Chapter Ten
“What?” I repeated, this time barely above a whisper. Live a long life? Free? How was that possible if he got what he wanted—his brother’s freedom in exchange for my captivity?
“Will you let me try to make sense of it for you? I’m not asking you to trust me.”
“Trusting you is not something you have to worry about.”
He leaned back, the line of his jaw hardening. “Neither am I asking for your forgiveness, Penellaphe.”
The use of my formal name was jarring, sending my heart racing as it silenced all the bitter words rushing to the tip of my tongue.
“I know what I’ve done to you is not something that can be forgotten,” he continued. “All I’m asking is that you listen to what I have to say. And, hopefully, we will come to an agreement.”
I forced myself to nod. My need to understand what he was suggesting far outweighed my desire to argue with him. “I…I will listen.”
There was a slight widening of his eyes as if he expected me to refuse, and then his brow smoothed.
“Remember when I left to speak with my father? Of course, you do,” he added after a moment.
“That was when Jericho went after you.” The line of his jaw tightened.
“My father hadn’t been able to show, sending Alastir in his place.
There had been issues at home that he had to attend to. ”
“Issues with the wolven and running out of land?” I surmised.
He nodded. “Not now, but soon, with the scarcity of the land, we will have a lack of food and other resources.”
A small part of me was surprised that he had answered the question. “When Alastir spoke to Kieran, it sounded like the people of New Haven would be leaving for Atlantia soon.”
“They will be.”
“Because you took me, and the Ascended will come here, looking for me.”
His gaze met mine. “There were plans to move them to Atlantia before I took you. My actions move up that timeframe, but the lack of land wouldn’t have been resolved before then.”
I thought that over. “So, the resources are about to be stretched even further.”
“They will be, but we’re not at the breaking point.
Not yet,” he said. “Some want a more aggressive stance on alleviating our shortages. Many of the wolven are among that group, as many Atlantians are. Some of the conversations surrounding what should be done have grown heated, and that is why my father had to remain behind.”
Casteel rose then, walking to a small table under the window. He picked up a glass decanter full of some kind of amber-colored liquid that I suspected was liquor. “Would you like a drink? If I recall, you liked to sneak a whiskey or two with Tawny.”
Tawny .
I wanted to see her so badly, to know for sure that she was okay. But if she had been here…
I briefly closed my eyes, hoping Tawny was safe. More than ever, I was grateful that she wasn’t here. She could’ve become an issue dealt with in the same way Phillips and the other guards had been.
Drawing in a deep breath, I opened my eyes and asked, “Would you have killed her? Tawny? If she had traveled with me, would you have killed her?”
Casteel paused as he reached for a glass and then gripped it, pouring the whiskey until the glass was half full.
“I don’t make a habit of killing innocent women.
” He poured a second glass. “I would’ve done all that I could to ensure that it would not have been necessary, but her presence could’ve caused a complication that I wouldn’t wish to solve. ”
Meaning that, if he had to, he would have. However, he had ensured that the situation hadn’t arisen by forbidding Tawny to travel with me. I didn’t know how to feel about that. What was right or wrong there? None of this meant that Tawny was entirely safe, though. She was destined to Ascend.
But would her or any of the Lords and Ladies in Wait Ascend now that I was missing? All the Ascensions in the kingdom were tied to mine. They still had Casteel’s brother, and they had to have another Atlantian to keep the Prince alive. Without me, they could proceed with the Ascension, unless…
Unless something had happened to Prince Malik? I swallowed hard as I shoved that question aside. It would do no good to ask such a thing, and I doubted Casteel hadn’t already considered that.
He walked the glass of whiskey over to me, and I took it even though I hadn’t asked for it. He moved to stand in front of the fireplace.
Sliding my thumb along the cool glass, I lifted it to my lips and took a small sip.
The liquor burned the back of my throat, but the second drink was far smoother.
I still had to clear my throat, though. Tawny and I would sneak drinks, and I had helped myself to a sip or five every once in a while, but not nearly enough for me to be used to it.
“What do the issues your people are facing have to do with the whole marriage thing?”
“That’s what I’m getting to.” He turned toward me, propping one elbow against the mantel.
“But first, my people will obey me to their deaths, both Atlantian and wolven.” He swirled the liquid around in his glass.
“I hope between that and the actions I took to remind them that you are not to be harmed, it will go a long way in aiding them in making smart life choices. However, these are not normal circumstances. You are not a normal circumstance.”
“But I have done nothing to your people. I even tried to save one.”
“Many Descenters have done nothing to you, but you once viewed them all as evil and murderous,” he returned. “You once believed that all Atlantians were nothing more than monsters, and yet an Atlantian had never harmed you.”
I opened my mouth.
“It is the same, is it not? The Descenters and I represent death and destruction, although many of them have done nothing more than speak the truth.” His gaze drifted to the softly rolling flames.
“You represent a dynasty that has subjugated and decimated their families, stolen from them the lives of the ones they love, their gods, and even their rightful heir. You did none of those things, yet that is what they see when they look upon you. They see the opportunity to take their pound of flesh.”
His words sat like stones in my liquor-warmed belly, and I couldn’t stop myself from saying, “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” His brows furrowed.
Wheezing from the huge gulp of the whiskey I swallowed, I blinked rapidly. “For what was done to your people,” I told him, my voice hoarse. “To your family. To you. I know I said that last night, and you didn’t want my apologies, but I need to say it again.”
Casteel stared at me. “I think you’ve drunk enough whiskey.” He paused. “Or maybe you should have more.”
I snorted. Like a little piglet. “What you’ve done doesn’t mean I can’t still feel compassion.
” I started to take another drink but thought twice.
Whatever kind of whiskey this was, it seemed to have a far quicker effect than anything I’d had before.
“What you’ve done doesn’t mean I suddenly don’t know or care about what is right and wrong.
What was done to your people is horrible.
” My gaze dropped to the golden liquid in my glass, thinking of all those names on the walls.
Who knew how many were never listed? “And…and what is being done to the people of Solis by the Ascended is horrible. It is all terrible.”
“That it is,” he said quietly.
“I guess I get why they hate me.” I thought of Mr. Tulis and took a larger drink. “I wish they didn’t.”
“As do I. Which is one of the reasons why we must marry.”
My gaze flew to his as I almost choked. “That’s the part I don’t understand. How you’ve come to that conclusion or why. How will that get your brother back? How will that help with limited resources? How will I be…free?”
There was a sharpness to his gaze then. “There’s a chance that some may still disobey my commands. Retribution can be a strong motivator. I, myself, love and enjoy the taste of revenge, as I know you do.”
I started to deny that, but he’d been there when I turned on Lord Mazeen. He would know that my denial would be a lie.
“I must return home to help ease the concerns of the others, where you will be surrounded by many who believe that anyone from the Kingdom of Solis is the lamaea in the flesh.”
“ Lamaea ?”
“It’s a creature with fins for legs and tails for arms that hides under the beds of children, waiting until the lights are turned off. In the dark, it makes its way out from under the bed to then suck the life from them.”
“Oh.” My lip curled.
“It’s not real. Or at least I’ve never seen one, but as a small child, both my brother and I fought to keep the lights on at night,” he said, and I could see him as a precocious child, hiding under a blanket with wide, golden eyes.
My gaze snagged on how the muscles of his arm curled as he lifted the glass of whiskey to his lips.
Well, I could almost see him as such.
“Wait,” I said, confused. “How does it get out from under the bed if it has fins for legs and tails for arms?”
His lips twitched. “I believe my mother once said it wiggled and slid, like a snake.”
“That’s extremely disturbing.” My nose wrinkled as I glanced at the decanter of whiskey, wondering if I should have another glass. “I also don’t understand the tails for arms part.”
“No one does.” He looked away, dipping his chin as he dragged his fangs over his lower lip. My gaze—my entire being—seemed to be snagged on that act. A subtle shiver danced over my skin, and again.
“The point I’m trying to make is that even though I have ordered that no one is to harm you, you may still be in danger,” he explained. “For some, the idea of revenge is far greater than the fear of certain death.”
It took me a bit to pull my thoughts away from this lamaea creature and the glimpse of his fangs before I could focus on the point of this conversation. “And you believe that marrying me will remove me from danger?”