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“Icicle berries,” I fill in, picturing the deep purple oblong fruit depicted in one of the books in the study.
He raises his eyebrows, and I turn back to Odger.
“But a glazed snowbird sounds delightful as well.”
He nods, but the disappointment is evident in his lack of response.
The king’s knee presses against my own, sending every neuron in my body on alert. He is thanking me, I realize, having discerned Odger’s motives as well as I did.
And it may not be much, but that simple gesture feels like a victory.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Einar shows up for breakfast the next morning as though he does so every day. Only this time, he comes through the front door.
I’m not expecting him, so I’m in the middle of teaching Khijhana to pick an object hidden in a cup. Her brilliant eyes follow the three upside-down cups with interest as I rotate them around on the table.
After a moment, I space them evenly apart and back up. She looks at me, then the cups, before nudging the one on the far right with her nose. It clatters over, revealing the feathered toy I have hidden inside.
“Good job, Khijha,” I praise her, scratching the fur under her neck as she purrs in delight, while we wait for the king to make his purpose in being here known.
I don’t have to wait long. He strides across the room until he is a respectable distance away before speaking.
“I’m glad I found you,” he begins, but his tone is too polite for me to take him at his words just yet. “I have good news for you.”
“Oh?” I ask, suspicion overtaking me.
“Yes. I thought you might be pleased to know that Sigrid has found a willing owner for the chalyx.” He nods at Khijhana, and something between fury and panic seizes my chest.
Then, I catch the teasing glint in his eyes and realize I am giving him the exact reaction he wants even before he speaks again.
“You know, since pets are frivolous and all...” He leaves his sentence dangling like a question.
I feign a yawn instead of taking his bait.
“Khijhana wouldn’t like that, I’m afraid. She’s grown accustomed to my presence, whetherIwish it or not. Besides, from what I’ve learned about the beasts, they can be rather temperamental when they don’t get their way,” I say in as nonchalant a tone as I can muster.
He cracks a small grin.
“Indeed. Well, I wouldn’t want to enrage any temperamental creatures.” His gaze lingers pointedly on me before sliding over to Khijha. “So, if you’re certain it’s not too much of a sacrifice, I’ll have Sigrid let the person know it’s not necessary.”
“Very well,” I reply, even though we both know there is no ‘person’. “Did you come all the way here just to tell me that?”
“No.” He stands up a little straighter and clears his throat but doesn’t say anything else.
“Then, to what do I owe this rare delight?” I prompt him, smiling to show him I am teasing. Somewhat.
“Last night, at dinner.” He peers at me like I’m a riddle he can’t quite solve. “You covered for me.”
“I did,” I confirm without offering an explanation.
“You could have let Lord Odger undermine me.”
“I could have,” I agree, mostly to annoy him.
It works.
“Why would you do that?” he finally asks outright.
