Staying on task, I shut the door and melded the metal until it all fused together. “Done.”
“Is there anywhere we can steal food?” Minnie asked quietly, her golden eyes on the dragon shifter. “We are all starving and need energy. Is it possible for you to…” She tapped on her nose.
King Ula smirked, tilted his head back, sniffed at the air, and grinned like a happy man. “I believe you are in luck.” He stormed two doors down and opened it with a flourish, waving his hand inside. “They’ve got dried jerky stored in here.”
The King of Gorgons wrinkled his nose. “Did you know that was a bathroom before we went inside?”
“No.” The dragon king appropriately looked disgusted. “The whole hallway smelled like shit before. I couldn’t pinpoint where it was, but my nose is used to it now.” He grimaced at his following words. “I’ll have nightmares of that room for many nights to come.”
I gagged again. “Hear, hear.”
* * *
I chewedon my fifth piece of dried jerky and leaned my head back on the storeroom’s wall, closing my eyes for a moment while I ate. When I swallowed, I asked tiredly, “Does anyone know what a diviner is?”
King Ula chuckled darkly under his breath. “That is the first thing out of your mouth?” He laughed softly again like an evil menace. “So you did know they were soul-mated. I didn’t get that impression when you punched King Athon in the face.”
Not even opening my eyes, I muttered, “She is my heir and my daughter. If anyone threatens her, I take action.” I bit off another piece and chewed it while my mind still spun. “I will admit I did not know she was pregnant. Is it the time issue in Fairy? Is that why she’s heavy with child already?”
“Indeed. It affected her differently.” The King of Dragons snorted. “I suppose congratulations are in order?”
“Fuck off,” Minnie spat immediately. “Tell us what a diviner is. You are deflecting.”
I grunted and gnawed off another bite.
“Actually, I have a question I would like answered first from King Traevon,” King Elon hissed quietly. “A few days ago, King Athon attacked me when I touched him. It was odd, as he had never done anything like that before, but you claimed it was from parental abuse. Was that a lie to cover for your daughter going into heat? Because Louie did behave bizarrely, as well.”
Licking over my lower lip, I opened my eyes and lowered my head to stare directly into his narrowed gaze. “Yes.”
Nothing changed in his expression as he gazed back into my eyes, and after a quiet moment, he hissed again, “I hate you again.”
“About time.” I quirked up one side of my mouth in a sardonic grin. “Trust me, King Elon, I’ve earned it.” I let my head thump back onto the wall and closed my eyes again, resting them for a moment more. “I will say, with the extreme amount of violence King Athon showed—as did my own child—they should be left alone when she goes into heat in the future.”
“I almostdied,” King Elon ground out the words.
“No shit. That is what I’m saying. For everyone’s safety, we will not plan for any royal meeting around Princess Trixie’s average heat cycle—whatever normal that will be in the future.”
Our tension was edgy with a heavy silence.
Until it wasn’t…
The King of Gorgons surprisingly started laughing softly, hardly heard in the quiet of the room. “Fucking Fae, you can’t die. And neither can she. There will be no true elven heir after her. You two are all that is left.” He hiccupped a small laugh, the sound slithering over the walls. “And by the Fae, King Athon has it even worse. There is no spare in his kingdom.”
I let that linger in my mind, debating telling him the truth or not. Ultimately, I decided it wasn’t the right time for more dirty actualities to be aired. I switched topics and opened my eyes again, targeting the dragon king and demanding, “Tell me what a diviner is.”
“There are few in Fairy,” King Ula started slowly. “They live nomad lives because of their power and people constantly trying to use them.” He pressed his back to the opposite wall and slid down slowly to sit on the floor, just as exhausted as the rest of us. “With one drop of someone’s blood—not unlike the dark forest—they can ask any question, and the truth will be revealed as the blood drops.”
“We need to find them before the diviner arrives.” I popped the last bite of dried jerky into my mouth, chewing it quickly. Not as polite as my soul mate, I questioned, “Can you sniff them out?”
“Possibly.” King Ula stared at his clasped hands on his lap, quiet and thoughtful for a beat. Eventually, he slowly nodded. “Yes, I probably could if there is no enchantment concealing the room.”
“Please keep your nose open then.” I grunted and looked between my other two companions. “Where do you think they might be? They’re obviously not in the bowels of this building due to the archaic plumbing.”
Minnie snagged another dried jerky strip. “Mamue enjoyed her power trip. I’d say she’s got them close to her in light of our daughter’s pregnancy. She’ll want to hold that power close and not let anyone steal it from her.”
“Are you suggesting she would keep them in her bedchamber?” King Elon asked curiously. “You believe she would keep two powerful and dangerous individuals that close? There’s always a possibility of them waking—especially if they’ve been kept in a state of dreaming for months.”
“I think she’s arrogant enough for it.” Minnie smirked and shook her head. “That Fae’s ego was almost painful to watch.”
