“Anolius.” I put some pressure in my tone.
He sighs and removes his helmet. His curls are gone, his head shorn so closely that not even stubble remains.
“Oh no.” Emma gasps. “I’m so sorry.”
“It was worth it, my lady.” He bows. “It’ll grow back.”
“I can’t thank you enough.” She shakes her head in wonder. “At least you’re still handsome.”
Another growl reverberates through me, and Emma turns her gaze back to me. “Not as handsome as you,” she whispers.
Anolius’s lips lift in a half smile, but when I give him a look, he smothers it with a far more serious scowl.
I let it go, though my fangs have lengthened. “Thank you, captain. One more thing, please grant Dilrubin one item of his choice from the day realm treasury.”
His brows lift toward his now-bald pate, but he doesn’t question me. “It will be done.” He salutes with a fist over his heart, then strides out.
Emma sits up and cups my face in her hands. “You’re giving him a gift from thetreasury? I mean, I don’t know much about royalty, but ‘treasury’ sounds so … fancy.”
“Why not? He saved my treasure; I may as well grant him a piece of gold or a gem. What I have is worth far, far more.”
She closes her eyes. “Why do you say such sweet things?”
I don’t know how to reply, because I have no answers for my behavior. Emma makes me feel so many things that I can’t put a name to all of them. Right now, I’m grateful she’s unharmed and happy to have her in my lap. The only regret that sifts through me is that I let Caroldon escape with his life.
But perhaps if King Sigrid finds his noble’s removal from my realm to be a provocation to war, I may yet get the chance to end the repulsive noble.
25
Emma
“I’m sorry I started so much trouble.”
“You didn’t start anything.” Solano glowers. “You’ve actually helped far more than you know. Varan is always up to something, but allying himself with the night realm is beyond the pale, even for him.”
“Who is he? I mean, I know he’s your brother, but you two are so different.”
He sighs and leans back, a tiny bit of his tension easing as he cradles me close. “Varan is my half-brother. My father had a long-standing affair with Lilane Rothvale. Lilane bore Varan and claimed the babe belonged to her husband. She told no one the truth, except her sister Bralvania. Bralvania is the mother of Gwenarie and Lunarie. When Bralvania learned of her sister’s affair with the king and the child born of the union, my father had to buy her silence with the promise of marrying me off to Gwenarie. She was to be my fated mate, and if not, I was to forsake my fated one for her.”
“Tangled.” I shake my head.
“Very.” He strokes my back slowly.
“So, Varan was raised by Lilane and her chosen mate while my father spoiled and doted on mother and child. Varan knew his true father was the king and made his claim to the throne known the same hour when father went to the Ancestors.”
“But he’s a bastard.” Even in changeling circles, being a bastard was a black mark on your name. Old prejudices still hold fast.
“Yes, but I’ve decreed that he is to be treated as a true noble, equal to all others. This caused a stir at the time because I was so new to the throne, but I felt it was the right thing to do.”
“Do you regret it?”
He keeps stroking my back, and I nuzzle against his neck, breathing him in. “I don’t regret elevating him, no. But I often wish he would work with me instead of seeking my overthrow through whatever backhanded means he can avail himself of. He’s the only brother I have.”
“I’m sorry.” I run my fingers down his throat and to the top of his chest, the smooth skin warm under my touch. “I was an only child, but when I got older my mother was pretty much my best friend. Also my taskmaster. She would always scold me for painting instead of sewing.”
“I confess, I peeked at your work.”
My palms go sweaty. “You did?”
