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The sound thatfollowed had everyone freezing for a moment. Reminiscent of a wheezing rustybuzzsaw. Shocked gazes zeroing in on Flagstaff, he was laughing.
The warm glow ofhope that stole through Kaleb was indescribable. For the first time he trulybelieved it would be possible to bring the most damaged both physically andmentally veterans back from the edge. “Geez, buddy, way not to have my back.Now, you head off with Pete. Extra jelly for everyone tonight for dessert. Andtomorrow, I’m thinking there might be a beach volleyball game on the TV for youand the guys to watch. What do you say, Aggy?”
Doctor Agl’spinched lips tightened even more so.
“A… ping pong… table…wouldn’t go… astray.” The words guttural, painfully low and slow, but Flagstaffmanaged to get them all out.
“Count on it. Beseeing you real soon.” Kaleb rounded on Agl, as Pete and Flagstaff joined theslow line of shuffling Conflict Demons and orderlies exiting the room. Thesmile on Kaleb’s face dropping away in an instant, a flicker of blue flameigniting in the pale depths of his eyes as he leaned over and spoke in a lowwhisper. “Make it happen, Aggy. If I don’t start seeing some positive changesaround here, I’ll make it my personal mission to annihilate your standing inthe medical community. You’d be lucky to get a job cleaning the morgue once I’mthrough with you. So let’s not go down that path, okay?” The smile was back onKaleb’s face. “Ping pong tables tomorrow, and I’m thinking maybe anex-Berserker/Valkyrie mixer come Christmas time.”
The shiver of…attraction that shot down Shaw’s spine when Kaleb dropped the dimple andthreatened the doctor came as a bit of a surprise. Damn, she’d had a suspicionthat constant smile was just one of the Demons many weapons, and now here hewas proving her right. It made her wonder, idly, just out of curiosity, if youwere to give Kaleb a sword, just how handily would he acquit himself? Shewouldn’t take a sucker’s bet, she was guessing he’d prove quite the expert.
Freyja help her,Kaleb was getting more attractive by the second. Smart. Manipulative.Potentially deadly. Thankfully he kept on talking, dismissing Doctor Agl inorder to focus on the five political advisors, who swooped forward, elbowingShaw out of the way as they vied for his attention. They were like a clutch ofchickens and Kaleb the only available food source. Talking at him. Over eachother. Disagreeing. Arguing. Complaining.
How he didn’texplode and annihilate the lot of them spoke to greater patience and maturitythan she would have guessed the Demon capable of… double damn him.
“Banquet?” SomehowKaleb managed to pluck out one meaningful word from the cacophony of words beingflung at him. “You hungry?” He asked Shaw, over the protests of his politicaladvisors.
Rule three ofbeing a Valkyrie, food always came first. You never knew when your next mealwould be. “I could eat.”
“No. No. YourMajesty, that wouldn’t be possible. Valkyries have been banned from our Realmby Royal Decree following the last… er, incident.”
“Woo-hoo,Stephanie. That’s my girl, making an impact wherever she goes.” Shaw crowed,thrusting a fist in the air.
“Yeah, but I’mKing, right? I can just unban them?”
“Er, yes… but no.To change the law, it would mean proposing a new law at the next grand meetingof elders and then it would need to be codified by the official law keepers,who are all extremely busy.”
“Yes, very busy. Iunderstand the wait time extends into months.” Vanessa, in a rare andsurprising show of support, backed up Kreyon.
“That sounds tooconvoluted and long winded. I know, let’s just declare Shaw my Consort. Thattrumps all other laws, right?” Kaleb grinned victoriously, clearly believinghe’d won the argument.
His statementhorrifying all five advisors who suddenly kicked up an even bigger fuss.
Shaw fistedKaleb’s white dress shirt, tugging him in close. “I’ve warned you about labels,and Consort sounds particularly demeaning.”
“No. No.” Kalebwhispered in reply. “There’s no defined role as such, it can be whatever youwhat it to be. But in the power structure of the Court, it does place you abovethis lot.”
That definitelyput things in a different light as she eyed the complaining advisors. “Cool.”
“But-”
“Your Majesty-”
“Tonight’s Banquetis being held so you can peruseappropriateprospective Royal Consortcandidates.”
“Hah, then that’sgoing to make the evening a little awkward and a lot more interesting, wouldn’tyou say?” Kaleb’s dimple was particularly prominent, his pale eyes twinklingwith anticipation.
Nodding inagreement, Shaw found herself matching him grin for grin. “Now I really can’twait to attend this shindig. Bring on the party.”
***
“What do youthink?”
“Food’s good.”Shaw finished the last of the melt in her mouth steak. Someone in the kitchenknew their way around a grill. “But the ambiance could use a little work.”
“You mean all thesobbing? Well, that’s kind of on you, isn’t it?” Kaleb grinned, sipping hiswhiskey, his gaze travelling over the large room. So many glaring baleful gazesmeeting his. All the parents and guardians of prospective candidates clearly…and perhaps rightfully, upset. While dotted around the lavishly decorated hallwas a large number of tearful, or, in most cases, outright sobbing prospectiveConsort candidates.
To think, if ithadn’t been for the Gxthian assassins, meeting Shaw and agreeing to helpcomplete her to-do list, Kaleb would have ducked out of this Royal engagement,just like he did every other one he was invited to. Missing out on all thisfun.
