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He laughed. “Camille, you forget your social science studies. The Dahns Unicorns are extremely harsh on rule breakers. Thieves, brawlers, all the petty assaults are harshly punished. It’s far worse for murderers and rapists, of course, but crime simply doesn’t pay here. It’s not worth the risk of getting caught. King Upala-Dahns is reputed to be a severe leader. He keeps a tight rein on his people, if you’ll forgive the pun.”
Oh great, and I was scheduled to have a nice long chat with him. I just hoped Feddrah-Dahns would be there. I liked Feddrah-Dahns. Feddrah-Dahns liked me. He knew what to expect out of me. But first . . . before facing the unicorn king, I wanted more than anything to see Trillian. Although, while I wouldn’t admit it to anybody, I was a little worried about what he would say once he found out I was married. To Dragon Dude and Fox Boy, as he’d put it.
But beyond the worry over my love life, I couldn’t help but wonder how Trillian’s months caught up in the war had affected him. Would he be suffering from some post-traumatic stress disorder? Had he been in active combat all this time? Or hiding, spying his way through the months? I still had no idea what he’d been doing for Tanaquar.
Trillian was not an easy man. He could just as soon slit a throat as kiss it, but when he was devoted to someone, his loyalty came with the promise of his life, should need be. I loved that he was blunt, that he was direct, refusing to pussyfoot around. He didn’t like women who shied away, who refused to stand up for themselves and be who they were.
Morio leaned over and whispered in my ear. “Are you all right? I can smell you. You’re aroused and yet . . . there’s fear on your scent.”
I shook my head. I didn’t want to talk about my concerns over Trillian in front of my father. He’d only snipe against my lover. As caring and fair as Father could be, he wore his prejudices like a cop wears his gun—as a warning to keep away. The fact that he’d apologized to Menolly for pushing her away when she was turned into a vampire still amazed me. And she had confided in me that she wasn’t sure he fully meant it.
“I’m fine,” I whispered back. “I’ll tell you later.”
Morio lowered his voice even more. “Trillian?”
I nodded.
“As you wish. We’ll talk later.” Morio wrapped his arm around my shoulders.
Iris glanced at us, a wash of worry beneath her smile. She caught my gaze and shrugged, shaking her head with a “what can you do” look in her eyes.
“How far to the palace?” She adjusted her skirt and slid her hand in the pocket, pulling out a box of Milk Duds. I held out my hand, putting on a sad-puppy face. Morio did the same. “Oh for heaven’s sake, you two are hopeless. Here, you may have a few but next time bring your own snacks.”
Father looked at the box. “What are those?”
“Candy,” I said.
“Your mother used to love chocolate, but I never understood why,” he said, shaking his head when Iris offered him some. “Thank you, Lady Iris, but no, I’m not fond of sweets.”
I popped one of the chocolate caramel drops in my mouth and chewed. “I never understood that about you. Though Delilah’s more of a sweet freak than I am. Oh, Morio managed to find a way to flavor the blood Menolly buys to drink while she’s hanging out at home—he can enchant it to other flavors now.” I watched Father’s face, wondering what he would say.
A shadow passed across him, but then he smiled. “I’m glad she has some comfort. There’s so little we can give to her, with all that’s happened. After you told me what she’d been through, I spent some time in penance for treating her as harshly as I had. I have a surprise for her, but it’s in the making and I don’t trust you to keep a secret.”
When I started to protest, he held up his hand. “I love you, my dear, but you and your sisters always did share secrets. Your mother and I couldn’t tell any of you something without the others knowing before we’d turned our backs.”
Laughing, I swallowed the candy and peeked out the window as we entered the gate to the inner courtyard of the palace. “That doesn’t look like any palace I’ve ever seen.”
King Upala-Dahns had a court fit for a unicorn king. Or a horse. Situated within a series of sprawling gardens, the entire court was surrounded by a series of golden canopies to shelter against the rain. Heavy ivory panels hung from the canopies and formed the roofs. Embroidered with golden silk, they were held back by burgundy sashes, ready to close when the storms arrived. The palace looked mobile, as if it could be packed and moved within hours. Like the hospital on M*A*S*H, I thought. Only much nicer.
The inner court was surrounded by a wall, with permanent dwellings within for all the two-legged courtiers.
The carriage pulled to a stop and we made sure we looked presentable while waiting for the coachman to open the door. But when the door swung wide, the face staring up at me was not that of the driver. Instead, his skin gleaming jet in the shimmer of the overcast skies, his hair as silver as the dagger attached to my thigh, with hints of cerulean flowing through the long strands, his eyes as blue as the ocean herself . . . there stood my Trillian.
CHAPTER 12
“Trillian!” I flew out of the carriage, landing hard in his arms as I covered him with kisses.
He held me tight, then pushed me back a moment, cupping my face in his hands. His eyes were cool, but behind that cold arrogance I knew so well lurked a whisper of ghosts, a skittering that told me he was haunted by something. Whatever it was had to have happened in the past six months since he’d disappeared, because it had never been present before.
“Camille, my Camille.” His voice was steady, but then he pulled me to him and his lips were fastened on mine, and I burned with the fire his touch always set off in me. Trillian, not my first lover, but my first love. Trillian, my first heartbreak. Soul-bound as I was with Morio and Smoky, I’d long before given myself over to this man in a ritual older than the Elfin Queen herself. No matter what else happened, he was my alpha.
I pressed against him, aching to drag him to the ground right there, to feel him in me again, to know for sure that he was safe and back with me. His fingers slid along my back, the gleaming jet of his skin glowing under the morning light. He’d always been trim and muscled, but now I could tell that he’d buffed up as my hands roamed his body, and the sexual tension that had been present between us since the first day we met kicked itself into high gear.
Panting raggedly, I pulled away as Father joined us. He sighed.
As I gazed into Trillian’s eyes, they took on a gleam of victory, and the edge of his lip quirked into a sardonic smile as he inclined his head in a polite nod.
“Advisor Sephreh, how good to see you again,” he said, his arm snaking around my waist as he pulled me close to him.
