He narrowed his eyes and thrummed his fingers against the table. “I do not negotiate with peasants. Only with royals for resources of value.”
“If I’m not of value, there is no need for me to go. Maybe my true destination should be my family’s residence.”
A chuckle escaped his throat. “You’d prefer to live in your rundown two-room home than here? Do you know how many people would give a limb to reside in this castle? How many women would kill their mate for the chance to marry me?” A minute passed as he sipped his wine. “If you behave, I may provide you with the information upon your return.”
The offer was the best I could hope for. Ryder was the only one who could give me the answer, and he knew it.
When I went to stand, Ryder grabbed my wrist, and my eyes fell to his grip. Slowly, I let my gaze trail up to him. With our eyes locked, he quickly released his hand and scoffed. I pushed up and walked to the corridor, hearing his steps trailing behind me. As I made my way toward my room, I passed the entryway and found the others gathered.
Leanna met me and pulled me into a tight hug. “It’s only for a month,” she whispered. “It was the only way to secure the oil.” She pulled away and looked at me. “You can do this for Rivale.”
“My father …” I let the words linger.
“He’ll be taken care of. I’ll see to it personally.” Leanna smiled.
“It’s a long trip. We need to leave,” Grave called from behind the princess. I glowered at him.
“I need to pack, I?—”
“Fisher took care of it,” Ryder interrupted, and extended a hand to me.
My eyes tracked the gesture, but I refused. He bartered me off to a stranger and had my things packed before I was even told of the deal. There was nobody I would’ve given away so carelessly—not even Maris.
Grave and Amalee walked through the tall double doors, with the rest of us following behind. My eyes swelled to saucers when we stepped into the mid-morning air and found two wyverns standing in the sea of blue flowers. The one on theright was easily two and a half times the height of Grave. The other was just slightly shorter than the other beast.
Fisher walked up and handed me my bag, which felt much heavier than what I’d come with. “I packed all of your pants, shirts, as well as your underthings and two nightdresses. Your books too.”
“You touched my undergarments?” I narrowed my eyes at the guard.
“Would you rather I asked Roark?” Fisher huffed. “If it makes you feel any better, I wanted to touch them even less than you wanted me to.” He threw a navy bag over his shoulder.
“Have you requested the gryphon?” Ryder asked.
Fisher nodded. “Yes, it will be here in five minutes—possibly less.”
Grave walked by and snatched my bag from my hand. He walked over to the larger wyvern and linked it into a harness around the chest of the beast. “Come meet Zalzre,” the king called out.
“I think not.” Ryder threw an arm in front of me. “You will not bring her anywhere near those creatures. Not here, not in Kuroden, not anywhere. Do you understand me?”
“Well, seeing how these creatures will be the ones taking us, your request is going to be difficult,” Grave quipped. “I suppose she can close her eyes and pretend it’s a flying chicken.” The onyx beast chuffed a breath behind him, blowing saliva and air into Grave’s back.
Ryder scoffed. “Fisher will take Audryn on a gryphon.”
“Speaking of creatures who might actually pass for a chicken,” Grave interjected. The two creatures trilled simultaneously at his back as if they too were in on the joke. “But no, there will not be any other mounts joining our travels.”
“She’s not leaving on a wyvern and not without Fisher to secure her safety.” Ryder stepped forward, ignoring the lumbering beast behind Grave.
“Zalzre and Ralti will rip your gryphon to shreds. They don’t play well with anything outside of their brood.” He turned and rubbed a hand down the neck of the leathery beast as its barbed tail flicked in the air. Zalzre closed his eyes and leaned into Grave’s touch.
Amalee snagged the bag from Fisher’s shoulder, and the guard blinked in surprise. The onyx-eyed woman connected the sack to the harness on the smaller wyvern. “Let’s go,” she demanded, without bothering to look at the man. Her voice was feminine, but gravely, and I realized it was the first time I’d heard her speak.
Ryder stepped in front of me and placed a knitted shawl around my shoulders. “You’re going to be fine, I promise. Fisher will keep you safe, and it’ll be over before you know it. When you get back, we’ll start planning our ceremony.”
My eyes scanned the lines etched between his brows. “You didn’t even ask me.”
He pulled me in close. “I didn’t need to. I knew you’d say yes.”
I don’t think he cared to give me the opportunity to decline. Every decision he made was out of his own interest, and it didn’t matter how it affected anyone else. The ring on my finger and the fact he gave me away like a pound of fish only proved the point.
