I’d done many hard things in my life, but rejecting Wren like that gutted me. But what choice did I have? What right did I have to let things continue between us physically when we couldn’t possibly be together? Not to mention, how could I possibly protect her if I was messed up over things with us? Well, that second problem was now going to exist no matter what.
Her taste. Her taste was the most intoxicating thing possible, and the way she felt in my arms. I’d never get enough. When I closed my eyes the first thing I saw was her face. I knew every inch of it, and I could almost feel her soft skin under my fingertips.
But she wasn’t mine to have. And if I didn’t do my job, she’d be no one's to have. Not even her people’s. Wren was to be queen, and ensuring her safety was more important than my individual desires and needs. Not to mention defending my court. I still didn’t know much about these Dwellers, but they didn’t sound pretty. I was in over my head in a way I’d never been in my life before.
It was time to stay clear and focused. I had no other choice.
After making sure Wren was going to change out of her wet clothes, I made my way to the council room to meet the king. Hopefully, he’d be ready to share more information. I was still sopping wet, but that was fine. Discomforts like that didn’t phase me, and the Spring Palace was more like the outside than the inside, so I assumed dripping water wouldn’t cause any major issues.
“We’re on the same side.” James cut in front of me before I could turn toward the council room. There were so many little hallways in the Spring Palace.
“I realize that.” Which is why I didn’t appreciate him slowing me down. I stepped around him, but he stepped into my path just as quickly.
“Do you?” He raised an eyebrow. “Because you seemed threatened by me before.”
I laughed. “Threatened? Why would I be threatened by you?” I wouldn’t pretend that no one threatened me, but he certainly didn’t. He may have been a skilled fighter, but he wasn’t a shifter.
“I don’t know. And I don’t really care unless it interferes with getting rid of the Dwellers.”
“What are these Dwellers? How can I plan on taking out creatures if I don't know what they are?” It was a rhetorical question. It was impossible. That was the answer plain and simple.
“I’m sure the king will fill you in, but here’s the best way I can describe them. Shadows. More specifically your shadow. Or mine. They become them. And not just when you are supposed to have a shadow. They can show up at any time.” He looked over his shoulder.
“Shadows? Like an actual shadow?” I wanted to make sure I was hearing this right. What he was saying sounded positively crazy.
“They take over your shadow. Like a parasite. I think that’s the best way to describe it.” He rubbed the back of his neck.
Parasite? I didn’t like the sound of that at all. But something about the whole situation was bothering me. I craned my neck to catch a glimpse of Spring soldiers heading somewhere further down the hall. They walked in one big group, nothing like the regimented lines of Winter Court. “How’d you get here?” It wasn’t often we got visitors from other worlds.
“Someone opened yet another chasm.” He made a flippant motion with his hand.
“Yet another?” That didn’t sound good. Not at all. But Energo wasn’t my problem. Winter Court was. That was unless more chasms opened into our world, and I so didn’t want to think about that possibility.
“It’s been an ongoing problem.” He let his hand fall back to his side. “Something is going on, but right now I can’t focus on that issue. We have to get rid of the Dwellers first.”
“I need to protect my court.” And I needed to protect Wren. I didn’t like knowing she’d somehow have to be part of this fight. Maybe she was set to be queen and it was only right she be part of the defense of her people, but that didn’t mean I liked it.
“What court is that?” He adjusted his belt. Light bounced off the metal sheath of his sword.
I blinked. “Winter.”
“Ah, a winter wolf, huh? I wonder if you are at all like my friend Talon. He’s an Arco. Ever hear of those? Arctic wolves in my world,” James rambled on. “I didn’t like the guy at first, but once someone saves your life you tend to like them more, you know?”
I had heard of them, but I’d never met one before because we didn’t generally cross worlds. Changing courts was a big enough step for us. “I have. And I’m not a true winter wolf. I was taken in during the Court War.”
“Ah, I see.” He nodded. “I cannot say I know much about that war, so I will not pretend I do. I loath when people do that.” He smiled suddenly. “But who needs to know anything about the world they are protecting, am I right?”
“How can everything be a joke to you?” I realized the irony that the king had essentially told me the same thing earlier, but this was different. James had been brought into our world specifically to help. At least that’s what he claimed. I wasn’t naive enough to believe he was only there out of the goodness of his heart.
The last of the soldiers disappeared from view.
“This isn’t my first time preparing for battle. When you’ve done it enough you have to find a way to keep things light.” He glanced over his shoulder as if to see what I was looking at. At this point it was just an empty hall.
“Energo is always at war?” I really didn’t know much about that world other than it was old. Possibly even older than my own world
“Not always. But there are plenty of enemies.” He rubbed his hands together. “We do get occasional breaks, but not as much anymore.” There was a sadness to his voice. As much as he tried to make it sound as if he loved the thrill of battle, I got the sense he’d have preferred a quieter life. But maybe I was projecting my own feelings on him. I did that more than I cared to admit.
“Maybe what we have here is simpler.” As much as I got tired of the Court disputes, it had been years since things had gotten too out of hand. Thankfully we’d never stopped with our training. We were ready to protect our Court, whether we faced a threat or not. But I still worried we might not be ready to face this threat. This parasite of shadows.
“Nothing is simpler or more complicated. It just is. At least that's how I view it.” James turned around and started back down the hall.
I matched his pace. “You don’t intimidate me.”
“Right now I don’t. I seem to when Wren is around.”
“We need to get to the council room. At least I do. The king is expecting me.”
“He’s expecting me too.” James smiled. “Of course.”
“Of course.” I picked up my pace. “We better get there before we miss anything important.”
The doors to the council room were wide open, and the space was wide enough to allow us both to enter at the same time.
I immediately took in the tall ceilings and wood floor. This was a more formal room than the rest of Spring’s Palace, but it had nothing on the marble and ice council room back at Winter Court.
The long table was crowded with far more chairs than belonged there. Still there were several empty next to the head of the table. I assumed those were for the queen and Lacey.
I knew some of the assembled men and women at the table—mostly men. Like the other courts, the councils were still dominated by men, but the numbers were getting better as the years moved on.
The room grew quiet once we reached the table.
“Sorry we’re late.” James pulled a chair up to the table. “We were continuing with our icebreakers.” He laughed. “I guess that’s pretty appropriate for a wolf from Winter Court, huh?”
Even in the council room he was making jokes. I wasn’t the only one who was a glutton for punishment.
Still, I pulled up a chair and sat next to him. James’ bad jokes were better than disrespecting the king by standing by his council table. Our world was full of all sorts of rules like those. Rules that didn’t really make sense, but that we followed anyway. There were way more important things to debate.
“For anyone who doesn’t know, this is Frost.” The king pointed at me. “Wolf from Winter Court. And the other is James Mendel. Guardian from Energo.”
All eyes turned to James rather than me, which wasn’t particularly surprising. I wasn’t the only one unaccustomed to meeting people from different worlds.
“As we are short on time let’s save the detailed introductions,” the king continued. “But suffice to say there are both here because they have skills and experience that will prove important to our fight. Queen Esmeralda herself sent Frost. She believes he has singular abilities that cannot be replicated.”
“Is he going to be the next queen’s mate?” A man I didn’t recognize asked from the table. I took a look at him again. He was a small man with absolutely no hair.
“I don’t believe Wren has chosen her mate yet,” The king gave me an unreadable look. “That is neither here nor there for today’s discussion. But I do have other questions to address.”
I nodded, letting him know I was ready for him to continue. “Is your brother trustworthy?”
I startled at the question. “Preston?”
“Yes. It should be a simple enough question to answer.” The king fixed his gaze on me. “Is he trustworthy?”
It should have been simple, but it wasn’t. Not after Preston’s cryptic response to who he had borrowed money from. But I had no choice for what answer I gave. I would not disparage Preston in the presence of a king. “Yes. Of course he is. Preston is a wolf of his word and dedicated to protecting his court. He will be ready to take is oath to Queen Esmeralda when the time comes ”
My stomach turned. I hoped I was telling the truth. Surely Preston would step up when he needed to.
“We can use all the shifters we can get.” King Leon moved his gaze around the room. “Can we not all agree on that?”
There were murmurs of agreement from the table.
“He’s not of age. He’s only seventeen.” Surely the king knew that. He couldn’t be implying that Preston be pulled into the fight.
“In my day that was of age.” He was. He was truly suggesting it.
“But your day was long ago, Father.” Lacey walked into the chamber arm and arm with Wren. Both were dressed in one piece jumpsuits: Wren in blue, Lacey in pink. It had been a long time since I’d seen Wren in anything so bright, and it suited her. It lit up her face. I tried to stop my thoughts from going to the grass, and Wren’s body, and the feel of her hands on me.
“So was our last war with anyone outside of our world.” King Leon stood as his daughter took her spot at the table. She made room so Wren could share the chair. “So my day is relevant.”
“And I respect your experience, but that doesn’t change the fact that we are talking about my brother today. Here and now. What do you want Preston to do? He is still early in his training.”
“He is a pure shifter. Strength and talent comes naturally. ”
“I will have to think on this before giving you a final answer.” Taking Preston with us had been a mistake. A huge mistake. Although, who knew what worse trouble he could have gotten into back at home.
The king folded his hands on the table in front of him. “It is not your decision to make.”
“Why not? I am his older brother.” That gave me authority.
“We are at war.” The king rubbed his beard. “Your brother is over sixteen; he can choose to join the fight.”
Technically he was right. During a time of war the rules changed.
I groaned inside. I knew what Preston would say. He wouldn’t be making the decision because it was wise. He’d be making it because he could. “With all due respect, he is still very much a child.”
I caught Wren’s eye. I didn’t want to pull her into this, but I needed her help.
She silently agreed. “As heir of the Winter Court, I have authority. I give Frost the right to determine whether Preston is asked to join the coalition.”
“But you are not in Winter Court.” King Leon turned his body so he was looking at Wren. “So you lack that authority.”
“We are here as your guests but also as your allies. Do you suggest that the place of meeting determines whose voice must be heard? How would my mother react to that?” Wren’s voice shook just a little. She was nervous.
“Your mother would agree with my decision.” The king frowned. “She knows what is at stake.”
I didn’t like the way the king was addressing Wren, and ultimately I knew we had little chance of changing his mind. “I will agree to allow Preston to make the decision, but only if he stays close to me. I will not have him sent off to fight without me.” I couldn’t protect him from everything, but I could do a whole lot more if he was close.
The king nodded. His expression was relaxed. He liked my answer. “You have my word we will do all in our power to keep him under your command.”
I nodded. “Then I agree.”
“Then my answer is yes.” Preston sauntered into the chamber, his chest out half a mile. “An unequivocal yes.”
“Were you listening in?” Lacey narrowed her eyes at him.
“Why does everyone act like that is such a bad thing? If you don’t want eavesdropping, close the chamber doors.” Preston put his hands on the back of one of the few empty chairs. He was confident. Too confident. Being caught eavesdropping on a king's council could have significant punishment, but given what they were asking of him, I was willing to doubt there would be any real retribution. And Preston knew that full well.
The king chuckled. “At another time I could have you put in the dungeon for that.”
“But not this time?” Preston raised an eyebrow.
“No. We have bigger concerns right now, yet you would be wise to beware of insubordination. It will do you no favors.”
“I understand.” Preston straightened up. “Your majesty.”
I sighed with relief. At least my brother had some sense of self-preservation.
“I’m glad we have an understanding. And I assume you understand why we need your assistance.” The king leaned back in his chair.
“I understand you need shifters.” Preston sat down in the chair. “And I am certainly that.”
“Yes. I know you are. And I have heard you take after your brother in skills.”
“I’m pretty good. No one is as good an archer as Frost, but I’m catching up.”
“Those skills are useful, but I mean your wolf. Your wolf is a fighter, is it not?”
“All wolves are fighters.” Preston looked to me as if seeking reassurance he was saying the right thing. That was a first.
“Yes, but some more than others.” There was a twinkle in the king’s eye that made me nervous. He turned his attention to his right where Wren and Lacey sat. “Wren, you need to make haste and continue on to Summer Court as your mother instructed. You have two more directives to deliver.”
“Wait.” I let his words hit me. “In the midst of everything you want her to continue on delivering directives?” I knew I gave Preston a hard time for not being respectful, but I also wasn’t going to sit back and let the king nonchalantly talk about putting Wren in danger.
“We have no choice. We need all four courts working together.” Once again the king’s voice was calm. It only annoyed me more.
“He’s right.” Wren pressed the palms of her hands into the table. “I do need to continue on. We need Summer and Autumn to join forces with us.”
“Not without me.” There was no way I was letting her go unprotected.
“My mother said I needed to deliver the envelopes.” Wren avoided my eye. “She didn’t say anything else.”
“She said I needed to stay with you.” Technically she hadn’t. The queen had told me to go with her, but she hadn’t mentioned staying. That didn’t mean I wouldn’t.
“Surely they can stay here for a few days. We can plan. We can train.” Lacey put an army around Wren. “Right, Father?”
“I can’t in good conscience send them out in this weather anyway.” The king rested his chin in his hand. “They may be used to winter, but these are not winter storms.”
“No. They are summer storms.” Wren sighed. “There is no need to pretend. We all know that’s the truth.”
“That is an accusation you must be careful with.” The king frowned at her. “Haven’t we been discussing the importance of the courts working together?”
“Yes.” Wren moistened her lips. “But that doesn’t mean Summer isn’t using magic. It may be to protect themselves because they don’t understand what’s going on.”
“That’s giving them more credit than I’d give them.”
Wren shrugged. “I’m trying to be fair, but I'm also trying to be reasonable.”
“You could go to Autumn first. Your mother’s instructions didn’t specify an order, did it?” The king’s voice was full of excitement. “My envelope said nothing of it.”
“True.” Wren seemed to consider his words. “The storms aren’t in that direction, but you’d have to give us access to take the back roads.” She’d said us. I sure hope she understood that would include me.
“You know you have access to anything you need.” The king pushed his chair back. “I do believe we have our solution.”
“Even though I have no authority here.” Wren pressed her lips together in a firm line. “I still have access to anything I need?”
The king rose to his feet. “You understand why I said what I said earlier. I won’t waste anyone’s time by trying to explain that.”
“Can’t we summon a representative from each court here?” Preston suggested. “Why not use Spring as the base? This is centrally located.”
The king rested his chin on his hand. “That’s an interesting idea, isn’t it?”
“It’s a splendid idea.” The bald council member nodded. “We are centrally located.”
Wren closed her eyes and then opened them. “You would need the approval of the other rulers, of course.”
“Yes. And someone would have to send word.” The king returned to his seat.
“But not necessarily Wren.” Lacey pointed out. “Someone else could do it.”
Lacey was worried. I studied her. She should be coming into her gift soon. Did she sense something coming? Was she protecting Wren?
“I agree.” I had to assume she knew something. And even if she didn’t, keeping Wren away from danger was always in the best interest.
“I have to disagree.” A previously quiet council member spoke up. “Using our court as the center paints a target on us. Why should we put ourselves at a greater risk than the other courts? How can we possibly explain it to our people?”
“I considered that, but we would also have greater reinforcements here. Think of all Esmeralda sent. If all courts sent an equivalent we would be the most protected.” The king’s eyes lit up.
“I still don't like it.” The second councilman frowned, his mustache sagging down like a dog’s drooping tail. “It’s dangerous. There are too many unknown factors.”
“What are the alternatives?” James spoke for the first time since his attempt at humor. “Either you make the base this court, or you have the base where? Isn’t that the real question? You have to set up a base somewhere.”
“One of the other courts would be an option, that is if they agree.” Wren leaned her head back and looked up at the ceiling. She was stressed. Really stressed. And I would have done just about anything to alleviate some of that stress for her.
“Or we could create one in the Outerlands,” Lacey added. “But we’d be starting from nothing there. With no resources.”
“Can you truly make this decision?” I asked. “Don’t you need all four courts to agree on the base?” I wasn’t an expert on Court law, but I assumed that was the case.
The king looked me up and down. “As discussed we would need to send word.”
“Which brings us back to whether Wren should go.” Preston crossed one leg over the other.
I scowled at him.
“What?” Preston flipped his hand over, palm up. “That was her assignment after all.”
“Yes, but that doesn’t mean she should be putting herself at risk.”
“Yet my mother told me to deliver the envelopes.” Wren looked down at her hands. “That means I need to do it myself.” She nodded, and I knew she’d made up her mind.
“Then I’m coming.” If she’d made up her mind, then I would too.
“Even though they need you here?” Wren peeked over at me.
“That can wait.” Anything would have to wait.
“Can it?” Wren asked. “Can Frost and I have a few moments, please?” Wren stood. “We won’t be long.”
“Of course.” The king made a shooing motion with his hand. “Take all the time you need.”
“But not too much.” James winked. “There is a war brewing after all.”
“And you claim you have a fiancée?” Wren wrinkled her nose. “How on earth did you convince her to marry you?”
James grinned. “I suppose she could still back out now, but I’m feeling optimistic about my matrimonial chances. And to answer your question, I think it was my sparkling good looks that did the trick.”
“Oh yeah?” Wren put a hand on her hip. “That confident in them?”
He cocked his head to the side. “Do you doubt I should be?”
“Ok. That’s enough. Talk about wasting time. Let’s talk, Wren.” I hated letting my annoyance get to me, but James was being ridiculous. If he was engaged, why was he flirting with her?
“Don’t worry, lover wolf. I’m taken. I’m merely giving Wren here a hard time.” His gaze met mine. “Remember what we discussed. No need to be intimidated by me.”
“I’m not intimidated.” I felt a growl rise in my throat. But I was getting annoyed. Very, very annoyed.
“Ready?” Wren put a hand on my shoulder.
“Yes.” I was always ready when Wren needed me.
We walked out into the hall and away from the door enough that there was a chance we wouldn’t be heard.
“I can do this, Frost.” She put her hands on my shoulders. “I know you want to protect me, but I can handle this.”
“It’s my job to protect you.” A job I took seriously even if I’d been reckless by acting on my attraction to her more than once now.
“No.” She shook her head. “It’s your job to protect the court.”
“I can’t protect the court if I don’t protect you.”
She smiled. “Frost, this isn’t about what you are sworn to do, and you know it.”
“So?” There was no sense denying it. She knew exactly what I felt about her. “Does it make it less important?”
“Yes. Yes, it does. Or maybe it doesn’t change the importance, but it does change something. And I get why you stopped earlier.”
“This isn’t about that. You heard Lacey…”
“Lacey is going to worry about me. She’s a close friend.” She squeezed my shoulders. “Like you.”
Like me? Was she seriously going to pretend my feelings for her were only friendship? After what had happened outside? I brushed my hurt ego aside. We had no time for that. “She’s also King Leon’s daughter. You know she is probably coming into her gift.”
“And even if that’s true?” Wren released my shoulders. “What am I to do? I am on orders from my mother.”
“Your mother led me to believe this was about finding you a mate.”
“And the fact that you went along with it anyway…” Wren shook her head. “Sorry, I know why you did.”
“But why lie?” That’s the part I hadn’t figured out. Queen Esmeralda always had a reason for her action, and I was positive that this was no different. “Do we know for sure King Leon is even telling the truth?”
“You think he’s lying about the message?” She looked over her shoulder.
The hall was still empty, but that didn’t mean no one was listening. “Not necessarily, I just don’t like this.”
“Because you’re worried about me.”
“I don’t like any of this.” Not in the slightest. “I want proof. I mean who even is that James guy? How do we know he’s really from Energo?”
“Why would he be lying?” She flipped her hair off her shoulder. “And this is entirely too weird. Usually I’m the skeptical one and you are trying to keep my conspiracy theories at bay.”
“You mean to tell me you feel perfectly at ease about all this?” I called her bluff because I knew it was a bluff. There was no way Wren was taking all of this at face value.
“Perfectly at ease? When have I felt perfectly at ease in my life?” She laughed dryly. “Ok, that’s not true. I’ve felt perfectly at ease with you. I’m worried too. I have questions that need to be answered. But I have to trust my mother in all this. If I can’t trust her…”
She leaned in. “Lacey didn’t tell me about her mom when I was here before. She said she wasn’t allowed to, but why not? I mean it’s me. If we are so on the same page, why make her keep that from me? It’s strange, and I’ve learned not to ignore those feelings.”
“No. You shouldn’t ever ignore your feelings or those alarms you get. You know that may be part of your gift.”
“I know,” she breathed. “Boy, it would be convenient to have my gift fully come in now.”
“There’s a lot of things that would be convenient.” I took her hand in mine. Her hand felt colder than normal. “Promise me you’re not going to do anything too reckless.”
“Too reckless?” She laughed. “As opposed to a little bit reckless? Don’t worry, I’m being careful.”
“I know you well enough to know you can’t promise to be safe. That’s not how you work.” I squeezed her hand. “And either way, I’m coming with you.”
She brushed her lips against my ear. “I’m not going to Autumn Court.”
“Energo.” That had to have been what she meant. I copied her actions, and spoke against her ear as well. “Not alone.”
“You know I want you to come,” she continued to whisper. I knew she was doing it so we weren’t overhead, but it was impossible to ignore the shiver that ran through me with her proximity and the touch of her lips on me.
“How are we going to get there?” I asked.
“I’m sure our new friend will help.”
“You really want to trust James?” I didn’t want to come across as questioning her, she was my future queen after all, but trust wasn’t something I gave away easily.
“At some point we are going to have to start trusting others enough to get the information we need.”
“We take Preston too.” I wasn’t asking. I had to let her take charge, but I couldn’t leave my brother behind when I knew they had designs to use him. I also knew quite well King Leon viewed him as expendable.
“Of course. You think I’m going to leave him in danger?” Her eyes widened. “Do you really think that little of me?”
“No. I know you won’t.” I continued to whisper against her ear whether I needed to or not. “So what is the plan? I’m sure you have one.”
“Of course I have one.” She winked. “When have I ever not?”
“Plenty of times.” I grinned. Despite everything I couldn’t resist the urge to tease Wren. “But you always still manage to land on your feet.”
“Like a cat.” She smiled. I would never get enough of that smile.
“All right. Go work your magic. You know I’d follow your lead no matter where it takes us.”