Page 74 of A Cruel Kindness

“Our pleasure,” Soren drawled sarcastically.

Elijah looked at Soren for about two seconds until he focused all of his attention on me. “Bellamy, thank you for your cooperation.”

My face felt hot. Not in the kind that often arose around Soren, but in embarrassment. I had thought of my maneuvering coming to light many times, but having it happen in person was a different beast.

The brand of Soren’s eyes on the side of my face didn’t make it any better. “You’re welcome,” I made myself say, clinging to duty for strength. Then, I remembered Carson had defected. I had to take back control now before Soren thought I was doing the same to him.

“I assume the Prince has read my letter. Let me be clear, I am willing to negotiate for peace where the Emperor is not. That does not mean I’m going to be a Muli toy you can toss around as you please.” Okay, that came out as good as I could hope for.

I could feel Soren staring at me so intensely, my neck almost turned my head towards him on its own regard.

Elijah chuckled, clearly impressed. He could fuck off. “Oh, how interesting you turned out to be.”

My eyebrows pinched together slightly. It didn’t sound like he was making a comment about my disposition or my status. There was something deeper there. “What were you expecting?”

“Royals tend to stick to their families above all else, no?” I wondered what experience he had with his own Prince to come to that conclusion. “Yet here you are, committing active treason.” His eyes slid to Soren, surely taking in his shocked expression. “And on your own it seems.”

I followed his line of sight to Soren before I could stop myself. There was so much in his ice blue eyes, I could barely unpack it. Shock, anger, but maybe, no … could that be understanding underneath it all?

We would talk. I would assure him any way I could I wouldn’t do to him what Carson did. I wouldn’t leave without explanation. That couldn’t happen until we shook off Elijah. “I committed that very act of treason so your Prince, and by proxy the Queen, would be aware that the failure to respond to your pleas for peace is not a sentiment shared by all in Vir.” Though Elijah was doing the Prince’s bidding, the Muli Royal family was currently headed by his mother the Queen. “My father kept those letters secret. Not even his most trusted advisors knew.”

I took a step towards Elijah, needing to have my own questions answered. “Speaking of, how did you get those letters across the Bridge?”

Even as I said it, the realization struck.

Soren’s disbelieving chuckle came a second later, followed by a low, muttered, “Motherfucker.”

Anger burst through my chest for him, fueled by the idea that Carson had spent years being dishonest with him. The oldest letter I’d found was dated back two years prior.

Elijah’s smile only widened. “Yes, Carson was very helpful in transporting the letters across the Bridge. From there, he made sure they got in the hands of the Royal Guard. As far as I understand it, there are members of your precious guard tasked with transporting the letters to your father. Under the threat of death, I’d assume, they kept them sealed until they reached his hands.” Elijah nodded, clearly pleased with his own performance. “For as reliable a system as that is, you’d think you could trust the Emperor to engage in some sort of discourse other than silence. Though that spoke loud enough, don’t you think?”

Oh, Elijah really was cocky. If the Prince liked him, I imagined he was doubly so. In all these peace negotiations, I hoped marriage would be at the bottom of the list. Not just because that thought sent the Bond screaming in my head. “I am an Edelstenne. Without another present to contradict me, consider my word to represent the opinion of the family. I will handle my father.”

Elijah smiled wide, in a way most might consider handsome. He reached back to his steed, pulling a long file out of his saddle bag. I could hardly look at the horse too long, his coat was so dark. Like the midnight sky, absent any starlight to brighten it.

He returned with a crisp white envelope, pressed with a deep purple seal in the center.

Soren stepped in front of me, cutting off my extended arm. “This would be a very ill-advised way to poison her.”

Elijah laughed so loud birds fled the trees lining the field. “Clever. No poison, I can assure you. The Prince is not interested in attempts on Royal life, Bellamy’s, yours, or otherwise.”

Soren cautiously extended his hand to grab the envelope. Elijah pulled it back at the last minute, tsking under his breath. “But, that does not mean there are not tricks attached. This paper is treated with a special concoction developed by our priests. This paper will disintegrate within minutes after opening. Your father is to be the one to open this.”

“How do you know we won’t just copy it down?” Soren asked, taking the words right out of my mouth.

Elijah looked at me over Soren’s shoulder. “You know your father quite well. Would he appreciate that?”

It was Soren’s scoff that captured my thoughts on the matter. My father would absolutely refuse to engage if he knew I’d opened that letter. Explaining to him what I’d done in the first place without ending up thrown in a cell would be challenge enough.

“It will stay sealed until its in his hand,” I conceded, already picturing the sneer that would grow on my father’s face when he got it.

Elijah’s smile widened, a sure sign he thought he was craftier than anyone else on either planet. “The Prince won’t accept a response unless it is enclosed by the Emperor’s seal.”

“Blood seal,” Soren and I cursed out at the same time. It was an invention given to us by the priestesses. The wax could only set after a drop of the Emperor’s blood was added to it, ensuring only they could approve any document. Even I, as his daughter, couldn’t replicate it.

“That’s adorable you know,” Elijah said, pointing out our new habit of speaking at the same time.

I was done with the taunting. I stepped around Soren, snatching the envelope out of Elijah’s hand while Soren flattened his hand against my stomach, pulling me closer to him.