Oops. Guess I got a little carried away.
Absolute silence descended upon the room as the others emerged from beneath the table, surveying the damage I’d done. Lord Oren was shocked, Lady Mossi livid, Lady Axlya dismayed. I was one hundred percent certain this meeting was not going the way she intended.
I ventured another glance across the room at Einar, only to find his lips were twitching. I bit my lip as a wave of mirth hit me, suddenly realizing how absurd this entire situation was.
“Well,” Lord Oren said as everyone resumed their seats. “If your fire magic is anything like your ice magic, then you’re going to be absolutely terrifying once you’ve completed the ritual.”
“My fire magic is even more formidable,” I assured him. “And the ritual has always been my primary objective. It doesn’t matter who sits on the Edirian throne if the shadow creatures take the realm.”
“Shadow creatures?” Lady Mossi scoffed. “The shadow creatures have—”
“—vanished,” I snapped, cutting her off. “Yes, everyone keeps saying that, and I almost believed it until a shadow golem tried to kill me yesterday.” I braced my hands on the table and leaned forward, ignoring the sharp bite of the ice beneath my skin. “You wouldn’t have had anything to do with that, would you?”
“Of course not!” Mossi exclaimed, but she’d gone pale beneath her dark complexion. “I wouldn’t have sent an assassin after you—I may not believe that you are the right ruler for Ediria, but you are still the girl from the prophecy. I wouldn’t dare risk the wrath of the Radiants by doing such a thing.”
“Forgive me if I have a hard time believing that,” I sneered, “seeing as how you were so willing to sell me out to King Aolis.”
“That was different,” Mossi said stiffly. “Aolis’s intention was always to use you to fulfill the prophecy, not undermine it. I was merely accelerating the process.”
“I believe we are getting off track,” Lady Axlya said before I could respond. “The fact remains that as much as you might wish for General Slaugh to assume the throne, Adara is the rightful heir.”
“Forgive me,” Lord Oren cut in. There was a deep bitterness in his tone that sent a shiver of foreboding through the room. “But before we can continue to discuss the crown, I must bring up the matter of my missing daughter, Tempest.”
An icy wind seemed to sweep through the room, and Lady Axlya and Mossi both stilled. “What do you mean?” Axlya asked carefully. “Was Tempest not returned to Angtun?”
“You know damned well she wasn’t,” Oren growled. He turned a baleful glare onto Lady Mossi. “Tempest was under the protection of King Aolis, and by extension, General Slaugh. Yet my sources tell me she was killed, while your daughter and Axlya’s have both been safely returned to your bosoms!” He slammed a necklace onto the table—a jade eagle hanging from a golden chain, his yellow raptor gaze incandescent with rage. “This was found near my realm’s borders along with Tempest’s bloodied clothing, and reports that she was killed by shadow creatures. How can you expect me to support your nephew’s claim to the throne, when he is the reason Tempest isdead!”
A thunderclap shook the room, and I sat down hard in my seat before my feet slipped out from under me. Lady Mossi was staring at Lord Oren as if she’d never seen him before, and Lady Axlya looked torn, as if she wasn’t sure whether she should be pleased that Oren was not, in fact, throwing in his lot with the earth fae.
“I’m very sorry to hear that Tempest has passed,” Lady Mossi said, sounding a little shaken, “but I can assure you, Slaugh is not at fault! He told me he let all the hostages go—"
“Without an escort?” Lord Oren barked. He bared his teeth, his tone positively venomous. “I don’t know what kind of game you and General Slaugh are playing, Lady Mossi, but the disrespect you both have shown against my house is enough to make me consider declaring war against you, here and now!”
“All right,” Lady Axlya said briskly, rising from her chair. “I think that’s been enough talk for today. Tempers are running too high for us to have a productive discussion. Lord Oren and Lady Mossi, you are welcome to rejoin your encampment, and we will resume this meeting tomorrow.”
“That’s fine by me,” Lord Oren said tightly. “Lady Mossi informed me General Slaugh will be joining us tomorrow, so that’s perfect. He can answer for his crimes then.”
36
Adara
That night, I tossed and turned fitfully in my bed. Anger coursed through me as I replayed the meeting over and over in my mind—the way the house nobles had argued over me as if I weren't present, and Lady Mossi’s attempts to deflect her crimes back at me the most infuriating out of everything.
I knew my inability to control my temper was becoming a problem—this was the second council meeting I’d had a magical outburst at—but in my defense, Lady Mossi had also lost control. At least my show of ability had impressed Lord Oren, though just because he was angry with Lady Mossi didn’t mean that he was on my side. And then there was Lady Axlya’s announcement to the others that Prentis and I were engaged, even though I hadn’t actually agreed to marry him.
Part of me wished I could knock all three of their heads together and make them see sense.
But I knew they didn’t really care about the realm, or at least not at this moment. They only cared about making sure they maintained their grip on power.
I was just envisioning stringing Lady Mossi up by a rope made from her own plants when a knock at the door shattered my vengeful fantasy. Sighing, I pushed my coverlet back and padded across the floor to open the door, already knowing who was on the other side.
“Can’t sleep either?” I asked Einar, leaning against the doorjamb. The moonlight filtering in through the corridor windows limned the outline of his tall, muscular form, and I swallowed as I realized he was clad only in a pair of pajama bottoms. Silvery light played over the planes of his handsome features, trailing across the dips and valleys of his muscles. My fingers twitched as I resisted the urge to follow the path they illuminated, from the broad plane of his chest down to his tapered torso, and…
“I could feel your frustration through the bond,” Einar said by way of explanation. I snapped my gaze back up to his face, and the gleam in his eyes told me he’d guessed the direction of my wayward thoughts. The memory of our encounter in the training room rushed back into me, sending a flood of warmth straight to my core, and my thighs clenched together.
“Sorry,” I muttered, glancing away. I wasn’t sure if I was apologizing for my anger, or my lustful thoughts, or both. “I’ll try to clear my mind so you can go back to bed.”
I took a step back, but Einar placed a hand against the doorframe, preventing me from closing it. “Actually, I was wondering… would you like to go for a ride?”
