Once I’ve drunk my fill of the space, I focus on the enormous rectangular table around which only nine people sit, even though twenty more could easily fit.
Nine very vocal people engaged in a shouting match that has my father’s fingers clenching around the arms of his massive chair and growling, “Who will protect my daughter if this is some perverse trick of yours, Rossi?”
“If I’d wanted Fallon dead, Cathal, I would’ve bled Meriam, or gored Zendaya ages ago.”
I suck in a breath.
“Neverfucking threaten my mate.” Wisps of shadows coil off my father’s vambraces, dark like the carved wood he sits on.
“It was no threat, merely a reminder of where my loyalties lie.” Justus speaks with the aplomb of someone who’s faced many a firing squad. “Speaking of loyalties. Your daughter’s arrived.”
My father pivots his head in slow motion, as though it’s taking everything in him to coax his incendiary gaze away from Justus. He rises from his chair even slower, his trousers whispering over the upholstered seating that has been done up in the same black leather that swathes every Crow in attendance.
The only one not garbed in black leather is Justus Rossi. Even Gabriele sports all black. Though his face isn’t striped like the Crows and his ears are pointy, he fits right in.
“Morning, ínon.” My father white-knuckles the empty chair beside his and drags it out for me. “Are you rested?”
I glance toward the head of the table where golden eyes stare out from a murky face. Evidently, Lore’s still vexed.
“Yes, Dádhi.” I don’t bother asking if he’s rested. His eyes are bloodshot and rimmed with purple smudges that even his charcoal stripes cannot hide. Did he spend his evening surfing over the ocean, ruing what became of his mate?
As I tuck myself onto the wide seat, I stare at the only two faces that aren’t familiar—one is a woman with cliffs for cheekbones, cropped white hair, and skin a shade lighter than the furniture; the other is a male with muscles for days, deep-set eyes, and an imposing nose that’s a dead ringer for an iron beak.
“I don’t believe we’ve met, yet. I’m Fallon.”
“Naoise.” The unfamiliar male nods at me, the dull light catching on his entirely bare scalp.
I smile, then turn to the woman who sits beside him, a smile tugging at her full mouth. “Sorry to disappoint you, Cathal, but your daughter took nothing from you. She’s all Daya.”
As he folds himself back into his chair, my father swallows, his expression turning downright somber. “Thank Mórrígan for that.”
“I’m Iona. I believe you’ve met my son and grandson—Connor and Reid?”
“I have. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”
“Pleasure is all mine, Curse-breaker.”
The nickname makes my stomach roil with nerves. It isn’t that I’ve forgotten about my task, because I haven’t. How could I, when the fate of two nations rests on my shoulders?
“Now that everyone’s introduced, shall we run Fallon through Rossi’s plan?” Iona suggests.
I perch my attention on my grandfather, who’s combed and garbed in a fresh shirt the color of the clouds tiling the sky.
Imogen reclines in her chair. Though she isn’t heaps taller than I am, her shoulders are so wide that, unlike me, she doesn’t look dwarfed by the giant seat. “You mean Rossi’s proposal to stake our king?”
I gawp in horror at Justus, then wonder how he’s even still alive after uttering such a suggestion.
“Perhaps you should give Fallon a little context, Imogen.” Justus’s blue gaze slides to the female Crow. “Especially since your king didn’t deem my idea preposterous.”
Fifty
My head rears back at the news that my mate is on board with a staking.
“Dante’s waiting for the Crows to fall. The second they do, he will leave his obsidian refuge.” Justus rolls his shoulders, drawing my attention to the fact that his arms are pinned behind his back.
“So you suggestedimmobilizingmy mate?” My voice is shrill with nerves, and though my nails don’t transform into iron tips, I feel like I could shred the table whose thick edge I clutch. “No one is staking Lore.” I can feel my mate smile through our mind link, which makes me whip my glower off Justus and level it on the Sky King.Why are you fucking smirking?
Hetsks.
