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Steel nodded. "I was trying to figure out what a certain redhead was doing, following the other lad, when the net triggered and ensnared yon underhanded female. We just happened to see the male rush in and attempt to free her. He didn’t seem trapped here or like he was in any discomfort from the spell. He was just focused on helping the female. Made him easy enough to apprehend." He gave me a wry grimace. "No true skill required on our end, I'm afraid. He didn’t have much fight in him once he realized he’d been caught."
So at least part of what Gambol had said might be true. It was some small comfort, to think that at least he hadn’t really wanted me dead. Even if he had still betrayed me, in the end.
At my side, Fife swayed slightly, though he recovered well and tried to hide it by bending to inspect his boot laces. I nodded to Steel and his people one last time. "Please report to Northbower estate tomorrow to give a full report before you head off on whatever secret task the queen assigns you to next."
Steel put his fist over his heart and bowed. "Of course, my lady."
Fife straightened up, and I linked my arm through his, turning us both back toward our mounts. "Are you okay to ride?" I murmured so only he could hear.
The cleric chuckled wickedly. "You can ride me all you like, my lady." His words sounded a bit off, as if he were slightly drunk.
I rolled my eyes. "That's not what I meant, and you know it. Are you brain-addled?"
Adder appeared at my other side as I dragged the laughing cleric toward Balefire and the griffins. "It takes him that way sometimes," Adder informed me grimly. "The exhaustion is one thing. But sometimes he comes over all…magic drunk." He sighed tiredly. "It will fade. Eventually."
Fife leaned in closer to me as we halted before the mounts, so he could whisper in my ear. "He acts all grumpy, but you should see him when he's drunk. He starts kissing everything."
I chuckled and glanced at Adder with a raised brow. "Don't you mean everyone?
The tips of Adder's ears turned pink when Fife cackled. "No. Everything. People. Dogs. Lampshades. Coat…coatracks." Fife wheezed with laughter and wiped tears from his eyes. "Remember the lovely coatrack, Adder? I'll admit, she was quite the catch!"
Adder scowled so darkly it was a wonder Fife didn't drop dead on the spot. "Shut up, bard, and get on a mount."
I warily glanced between Fife and the griffins. "I don't think that's a good idea."
Fife could ride double with one of the others, but that was just likely to get them both pitched off when he lost his balance or enraged his mount. Nodding resolutely, I dragged Fife over to Balefire. "Bale," I said, patting the pooka's flank. "I need you to get my mate home to Northbower safely."
Balefire turned his head back on his long neck, his red eyes fastening on my swaying mate, who was now humming a tavern song to himself as he watched a bird land on the ground nearby. The pooka didn't look impressed. But he eventually snorted and turned away, assenting with a little flick of his tail.
"Okay, up you go," I told Fife, pushing him toward the horse-shaped pooka.
Adder, Bach, and Mirri had gathered around us, and Bach spoke up, disbelief coloring his deep voice. "Do you really trust your…mount to tolerate an inebriated stranger?"
I shrugged. We had all seen Balefire attempt to eat people who offended him—including Fife on more than one occasion. But he could behave when it mattered. "Pooka magic," I said happily. "Once he's mounted up, Fife literally can't fall off, or get off voluntarily, unless Balefire allows it. At least he won't break his neck on the way home."
No one really looked convinced, but in the end, Adder helped Fife clamber up onto the pooka while I rode Fife's griffin.
Somehow, we all made it home in one piece. But as we approached Northbower estate, reality started to settle in, along with a heavy dose of sorrow.
Gambol had betrayed me. All because he apparently harbored some sentiment that I never returned. Did I ever actually know anyone around me at all?
Chapter 27
The sun had set, and dusk was falling around us when we arrived home. Fife had, thankfully, sobered up and regained his faculties on the ride home, but I could tell he was still tired. We'd have to watch him to make sure he didn't try to use his magic again anytime soon.
The sadness over Gambol's betrayal lingered, but by the time we reached sight of the manor house, it was at least partially overshadowed by relief. Sure, it was possible, I supposed, that there were other people out there who might wish to cause me harm or see me fail, but for now, at least, the problem was finally solved, and I could take a deep breath.
I hadn't realized just how much the assassination attempts had been weighing on me, lurking in the back of my awareness through every second of my day, until that threat was lifted. The new sense of lightness was dizzying.
Saffron had anticipated our needs, as always, and warm spiced nightcaps were waiting in my suite, where we could all unwind and have the rest of the night to ourselves in private. Jasper had taken a cue from the butler, and brought a casual change of clothes to my rooms for each of the men. It was amusing how everyone in the household just assumed that we would all be spending the night in my rooms, rather than sleeping separately as we usually did.
If I didn't know better, I would suspect the men of scheming again. The thought stopped me in my tracks as I made my way down the hallway to my rooms. "Wait," I said slowly, turning toward Bach as he caught up and gave me a puzzled look. "This is more of your scheming, isn't it?"
He looked confused for a moment, then realization dawned, and he chuckled, low and rich. "I had almost forgotten about that," he said, putting a hand on my low back to get me moving again. "Guilty as charged." He arched a dark brow and gave me a wry look. "Though when we told the staff that we meant to spend the night in your suite this evening, we hadn't anticipated that we'd be called away to catch a traitor."
Mirri was ahead of us, and he paused at the door to my room, looking conflicted. His warm gold eyes met mine as he turned toward us. "We can go to our own rooms tonight," he said gently. "It's been a long day. Perhaps now isn't the best time to—"
I held up a hand. "No. Stop fussing over my feelings all the time," I said with a stern look around at all of my mates. "I'm not some fragile, fainting flower."
