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It’s not an insult, but it still stings.
“What do I do?” I ask quietly.
He shakes his head sadly, his eyes distant. “I don’t know.”
Before I can say anything, Taln picks up his head to look behind me. I did notice footsteps approaching us, but I was too absorbed in the conversation to really process it, and it doesn’t matter, anyway.
Nereus has always come and gone as he pleased, and some things never change. It doesn’t matter what ship we’re on–where it’s from, what it’s made of. He’s the Merati prince, and we have been his guards for years.
“You don’t have to know,” Nereus says softly.
It’s strange to see him like this. I can tell that he’s concerned; he obviously has a lot on his mind with what Fiona is trying to do on Homeworld.
But Nereus has always been smart. He pays attention. It was easy not to see it before Fiona came onboard; he was intemperate and childish, so his keen observations were dampened by his sour moods and his rude behavior. But now that he’s softened, I realize that the prince of the Merati has always been paying close attention.
And that, perhaps, part of the reason he was so intractable before had more to do with fear than entitlement.
“What do you mean?” Taln asks.
It’s strange; ever since Fiona came into our lives, they’ve gotten more friendly. As our duty has shifted from him to her, Taln seems to have more patience for Nereus’ idiosyncrasies, and Nereus is far more thoughtful than he used to be.
I don’t know if that’s because of the pilot or the princess, but clearly, the humans are having some sort of effect on him.
“I mean what I said,” Nereus says, walking lightly on his feet toward us. “Trust me, if anyone has learned this, it’s me. Fiona doesn’t need what you think she needs. She just needs…”
“What?”
“She just needs you both to stay alive,” he says, his gaze flitting over us. “When she’s queen of Homeworld, she’s going to need good people leading the Royal Guard. You two are…you’ve kept me alive thus far.”
“You haven’t made it easy,” Taln quips.
I fist my hands at my side, but something in my brother’s attitude changes. It’s miniscule. I don’t know what it is.
But if he can feel better when he’s just listening to the prince talk, then maybe Nereus is right. Maybe everything will be okay.
We just need to make sure that we stay alive.
For her. For our queen.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
FIONA
I don’t know what I’m feeling when we leave the meeting with Xanthos, but it makes me walk faster, my heart still pounding. Even as we join the milling crowds in the marketplace once again, I can’t get our meeting with the creepy alien out of my head. Seeing the fear on the Borean’s face—the face of a mancenturiesolder than me—was…
Well, it was exhilarating.
We cut into the marketplace, Orion at my elbow and watching the surrounding people like a hawk. I keep my hand on the blade at my hip, ready to slash at anyone who might attack. I should feel unsafe, but I don’t—I’ve been through too much to even worry about those things anymore.
“I love watching you work,” Orion murmurs, his growling voice like claws trailing deliciously down my spine. “Xanthos was thoroughly intimidated.”
“Hard not to be when the winner of the Wild Hunt has his claws on your throat,” I say with a shrug. “Been there.”
“No—he was afraid of you,” Orion says. “I didn’t say a word; I’m just your weapon.”
I really need to stop with these power trips, but knowing I have one of the most dangerous men in the galaxy letting me use him like a tool strokes my ego in averybig way.
“We’ll see if it works as a negotiation tactic,” I say, trying to ignore how his words make me feel. “Nereus wouldn’t have approved.”
