Chapter 14
Axl
I hate this suit.
It’s too tight, and I’m pretty sure the blue tie is slowly strangling me.
I understand the reasoning behind these events, but after learning about this list, all I want to do is get the fuck out of these clothes and be with Rylee.
Scratch that. I want to hide her.
Want to prep my ship and sail with her so far across the ocean, the kings, the Faders, her sister, and whoever else means her harm can never lay eyes on her again. We could seclude ourselves on some unexplored island, spend the rest of our existence living in bliss as we shut out the world.
I laugh at the fantasy. She’d never allow it. Not my kitten.
“Your highness?” Earl Arden approaches. His wife is still speaking with my father across the banquet hall. “May I have a moment?”
I dip my head, flashing a parting glance at the Legends, who are doing exactly what I’ve been doing—watching Rylee dance with Baydel like our lives depend on it.
Makes my skin crawl, seeing her in his arms, but he’s kept a respectful distance, which is something. Plus, she’d rip his head off if he did anything she didn’t allow. He may not know it, but she’s more powerful than him now. She just doesn’t understand the full depth yet.
None of us do.
Fuck, we need to sort out our shit.
“Thank you,” Earl Arden says as we head over to a clear space next to the kings’ dais.
“What can I do for you?” I ask, hating the tension in my gut. His daughter, Charlotte, was my pick six years ago. It never would’ve worked between us. I knew that on day one. She did, too. Still, it’s awkward.
“I wanted to bring to your attention a slight mishap our ships encountered a few days ago.”
I cock a brow at him.
“I can’t be certain, but our trade shipment from Cardrayton wasn’t complete. It’s the third one in the past month that has come up short. The first time, I thought it an honest mistake. The second made me wary. The third?”
“Why wasn’t I made aware of this sooner?” I ask.
“Apologies, your highness,” he says, bowing his head slightly. “I dared not disturb you after the Athanry.”
I breathe deeply, eyes flitting to Rylee for a second before returning to him.
Rumors spread quickly through Lumathyst. The gossipmongers practically live off the Occuli’s reports in the royal posts, but no one knows the full truth of what happened to Rylee after the Athanry, besides us, Mirren, and her friends.
I want to keep it that way.
“Understood,” I say. “I’ll dive into it. Which ship?”
“The Constance, your highness,” he says.
“Take what you need from my stores to make up for the difference while I get in contact with Cardrayton to figure out what’s going on.”
The earl bows deeper. “Thank you, your highness.”
“I appreciate you coming to me,” I say, meaning it. I want my people to come to me, unlike my father, who would rather ignore the problem than solve it. He wasn’t always that way.
“I wish you luck,” he says, a bit quieter. “In this new endeavor.” He flashes me an encouraging, hopeful look before bowing again and heading off to rejoin his wife.
I tilt my head, wondering if he truly means that.
He’s on the Royal Authority Council. His vote will count for us or against us at the end of this fucking mess.
Does he think that’s the only reason I’m so eager to help him?
Because it isn’t. I would’ve done the same for anyone who came to me with the same issue.
I blow out a breath, shifting on my feet. I’m itching for the water. A good dive would help clear the restlessness from my body. A swim with Rylee would do me even better.
I find her on the dance floor easily. She’s stunning, and it hits me all over again that we almost lost her. The pain of that reality is one I never want to experience again.
Fucking Baydel is still twirling her around. I hate that I don’t know what he’s saying to her. I wonder if Pierce has his power back. Rylee has accidentally given them back to all of us now, only to have them snap back to her unexpectedly. Once she gets ahold of it all, she’ll be unstoppable.
She’s always been unstoppable. I fucking love this woman.
Her features are smooth, and she looks intrigued and cautious as she dances with Baydel. I make to return to the Legends, wanting to poke Pierce to listen in if he can. He never likes to, but in this case? I think it would be merited.
“Axl.”
I straighten and stop cold at the sound of my father’s voice.
There was a time when I loved hearing his voice. Looked forward to his playful jokes and bets and teachings of the sea.
That joy died a long time ago. I never had it as bad as Jax. My father never beat me. Never tested me within an inch of my life. He just . . . checked out. Stopped caring.
“Lucas,” I say. I haven’t called him father since my mother went to sleep decades ago.
“Earl Arden told you about the trade issues?” He comes to stand next to me.
“Yep,” I say, not bothering to give him much attention, some muscle memory kicking in. I’ll never be that little boy again, begging him to get out of bed to spend time with me. Never. Again.
“You gonna handle it?” he asks, his tone aloof.
“Yep,” I repeat, my eyes trained on Rylee as she moves on the dance floor. Even in Baydel’s arms, she’s something to marvel at.
“Glad she woke up,” Lucas says before taking a sip of his drink.
I look at him then. “Do you actually mean that?”
“Of course I do.” He squints like he’s shocked I asked the question. “She’s your mate.”
I tip my chin, not fully buying his answer. I stopped trying to sort truth from lie from him years ago.
I look at Rylee again, the bond between us stretching tight. Fuck, it coils tighter the longer I look at her. I don’t know if losing her made the bond stronger or if it’s just my innate need for her, but it’s intense.
“She’s something,” Lucas says, following my gaze. “Honestly, son. She reminds me . . .” His words choke off, and he quickly takes a drink.
I study him. Shit. He looks . . . sad?
“Reminds you of what?” I ask before I can stop myself. I know better. Usually, probing questions are met with aloofness and dismissal. In the beginning, I understood. It hurt to talk about Mom, but after losing her, he never went back to being the father I used to know.
Lucas clears his throat, his eyes distant in a nostalgic kind of way. Then, he smiles. “Your mother used to make me crazy.”
I freeze, like if I move, he’ll stop talking. After Mom went to sleep, I begged him to tell me stories about her, terrified I’d forget her. He refused.
“She could bring me to my knees with a look, and it had nothing to do with the fact she was a goddess.” He shakes his head. “It was just her. She was fire and energy, and I never knew which version of her I’d wake up to.”
I can’t stop my smile. “I remember that part of her,” I say, warmth spreading in that cold place in my chest where grief constantly lives. “Do you miss her?”
I’ve always wanted to know, but now, after Rylee? I miss her right now, and she’s in the same damn room.
“Every day.”
The answer shocks the fuck out of me. Evidently it shocks him, too, because he blinks several times, clears his throat, and assumes his typical, emotionless mask. I move to face him, giving him more of my focus, and his gaze meets mine, growing uncharacteristically intense and serious.
“You need to be careful, son,” he says, barely a whisper. He reaches out, gripping my shoulder. “Very careful.”
Adrenaline snaps beneath my skin, instinct reaching for a power that isn’t there.
“With what?” I ask. “This list? If it’s so dangerous, do something about it.”
“I can’t.” He shakes his head, looking toward Rylee. “With her,” he continues. “You need to be careful with her.”
My hackles rise. “Is that a threat?” I push his hand off my shoulder, mine curling to fists at my sides. We’re eye to eye in height, but I have at least thirty pounds of muscle on him. I might be sans power, but I can still lay him out clean.
“It’s a fact,” Lucas says, his tone more serious than I’ve heard it in years. “She’s yours now. A princess. The Legends’ mate. That comes with risks. Everyone will be watching her. Everyone who wants to hurt you . . .” He glances at her, shaking his head. “Will go after her.”
Does that include him? Baydel? The other kings? Or is he talking about the Faders or Erithmore?
“You all need to keep an eye on her,” he says.
“Like we aren’t already?” I’m baffled. Where is this coming from?
His eyes are grave, but in a blink, they’re back to the cocky, distant version I’m used to. “Look at her,” he says, his tone at a normal level again. “She’s fucking gorgeous. Why wouldn’t you want to watch her?”
I’m practically gaping at my father as he winks at me and walks away, rejoining the party as if our little conversation never happened. As if he didn’t bring up my mother for the first time in decades. As if he didn’t just either threaten my mate or give me a fair warning.
Fuck. Me.
I stomp over to my friends, folding my arms over my chest as we watch Baydel continue to sweep Rylee along the dance floor despite the music shifting to a new melody.
“Any wise counsel from your father?” Pierce asks.
“Honestly?” My mind is still whirling. “I don’t know.”
Pierce tilts his head at me, but I shrug. I really don’t know what to make of it.
“What do you think will be on this list?” I ask, needing anything else for my mind to work on.
“I’ll speak to my father,” Kal says, patting me on the back before heading to where Jullian is near the dais. If any one of us has a chance at getting answers out of one of our fathers, it’s him.
“If Baydel has his way,” Jax says, his eyes never once leaving Rylee, “it’s a trial meant to kill.”
“Fuck,” I grumble.
I need the water. Need to clear my head.
And I need my mate even more.