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Kalen nodded. “I wouldn’t say no even though Nemyr neglected to mention any such deal to me.” A faint scowl crossed his face as he brushed back a strand of silvery hair. “When you make that sort of agreement, you should probably tell your family.”
“He probably thought it would never be needed,” said Rhys.
“True. Or…Can we have a moment?” The lord nodded and slipped out. Kalen’s eyes pierced Oriel’s as he spoke. “Is she lying?”
“What? No. Why would she lie about anything?”
“Why would you agree if you thought it was a lie?” Roth cocked an ear.
“Did you promise her a part of your Kingdom?” Kalen asked Oriel.
He shook his head. “No. I can’t technically promise her something I don’t have yet.”
“The wording of her first letter was a bit strange.” Kalen leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. “She wrote that you were a slave in Meadow Kingdom, and the only living member from what she heard. She wanted our help to go to war if King Taven refused to release you for a sum. She mentioned giving us a mine if we aided her and won. Our family debt would be paid, but a gold mine would be an extra reward as a thank you. It’s a bit strange since if you were saved, you’re the heir. Like you said, you can't promise or give away what's not yours.”
Oriel tilted his head. “That sounds like she was trying to sweeten things, and besides, in her mind, there’s a very good chance that I was already dead or would end up dead. He wouldn’t have released me, and with an invasion, my life would have been on the line. I think she would have taken that latter risk, and quite frankly, I’d rather have been killed than to spend my life as a slave to some bastard. I got lucky with Roth. If you had rescued me, I would’ve been happy to give you a mine, and I think she knows that. If I was dead, but King Taven was defeated, West Bay would be hers. She could do as she pleased.”
“Hmm. Alright. I can see that,” said Kalen, and Rhys nodded. “We don’t need the mine.”
“It’s no trouble,” said Oriel. “I’d say that’s a small price for helping me get my Kingdom back and taking Meadow. If we win, West Bay will double in size, my family will be avenged, and I’d have revenge for other things. I can guarantee Roth’s safety at my side once I’m King. Aspen too, and he’d have a home with me. That’s worth more than gold to me.”
‘Still, we don’t need it. Our Kingdom has plenty of resources.” Kalen tapped the quill on the desk. “She said she’d send ships to wait?”
“Yes. She figured you’d say yes.”
“The men are on their way already, and we have ships,” said Kalen. “Not like your cousin, of course. We’re not a seafaring Kingdom, but my Father made sure we had some just in case. I think we can manage thanks to his foresight. The Eden River goes to West Bay.”
They were getting closer to their goal with every passing day.
It took a lot of planning, and some soldiers were still traveling that way. Despite Rhys’s human life before, he seemed to have taken to the fairy world and ruling quite well, and he helped with all of the final plans to get the army organized and to West Bay.
“He’s trained me a lot,” Rhys told them five nights later as they sat in a sitting room downstairs. The lord had gone to bed since they’d be leaving in the morning. “I already knew how to fight with a sword, but once I got my powers, I had sword and archery lessons along with learning to control my magic, and he didn’t let me slack off. He really knows how to crack the whip.”
Kalen let out a snort from over by the sideboard. Oriel had a feeling there was some sort of inside joke, or maybe they were into whips in the bedroom. Who knew? Kalen was an abundant male, although he and his husband hadn’t had a child yet. So far, the heir was a cousin and the son of the traitorous Uncle that tried to murder Kalen as a child.
“Is your cousin coming?” Oriel asked as Kalen handed his husband a glass of juice and sat next to him.
“He’s not a fighter,” said Kalen.
“Oh.”
“I wanted to ask you something,” said Kalen. “Is there anyone in particular you want dead?”
Oriel tilted his head, and the reply came out sharper than he intended. “I want King Taven dead. I think that’s obvious.”
Kalen’s tail, which was white and like that of a short-haired cat, lazily twitched as it hung off the cushion. “I know, but is there anybody else? Someone specific that we should try to take alive or kill?”
Oriel shrugged. “I don’t have names.” Roth wasn’t sure which lord had ordered Aspen’s torture since he didn't know every higher-up in Meadow, and Oriel described the one with orange eyes. “He’s one that I would prefer to personally kill. There’s also a common soldier with a scar like this." Oriel ran a finger up his face. “Aspen told me that before we left. The one in my room-if I saw him, I’d recognize him, but he was so average, and he could be anyone to you. I’m not good at describing faces anyway.”
“Whatever prisoners are taken will be gathered for you to look at,” said Kalen. “There are things a fairy shouldn’t do to another fairy.”
Like making his nephew learn to love? Oriel didn’t dare ask, but considering Kalen’s disgust for his Uncle which showed when he was mentioned, Oriel had a feeling the dislike ran deeper than tampering with a grave.
Oriel had a feeling being locked up had led to dreadful things for Kalen. The bit about learning to love had been a pile of bullshit to hide something else.
At least he had Rhys now. His icy eyes always softened when he looked at his husband, Rhys seemed to adore him.
“I can’t wait to marry you,” Oriel told Roth as they went upstairs. “If Aspen says yes, we’ll have three Kings.” Roth paused, and that instantly made fear spike in Oriel’s gut. “You said you’d stay.”
