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Not glowing terms, but I’ll take what I can get.
“We have an accord.”
She pushes to her feet, stalking back the way she came, muttering the whole way. Maddox peers out from his hiding place near the back of the chamber. His skin is golden in his human form, an inverse to mine, signaling his pack’s origins. He lives further north than Ransom or I, and is paler as a result. Though we’re distant cousins, we look nothing alike. Ransom is caught somewhere between us, a color akin to Fantasia’s twilight, an uncertain shade of blue-gray with white-gold markings. I hear he’s handsome, though I’ve never had cause to think of him that way.
“That went better than I expected,” Maddox remarks once she’s gone. “I thought she’d hit you first. I told you it was a bad idea. She’ll be in for a shock when she realizes what you really meant to do.”
“No one will inform her of that,” I say, giving him a pointed glance. “Or else.”
He raises his hands in a gesture of easy surrender. “Of course, my liege, but it’s not like that will backfire spectacularly or anything.”
I growl at him. He’s too mouthy for his own good, the only one who gives me even a little pushback these days. I appreciate it most times, but not now.
“It’s an order, Maddox. Do your duty. Retrieve Ransom from wherever he is. We leave at dusk.”
“Of course, sire,” he says, giving me a mocking bow from the waist.
Then he’s gone, leaving me alone with a growing sense of doubt and the sick feeling I’ve irrevocably hurt my cause stewing in my gut.
CHAPTER SEVEN
MADDOX
“Is there a reason we’re standing at the mouth of the cave, instead of, you know,going outside?” Blaze asks, tone flip enough to make me smile.
Oddly, she’s standing elbow-to-elbow with me at the entrance, instead of further back with Ransom or Axion. The dislike radiating from her is palpable, an unpleasant bite to her otherwise pleasant scent. I’m the one who took her to the ground and forced her into unconsciousness, but she regards the others with more animosity than me.
Human females are baffling. I never can understand their ways, no matter how much I observe their behavior. That’s my job, after all. To travel, observe, and keep an eye onanything or anyonethat might affect our species as a whole. Not that I’ve been able to use that particular ability in some time.Everythinghere affects our people negatively, and I had to tune out my visions,lest I go utterly mad. My observation used to help me mediate disputes. Now Lycaon uses me to spy on enemy troop movements and report back to the generals to better form a counter-offensive. It will be a relief when I can resume my role. I loathe being the eyes for a warmongering group of bloodthirsty gods.
“Do you want the simple answer, or do you just want to snipe at us?” I ask. It isn’t an accusation, but genuine curiosity. One thing Ihavenoticed about females, regardless of species is that they don’t always want a male to fix things. They want someone to listen to their complaints instead, it seems.
Blaze shoots me an oblique look, her full lips turning down into a frown. She’s considering me as if weighing whether or not she should be offended by the question. After a moment, she shrugs and lets out a gusty sigh.
“I want the answer, I suppose. I’m really tired of being treated like a fool.”
She casts a dirty look over her shoulder at the pair behind us. King Axion meets her gaze solidly, not betraying the guilt I know he feels for our deception. It’s his way, proud hound that he is. I expect the stars will burn out before he admits he’s deeply in the wrong. Ransom recoils from her glower like it’s a gout of her flame and it could actually burn him. I want to defend him, but think better of it. One of us has to be on good terms with Blaze, and she’s chosen me, for some reason I still don’t understand. It isn’t entirely Ransom’s fault. Axion has the final say, and before Lycaon, his word was law.
“We are waiting,” I say with a faint smile.
Blaze makes a small, growling sound in the back of her throat. It’s endearing, and my smile broadens.
“I can see that,” she snaps. “Waiting for what?”
“A conjunction, and no I am not speaking about your odd human language. That was difficult enough to learn.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Do you know what a conjunction means inmagicalterms?”
Some of Blaze’s fury dribbles away as she considers my words. Her eyes shift out of focus, trying to fish the answer from her mind. Axion and Ransom seem disturbed by those eyes, convinced they can pretend she’s one of us if not for the human shape and color. Personally, I like them. They’re as cool and deep as water, and just as fathomless. Blaze rubs her shoulder, grimacing as if it pains her before she answers.
“A conjunction is a celestial event, if I’m remembering correctly.”
I nod. “Go on.”
“Like a pair of planets or a cluster of stars all aligning correctly to foretell an event.”
“How do you know that?” I’m impressed.
