AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Don’t look away from the thrones,” Thorn warned. “You wanted to come here. You play by the rules. Keep your eyes on the thrones until you sit down, then you can search for Gaia. She’s not here though.”
“How do you know?”
“She’d be on her throne.”
I only saw seven for the fae kings, but as we descended the stairs, two more came into view. Where the kings’ thrones were black, ours were white as the moon and faced the other way, as if the kings were our opponents.
Vivid green grass wet our feet where the thrones faced the chess table. It was three times as large as any board I’d seen before, and two men sat around it now. King Brock was one of them. The other kings—Vern, Leonard, and Arden—watched on.
One seat open for Bastian. One for Thorn. And one for the missing king.
“I may regret this,” Thorn muttered. He squared his shoulders and ignored each of the kings’ penetrating stares as he followed me to the white thrones. When I sat down, he stood at my left as if a servant.
I fanned out my skirts. “What is your plan here?” I asked, already scouring the seats for Gaia, though I knew she wouldn’t be there. Hints of her could remain—in a whisper or in a glance, or in the ripple of whatever she’d done here.
“You can’t form an alliance, but I’m aiming for a tight friendship.” Thorn said. “And it never hurts to be in the company of a fine woman.”
“See if you can find Gaia. That will earn my friendship.”
His eyes roved in search, but they went to the chess game more often than not. To Brock’s opponent’s credit, he lasted much longer against King Brock than I did. Humiliation still made me wince at how easily he’d taken me down. But this fae stood his own, tightening the corners of his mouth each time Brock made a move, then retaliating with a sense of victory in his smile. Then Brock would move again, and he’d frown. The process repeated over and over, with neither of them saying a word, until Brock moved a rook from behind a pawn to set up the trap.
Pride fluttered in me. I’d seen that coming. Not only could I have avoided it, but I saw a way the man could have won. It was a move Troi made on me.
“What did he lose?” I asked Thorn.
“Nothing,” he replied. “But he came asking for an increased budget for his crops, and now he won’t get it.”
My eyes widened. “That’s how such matters are decided?”
“When we’re in a good mood.”
“And when you’re not?”
Thorn gave an airy wave of his hand. “We string him up to a board, stand on the other end of the island, and fire an arrow. If it misses, he gets his request.”
I gaped at him. “That’s barbaric.”
“It’s entertaining.”
The man stood from the table and bowed. From the seats, the fae cheered and threw favors, their white handkerchiefs falling like diamonds from the sky. The man departed with his head held low, and I pitied him and those he represented who needed more crops.
That reminded me of something. I turned to Thorn. “I have a matter to discuss with you.”
He cocked his head, waiting.
“It’s for a friend. I need you to agree to the alliance with King Vern.” Across the yard, Vern leaned on an elbow, talking to King Leonard beside him.
Thorn scowled. “I don’t care for the man.”
“Neither do I,” I admitted. “But some of his people are reliant upon the crops your kingdom brings in, and without you, they’ll go hungry.”
“Would you say they are restless without it?” he asked, thoughtful.
“I’d guess not having food would make one irritable.”
He studied the ground, then looked up and nodded. “I’ll make an arrangement.”
Odette would be thrilled. And I’d help my friends after Talen had given his heart for me. It wasn’t a favor of the same magnitude, but it was something. Over at the table, Brock stood and offered the challenge of five hundred pounds of silver to anyone who could best him. All I pictured was Talen’s heart in his hands, at his mercy, likely to be crushed if the House of Delvers lost favor in Brock’s eyes.
