Chapter 25
Twenty-Five
A good little slut does not set their friend up on a blind date with a praying mantis. Even if she’s really cute.
In my defence, I thought Fabia was both a monster fucker and a lesbian…
- Arienna
Well, bugger.
I didn’t think about this at all.
Standing at one head of the large dining table, I frown as Nicholas takes his place at the other. I wanted to sit beside him so I could talk up Fabia. How is he going to learn how awesome she is when he’s all the way over there? It’s way too far to shout, with nearly a hundred seats in-between us.
As my best friend pulls my chair out for me, she pins me with the look. Her eyes are narrowed. Her lips are in a flat line, and she’s positively screaming at me:
“Why are you acting so suspiciously, Arienna?”
“I don’t even like him, Arienna.”
“Remember the utter catastrophe that happened the last time you tried to set me up on a date, Arienna?”
Well, there’s no way it’s going to be worse than that. For one, Nicholas doesn’t have an appetite for heads. And two, he doesn’t seem to have diarrhoea.
Feeling better about this, I turn to Jace. “Am I allowed –”
I falter, though, at the hard look in his eyes as he glares at someone down the table. I have never seen him angry before. The twist of his face is terrifying, a cold chill that could frighten even Death itself.
My voice runs to hide behind my pounding heart, and the rest of me is desperate to follow it. When he turns to face me, I nearly bolt, but a lifetime of monster handling keeps me rooted.
Never run in front of a monster. That is when they’ll eat you.
“What was your question, Your Majesty?” he asks, his voice light. His eyes are kind once more, and his signature smirk has returned.
My heart is pounding so loudly, I barely hear him. In all my years of monster rearing, I have never been afraid. But Jace is not someone I’d ever want to be on the wrong side of.
Shivering, I cup my pussy and remind myself that he’s Richard’s best friend. My king wouldn’t have left me with him if he didn’t trust him completely.
“Um, am I allowed to sit somewhere else?” I ask, my voice a bit of a squeak.
Jace leans in, and my legs tense, ready to fling myself away.
But instead of attacking me, he murmurs in my ear, his voice so low, I have to strain to hear it.
“You can sit wherever you wish, but the nobles closest to us are some of King Morningstar’s biggest supporters.
That’s why they get the honour of sitting at this side of the table. ”
“Oh…” I take a moment to calm my racing heart. Then, “Can you bring Nicholas here?”
“Yes, but –”
“Do it.”
“I wouldn’t advi–”
“That’s an order,” I say quickly as I flump down in my seat. My pulse is still skittish from the intensity of his stare, and it wasn’t even aimed at me. I don’t want to upset him, but I don’t want to lose Fabia more. I’ll face every monster and break every rule if it means keeping her safe.
His lips tighten, but then he straightens and nods. The ladies and lords all take their seats in a rustle of fabric. “Go get Nicholas, Fabia,” Jace says, his voice clipped.
When she steps away, I lunge to my feet to grab her. I don’t want her to leave my side. What if someone decides to attack us, and she dies trying to save Nicholas’ dumb face again?
“Relax,” Jace murmurs as he guides me back into my chair. The nobles, who all rose when I did, sit down again too. “There are over six dozen soldiers in here. She will be fine.”
My eyes sweep across all the guards stationed against the walls.
They’re not wearing the soft leather armour I saw in Kholar; instead, they’re decked out in the hard exoskeletons of beetles.
Purple-hilted swords hang at their sides, sheathed for now.
But their hands, encased in black gauntlets, linger near them, and their eyes are hard and wary above the spiky, black masks covering the lower half of their faces.
They look like the embodiment of nightmares.
Taking a deep breath, I rub my palm against my pussy. The tension in my chest eases as the chastity belt digs into my skin. Remembering I get to take it off when I eat, I jump to my feet again. The entire hall rises once more, and I sit back down just to see if they do.
They do.
I rise.
So do they.
I sit half-way down and hover.
They don’t move.
I sit down.
After a second, so do they.
I half-rise to my feet.
No one moves.
But everyone is looking at me. And if they’re looking at me, then they’re not looking at Fabia and trying to figure out a way to kill her.
So I stand.
They all do the same.
Seeing Fabia finally reach Nicholas, I hike up my skirts.
The hall instantly falls quiet.
Someone coughs in front of me.
Another person does too.
As I start to undo my belt, Fabia pivots on her heels to come back to me. Nicholas follows, as do the three servants carrying his heavy chair.
“Godsdammit, Arienna,” Fabia snaps before she’s even taken a step.
“What?” I ask as I tug the knot free, then slide it off my pussy.
“Eye contact!”
“I’m holding it!”
“Don’t!” She jerks her head away, and I collapse into my seat with a giggle that eases some of the tension inside of me. Ever since I learned she was hurt, I’ve been scared that it’s changed her, but it hasn’t. She’s still the same annoyed Fabia that I love.
Laying the belt across my lap, I look at the ladies and lords closest to me. They slowly take their seats, but they’re clearly ready to jump up at a moment’s notice.
I shift in my seat, wondering how long I can do this.
“Your Majesty,” a lady blurts out as she leans towards me.
Her face is covered in piercings that twinkle in the bright light of the hall.
“It is a relief to see you are well after the attempt on your life. My sister was not so lucky when they attacked our unit, so I would be honoured to lead the charge into Vyla in your name.”
“We do not know the assassins were Vylians, Waress Ir,” a man cuts in. “Going to war over nothing is foolish.”
“Attacking our queen is not nothing, Gimisi.”
“Of course it isn’t.” He glances at me, his dark-green eyes sharp, yet hesitant. “But if they weren’t the ones to do it, then they shouldn’t be punished.” He looks back at Ir. “You know the Vylians do not have the means to survive another war. They surrendered for a reason.”
Before she can reply, Fabia and Nicholas reach us. “Have him sit to your right,” Jace says, his voice only loud enough for me to hear. “It is a position of honour and shows you wish to align with the Morningstars.”
Looking over at the servants, I smile and gesture at the space to my right.
“Your other right,” Jace mutters as he steps back.
Aw, bugger. I start to correct myself, but the three young servants are already dropping the chair into place, and bless their little hearts, they look utterly exhausted. Their arms are shaking. Sweat is on their brow. And their faces are soft with relief.
Turning to Nicholas, I smile at him. “That is a great place to sit, is it not?” Surely, if it’s okay with him, no one will think I’ve insulted him?
He nods tightly as he takes his seat. His shoulders are stiff, and his eyes are downcast. Two lines of servants start to file out of the kitchens, carrying our first course on silver trays.
My stomach rumbles as the spices in the carrot and parsnip soup mix with the fresh smell of bread, but all of my attention is on how I can get Nicholas to fall in love with Fabia.
“So,” I say before Ir can get in another word about the Vylians, “who here likes to read?”
A few of them share glances, but no one speaks.
“Really?” I ask in shock. “But you have such a beautiful library! Have none of you visited it?”
The only noise comes from further down the table, a low hum of voices as the other nobles talk amongst themselves. This end stays utterly silent.
A woman eventually leans forwards. Her hair’s as golden as sunshine itself. It falls down her shoulders but not too far as to irritate the top of her wings. “No one is allowed in there,” she says, her black-painted lips moving beneath eyes almost as dark.
“They let me in,” I say in confusion.
“You are royalty,” she says simply.
My heart suddenly aches as I remember Saragese and Marrabel flying me up there. Then it twists some more as I recall the haunted look in Jace’s eyes. The clear signs of love carved into every railing, every shelf, every intricate detail.
I wanted to bring joy to tonight’s meal and instead I’ve brought more pain.
I sit in silence as a servant reaches past me to place a bowl of soup down, followed by a small plate of bread.
The food tester checks it for poison, then steps away from the table.
My stomach grumbles, but my heart feels too heavy for me to eat.
No one else lifts a spoon.
Leaning down to my ear, Jace murmurs, “They cannot eat until you take the first bite.”
I pick up the spoon as he straightens, then force myself to eat a nibble.
My stomach in knots, I glance at Nicholas.
He looks so sad… And he’s all alone. Richard has me now, but who does his brother have?
I’ve never seen him laugh with anyone but us.
He rarely leaves the privacy of the Royal Floor, only ever attending events he must. I might’ve had this idea to protect Fabia, but now I want to protect him too.
“Well,” I say, determined to spread the happiness Richard wants in this kingdom.
“It’s a good thing I know a brilliant author.
She’s written three dozen books – that’s the most anyone’s ever written in Brownston.
She also draws her own covers and binds the books herself.
” I glance at Prince Nicholas, trying to gauge if he’s impressed.
He keeps his eyes on his plate as he tears off a piece of bread.