I didn’t think his face could turn any redder, but it does, and again, a wave of fur ripples across his face before he locks it down. He really is very close to wolfing out. I bet the thought that he would shred his thousand dollar suit is the only thing keeping him contained.
“We’ll see. She isn’t crowned yet, and with the way it’s going, she’s never going to be. No mates have presented themselves. I wouldn’t get too comfortable with her. She’s weak and doesn’t have mates to protect her, and the challenge day is still to come, so she could very well find herself in trouble.”
He isn’t subtle with the threat in the least, and I could summon one of Bryson’s teams to have him arrested, but I’m much more interested in seeing this play out. I can’t wait to see his face when he finds out my son and his bond group are her mates and that she now has eight of them, not to mention that she’s a hydra shifter. I can’t wait to see his face on challenge day. I pray to the goddess that he challenges her. I’d love to see his face when he finds out what creature she is.
“Careful, Tideman. You’re walking a fine, treasonous line with those words. I have every right to call for your arrest.” I stand up to my full height, which is slightly taller than him.
He scoffs but steps back. “Nonsense. Challenge day is for her to prove she can protect us against anything that may endanger the shifter race. If she’s not up to the task, then it is a shifter’s right to challenge her.”
“Yes, it is, but if something were to happen to her between now and challenge day, then you will be the first person I look at,” I warn him, and he snatches the piece of paper off my desk.
“This isn’t over. I’ll be informing the rest of the council of her choices. She might not like what the consequences of her actions are,” he threatens before storming out of my office, slamming the door behind him as he goes.
“Fuck!” I run my fingers through my hair before dropping down into my comfy leather seat. “He’s going to be a problem,” I mutter.
“Yes, he is.” The voice comes from the corner of the room, and I startle, spilling my drink I had just picked up.
A man steps out of the shadows, and my eyes widen. “Holy fuck, Titus, you scared the shit out of me,” I snap at the Chaos king’s assassin and spy, who wears a smirk on his face. “How long have you been there?” I ask him, knowing I hadn’t seen him when I first entered the room.
He shrugs. “Since you arrived,” he admits. “So your new queen is going to replace your current council?” he asks, pulling a book out of the bookcase and slowly flipping through it.
I watch him closely. Titus has been my contact with the Chaos king for the last few years since his predecessor decided to retire. The Chaos king has a league of assassins who spy for him, and he has one assigned to each kingdom. Titus is mine and chose to make himself known to me so we can share information with one another at the blessing of the Chaos king. Titus is a half fairy shifter, half fae, which is why he was assigned the shifter kingdom. His mother is a fairy shifter who fell in love with a fae and chose to leave for the Chaos Kingdom so they could be together. He’s tall and slender and has pointy ears like a fae with long pale green hair, which I assume is from his father. I haven’t seen him in his fairy form, but the man is a living, breathing weapon with knives strapped all over his protective black leathers.
He puts the book back on the shelf and helps himself to my bar, pulling out his favorite fae wine, which I keep specifically for his visits.
“Yes, she is,” I confirm when he doesn’t ask anything else. “Queen Colbie may be just what this kingdom needs—a breath of fresh air,” I tell him. “She sent missives to the mer, fairy, and equine shifters, inviting them to submit candidates for council representation.
“And how does she feel about the Chaos Kingdom?” he asks, taking a sip of his pale purple wine while holding my gaze.
“We briefed her on it this morning, and she seemed agreeable to the concept. I didn’t mention our relationship yet. She has enough to contend with without knowing that a fairy assassin is her contact with the Chaos Kingdom.”
He studies me carefully, and I watch him consider what information he will choose to impart to me today. While it took a period of time, I have come to trust that Titus has both the shifter and Chaos kingdoms best interest in mind.
“There is word on the breeze that a hit has been put on the queen. The assassin’s guild was offered a significant sum to take care of the problem,” he tells me, and my heart starts to race in panic. The assassin’s guild very rarely fails to complete their tasks. My hand tightens on the glass I’m holding, and he doesn’t miss the movement.
“And what did the Chaos king decide?” I ask, trying to come up with a plan to keep Colbie alive. Her hydra has regenerative properties and is nearly immortal, but I doubt it carries over into her human form, otherwise the humans would not have been able to kill them off during the previous war.
He takes another slow sip of his drink. “The king chose to decline the offer. He doesn’t want any trouble with the monarchs of any of the kingdoms. In fact, he issued a warning to anyone who may try to assassinate the queen that retribution would be swift and final.”
I can’t control my reaction, and my eyebrows jump in surprise. “He did?”
He nods, slowly putting his feet up on my desk. I scowl at them, but his boots aren’t muddy, so I let it slide this time. “Yes, you could say our king has a vested interest in your queen’s well-being. In fact, he would like to meet her. He has issued an invitation for her to dine in the Chaos Kingdom, and it would be in her best interest to do so.” I can hear the threat behind his words, and I don’t like it.
I jump to my feet, spilling my drink on my hand, and slam the glass down on the table. “For Aramis’s sake, Titus. The queen has enough to worry about without receiving an invite from your king. We have the fact that she’s missing mates and can’t be crowned, missing shifter children that need to be found, and a damn problem with someone creating ferals, and you heard that cretin. The council will be gunning for her now too.” I pace back and forth behind my desk, and he watches me with curious eyes.
“Lucas, it isn’t like you to overshare. You usually keep everything close to the chest.”
I scoff and throw my hands up. “Like you assholes don’t know all of that already.” I face him, putting my hands on my hips. “Do you deny it?”
He purses his lips and hums. “No,” he answers slowly. “You are right, we are aware of all your internal issues.” He stands up, throwing back the last of his wine and placing the glass on my desk. “The queen is still missing mates? I was under the impression that she found them.”
Again, I’m surprised, but this time, I manage to keep my reaction to myself and think about what I should share regarding the recent wave of magic. I consider keeping it to myself, but I don’t doubt the whole damn kingdom will know soon. “The goddess felt it necessary to award Colbie two more mates earlier this morning. One has made itself known to us, and the other remains a mystery. Until that shifter comes forward, Colbie can’t be crowned. We are also searching for the whereabouts of one other. Although we know who he is, he has yet to be notified.”
He waves his hand and pulls a long, black hooded cape out of the air, swinging it around his shoulders. “I must go, but make sure the queen visits my king. He may have an answer to your feral problem.”
“Does the Chaos Kingdom have something to do with our missing children and feral issue?” I have to ask, even though I am fairly certain they have nothing to do with this.
He gives me a look that would make a lesser man piss his pants. “I will forget you ever asked that in the name of continuing good relations between our kingdoms. I can assure you that our king detests abuse toward children as much as, if not more than, all of the other kingdoms combined. Do not forget how our kingdom came to be. We are the outcasts and rejects your kingdoms deemed unworthy.”
