But as soon as Lucyan mounted his horse, he gave rein to some of his anger, urging the beast into a gallop. Heart pounding, he leaned forward in the saddle and gave the horse free rein to run. The wind sang in his ears, ruffling his short, red hair as they raced along the path and cooling the rage that stung his cheeks andears.
Finally, when the mountain trail grew steeper and more treacherous, Lucyan pulled his horse back to a trot. Even if the dragon godhadcommanded him to fight his brothers to the death, he would never do it. He’d lived in the womb with them—he couldn’t contemplate the idea of driving a sword through their hearts. And Dareena would never condone such barbaric behavior. She loved them equally—Lucyan was certain ofthat.
Mind made up, Lucyan stopped in Paxhall to send a quick message off to Drystan, then turned his horse around and made his way to the remote cave Shadley had told him about.Fuck the oracle,he thought with a grim smile. It was high time he spoke to the dragon godhimself.
12
Four hours.It had only been four hours since Drystan had risen from his bed, and he already craved a stiffdrink.
He sat at his desk, a ledger open in front of him, as he tried to make sense of their finances. The king had fired their treasurer years ago, insisting on taking over the accounting himself—an unusual practice for a king. Now that he’d made off with the treasure, Drystan knew why. The petty cash fund would cover their expenses until the taxes came in, but as Drystan pored through last year’s tax collections, he realized they would not have enough to cover the coming year’s bills if they also had to pay a heftyransom.
Damn the elves. Those bastards had them by the balls, and they knew it. Drystan sincerely hoped those scouts had found his father’s lair—they had to get that treasure back or they weredoomed.
The financial logistics weren’t the only thing making Drystan’s head pound. He’d woken up to find Lucyan and Tariana both gone.Bloody hell, can’t I sleep in for a few hours without the world going to shit?Lucyan had told him he was off to visit the oracle, and Tariana had decided to run off and rescue Ryolas after all despite his insistence that she stay at the Keep and make herself useful. He’d expected Lucyan back by now, but instead he’d receivedanothernote, this one saying that his brother wouldn’t be back until nightfall, and in the meantime, not to trust anything the oraclesaid.
Maybe I need to get out of this stuffy castle for a bit,he told himself. When was the last time he’d gotten some fresh air?Not since he’d battled with his father, he thought ruefully. He really ought to get some flying practice in, now that he knew how to shift. Under normal circumstances he would be doing it every day, but with the stress of the past week, he could barely think about shifting, let aloneflying.
The idea was quite appealing just now, so he closed the ledger, then made his way back to his rooms to change into a robe. His father had usually worn one when he went flying, as it was easy enough to shuck off—normal clothing was torn to smithereens during the change. But Drystan was only halfway to the royal suite when the steward waylaidhim.
“My prince,” he said, sounding slightly out of breath as he bowed. Drystan had half a mind to instruct the servants to call him and his brothers “king,” but he’d held off as he wasn’t certain that was accurate. They were a triumvirate now, were they not? Or would Dareena rule alongside them as well? What did you call a group of four rulers, anyway? Drystan didn’t see why she shouldn’t have a say in the goings-on of the kingdom—she might not have been brought up as royalty or bred to rule, but she had a far better understanding of the common people’s needs than either he or his brothersdid.
“What is it?” Drystan said irritably. Surely noteverydamn thing in the castle needed his attention, didit?
“The delegation from Elvenhame has arrived,” the steward said. “I’ve shown them to a suite of rooms and told them I would send word as to when you are available to meet withthem.”
Fuck.They were here already? Part of Drystan was relieved, but the rest of him felt sick at the thought of negotiating with the elves when he had barely two coppers to rubtogether.
“Tell them I will dine with them tonight,” he said wearily. “And send Taldren and Catriona to my chambers,please.”
The steward bowed and hurried off to do his bidding. Drystan dragged his heels as he continued toward the royal suite, his dream of taking a few hours for himself evaporating. As he closed the door to the suite behind him, he was overcome with the urge to burrow beneath the bed covers and shut out theworld.
Really, how had he ever thought he was ready to take on the responsibility of ruling the kingdom? A surge of white hot anger rushed through him, and in that moment, he hated his father more than ever for giving into madness. He should have spent more time grooming them instead of trying to keep them away from the throne, and he damn well shouldn’t have run off with every blasted coin to theirname.
But instead of hiding beneath the covers, Drystan grabbed a bottle of cognac and three glasses, then settled in towait.
“By the gods, Drystan,” Catriona said as she and Taldren entered the room fifteen minutes after Drystan had called for them. “You look likehell.”
“Hello to you too,” Drystan said dryly, lifting his glass to her. Catriona was his fifth-born sister, and she looked much better than she had when she’d been brought back to the castle, her blonde curls shining and lustrous instead of matted and dirty, her creamy skin healed of all bruises and cuts and glowing with health. She wore the same tunic dresses all his sisters wore when they were at home, elegant enough to befit their stature but economical enough to throw on armor and rush into battle ifnecessary.
“Is there anything we can do to help?” Taldren asked as he and Catriona joined Drystan by the fireplace. He still wore the guard uniform—Alistair had reassigned him to the Keep after they’d rescued him from the elves. “It can’t be easy, picking up the pieces after yourfather.”
“I heard that the elves have arrived,” Catriona said, swishing the contents of her glass. “Is that why you’ve summoned ushere?”
“Yes. With Tariana and Lucyan both gone, you are the closest family I have.” His other sisters had already flown back to rejoin the troops—Catriona was still here only because her wounds had taken the longest to heal. He paused for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts. “You both have spent time in Elvenhame recently. Do you have any reason to believe the elves are planning to backstabus?”
Taldren shook his head. “Ryolas treated me well enough for a prisoner,” he said. “He was no crueler than he had to be, and he did releaseme.”
“What of Arolas?” Drystan asked Catriona. “Have you ever had the occasion to meet him?” He’d run across the elven prince once or twice in his younger years, before the war—he was a smarmy bastard, used to getting his way, with a tendency to look down onothers.
“Arolas is a manipulative cunt,” Catriona spat, her eyes glowing with anger. “It’s a shame I never got to meet him in open battle. I would have made it my personal mission to run my sword through him.” Her hand clenched so hard around her glass it started to crack, and she quickly put it down before it exploded, to Drystan’s great relief. “He used to yank at my pigtails when I was a child, and once he forced me to sit on his lap for nearly an hour at a party. The pig was nearly a man by then—he had no right putting his hands on me at that age, or any other for that matter. Mother gave him a right scolding when she found him, and she never let him near me again, but…” She trailed off, shuddering a little. “I don’t know what he’s capable of, to behonest.”
Drystan’s stomach roiled at the picture Catriona painted. “And I’ve sent Dareena into the clutches of that monster?” He groaned, putting his face in hishands.
“Dareena has Alistair to protect her,” Taldren reminded him. “She will befine.”
“Not if Alistair is being incapacitated by that foul spell,” Catriona pointed out. “I don’t really expect Arolas to try anything with her—she is a valuable hostage, after all, and unless he cuts out her tongue he knows she will tell you all about it at the first opportunity. But as far as the treaty…it’s hard to say. King Andur will keep his word, but Arolas is manipulative, and he has the king’s ear now. He will have done his best to ensure that the king fucks us as hard as he can with thisdeal.”
“Bloody fantastic,” Drystan growled. He had half a mind to seek out the elf delegation and send them back to the elven king as a jar of ashes, but that wouldn’t get Dareena back. He talked with Taldren and Catriona for a little longer, but since Drystan couldn’t tell them the full extent of the situation, they weren’t much help. Tired of going around in circles, Drystan sent them away, then gave in to his urge to hide under the covers and took a long nap, ordering his valet to wake him an hour before his suppermeeting.
