“Tell me if this hurts,” he said, bringing the bristles to the ends of her hair. His tone and hands were so gentle, a contrast to the firm grip he’d had on her hips, the way he’d palmed her body as she’d ridden him.
That sent a tingle of heat low in her belly, and it took no small amount of self-control not to turn around and initiate an encore. Instead, she kept perfectly still. There was pleasure enough in simply feeling him run the brush through her hair. It was a strangely intimate situation, even though maids brushed her hair daily. Having Teryn do it while they were alone in their shared bed was entirely different.
“What about you?” he asked, his voice deep and rumbling. “What happened in El’Ara? Do we have an alliance with the Elvyn?”
“The beginnings of one. They haven’t offered anything concrete, but by now they will have stationed soldiers within the tear on the fae side of the Veil. They want us to provide two thousand soldiers to guard the human side. We would have to be discreet, otherwise we’ll draw attention straight to the tear’s location.”
“We could close the roads on either side,” Teryn said. “Feign a landslide and guard a wide perimeter around the area.”
“The tear is at the edge of a cliff, so a landslide would stand to reason. And we could hide our forces in the woods. Still…two thousand men. They’ve said nothing about how they intend to help us in exchange.”
“And that’s half our military. We need those soldiers with us when we meet Darius in three weeks. If we can gain Elvyn soldiers to bolster our numbers and face him with just his force of five thousand, we have a chance at winning.”
Cora agreed. So long as the rebellion began as planned, they could isolate Darius with his current soldiers.
“It would benefit the Elvyn too,” Teryn said. “If we defeat Darius at the Khero-Vinias border, we won’t need to guard the tear. Keeping Darius from setting foot in Lela should be our priority.”
“I’m supposed to return soon with our requests for the terms of the alliance,” Cora said. “I can demand they provide forces for our confrontation with Darius. We can make a plan with the Elvyn to defeat him.” She remembered the collar, how Ailan had called it their one chance to defeat her brother. “In the meantime, I can offer a smaller force to guard the human side of the tear, as a show of good faith until the terms have been finalized.”
“Larylis can do that,” Teryn said. “He’s on a ship patrolling Khero’s west coast now.”
Cora angled her head to meet his eyes. “He’s on a ship? Not in Vera?”
Teryn paused brushing. “After he suspected that the naval fleet threat was a ruse, he left on an unmarked schooner with fifty soldiers to investigate by sea. More than that, I think he wanted to be close to Mareleau. She wasn’t quite as discreet as you were in her letter.”
With a roll of her eyes, she faced forward again. “Of course she wasn’t.” She meant to say it in good humor, but it came out with a bitter edge. What was wrong with her lately?
“He and I communicate daily through Berol,” Teryn said as he resumed brushing. “He left his generals in charge of watching Vera’s shores in case the naval fleet threat was real, but he’ll come to our aid in allying with El’Ara. I’m certain he’d prefer to oversee the soldiers stationed there.”
Cora pursed her lips. It was a bit reckless of Larylis to leave Vera at a time like this, but she understood too. He’d never truly wanted to be king. He’d only wanted to be with Mareleau.
Of course he did. Everyone loves Mareleau. Your own husband wanted to be with her at one time. Remember?
Her hands curled into fists at the bitter words. The last part wasn’t even true.Stop it! Stop thinking like that. Mareleau is my friend. These feelings aren’t mine.
“When will you need to return?” Teryn asked. “If we’re going to march Elvyn soldiers from where I imagine the tear is…”
Cora still hadn’t dared state its location out loud. She would save that for the council meeting they’d have tomorrow. When they could post guards around the room and destroy evidence afterward. Even though they continued to whisper, Cora couldn’t shake the fear of having a traitor in the castle.
“I’ll need to leave soon,” she said. “It will take at least two weeks to march soldiers to the border.”
There was still so much more to discuss. Most could wait for the council meeting, but there was something she wanted to get off her chest. Something that filled her with a hollow dread. She wasn’t sure she could share it with anyone but Teryn.
As if sensing her turmoil, Teryn paused his ministrations and set the brush on the bed beside them.
She angled herself around to face him. “The worst part about allying with the Elvyn…” The words dried on her tongue. She swallowed hard and tried again. “Is that we’ll be fighting for our eventual exile from Lela.”
Teryn paled. He opened his mouth, but it wasn’t he who spoke next.
“Not if you ally with me.”
42
Cora’s heart shot into her throat as she whirled to face the stranger in their room. Teryn leaped off the bed at once, pulling Cora with him and positioning her behind him. She reached for her waist, but her hands met only air. Seven devils, she’d left her dagger in the armory. Teryn at least had the good sense to lunge for the fireplace poker and brandished it toward the intruder.
The man made no move aside from tilting his lips in an amused grin.
He was on the late end of middle-aged, tall and slender, his posture somehow dignified as he leaned against the far wall, ankles crossed. His salt-and-pepper hair was swept away from his brow to reveal a strong nose and silver-blue eyes that bore an unmistakable intensity. He was dressed in all black from his trousers to the military-style coat he wore. There was nothing familiar about the coat’s design to distinguish which military he represented.
