“Well,about what you ladies are up to, of course?” I smiled charmingly back at her, waiting for an answer.
Zerlina laughed lightly,putting a hand on my arm. “We’re just having tea, darling. You know we enjoy discussing the gossip of the court.”
I wrappedmy hand around hers, squeezing softly at first, before putting more pressure on it, making her wince.
“Let’s try that again,”I suggested, both brows rising. “With the truth, this time.”
“That is the truth!”Zerlina argued, her teeth gritting together.
“Cyrus, stop!”Daneiris shrieked, her blue eyes wide. “What are you doing? We’re just having tea! She’s your betrothed, for Shalim’s sake!”
I growled,letting go of Zerlina’s hand. She gasped, cradling it to her chest. I put both hands on the table, using it to rise out of the seat and lean toward Daneiris.
“I knowyou two are up to something,” I whispered threateningly to her. “And I’m going to find out what.”
Chapter Thirty-four
Calix
Flying back into Night Kingdom,I felt a huge sense of relief at being back home. I could feel Asteria’s own happiness at returning from where she flew next to me. The people of Tairngire all paused to look up, and where they’d usually wave, most stood in shock, mouths open as they saw the two phoenixes flying with us.
Altan, with his yellow and teal feathers, flew beside Asteria, while Zakat, with his orange and teal coloring, flew beside me. They’d insisted on flanking us, wanting to ensure her safety. I appreciated the sentiment, more so since Asteria let me know Zakat preferred men and wasn’t actually flirting with her, though I still wasn’t sure about Altan, who liked both sexes. Anytime anyone was too familiar with Asteria, it instantly set the mate bond off, driving me crazy.
We’d flown out over the Namminian Ocean to avoid Dusk. While their Pegasus forms were the only royal animal lacking flames for a defense, they could still attack from the air. It was better to be safe, especially when Cyrus refused to let his obsession die.
The reports Eryx had brought of Cyrus’s recent actions were horrifying, and I could only imagine what was actually going on there if what we’d heard were the mere whispers able to get out so far. Cyrus had cracked down since he became king, and Kian had been struggling to get word out while being watched.
I hoped to meet with Nithe before we left to get a better idea of what was happening. There was a lot to do before our journey. Starting with meeting with Titan and ending with reassuring my people.
As we touched down, I let the guards who’d accompanied us off my back. Once we’d shifted back, Titan was first there to greet us. His eyebrows were high on his forehead as he looked over our guests.
“It seems like you two were successful,” he said dryly, and I caught Altan and Zakat raising their eyebrows at one another in surprise.
“For the most part, we did better than expected,” I assured him, clapping him on the shoulder.
Asteria bounced up to us, smiling at Titan. “I even practiced while we were gone, like I promised.”
I chuckled, wrapping my arm around her waist. “She was very diligent about not missing training. She dragged me out every day.”
Her hand slapped my chest. “Don’t act like you don’t enjoy it.”
Titan groaned. “Did you get any actual fighting in, or was it another excuse to flirt?”
Asteria kicked his calf in response, making me double over laughing in surprise. Titan’s wide-eyed shock was equally hilarious, and Eryx was desperately trying to hide his laughter, turning his head to his shoulder and away from Titan’s sight.
“We do need to discuss what’s happened, and our plans moving forward,” I told Titan once we sobered up. He nodded, and I led Asteria after him toward the war room. I tilted my head at the two phoenix shifters behind us, indicating they follow us.
“I’m going to go check on my messages,” Eryx whispered to me, and I gave him a nod.
“See if Nithe is back yet. I want to talk to him,” I told him, and Eryx agreed before taking off.
“There you two are.” Harpina smiled, and Asteria broke away from me to hug her. Harpina hugged her back tightly, and it warmed my heart to see how loved Asteria was with my family.
I noticed others in the hall watching her and thought again of what Eryx said about formally introducing her to our people. That would have to happen soon, but for now, we needed to get a plan in place.
Explaining everything to Titan had him humming and crossing his arms over his chest, a sign he was brewing something in that brilliant mind of his. I’d never met anyone who could make a battle plan like he could. I hoped to be anywhere near as good when I was his age.
Even at four hundred and twenty-one, I knew I still had much to learn from him.
