"What's up is you assholes are meant to stay inside the castle grounds," Quinn said before Taranis could open his mouth. She put her hands on generous hips and glared at them. "I shouldn't have to hunt you guys down like naughty teenagers."
"So why are you?" Valentine shot back. "We are fine."
Quinn's eyes narrowed. "Yeah, you'resuperfine, Val. Fucking hell, you look like a vampire who hasn't been feeding."
"What the fuck is with you guys and vampires right now?" he muttered.
"What my beloved is trying to say is you boys could have left a fucking note," Taranis said, crossing his arms over his broad chest. "Val, we need to talk."
"Sorry. Can't. Wedged in. What can you do?" Valentine said, gesturing at Apollo blocking him.
Taranis grabbed a chair from a nearby table and sat on it. "Fine, we will do it here in front of everyone."
"I'm staying too." Quinn sat on Taranis's thigh, and he dropped an arm around her without comment. Valentine had rarely seen her use a chair unless she had to since mating with Taranis.
Valentine took Reeve's half-finished pint and swapped it for his empty glass. His little brother didn't try to stop him.
"I know you have had some mixed feelings about Yelena in the last fortnight, but I need to ask you seriously: Have you heard from her?" Taranis asked, his voice steady.
"I sent her another letter after I found out the truth." Valentine had a big mouthful of his stolen Guinness. "She never replied, and before you start, it was a polite letter, all things considered. She never bothered to acknowledge that she got it."
Taranis let out a long sigh. "Fuck."
"It's going to be okay, love," Quinn said, rubbing his arm.
"Write to her yourself. I'm sure she showed you the fire magic for the messaging," Valentine replied. "It's me she doesn't want to talk to."
"I've tried writing her for weeks now," Taranis admitted. He took Apollo's pint and drained what was left. "Yelena and Avallach are missing."
3
The knife that had been lodged in Valentine's chest for weeks twisted.
"What do you mean by missing?" he demanded.
Taranis rubbed at his beard. "I mean, I sent them north on a mission, and they haven't checked in. That's not unusual. I expected them to be busy and not able to use magic where they were going without calling attention to themselves."
He glanced about at the pub and back at the table. "Wrap this up. We can't talk about this here. Val, I know you have some resentment where Yelena is concerned, but I will need your help finding them."
Valentine hadn't seen Taranis worried since mating Quinn. He shared a look with his brothers. They were all thinking the same thing. The king of dragons was spooked.
Within minutes, they had paid the bill, and Taranis had opened a portal back to the castle. The faerie horses they had ridden in were already long gone.
"I've called a meeting, this way," Taranis said.
They moved up the stairs to Kian's private parlor, where Bayn, Killian, Mananan, Oberon, and Cosimo were already sitting by the fire, drinking whiskey.
Valentine looked about. "Just us?"
"This is fae and dragon business. I didn't want to upset the rest of the family until we need to," Taranis said.
The Greatdrakes pulled up more chairs, and Valentine poured himself a large whiskey from Kian's supply. He always had the best stuff, and Valentine was going to need something strong.
"All right, boys?" Cosimo asked, staring at his sons.
"We are fine, Dad. We only went to the pub," Apollo huffed and flopped down on an overstuffed couch.
Mananan cuffed him on the back of his head. "Leave a message next time. You boys had us all worried."
