Chapter 3 #2
Rua appeared as we reached the top, the lights lining the wall making her scales gleam a bloody red.
Want to know what do came Kaia’s thought.
Frustration at my inability to converse directly stirred through me.
I would never regret the cost of becoming kin, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t mourn what I’d lost .
I want her to pick the woman up via the rope I’ve tied onto her harness, transport her into the middle of the grasslands, and place her down gently.
Tell her to fly slowly to ease the risk of the woman being injured.
There were plenty of small streams and dams dotted through the grasslands, so she wouldn’t dehydrate—though that wasn’t likely to be a problem with all the rain we’d been having—and a multitude of small farming communities she could seek help from.
But if she was wise, she’d use the opportunity to get the hell away from Aric.
Depending, of course, on whether or not he was actually holding something over her to force obedience.
It could be that she just liked abusing her power.
Rua understands came Kaia’s comment.
Good . I glanced at Lenny. He was staring up at our hovering drakkon, his expression a mix of awe and fear. “You’ve not seen them before?”
“Oh, aye, from a distance. They are magnificent up close, though.”
“That they are.” My gaze moved past him to the three men standing at the top of the stairs. It was hard to read any of their expressions, but I hoped they were taking in the unspoken warning. Just as Esan was mine, so were her drakkons.
“Lenny, place Francesca face down in the center of the walkway, then move back.”
He did so. I picked up the rope, then motioned Rua down.
She lowered slowly, her wing sweeps causing a storm of debris and her murderous claws gleaming as they drew ever closer.
When there was less than two feet between us, I asked her, through Kaia, to open her claws, then threaded the rope through them both.
After bidding her rise slowly, I stepped out from under her wings.
Slowly, carefully, she did so, taking up the slack in the rope first and then lifting Francesca. The woman’s body folded inward, her limbs and head hanging limply down—which would undoubtedly have been an uncomfortable position, but it was certainly better than bending her back the other way.
Once Rua was clear of the wall, I sent a reminder that her passenger now hung six feet underneath her and to ensure she didn’t inadvertently hit a mountain, a tree, or something else very solid.
To which Kaia replied dryly, You no fun.
“Right,” I said, turning once more to face my father-in-law and supposed husband. “Shall we take this back upstairs and discuss our options?”
“Perhaps you should first tell me where my bastard son is,” Aric said.
Relief stirred at the question. If Aric didn’t know where my Damon was, it at least meant he was safe.
Or at least, safe from him. While I might have theorized that, because of the concern he’d had about the safety of his mother and sisters, he was in fact now trying to rescue them, I had no real proof.
For all I knew, he might simply have run. From me, from the situation.
I didn’t believe that, of course, but it was still a possibility that could not be ignored.
I raised an eyebrow, feigning a nonchalance I didn’t really feel. “He’s currently assisting the witches binding more drakkons and stregas.”
“The witches,” came the fake husband’s dry reply, “are here in the palace.”
“I think you’ll find they no longer are, but you are most welcome to check if you wish.”
Aric’s expression suggested he didn’t for one second buy the nonchalance, but then, he wasn’t a fool. “And what of Gayl?”
“What of her? It’s never been my task to keep track of her.” I shrugged. “What did her last missive to you say?”
“That she was under suspicion and feared for her life.”
I snorted. “Oh, she was definitely under suspicion, but you and I both know my parents would have sent her away rather than do her any harm. Besides, a spy known is a spy who can be used.”
“That is indeed a truth.” Amusement flirted with Aric’s thin lips. “And I must sadly advise you that the spy your parents sent to uncover my son’s secrets was thwarted from the beginning. Perhaps her return is one of the things we should discuss.”
Which explained the lack of information we’d gotten.
Or, perhaps, the wrong information, because my parents had never actually said whether or not they had been getting information from their spies in Aric’s court.
I’d just presumed they’d tell me if anything of importance had come in. “I hope you’ve treated her well, Aric.”
“Oh,” Damon said in a low tone that would have been sexy had it been the other Damon, “as she presented herself, she has been treated.”
It wasn’t unusual for spies—be they men or women—to use their sexuality to gain secrets, but if fake Damon’s comment was anything to go by, she remained in his bed.
I wondered if she was aware that her cover had not held.
I hoped not, for her sake. Hoped that she remained a willing partner rather than being forcibly used as a means of payback.
I motioned them to precede me, then followed them, their guards, and my guards down the stairs and back into the palace. It was quite a procession, and I would have laughed if the situation wasn’t so serious.
As we neared my suite, Aric said, “General Makki, remain in the corridor until further notified.”
The stout man saluted and stepped to the railing side of the corridor.
I glanced at Lenny, who nodded imperceptibly at the unspoken order, then I followed the two men into my suite.
After ordering food and another pot of shamoke, I motioned them to sit, then leaned against the wall and crossed my arms, my sword and knife untied, ready to use in the unlikely event they did something stupid.
There was a part of me—a very large part of me—that hoped they did, because I really wanted nothing more right now than to run a blade through either man’s black heart.
Nothing was said. Not for several seemingly very long minutes. It was only once the fresh shamoke and a platter of meats, cheese, and breads had arrived that Aric finally got down to business.
“You cannot deal with this war alone, Bryn, and you certainly cannot be both drakkon rider and grand commander. Aside from the fact you have not the experience and, by all accounts, have lost most of those you could have relied on, a grand commander must be on the ground, not flying about in the sky with no means of communication.”
That was a truth I couldn’t deny but also one I wasn’t about to openly acknowledge. I’d watched my father at the negotiation table many times over the years and knew better than to ever offer a competitor the advantage of agreement so soon in the trading game.
I poured myself a shamoke, took a sip, then met Aric’s gaze evenly. “Cannot that be said about the fake husband here? Or am I mistaken in thinking it was never him in charge of the scouting expeditions out into Mareritten?”
“He has had experience in the field, if that is what you’re implying. He has also had the benefit of my tutelage.”
“As I have had my father’s,” I replied evenly.
“A woman cannot lead,” fake husband said. “That is not the true order of things.”
Should burn fake mate came Kaia’s comment. He is cack .
Cack being the drakkon term for shit. I somehow managed not to choke on my shamoke. “It is in the drakkon world. The only things male drakkons are good for are fucking and guarding the young—and the former is definitely not something you and I are going to be doing.”
His gaze drifted lazily down my length. “That’s the one thing we can agree on. You stink of drakkon and have the figure of a pubescent boy.”
“Oh, I am mortally wounded by that comment.” My tone mocked him. “And totally disappointed Zephrine’s heir could not have come up with something more original.”
Aric cast his son a somewhat annoyed look. “You have to beget children with said pubescent boy if we wish to retain this throne, so mind your manners.”
“There will be no begetting anything on me,” I replied mildly. “Not now, not ever, not by him at least.”
Aric cast me a condescending look. “Forever is a long time, and you cannot be vigilant twenty-four hours of every day.”
I stared at him for a second, disbelief surging. “Is that a threat ?”
“No, merely a reality. For the good of the kingdom, you must bear children. If not willingly, well, there are ways to make a woman more receptive.”
My grip on my cup tightened, my fingertips glowing with the force of the fire pressing at them. “Get out .”
Aric sighed. “You have always known that this marriage comes certain realities and expectations. You cannot, for the sake of your people?—”
“I said, fucking get out. Now. Before I do something I will not regret.”
His gaze dropped to my hand, and the faintest touch of wariness flickered through his eyes. He rose. “Fine. But we will have to discuss this matter sooner or later. It is, as I said, a reality you cannot escape.”
Perhaps not, but it was a reality I intended to ignore until I was calmer.
“Lenny,” I called, then, when he’d entered, added, “Please escort King Aric and Prince Damon to the grand guest suite. And from now on, neither of them are to be given access into my suite unless I am with them.”
He saluted and said crisply, “This way please, Your Majesties.”