Chapter 11
VALEEN
“ E xactly what Hel said. Aldrich almost killed you, and kept you locked in the tower,” Thane said, standing at the base of the stairs leading up to his throne. Hel sat on the bottom step, watching her glide into the room with a mischievous look in his eye.
“I’m less afraid of Aldrich than I am of a lamb.” She smirked at him. “Primordial goddess, remember? And even if I wasn’t, I’d still beat that little prick’s ass.”
Thane chuckled. “Do what you want. I won’t stop you.”
“Of course you won’t. You can’t.”
“She’s feisty today,” Hel said to Thane and rose to his full height.
“She usually is,” he said back. “Quite the temper on that one.”
“Like a feral, hungry cat.”
“Alright!” Valeen crossed her arms and pressed her lips together to keep from smiling. “A feral cat? I think I liked it better when you hated each other.”
They laughed and warmth bloomed in her core at the joy between them. As difficult as it was with the three of them together again and the past hurt lingering in Thane’s eyes, she had hope that they could all be… happy. The three of them had been inseparable for many years.
“She must need something to eat. She’s angry when she hasn’t eaten,” Hel said, still talking to Thane. “Scones sound good.” He winked at her.
“Oh, or woodland elf wine,” Thane replied. “She gets nicer when she’s had a glass or two. Before you woke up, we had a party, and she wore a flower crown?—”
Valeen cut him off with a glare. The last thing she wanted was for him to bring up her straddling him in a chair in front of the elves telling him how she wished she could sleep with him.
It was much too soon to bring up anything like that, if there was even enough time in existence for that to be appropriate.
“So we’re not teasing now?” Thane purred.
“Not about that.”
“Well now I must know, and by the look on your face I’m going to need a smoke.” Hel took out a civar and put it to his lips.
Hel would see it as a threat or a jab, not as playful banter.
And Thane might even want to take shots at him.
It was hard to know what Thane was feeling.
Playful, by the smirk, but his brows were tight and there was a tenseness to his shoulders.
There must be part of him that was jealous of Hel, and she didn’t blame him.
Part of her wanted to wrap her arms around him and ask if he was alright.
But the friendship between Hel and Thane would be fragile for a while and she wouldn’t see it shatter again.
“Trust me, you don’t want to know,” Valeen snatched the civar and took a puff herself.
It immediately calmed her thumping heart and eased her racing thoughts about being in the same room with the two males she loved.
No wonder he liked these things. “Unless you want to start rethinking about what life was like before I remembered you, before I ever knew you existed at all.”
His brows rose watching her blow out smoke. He looked more shocked she’d taken his civar than anything. “I’ll pass, little rabbit.”
Thane chuckled. “She must love that nickname.”
“ She is going to kick both your asses in a minute.” They laughed again, and Hel slipped behind her and hugged her waist. They were as bad as she and Katana together.
The nickname instantly flamed her cheeks.
She wasn’t the little rabbit anymore, but it still pissed her off.
“And I swear, Hel if you don’t stop saying that?—”
“Maybe I missed the way it made you want to attack me. There’s just something about that dark side of you that does it for me.”
Thane pressed his lips together and his gaze flicked down to Hel’s arms curled on her waist.
“You have a bit of blood on your neck, Hel.” Thane gestured and sauntered up the stairs to his throne and sat.
Twisting out of his arms she saw the dried blood. “What’s that from?”
“He punched me. Twice. Nasty temper.”
Valeen looked between them. It was hard to tell if he was being serious or not. Thane just rested his head nonchalantly on the palm of his hand.
“Did you punch him?” She asked.
“Yep.”
“Did he deserve it?”
“You know he did.”
She didn’t even want to ask why, and it was time for a change of subject. “So are you going north?”
“Yes, to talk to Ronan and the dragons but not for a few days. We need allies.”
“Why wait?” Hel asked. “We don’t have time for you to twiddle your thumbs.”
Looking annoyed, Thane tapped the toe of his boot. “Because Palenor is my responsibility. It was one thing to leave when the danger was in another realm, but now they are coming here. Preparations need to be made. I need to make sure my generals are running necessary training.”
“Well hurry up with that and while you’re busy, I’ll take care of some other business.”
“What business would that be? Killing Aldrich?” Thane asked, brow raised.
Valeen heard what he said when she first walked in, but he couldn’t mean now. “You can’t do that. We might be able to get them on our side,” Valeen argued.
“Why did you have to rat me out like that?” Hel glared at Thane then turned to her. “You know, you didn’t seem all that upset when I cut out that Palenor Scroll writer’s tongue and killed Baby Drakonan, so let me do what I need to do.”
Valeen ran a hand over her hair and rolled her eyes. She was upset about Caliban Drakonan’s death, but it needed to be done, or they’d have been caught. “Do you have to call him baby Drakonan?” She looked at Thane. “He wasn’t a baby.”
“You killed a Drakonan on Ryvengaard?” Thane groaned and rubbed a hand down his face. “What is wrong with you?”
With a shrug, Hel said, “It had to be done. You weren’t there.”
“You can’t start problems with the woodland elves right now,” Valeen snapped.
His tongue slid over his bottom lip as he brushed his fingers across her collarbone then pushed her hair behind her shoulder. “Mmm, I’m not starting problems. I’m taking care of business. There’s a difference.”
They did not need another enemy. “Hel.”
In a few long strides, he was halfway across the room.
“Hel,” she said sharply.
“You know he does what he wants. There’s no stopping him,” Thane murmured, resting his chin on his palm.
Clenching her teeth, she turned to shadow and in a blink, she reformed directly in front of the exit doorways. Hel paused, dragging his gaze down her body, then the corner of his mouth curled upward. “Are you planning to physically restrain me, Mrs. Black?”
“I’m planning on you listening to reason .”
“No one wants Aldrich dead more than me, but she is right,” Thane added, making his way down the steps from his throne. At least he was backing her up.
“You know when I get an idea in my head it doesn’t just go away.
This elf starved you and kept you isolated in a tower.
I don’t care what his reasons were. Nobody does that to my wife and gets to live to speak of it.
I specifically told his father you were not to be harmed.
In fact, I told him you were to be treated as a precious jewel, safeguarded and well cared for.
And while we’re at it, why don’t you tell me who else was involved.
Thane said they drugged you with katagas serum and didn’t even give you water. Who drugged you? I want names.”
All Mother, I should have expected this.
Thane walked up behind them and stood beside her. “Anyone who was involved with my father or what happened to her is already gone.”
Eyes narrowed in suspicion, he said, “In the grave? I know they aren’t in the prison cells below.
It’s barren down there. The fact that you allowed the Palenor Scroll to write about her and allowed this group who wants her dead to live, makes me think you didn’t do what should have been done, so once again, I have to be the bad guy. ”
Valeen loved and hated that he was this way.
Loved that he would do anything and hated that he was so spiteful, he couldn’t see how they could use Aldrich in this war.
“If Aldrich is the new Lord of Calladira, we could use them as allies. If you kill him that isn’t going to happen. Aldrich will listen to me.”
“I already kept one asshole alive who doesn’t deserve to be here because you asked me to, and I even let Thane stop you from killing him.
That piece of shit rotting in the dungeons should be dead already and would be.
And now you two are going to stand here and stop me again?
No. Aldrich doesn’t get mercy whether or not he is a Lord. ”
“It’s not mercy, it’s strategy. The same reason I asked you to keep Synick alive.”
“We don’t want Synick here either, Hel,” Thane added, “but because he is, we were able to get something useful out of him. I don’t think Aldrich would help us, but I don’t want to go to battle with the woodland elves right now.”
“That information is yet to be determined. Synick could be sending us to a dead end just to get to live longer. And Aldrich could very well join with the council because they both hate you.”
Footsteps came from outside the doors, and one side was pulled open. A guard stood there, looked between the three of them and dipped his head. “My apologies for the interruption.”
Hel glared at the guard and his magic suddenly brushed past like an icy wind.
The guard slowly rose off the ground, grasping at his throat.
A heartbeat later he was pulled inside the throne room and to Hel’s side.
“Is this one of them that drugged you, Val?” He grabbed a handful of his dark hair and jerked his head back.
“Was he one of the guards who locked you up?”
Thane let out a low growl, his magic mixed with Hel’s in the air. It was a battle of hot and cold. “You think he’d be here if he was? I care about her too.”
“You two want to team up against me? Fine then, it’s him or Aldrich. Make a choice. It should be easy. You both care about the innocent so much.”
“That’s not fair. We’re not teaming up against you. We just happen to agree.” Valeen stepped closer, and Hel’s eyes flashed a warning. She knew right then that he’d kill the guard if she didn’t stop. The young elf’s eyeballs looked like they might pop out of his head.
“Go kill Aldrich then and let him go,” Thane snapped.
“I thought so.” With a flick of his wrist the guard’s boots hit the ground and Hel kicked him in the ass sending him stumbling back out the door.
The guard choked and coughed, catching his breath then scurried out of sight.
“Remember when I said I’d do what I needed to do and not what was good?
Remember when I said I wasn’t him .” He pointed at Thane. “That hasn’t changed, Valeen.”
“Hel, you can’t act like?—”
“The Black Mage?” He walked closer. His boots tapped lightly as he backed her up until she hit the wall.
Her breaths came faster, her heart started to pound, as much from desire as anger.
“Like the serpent you know that I am? I am the Black Mage, love. I am the villain.” And you knew exactly who I was when you chose to be with me, Val.
You’re not afraid of my darkness? Well now you get to see it.
And despite that precious bleeding heart of yours, you love it.
I can hear it in your heartbeat. I can feel it.
He stared at her mouth like he wanted to claim it but brushed his thumb across her bottom lip.
Now, you can come with me to deal with Aldrich, or you can stay here but those are the only two options.
Either way he will be punished for what he did to you.
She hadn’t even realized she was holding her breath. “I’ll come with you.” She grabbed onto the front of his coat and braced herself for the pull to darkness.