The guys flinched.
Usar meant unwanted.
The king asked, “What is your actual name?”
“Is that an order?”
His eyes flickered in understanding.“It is.”
“Ramera.”
The king continued.“How did you leave the Sethir?”
“Beaten and drugged in the back of a transport.My mark was scrubbed while I was out.Sent to Uradda for a million credits, given to my sister.She seduced my mate, had me abducted and shipped away.My mate had a runaway spouse, you nullified our contract, and my sister leaped into his arms a moment later.I was in Uradda and a designated healer for the pits.I ceased to exist anywhere but on the numbered roster until freed.After that, I got to Aksalla and worked at the clinic that Brittany used for her heel implant maintenance.Her mother is a good friend.”
“How did you get out of Uradda?”Riithan asked quietly.
“Zephyr got me out five years ago.”
The king asked, “Why didn’t you come home?”
“I checked the registry.I had been removed from my family lines and my mate’s records.I didn’t exist to you.”
The king nodded.“I see.Who was your mate?”
“Uramit.”
Riimal stared.“He had a mate before Nianda?”
The nanny nodded.“He did.Her younger sister, Ramera.”
Riimal frowned.“They don’t have children.”
Ramera shrugged.“Of course they don’t.I was his match.She wasn’t.Her match was Neriak.He wasn’t as pretty as Uramit.”
The king grimaced.“That is a shit show.He’s a good guardsman.”
“And yet too dumb to lock the door when he was banging my sister in our bed.”She shrugged.“All I remember was her begging for his knot and him unable to rise to the occasion.They certainly flew apart fast enough.”Ramera smirked.
“What was the issue with your hair?”The queen asked.
“My family are famous for hair the colour of blood as an indicator of strong activation.That is why my sister dyed hers.She never got the shade right.”
The king tapped his fingers against the table.“What about your family?”
“They believed that I ran away because it wasn’t like I always faced my problems.I even taught Uramit not to hit me.I did that face-to-face.Well, there was some biting, but it was on my part, not his.Remember to floss, boys and girls.”
Riimal blinked.“You left those scars?He said he was attacked in the desert.”
“He was.Right after he tried toasserthimself.”She shrugged.“He’s not a good mate.”She paused.“Your Majesties, I am back home in the place I love.He doesn’t matter anymore.She doesn’t matter anymore.I am living my best life, choosing the situations I am putting myself in.This is one such situation.”She grinned.“I like being a nanny.”
Ylara had the baby over her shoulder.“You are very good with her.The first two nannies didn’t get along with her.”
The king nodded.“I am going to talk to your father.Get the details.”
“I am guessing that he will say I had a fight with Uramit and ran away.I have the scrubbed mark to prove that it wasn’t my idea.Uradda doesn’t scrub scars; they keep them alive through withdrawal to see what it takes to kill them.She gave them a subject to play with.They were almost disappointed when I didn’t die, but then they put me to work, and that is how I met Ival.Sort of.We didn’t actually get to speak.”
Ival smiled.“That is true.We were watched at all times.Has it only been ten years since we met?”
