I had seen Koun fight in the Mithran La Destreza technique. He was beautiful in motion. But Dovic was fast, intent, and purposeful. And his current master had anamulet that might make his scions even faster. I wanted to say,Stop this. You can’t do this.But there was no stopping it. And my fighting was sloppy at best, incompetent at my worst, and I was mortal. And my life meant the lives of too many others. So I couldn’t take over.
Koun wasn’t naked, the way he usually fought. And he wasn’t wearing the black armor I had seen him fight in. He was armored in the latest version of Dyneema, Kevlar, and a layer of anti-magic-spelled cloth to deflect spells and spelled weapons. His armor was nearly white, swirled with shimmering, crystalline blue in the same shapes as his blue Celtic tattoos, as brilliant as the pale crystal of his eyes. Magic moved through the tat shapes, powerful energies. He looked spectacular, frozen, like a glacier. Only his hands and his head from earlobes up were uncovered. His blond hair was pulled back into a fighting queue. As if he knew I was watching him, he smiled slightly.
Returning to the screen, I said, “Show me the La Destreza ones again. Quarter speed.”
Alex said, “Yes, My Queen.” The scenes moved across the screen, one at a time, the endings all the same. Death.
“Eighth speed,” I said.
Eli tapped his earbud, slipped away from his chair, and out the door. I watched him go and returned my attention to the overheads.
The scenes played out again, and this time I caught it. Dovic had a tell. Calmly I said, “The left elbow.”
“Your eye has improved. And yes. Always, My Queen,” Koun said. “Every single time. I tried to teach him better.”
I blinked.Better?“You were Dovic’s teacher?”
“For many years. He was an exemplary pupil, faster than any Mithran or Naturaleza I ever fought. Faster than I am by far.”
“So him being here, the two of you fighting. Is what,” I said, part question, part demand.
Without looking up, Koun said, “The sad end to Dovic’s hubris. I shall claim his swords and his land when I take his head. Fighting your battles has been profitable.” Koun lifted a square of chamois and polished his short blade. “Your kind gift of armor is much appreciated.”
I frowned and looked around the room. No one waslooking at me. I had a feeling I had missed something. Then it hit me. When I was Leo’s Enforcer, my armor had been supplied to me as part of my payment. That meant that I was—or should have been—providing Koun, my chief strategist, with all the high-tech armor and weapons at my disposal. I said, “You’re my warrior. There’s more where that came from.”
The door behind me opened, and Eli entered. He dropped to one knee, holding up a small box, his eyes meeting mine, full of demand. “Forgive me, My Queen. I forgot to retrieve your favor. For your warrior.”
I took the box, which was lightweight wood, carved all over in geometric designs. I opened it to see a lace-edged scrap from my closet upstairs. My first thought was that he’d brought me a pair of the fancy panties, but I held in my nervous, shocked laugh and lifted it out. Eli looked from my face to the hanky, kissed his own fingers, and looked at Koun. I put it all together. Fights and tourneys, ancient ways, and the favor bestowed on a warrior who was fighting for his queen. Right.Crap.I had forgotten that I was supposed to be using all the formal vamp war etiquette too. Koun wasn’t a modern-day European, but he had fought through all the centuries since he was turned. He would understand and expect this kind of stuff, and I never remembered to do it.
Drawing on all my fancy vamp court talk, figuring what I might say, I stood and walked around the table to Koun. “My warrior and executioner.” I stuck a hand into my pocket and pulled out one of the small throwing blades strapped to my thigh. I pricked my finger with its tip and a tiny bead of blood rose to the surface of my skin.
Koun went still, his hands cradling the polishing cloth and sword.
I wiped the blood onto the pale pink hanky, staining it permanently. “In you I am well pleased,” I said. I kissed the hanky and extended it.
Koun breathed in the scent of my blood. Raised his eyes from the hanky, meeting mine. He slid from the chair to both knees, head bowed. The chamois had vanished, and his hand was bare as he raised an empty palm. “My Queen.”
I placed the hanky into his palm. “Be safe. I’ll pray for you.” I stopped. “And I’ll pray for your soul.”
His eyes jerked to mine. His entire body shuddered. “My Queen?”
“I don’t believe your soul is gone. No matter what you may have seen once upon a time.” No. It wasn’t gone. It was stored somewhere. Like in a pocket universe, the kind the Glob stored energy in.
Tears filled Koun’s pale eyes, making them glisten. He whispered, “My Queen.” He kissed the hanky and tucked it inside his armor over his heart.
Behind us, both doors opened, creating a wide gap. Eli pulled two weapons and aimed there. Leo stood in the opening, unarmed, dressed in black, his hands clasped in front of him. Brute, the white werewolf stood at his leg. Something like joy passed through me but was quickly gone. Replaced by a frisson of fear. Was he here to challenge me for his city?
“Hold your positions,” Eli said to the security teams on comms. The room went silent. “Alex?”
Alex said softly into his mic, “No sign until now.”
That meant Leo had gotten inside without anyone knowing. I had a feeling that Brute had brought him, timewalking.
Alex added, “No weapons. No scions. Not here to take over.”
Leo said, “I do not wish to retake this city. Such responsibilities are no longer mine. I am here to say one thing.”
Slowly, Eli lowered his weapons, but he didn’t holster them.
