“Figures. You smell expensive.”
Mal’s eyebrows rose. “I smell expensive?”
“Like... fancy soap. The good stuff.”
I lost it. “Oh my god.”
We got a few more details before we thanked the merchant and got out of there. I almost died from trying not to laugh.
“You smell like fancy soap,” I said the moment we were outside.
“Stop.”
“King Fancy Soap.”
“I will leave you here.”
“No, you won’t.”
“No, I will not,” he admitted, his mouth quirking up.
Torin met with us a second later, followed by the rest of the guards that were scattered through the tavern and the perimeter. “Did you get what you needed?”
“Yes,” Mal said. “Send your best spies to Igryside immediately. We need to know what they’re planning.”
“At once, Your Majesty.”
Mal took my hand as we started walking back toward the castle. His fingers laced through mine, warm and solid.
“Also, ‘Igryside’ is such an ominous name,” I said. “Right? Why is it always something dark-sounding?”
“If someone named their kingdom Happyland, I would immediately suspect them of terrible crimes,” Mal said.
“‘Welcome to Happyland, where everyone smiles... or else,’” I repeated in my ominous voice.
He laughed, and the sound made my chest warm. We walked back to the castle together, fingers intertwined, united and happy. And the moment we step foot in it, we called an emergency meeting with all the allied kingdoms. I did not want to see their faces ever again after the shitshow at the banquet, but it was necessary. We were in an alliance, and I couldn’t ignore them forever. If only.
Within the hour, the council room was packed with kings, queens, and their advisors. The Gods decided to spare me one, because there weren’t any of the dignitaries that spoke against Killian that fucking night. I didn’t know how I would’ve reactedif I saw one of them ever again. Or how Mal would’ve reacted. Probably with his fists, and I would’ve cheered.
Aurion was there, looking unusually serious. Daphne sat beside him, giving me an encouraging smile. Casimya had been invited to explain about my bloodline. The representatives and royalty from the other kingdoms filled out the rest of the room.
Some of them were still wary about Killian’s powers, about the fact that their “human” queen had turned out to be not-so-human after all. I could see it in their faces, the way they looked at me.
Too bad. They could deal with it.
Mal and I sat together at the head of the table, presenting a united front. Under the table, his hand found mine and linked our fingers together. I squeezed back.
“There was an assassination attempt on my son, and it was orchestrated by a kingdom called Igryside,” Mal began. “We have intelligence suggesting they’re planning something larger.”
“And we are just supposed to trust that the queen’s newfound powers are... safe?” Xander Silvermane asked, his tone dripping with skepticism.
I gave him a cold smile. “You’re supposed to trust that if you threaten my family again, you’ll find out exactly how safe they are.”
“Damn,” Daphne whispered to Aurion. “That’s my bestie.”
“Perhaps a demonstration?” Mortimer Goldridge suggested, more kindly. “Of these portal powers?”
“I don’t have enough control yet. I could accidentally portal us all to another dimension and I don’t think that would help the alliance.”
