“Ignore her,” Jacque said. “She’s been watching a motorcycle club drama on her phone and has decided we all need road names. Whatever the crap that is.”
Myanin blew out a breath and then took the offered chair. “Well, at least it’s not going to be boring while we figure out who to kill and when.”
“That’s my girl.” The blonde grinned. “CT in the house. At first, I didn’t like you because, you know, the whole murdering an innocent chick and all. But now, I think you might be good people.”
“Jen,” Jacque said as she pinched the bridge of her nose. “Shut it.”
“Yep,” Myanin muttered. “Not boring.”
ChapterThree
“I don’t think people have any idea how difficult it is to take over the world. Not just one world, but multiple worlds, or realms, as they’re more appropriately called. It’s not like there’s a takeover checklist full of items that can be marked off one by one.
Kill off my main enemies. Check.
Force other supernaturals to do your bidding. Check.
Pretend you will allow others to share your power. Check, check, and double check.
If it was that easy I’d be sipping fae wine and resting my feet on the back of a human slave by now. Alas. Instead, I’m attempting to reorganize the disheveled remnants of the Order after the pesky high fae’s little stunt, while also trying to make sure our enemy has not discovered just how badly a blow they’ve delivered us. Sometimes being an evil genius is very exhausting.” ~Alston
“Is she pregnant yet?” Alston asked. The fae paced the throne room of Ludcarab's castle, staring at the stone floor. It wasn't the castle that Ludcarab had inhabited when he’d still been the king of the elves. Once he’d left the elf realm to join the headquarters of the Order, Ludcarab's son had gained control of the former elf king's seat of power. The castle he now used was also in the elf realm, but it was a long-forgotten fortress that his ancestors had lived in before the new one was built. Alston had suggested using it as their main headquarters now that the compound had been obliterated—curse that damn fae—but quickly discarded the idea because having so many different types of magic in the elf realm would draw attention. Instead, he was still attempting to find a suitable replacement while also trying to figure out if any of his other race leaders had been absent from the compound when it had gone down.
“That’s a very personal question,” the elf king answered. He poured himself a glass of wine and asked, “Would you like a schedule of when I attempt to mate with her?”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
Ludcarab turned to face him, his eyes narrowed. “Then don’t be disrespectful regarding my future queen.”
Alston felt his ire rise. He paused to meet the elf king’s stare. “Have you forgotten that she is a means to an end?”
“I have forgotten nothing,” Ludcarab snapped. “But you need to remember we’re playing the long game here. The more positive Kara’s experience here, the weaker her bond with her mate—what little is left of it—will become. Tenia’s magic will be more effective as well.” He took a sip from his glass and then said, “Speaking of the fae female, have you heard from her?”
It was a question Alston had hoped the elf king would not ask. He had not seen or heard from Tenia since the last time she’d been in his office discussing her offspring’s gift. She wasn’t supposed to be at the compound after that meeting, so he’d been sure she hadn’t been killed by Perizada’s attack. But after radio silence from the fae, Alston was beginning to question his assumption. “I have not,” he admitted.
“What about the djinn?” the elf king asked. The smirk on his face only served to infuriate Alston more.
“I have not heard from her either.” A thought had been forming in the back of Alston's mind. One that he loathed to consider but could no longer ignore. What if the fae and djinn hadn't been as loyal to the Order as they had made out? He didn’t want to believe the two females had taken him for a fool. But considering he hadn’t heard from them and neither was supposed to have been at the compound at the time it was attacked, he was beginning to wonder if their loyalties actually lay elsewhere.Where the hell are those damn women?
“The djinn was supposed to be with the warlock queen,” Ludcarab said, swirling the liquid around in his glass. “If she was truly loyal to the Order, one would think that she’d have been in contact by now. Especially since she’d been in enemy territory while this all took place.”
Alston ground his teeth together. "I am well aware of what it looks like, but—”
“Really?” Ludcarab interrupted. “You’rewell awarethat it is highly probable that two of our members—key members, mind you, who know quite a lot about our operations—are more than likely spies for our enemy? Because, if that’s what you’re well aware of, it seems to me like that should be where you are spending your energy, not here in my home worried about whether my future mate's menstrual cycle is late.”
Alston opened his mouth to snap back at the elf king, but the pompous ass just kept going.
“Have you found us a new headquarters yet? Have you heard from Cain? What about the other council members? Do we know how many, if any, survived?”
Alston closed his eyes briefly and forced himself to calm down. Killing the elf king now would not be beneficial to regaining the upper hand against the Romanian pack and their allies. For now, he needed Ludcarab. One day though… One day he would take great pleasure in watching the life fade from the smug face of the elf king, and Alston would be the one to snuff it out.
“You worry about your task”—Alston finally spoke when he knew his voice would remain calm—“and I will worry about mine. I simply wanted to see how things were progressing.”
Ludcarab chuckled. “It’s so nice of you to check on me. I assure you that everything is under control.”
Alston nodded. “Good. Every part of the plan is crucial, even yours." He waited for the elf to respond to the jab, but Ludcarab just gazed at him with a heavy expression. "I will be in touch as soon as I have everything worked out.”
“This will only work if we stay united, Alston,” Ludcarab said, his voice no longer sarcastic but serious as his intense gaze met the fae’s. “We cannot allow our petty differences to get in the way, no matter how much we dislike one another.”
