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She smiles at us, probably trying to be welcoming. Between her bow lips, I can see her sharp fangs. I really don’t know what to make of her. What I’m supposed to do with this. Can I really trust those warm eyes and that smile? Even if she was fae, can I trust that her allegiances haven’t switched, that she hasn’t become more bloodthirsty, since her transformation?
The king, next to her, is tall and intimidating. He’s got rough features, not what one would call typically handsome, but there’s something captivating about his face. He’s got wild, shaggy brown hair and scruff, with a square jaw and thick eyebrows. Not at all what I’d expect from a king. He looks a bit too wild, too rough. I was thinking of someone more polished. Especially a vampire, since most vampires value that polish and shine, they want to look like they’re so much superior to everyone else.
Both are dressed in fine robes, in matching shades of blue. They have the insignia of their people on their shoulders, just like the guards do, nothing too large or overwhelming. I kind of like that. It means they don’t feel they have to scream their family crest or identity out to the world.
I’m grasping at straws for a silver lining, but it’s all I have right now.
I have no idea who the two men on either side of the rulers are. The one on the side by the king looks like a damn rock star. He doesn’t fit in here at all. He’s got several piercings and shaggy black hair, and I can see tattoos peeking out from under his casual, dark, ripped clothes. He’s not wearing a guard uniform, and he’s not dressed in anything official that might denote him as an advisor. Who the hell is this guy?
As we approach, he grins at all of us. Not in a predatory way, more easygoing, like he’s entertained. Cain glares at him. Maybe this guy is trying to make friends with us and set us at ease, but frankly his smile just disconcerts me more than if he’d stayed serious.
The man standing on the queen’s side seems to be more focused on the gravity of what’s happening. He’s the shortest of the men, with slightly wavy dark blond hair. His eyes make me freeze. I’ve never seen anything like them. They’re green, bright green, and his pupils arewhite.
What the fuck.
He’s wearing what seems to be a more personalized, nicer version of the guards’ uniforms, standing at parade rest with his hands resting behind his back. He stares straight ahead, like he doesn’t even see us, but I can see his ears twitching, and I know that he’s aware of our presence. Is he a personal guard to the queen?
His eyes are damn disconcerting. But it’s oddly comforting as well to see that there’s someone here who takes this whole matter seriously.
“What is this?” King Malcolm asks.
The guards bow. “Your majesty, these people seek an audience. Given who they have with them, we felt it appropriate.”
The queen stands, staring down at us curiously. “I appreciate the risk you’ve taken in coming here,” she tells us with a warm, kind voice.
I can see the three men beside me staring in surprise at the warm welcome.
“Thank you for trusting us,” the queen continues. “I’m Willow. Please, relax.”
I don’t think it’s possible for us to relax, no offense, but I don’t say that out loud.
“What do you mean by bringing one of our own in chains like this?” King Malcolm asks. He doesn’t sound unreasonable, but he’s still firm.
“They’re ropes,” Cain says. “Technically.”
The guy standing by Malcolm smirks and glances over at Malcolm, as if to see if the king’s amused.
Malcolm cuts his eyes over to the man, but he doesn’t smile or relax before looking back at Cain. “Are you here just to snark with me about semantics?”
“I would never,” Cain replies.
North elbows him. “Your majesty, we’re here to deliver a threat to your power.”
All four pairs of vampiric eyes snap to North.
A sense of protectiveness comes over me, and I step forward before I can second-guess myself.
“O’Shae here has been running a criminal enterprise in New York City for years,” I explain. My mouth is incredibly dry, but I keep going. “I’ll be honest with you, your majesty. Under your father I wouldn’t have thought anything of it. I would have assumed that he had the king’s permission or at least that the king had decided to look the other way about it.
“But I’ve heard different things about you. Better things. And I don’t think that you would condone this criminal behavior, if the things I heard about you are true.” I take a deep breath. “And then I found myself in his headquarters, unfortunately, and I saw that he had styled it like a castle, with a throne room and everything.
“My mates and I realized that he was probably trying to usurp you, and we thought we should let you know. We don’t want a dangerous vampire like him in our city. The fae have been pushed to the brink of extinction already. We figured, if the rumors about your changes and your wife were true, it would be worth bringing this man in to you so that he could see justice.”
It’s the first time that I’ve publicly called these three men my mates, and I can feel their happiness at hearing me state it so casually.
“The fact that you chanced bringing him in instead of taking matters into your own hands speaks well for you,” the blond man by the queen states.
Huh. Not a bodyguard then, I doubt a simple guard would feel he had the right to speak up for his superiors.
