Chapter 13 Callan
CHAPTER 13
CALLAN
C allan was in the converted mess hall eating his midday meal with all the Black Syndicate orphans. He could eat in the kitchens where the Fae preferred to eat, he supposed, but then he’d have to actually converse with them. Something he was doing as little as possible.
They’d been back in Baylorin for nearly three weeks. He hadn’t been outside of this warehouse since he’d entered it in the dark of night. The Fae kept insisting they didn’t want him to return to the castle until Mikale was under control, and Scarlett had been retrieved. The ?rst few days, he had tried to convince them that he could handle his own affairs. Sloan and Finn were siding with the Fae, though. Sloan was siding with the godsdamned Fae. The guard who despised Scarlett thought it was safer for him to remain here until the Fire Prince deemed it safe to return.
Rayner, Cyrus, and Eliza had taken to keeping an eye on him to make sure he didn’t try to return on his own. So here he sat. At a table with children who didn’t know who he was. He had taken to helping wherever he could. He assisted the young woman in the kitchens with prepping meals. Although he was pretty sure she knew who he was. She rarely met his eyes, and while she didn’t call him Highness, she was very formal when she spoke to him. He spent some of his time playing games with the younger children as a way to simply keep himself busy, and sometimes he’d accompany Finn and Sloan to the small training areas that had been set up for the older children. Once most in the building were sleeping, Drake and Tava Tyndell would arrive, sneaking out of their manor at night. They would meet with the Fae, Cassius, and Nuri in the kitchens to brainstorm and plan.
He didn’t want any part in that, though. At this point, he ?gured he’d be told what he needed to know when he needed to know it. No one seemed to notice he wasn’t there anyway.
Lady Tava was kind enough to bring him books to read when she came, along with papers so he could catch up on everything that had been happening in the months he’d been gone. Drake had tried to keep him informed, but despite his father being the overseer of the kingdom’s armies, the Tyndell heir was kept in the dark about much of what was going on behind closed doors at the castle.
Callan sighed, pushing the beans that remained on his plate around with a fork. He really needed to get home. His father was going to be irate as it was, and he missed his mother and little sister. He didn’t know if or when he’d be returning, when he’d followed Scarlett to the Fire Court. He also thought that if he did, she would be at his side. He didn’t know how he was going to convince the Fire Prince that he needed to return, though. Sorin’s sole focus was Scarlett. If it could somehow affect her in a negative way, it was immediately dismissed. Callan supposed his best bet was likely trying to convince Eliza and having her talk to Sorin, but the general had hardly spoken to him since they’d arrived.
“Good day, young prince.”
Arianna dropped down onto the bench beside him. Her hand landed on his arm, and her ?ngers began brushing back and forth along his skin. He was starting to get used to her liberal touches … Sort of.
He turned slightly, pulling his arm from beneath her hand. “Hello, Lady. I was not aware you had returned.”
He knew that Cassius had been summoned by the Assassin Lord early that morning. They had apparently been waiting for such an opportunity to get the Shifter inside the Black Syndicate, and they had departed shortly after breakfast.
Arianna nodded, leaning back against the table and resting her elbows behind her. She was as informal as Scarlett was. “I have just returned. I have not even seen Sorin yet.”
Callan arched a brow at that. “Was your time away fruitful?”
“Quite,” she con?rmed, bringing one of her hands up in front of her. Some type of ?ne silver mist was glimmering above her hand. It looked like a cloud of shimmering dust.
“What is that?” he asked, leaning forward to study it a bit more. Arianna glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. “It is energy.”
“It is what?”
“Energy,” she answered, the mass of dust beginning to slow, becoming a crackling swirl in her palm. Some of the younger children had taken notice and were beginning to draw closer, attracted by something shiny.
“I can shift the energy and matter around me just as I can shift my physical form,” Arianna said. “Although, admittedly, shifting energy takes a much bigger toll on my power reserves, so I do not do it often.”
“You cannot touch energy,” Callan said skeptically.
“It is magic,” she replied with a shrug.
“You cannot touch magic,” Callan muttered, but, of course, she heard him. She had hearing as exceptional as the Fae.
“No?” Arianna questioned, arching a brow with a half-grin. “Magic is everywhere. It is all around you, at all times. One could argue that a child being formed in a womb and born into the world is magic. With a skilled partner, one could say fucking is magic. When more than one is involved, it is most certainly magic. And I assure you, there is plenty of touching in that magic.” Callan choked on the water he had just taken a sip of, but he stiffened at her next words. “One could say the act of falling in love is magic.” Arianna didn’t seem to notice his change in posture. “One could also say that a young prince stepping into his destiny is … magic,” she said, meeting his gaze.
She threw the energy into the air, and it drifted down like sparkling snow. The children squealed with delight as they attempted to catch it, but it seemed to evaporate as soon as they touched it.
“I do not know what you are implying,” Callan said slowly when the last of the energy had vanished, and the children were wandering back to their games and lessons.
“Tell me, young prince, are you ready to marry?”
“What?” Callan balked at the sudden change of subject. “No.”
“No?” Arianna repeated. “It was my understanding that you wished to marry Queen Scarlett.”
“Well, yes, but that was … different,” he answered, stumbling over his words.
“Because you love her?” she asked.
“Yes,” Callan answered hesitantly. “Because I loved her.”
“Loved or love?”
“Does it matter?” he countered bitterly. He was rather annoyed at the fact that she seemed to know so much about his relationship with Scarlett. “Not to me,” Arianna answered. There was a crackling sound, and this time the Shifter had lightning buzzing about her knuckles, a ring like Scarlett’s nestled onto her middle ?nger. “Your new bride may want to know the answer to that question, though.”
“That is not something that I need to worry about for quite some time,” he replied, unsure as to why he was talking about this with a woman who he would likely never see again once she returned to her territory. He planned to have as little interaction as possible with the magical territories. His focus would stay on the humans in his charge.
“Do you know a woman named Veda?” Arianna asked, and Callan stilled.
“How do you know that name?”
“Do you believe in the Fates?” Arianna asked instead.
“I have never really thought about it,” Callan answered, still stuck on how she knew Veda’s name.
“The gods then?”
“I suppose so.”
Arianna nodded. “I saw the queen today on my visit to the Black Syndicate.” She said it so casually, as if she were telling Callan of something she saw at a shop in the markets.
“I am sure Sorin will be glad to hear that,” Callan said. “What does Veda have to do with this?”
“While I was studying the chains that keep her bound, there were several men there, and you were mentioned. They are seeking your whereabouts,” Arianna answered. “They threatened the queen with Cassius’s life unless she revealed your whereabouts.”
Callan felt the blood drain from his face. He started to get to his feet, to go ?nd Sorin, but the Shifter placed her hand on his arm, pulling him back down onto the bench. “I am not ?nished, young prince. I think you will want to know what I learned before we get the Fire Prince involved.”
Callan nodded at her to continue, lowering back down onto the bench.
“Your father is unhappy you have been gone so long and has apparently decided it is time for you to marry. They said he seems to think it will make you settle down and take your responsibilities more seriously.”
Callan could not believe what he was hearing. He had left to keep Scarlett’s secrets, to be with a woman who ended up choosing someone else, and he was returning to a forced marriage? But Arianna was not done.
“This Veda person. An agreement has already been made between her family and your father,” she said, her olive eyes watching him closely.
He had followed Scarlett to the Fae Courts to avoid this exact situation. He knew Veda desired to be his queen. She had made her motives clear on more than one occasion, and it had been made more clear by the events that had unfolded the year after Scarlett had stopped coming to him.
“Do you wish to marry her?” Arianna asked.
“No,” Callan said, his objection at the idea clear in his tone.
“So what will you do about it?” she pushed.
“I suppose we will go tell Sorin what you learned and see what he thinks we should do,” Callan said, beginning to stand once more.
“And what will you do when you are king, Callan? Will you wait for someone else to ?x things for you?”
Callan stared incredulously at the Shifter Beta. “Forgive my rudeness, Lady, but you really know nothing of what you are talking about.”
“I have lived for centuries, young prince. I was born in the midst of the Great War. I was a child when my kind was given our gifts. I know more than you could ever imagine. I have seen mortal kings rise and fall. I have outlived Fae Queens and High Witches and Contessas alike,” Arianna said, something in her eyes turning ?erce.
“My family has ruled Windonelle since the kingdom was founded,” Callan countered.
“Yes, but Windonelle was not always its own kingdom, was it? The three mortal kingdoms were once ruled by one.”
“I do not know what you are trying to tell me, Arianna,” Callan said, failing to hide his irritation.
Arianna pushed to her feet, stretching her arms above her head. Then she reached out and cupped his cheek as she said, “There may be three separate kings on three separate thrones, but they all follow the same path. I am merely suggesting that perhaps your destiny is another path, but it is not one that can be chosen for you. You must choose it yourself.”
“My path was chosen for me the moment I was conceived,” Callan replied, pulling away from the Shifter’s touch.
“And yet you were willing to forgo that path if Scarlett had accepted your proposal,” Arianna countered.
Callan pressed his tongue to his cheek at that, his eyes darting to the door as Tava entered, carrying an armful of books and papers. What was she doing here in the middle of the day? She caught Callan’s eye, and she bowed her head slightly, leaning back against the wall and clearly waiting for him to ?nish his conversation.
Arianna had straightened and taken a step back from him. “I will give you a few hours to ?gure things out before I ?nd Sorin and tell him what I learned.”
Callan started at that. “You are not going to tell Sorin right now?”
“This is your fate, not his,” Arianna replied, her gaze catching on a guard and a coy glimmer entering her eyes. “I am sure I can ?nd some way to make myself scarce to give you some time.” She glanced back to Callan one ?nal time as she said, “I have learned many things in my many years, young prince, but something I learned early on is that my feet decide which path I take. No one else’s.”
“I am not sure I am afforded such a luxury,” Callan muttered under his breath.
A cunning smirk curled up on her lips. “You misunderstand me, your Highness. Many have tried to direct my path. That was their mistake.”
With those parting words, she set off toward the guard she had been watching, her hips swaying. When she reached him, the guard stiffened as she pushed up onto her tiptoes, whispering into his ear. A wide grin spread across his face and that was when Callan turned his attention back to Lady Tava.
She had started walking towards him, and he met her halfway. Her eyes were full of worry as she held out the books and papers in her hand.
“Your Highness,” she greeted with a slight bow.
Callan sighed. “Lady Tava, I think at this point you can call me Callan.”
“That would be most inappropriate,” she replied, her cheeks ?ushing slightly.
Callan arched a brow. “More inappropriate than me leaving my kingdom for months and then hiding away in a warehouse with the children of the wicked when I do ?nally return?”
Tava huffed a soft laugh. “Fair enough … Callan. But then I must insist you simply call me Tava.”
“Agreed,” Callan said with a small smile. He set the books aside on a table and began ri?ing through the papers she had brought to him. “I am surprised you are here during the day.”
“Yes, well, something has happened,” she replied, and he glanced up to ?nd her biting her lip nervously.
“I am going to hazard a guess that it has to do with your father learning of my return?”
“You know?” Tava asked in surprise.
“I was just informed,” he answered grimly. “Apparently, I am also to take a wife because I have been shirking my duties, according to my father.” She winced slightly at the words, quickly schooling the expression from her face.
“I am sorry, Callan,” she said.
“Why?” he asked, returning his attention to the papers in his hands. “It will be of no surprise to anyone. It is something my father has been pushing for the last few years.”
“Yes, but …”
He glanced back up at her hesitation, waiting for her to continue.
She sighed, all pretenses seeming to disappear when she spoke again. “I know you loved her, Callan. I can only assume you are not ready to devote yourself to another so soon after everything that you have been through these last few months.”
“Everything I have been through?” he repeated.
“Going with Scarlett to escape a threat on your life. Having to watch the woman you love fall in love with someone else. Coming home and not being able to actually go home …” she explained, trailing off when he just continued to stare at her.
He had forgotten how observant the Lady was. He had forgotten how clever she was. Admittedly, he spent most of his time with Drake when in the company of the Tyndells, so he didn’t know her well, but he remembered her brilliance at the dinner with Mikale and Veda months ago.
“I apologize if I am overstepping,” Tava said in a rush, her eyes falling to the ?oor and a blush entering her cheeks once more.
“No, you aren’t. Overstepping, I mean,” he said quickly. “I just forgot how nice it is to converse with someone who isn’t … Fae or some other immortal being. A human conversation is refreshing.”
Tava met his gaze once more, her head tilting slightly to the side. “Your guards were with you. They are mortal.”
“You spend months with the same two people, and you will ?nd you are craving some new company from time-to-time,” he answered with a small smile.
She smiled at that and gave a slight nod. “Well, I am sure you will have plenty of options when you return to court.”
Callan’s smile slipped from his face. “Apparently, that has already been decided for me as well. I have learned that my father has made an arrangement with Lord Lairwood.”
Tava audibly gasped, her hand coming to cover her mouth at the sound. The same horror he felt at the idea was in her eyes. “He is not giving you a choice?” she asked.
“It would appear not, but I suppose we will see when I actually return.”
“Will you agree to such a thing?”
Callan was quiet for several long moments, Tava patiently waiting for his answer, before he ?nally said, “I do not know. I do not know what I will do.”
“You went to the mortal prince before you came to me?” Sorin demanded when Arianna ?nished explaining what she had discovered at the Fellowship.
Apparently Sorin had learned of her return soon after she’d come back, but true to her word, she’d been “preoccupied” for the last few hours, sending the Fire Prince into a rage at having to wait for her. As soon as she’d emerged from her room— the guard she’d brought with her sneaking out behind her with his head ducked down— she’d come to collect Callan before following Sorin up to the fourth ?oor. His Inner Court was already there, along with Nuri and the Earth Prince.
“Why would I come to you with information that directly affects his Highness?” Arianna asked, clearly unconcerned as she lounged back in one of the chairs, her legs crossed one over the other.
Callan watched with no small amount of amusement as Sorin swallowed, sucking his teeth and clearly reining in a temper. “Because I brought you here for a speci?c purpose, Arianna, and you learned things that directly affect my wife .”
“I just told you everything I learned,” she replied, brushing her long braids over her shoulder and proceeding to inspect her nails.
“Arianna,” Sorin growled, but his tone had the Lady snapping her head up.
“Do not, for one second, think I answer to you, Sorin Aditya,” she hissed, her tone dark and deadly.
The Fire Court all sat up a little straighter, hands sliding into casual reach of their weapons as ?ames ?ickered in Sorin’s eyes.
“This is not the time nor the place, Aditya,” Prince Azrael cutin.
“No one asked you for your input, Luan,” Sorin retorted, his eyes still ?xed on the Shifter.
“Does it really matter at this point?” Tava asked. “What’s done is done. Can we ?gure out what we are going to do? We are not really going to let Callan marry Veda, are we?”
Sorin dropped into a seat with a sigh, running a hand through his dark hair. “Scarlett would not be happy with that turn of events.”
“I do not think it is Scarlett’s happiness we should be concerning ourselves with here,” Tava argued. “We can only assume Veda is one of these Maraan things , but even if she were not, Callan should not be forced into a marriage he does not want.”
“That is often the life of royalty,” Sorin countered.
“Sorin, you cannot be serious,” Eliza hissed from where she sat between Cyrus and Nuri.
Callan had no idea why the general was jumping into the conversation at this particular point in time. He had no idea why any of them were coming to his aid in this. Sorin had a point. Marriages among royalty were rarely for love. He had been an idealist to dream of ever having something like that.
“The issue of Veda can be handled later. The main concern here is the fact that I need to go home. Tonight,” Callan said. He glanced at Finn and Sloan. They were standing near the door, their arms crossed, looking grim.
“Not until this is ?gured out,” Sorin replied, barely glancing at Callan before his eyes went back to Arianna.
Callan’s jaw clenched at the obvious dismissal yet again. Sorin was saying something to Arianna, but the Shifter’s eyes were on Callan, a small smile playing on her lips.
“Destiny is a ?ckle thing, isn’t it?” Arianna said, interrupting whatever Sorin had been saying.
“This is not the time, Arianna,” Sorin sighed, leaning forward and bracing his elbows on his knees, his head falling into his hands.
“Is it not?” she asked. “Maybe this is the queen’s destiny,” she continued with a shrug.
Sorin was on his feet, with Rayner and Cyrus jumping to their own in case they needed to restrain the prince. “Her destiny does not lie with them .”
“And if the Fates have declared it so?”
“She will crawl into the space between the stars and use her darkness to give the Fates physical form for the sole purpose of cutting them apart piece by piece for even trying to dictate her path, and I will be by her side handing her the blades wreathed in ?ames to do so,” Sorin snarled, his chest heaving. “Mention leaving her to this fate again, Arianna, and your assistance here will no longer be needed.”
“Defying the Fates is never easy,” Arianna said, unfazed.
“It is when you have every reason to defy them,” Sorin snapped in reply.
“Indeed,” was Arianna’s only response as she leveled her gaze on Callan yet again.
And he didn’t know what she wanted from him. What would ?ghting against Sorin accomplish? He was a ?re-wielding Fae prince with an entire Court of Fae backing him, not to mention a Witch and vampyre. What would he possibly be able to do against that?
“Prince Callan needs to go back tonight, Sorin,” Tava cut in. “Cassius’s life clearly depends on it. Scarlett will never forgive you if something happens to Cassius.”
“She will also never forgive me if I let Callan willingly walk into danger and enter into a union with a Maraan Lady,” Sorin countered, slumping back into his seat, his hands going through his hair again.
“So we do not send him back alone,” Tava said slowly.
“He won’t be alone,” Sloan chimed in from the doorway. “We’d be with him, but the two of us against the king and his Lords … That does nothing against Lady Veda.” He trailed off, clearly thinking what everyone else was.
Everyone else except Tava.
“So he goes back committed to another,” she continued. “Committed to another who has Maraan blood and is of nobility. Someone who would be acceptable and dif?cult to argue against.”
The room fell completely still at what she was suggesting. No one said anything for a full minute.
“I appreciate your loyalty to Scarlett, Tava. Really I do, but—” Sorin started.
“I do not offer this out of loyalty to Scarlett,” Tava interrupted, her lips pursing slightly. “I do this out of loyalty to my own kingdom. I do this out of loyalty to the children I have spent the last six months serving and protecting in any way I could. I do this because everyone should have a choice about their destiny, not just Fae Queens and Princes.”
Callan could only stare at this Lady who was willing to risk her own well-being for him.
No, not for him.
For innocent children. For her kingdom.
And some form of guilt and shame slithered down his spine as he admitted to himself he had been sitting idle and stagnant these last few years. For his entire life if he was being completely honest. The entirety of his life had been someone else deciding his every movement. From his father’s grooming to one day rule, to his mother’s constant pushing to meet every Lady in the kingdom to ?nd a bride. Even Scarlett taking him to the Fire Court for his safety, had been someone else deciding for him. He’d been sitting back. Letting it all happen to him. Content to just … let it. Content to let everyone else make the decisions. Content to wait for someone else to ?x things, to tell him what to do. Of course he was eager and willing to help in any way he could, but, despite once telling Scarlett his greatest desire was to take care of those already in their charge, what had he done to make any sort of difference? What had he ever done to prove to anyone that he meant those words and sentiments?
And what will you do when you are king, Callan? Will you wait for someone else to ?x things for you?
What would he do when he sat on the throne? When he was the one responsible for making the decisions? When thousands of people were looking to him to lead them?
Maybe the more important question to be asking, though, was what had he ever done as their Crown Prince to prove he deserved to be sitting on that throne and leading them to begin with?
His gaze settled back on Tava, and he couldn’t help but think back to their dinner months ago. When she had sat next to Veda, cunning and witty, helping get information to Scarlett. Aiding Cassius and Drake to get her out and intercepting Veda at every turn. And he realized she could do this. She had always been in the background, in her brother’s shadow, but from there she could see everything. And she had. No one would ever suspect sweet, quiet Lady Tyndell to be a threat, to know anything. But as that scene at the Lairwood house played again and again in his mind, he realized she was a threat. She knew things. He was willing to bet she knew secrets people would kill to keep quiet. Secrets that would be incredibly useful if they were going to outwit Mikale, Veda, and her own father.
He took a step towards her. He could tell she wanted to step back, but she held her ground. “You are willing to do this? To appear to be courting? To put yourself in Veda’s path? Mikale’s? The king’s?”
She swallowed, her slender throat bobbing with the motion. “If it will buy us time, if it will buy you time, yes.”
“Maybe we should run this by Drake before …” Nuri started, but trailed off before she ?nished her thought.
Tava was already shaking her head, turning to look at Death’s Shadow. “If you manage to get her out, I can only assume she will want to come after them. The Assassin Lord. Mikale. My father.” She paused for a moment, her gaze darting to a window before going back to Nuri. “You will need people on the inside. Who better than the Crown Prince himself?”
“This will be dangerous,” Sorin said. “Scarlett would not like—”
“Scarlett is not here, nor does she have any say in this,” Callan cut in, moving another step closer to Tava. “If Lady Tava is willing to risk her safety for her kingdom, who are we to deny her that choice? And who am I to not be willing to do the same for the people I am to one day lead?”
Tava’s face ?ushed for the hundredth time that day at once again being the center of attention. She didn’t back down, though Callan could see her trembling slightly.
“You will need to be … convincing,” Nuri said tentatively. “Mikale and Veda are crafty and vicious. Their weapons are not swords and daggers, but power plays and prowess. They excel at manipulation.”
“We are not seriously discussing this right now,” Sorin said in disbelief.
“She has a point, Sorin,” Nuri said. “We could use people on the inside. That was the whole reason Scarlett began seeing—” She cut herself off, glancing quickly at Callan.
“I was a means to an end,” Callan supplied. “I am well aware of what I was to Death’s Maiden,” he added bitterly. “But that is neither here nor there. There is a threat against my people, and I will do what is necessary to stand against it. I will not, however, force Lady Tava into this if she is not certain.”
“I can do this,” Tava said, her ocean blue eyes sparking with determination. “I can play the part until we ?gure something else out.”
“No,” Sorin said, pushing back to his feet. “This is not happening until every possible outcome has been explored. If this negatively impacts Scarlett in any way—”
“This is about more than your wife,” Callan snarled, stepping towards the Fire Prince. “This is about my people. This is about my kingdom that has been caught in the cross?re of a battle between immortal beings, and your queen is at the center of it all. My concern is not for how this will affect the Fae Queen but for how it will affect the children in this building and the people on my streets.” Sorin opened his mouth to argue further, but Callan pushed on. “You have no say in this matter. Not here. This is not your Court. This is mine .”
A muscle feathered in Sorin’s jaw, embers dancing in his golden irises. Without another word, he turned on a heel and left the room. Rayner and Cyrus exchanged glances before Rayner slipped out to follow him.
“So what is your plan then, Princeling?” Eliza drawled, from where she still sat.
Callan glanced at Finn and Sloan before looking back at Tava. “It would appear I will not be going home alone tonight.”
Arianna pushed to her feet as she said, “You best be on your way. It was stated you would be arriving this evening, and the sun is nearly set.” She started walking the way Sorin and Rayner had gone, but stopped beside Callan. With a slight smirk, she winked at him. “Destiny is a ?ckle thing, isn’t it?”