Khristian quickly tested the adaptor’s stone too, and when his wand confirmed thatthreerhifilyte jewels were in his midst, he drew himself up, his nostrils flaring as indignation rose in his aura. “But this truly makes no sense. The mine hasn’t produced any more rhifilytegems since that rare explosion a few months ago. And rhifilyte gems are considered dangerous by many. Nobody would ever sell them, especially not to your fae, so this couldn’t have come from us.”
“Can these gems be created anywhere else in the realm?” Lander asked, crossing his arms. His brown skin shone in the sunlight, his complexion looking even richer against the snowy backdrop.
“Well . . . not that I’m aware of,” the archon replied.
“Then isn’t it fair to say both of these gemsdidcome from this mine?” Lander pushed. “Even if you can’t explain how?”
Before the archon could respond, I said, “Can I ask something? You mentioned that a few months ago, two buckets of this jewel were created here. How many pieces of jewelry could be forged from that amount of this gem?”
Still appearing flustered by Lander’s comments, Archon Severell raised his chin. “I daresay thousands, perhaps ten thousand? But like I said, we carefully stowed that production away. None of those stones have been crafted into jewelry or have left our storage facility.”
“Are you sure?” Jax asked. “When was the last time anyone officially confirmed they were still under lock and key?”
The archon’s chest puffed up again. “What are you implying?”
“We’re not implying anything.” I dropped my tone into a less challenging one. “We’re truly just trying to figure out how these gems came to be on our continent and who forged them. All we know for certain is that the forger is a Solis female.”
Khristian’s eyes narrowed. “How do you know that?”
“The semelees told me.”
“Semelees? Who are they?”
“They’re all-knowing creatures that reside in the Veiled Between. I’m a lorafin. I’m able to communicate with them.”
The archon looked my frame up and down, and another low growl came from Jax. Drawing himself up once more, the archon stated, “Well, I know nothing about semelees, but never mind all that. Whatever the case, I can assure you all rhifilyte gems mined from here are indeed locked away. We’ve had no thefts.”
“That you know of...” Trivan muttered under his breath.
The archon’s nostrils flared. “But seeing as how two of these gems are currently placed on the both of you, and one being in that device, I will have to begin an inquiry as to how they’ve come to reside on your continent.”
Trivan snickered. “Please do. That would save all of us a lot of trouble.”
Jax gave Trivan a side-eye and addressed the archon again. “Is there anybody you know who’s capable of acquiring these gems and turning them into jewelry?”
The archon’s wings ruffled anew. “Of course, Hartivul Mine has many employees on staff who do just that. Our forgers are paid to craft our gems into jewelry, among other things, and they are the only ones on the continent with the specific training required to do so, but none of our employees would dothis.”
Jax inhaled, and his annoyance strummed to me along our bond. I stepped closer to him and wrapped my hand through his.
“Would you be so kind as to give us a list of the fae employed by your mine who are capable of creating jewelry such as what me and this male are wearing?” I asked the archon.
Khristian gazed down his nose at me. “That is confidential information.”
“Even if that request comes fromme?” The mask of the crown prince descended over Jax’s face.
Khristian sputtered. “This is highly irregular. We normally do not share any information like that, even with outside royals.”
But Jax’s lips only thinned more. “I believe the Solis royal family will be quite displeased to hear that you’ve defied my wishes.”
For the second time since meeting him, the archon’s haughty expression faltered, but just as fast, he squared his shoulders. “Even so, it is quite unusual to reveal such privileged information.”
Jax stepped closer to him, and my mate’s blazing blue eyes turned into chips of ice. “And it is also quiteunusualfor fae I care for to have been subjected to the potent power of the gems locked around their limbs. I’m sure you can appreciate our need for such information. The sooner these devices are removed, the better, and according to the semelees, the only one who can remove that male’s anklet is the forger.” Jax pointed at Bastian.
The archon scowled. “But?—”
“I’m also more than happy to return these gems to your mine as soon as we accomplish that task,” Jax added. “We would like to be rid of them as assuredly as you would like to reclaim them.”
The second Jax revealed that he would surrender the gems to the Solis continent, the archon’s face brightened, and a small smile played upon his lips. “Ah, in that case, of course, my prince. I’m very pleased to hear that you endeavor to do the right thing and return these gems to their rightful owners.”
