and give us our freedom. I want to be treated like the rest of this feckin’ kingdom instead of a bloody nuisance.”
“You are a nuisance.”
Aldric’s nostrils flared in anger and Adrian held up a placating hand, trying to ignore Rose’s hopeful expression.
“I can give you my word that I’ll do my best in the capital, but I can’t guarantee how much I can convince the councilors or my father. I will stand for you and yours, I give you my word, but you know you are not looked upon fondly there.”
“So feckin’ change it.” Aldric’s brogue thickened with his emotion. Leaning over the table, his eyes dilated, and fur sprouted across his shoulders as his wolf surfaced. “Don’t give me this shite without anythin’ real.”
“I’m not giving you shit. I’m giving you my word that I’ll do my best. But I can’t give guarantees.” After another tense moment of staring at each other Adrian added, “The last thing our kingdom needs is war, Aldric, and I certainly don’t want to be the cause.”
Aldric continued studying him, and Adrian knew he saw the pretense. But there was no way he could turn down this offer. Looking to the left side of the room the alpha met the eyes of his lawyer and nodded. As he calmed, his fur receded, and his eyes returned to their blue.
Adrian looked at Rose. “Sit now. It’s going to get even more boring.”
But Rose only folded her arms, giving him a level look as she refused to move. Damn stubborn woman. Couldn’t she see he worried for her? Having been unconscious for a full day after healing him, s he should not be standing through several hours of political arguing.
Even if she had handled herself well .
Aldric’s pleased smile at their disagreeing irked. And as if that wasn’t enough, Adrian had been trying the entire meeting to ignore Rose’s intoxicating scent. The need to touch her, hold her, ensure she was truly alright came off as rudeness because he couldn’t .
Her fiery defiance only made it worse.
Gods, she was breathtaking.
And every bit his match.
But he needed to focus on Aldric as they argued.
Several hours later, Adrian’s head throbbed, but Aldric appeared satisfied.
Munching cheese cubes and fruit from the tray of snacks, Rose felt enlightened and like she was getting a lesson in interracial politics. Not the least bit bored, she listened raptly to the back-and-forth.
And was pleasantly surprised the situation remained mostly civil.
“Prepare the pack for a bonfire feast,” Lord Aldric told Cedric and Tiernan.
“Yes, Alpha.” Both males bowed their heads and left the room.
Lord Aldric motioned to the doorway, and they filed out. Rose exited last with Ciel, her hand in his mane.
“We have rooms ready for you,” Lord Aldric told Adrian, motioning a male forward. “Owen will show you.”
“What we need is nourishment,” Adrian replied. “We have not fed in days, and I imagine you have not stored our blood rations properly.”
“Everything was put in Lady Rose’s rooms. ”
They both turned to her, and she smiled apologetically, her cheeks heating. “I did not realize.”
“It is not your fault.” Adrian sighed.
On the journey, the flasks of blood were kept in chests with cooling packs—bags of water they changed in the cold streams and rivers they passed. In the palace, the stores were kept in the cool cellars.
Usually, blood could stay palatable for a few weeks, but the longer it was stored, the more congealed it would become. Even with warming and the additives used sometimes little lumps remained, especially in older blood. Fresher was always better.
Here, the stores should have been moved to a colder environment immediately. Since they hadn’t, everything was spoiled.
Adrian looked to Lord Aldric. “We must hunt then.”
“Hunt? There are no humans here.”
“We can drink from wildlife. It is not fully satisfying but better than the alternative of extreme hunger and the resulting bloodlust. Even raw meat can help in extreme circumstances.”
Lord Aldric grimaced but said, “The woods are open.”
Entering the Great Hall, they found the rest of Adrian’s entourage—the human drivers and knights—who stood from the large table where they’d been eating. All were offered medical care but opted to rest. Owen showed them out.
Adrian turned to Rose. “We won’t be gone long.”
“I will be fine.” She looked at Lord Aldric. “The alpha and I have plans.”
Lord Aldric nodded with a smile. “Aye, we do.”
Adrian’s jaw ticked, but she ignored it, giving a short curtsy. “Enjoy your hunt, Your Highness.”
“What plans do you have? Wait until I get back and we will go together. ”
“I am sure it would bore you.” Trying to ignore Lord Aldric’s cocky smile, she took his offered arm, and they started walking away. Ciel the lion walked regally beside her, the puff at the end of his tail twitching.
“Larkin, you come with me,” Adrian called, causing them to turn back. Instead of doing as told, the lion sat, his tail curling around himself on the stone floor.
“Ciel will be staying with me.” When Adrian’s eyes flashed, Rose stepped closer. “Please don’t make a scene. I will explain later.”
Adrian cocked an eyebrow, and Rose’s stomach soured. “My pet,” he said slowly, “will come with me.”
“Adrian,” she entreated softly, forgetting the use of his title. Feeling closer to him, like a barrier between them had fallen, it seemed natural. But out loud, among the wolves, the omission was disrespectful. “Your Highness, please let us discuss this privately.”
“Discuss what, Rose? Larkin is mine. Or has he lost respect for me as you seem to have?”
“No one has lost respect, my Prince. I promise you. Things have changed and I’d rather not explain in the middle of a crowd.”
“Why?” Adrian laughed sarcastically. “It’s obvious you’ve become merry friends with this lot.” Larkin began growling, and Adrian looked down at him. “Don’t you start, Larkin. You were nowhere to be seen when I needed you.”
The lion growled louder at the Prince’s attitude, and Rose set her hand on his head to calm him. “He has been with me, as he will remain.”
“So, you openly claim him now?”
Rose took a deep breath. “He has always been mine.”
“Pardon?”
“Ciel is mine. ”
“Ciel? Who the fuck is Ciel? We are talking about Larkin. My Larkin. The one who’s been by my side for years . How was he always yours if he’s been with me for so long?”
“His name is Ciel, which means sky . I named him that because of his love for flight.” As if to emphasize this, Ciel shifted to his hawk form and flew to her shoulder. Stroking his breast, she kept her gaze level on Adrian. She tried to ignore the whispers that had erupted around them as she continued, “He is my familiar and has been since birth. We were separated when I was kidnapped and he was injured. His magic led him to you.”
Adrian stared at her, the whispers around them growing louder. “That—that is ludicrous.”
“It is truth—”
“You don’t even have your memory!”
Ciel shrieked at Adrian, clearly upset, and Rose let him. The hawk’s long talons, though they’d never hurt her, dug into her shoulder, but it wasn’t painful. Continuing her pets soothed them both.
“I remember enough.”
Adrian folded his arms across his chest, loftily arrogant. “What is he then? No one has ever been able to tell me. I can find nothing on him in any book. There is no shifter like him anywhere that I have seen or heard.”
“I do not think you want me to say here, my Prince.”
He leaned closer. “Because you don’t know.”
“Sun God above, you can be such an asshole, you know that?” She stared coldly at him for several seconds. “And for your information, he is a Constalaysian polymorph. He is a blessing on my family from the Sun God.”
Adrian stared with furrowed brows. “Consta . . . What ? ”
But around them, the wolves were speaking more excitedly to each other, no longer in whispers, and Lord Aldric had a smile on his face that told Rose he knew exactly what she was saying.