My eye spasms. Actually, both my eyes spasm. “Trust me, my father did notslip meinto his best friend’s bed; I slipped myself there. Which caused my father much distress. But he knew there was nothing he could do to prevent Lorcan and me from being together, what with the Sky King being my preordained mate.” Perhaps I should’ve kept that last bit to myself, but it’s not exactly a secret. Not one he can monetize, anyway. “You’re aware of the importance of mates in our society, correct?”
Vlad’s cold gaze scrapes across my striped face before hooking onto the feather on my cheekbone. “When one wants an ally, one must make concessions. When one wants acharitableally, one must make greater concessions.” He pauses as though to give his words time to register. How slow on the uptick does he believe me to be? “Besides, my demands were hardly preposterous.”
What were his demands, Lore?
Silence.
Lore, what were the Glacin King’s demands?I glance at the mighty birds treading the bright air.You better not have gotten yourself staked, mo khrà, or I will let you remain a trinket for a fucking fortnight.
I concentrate so hard on my mate that I manage to swing myself into his mind.
He startles, almost knocking over a statue made of blue glass. “Is everything all right?”
My nostrils flare. “Just checking that you’re alive and well since you’re not answering me.”
“Forgive me. I’m trying to find a way into the gallery to view the stone.”
“Glad to see you’re unharmed.” I look him over but since I’m inside his mind, he appears to me in skin. “Youareunharmed, correct?”
“Yes.” He touches my cheek, but then drops his hand to his side and mutters, “Focà.Everything’s so fucking white in this land. I’ll be out in a second.” Our connection crumples before I can ask why he’s commenting on the royals’ color scheme.
With a sigh, I refocus on the Glacin King. “So, what were those demands of yours?”
“Does your mate not trust you?”
“Excuse me?”
“I tell Milana everything.”
“Awnos duffen,” I mutter.
Vlad’s pupils shrink. “What was that?”
My father lets out a startled chuckle. Though glad that my impromptu swearing brought him a little joy, I school my features into a grim expression and puff out a dramatic sigh. “Sorry, Your Majesty. I’ve been taking so many lessons in Crow that certain words are coming to me faster than in my native tongue.Awnos duffenmeanssadly not.”
My father chokes on another laugh.
It takes everything in me to keep a straight face. “Is my accent that terrible, Dádhi?”
He shakes his head, eyes glistening with mirth. “You’ve a sweet accent, ínon.”
“Anyway. What were we saying? Ah yes. You asked whether my mate trusted me. He does. But what with my abduction and his war, we’ve had little time to discussyou.” I slowly pluck off one glove, which I lay flat on my lap, and then I raise my ink-stained fingers to my necklace.
Confusion stirs in the monarch’s eyes. “So, the Sky King sentyou—his mate—over to my kingdom to negotiate, and didn’t think it sensible to inform you of my terms?”
“You see, I’ve a temper.” I press the pad of my thumb against the apex of my shell until a tiny bead of blood bubbles to the surface. I make sure to angle my hand just right before slipping my pricked finger into my mouth and sucking off the ruby pearl.
Vlad seems more confused than alarmed. Doesn’t he know I’m Shabbin or is it my recent unbinding that eludes him?
“A most terrible temper,” my father intones.
With a roll of my eyes, I lower my finger from my mouth and pat one of his giant paws, which flips up the corners of his mouth. “I’m guessing they knew I wouldn’t appreciate your terms and were trying to spare me, as loved ones often do. I’m also guessing it has to do with hawking off your eldest daughter?”
Color rises so briskly into Vlad’s cheeks that I sense I hit a nerve. “Hawking off? You make me sound like an ignoble peddler. I love my children. They areeverythingto me. I’m merely trying to ensure their future by landing them profitable unions.”
Just a prettier way of saying hawking, Vlad.
I go back to stroking my seashell.“Let me explain how Crow mating works, Your Highness.” I’m hoping the use of his title will make the pill I’m about to feed him more palatable, for I’m not trying to ruin relations with Glace. “Crows have one mate, and I happen to be Lorcan’s. If you’re desperate to find Alyona a good match amongst my people, once we’ve won the war, I will gladly introduce her to eligible Crows.”
