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The crawling sensation in his skull intensified as he forced himself to move forward, making sure his expression remained as blank as possible.
He’d been in this library many times before, but it had never felt as suffocating as it did now. Its tall, vaulted ceilings and stained glass windows closed in on him. He was stepping into a nightmare.
Orion tightened his hands into fists as his temper flared hot. Everything his father had done to him… Taking him away from his home with Nava. Almost killing her. Robbing him of his memories. Even if Orion could understand his father’s reasons, it didn’t make this easier. “You called?”
Two of his concubines stood unmoving by the bookcase, pretending to page through a book. Orion didn’t think they were the sort to read. No, they liked to fight—to plot about how to remain in the influential position they held, whispering their thoughts into the king’s ears.
Like the stories they had told Leela. They believed Nava had him under a spell, and perhaps that was what being a soulmate meant to them. If his mother had been his father’s soulmate, as the whispers traveling around the castle suggested, then the mere mention of their rare bond could be upsetting to his women.
The king crossed one leg over the other and draped his hands on top of his knee. His white hair shrouded his face as he narrowed his eyes at Orion. “I don’t recall asking you to come, son,” he said in an icy tone. “But the guards informed me of your demands to join your mate. If you must be here, then sit down. I won’t be looking up at you.”
His father gestured at the two empty chairs, just as one of his ladies placed her book on the shelf and went to fetch wine from the cart. Orion glanced at Nava, who had been quiet since they’d left his room.
Where were the rest of the concubines? Hiding in the shadows, readying for an attack? Orion inspected every corner, expecting to see the dark, oily energy shifting in the air, but there was nothing there.
Much like him, Nava was perusing every shadow in the room. It was difficult to miss the insects that crawled around her.
“Can you blame me for wanting to come?” Orion pointed at the concubine Orna as she placed a carafe filled with burgundy liquid on the small table next to his father. “Last time I was here, they attacked me, and you commanded the guards to kill Nava, too. You knew we were together before you even kidnapped me.”
“So you think you remember everything?” the king asked. “The real question you need to ask yourself is: are you going to put aside your own selfish desire to hate me for the good of our people?”
Manipulation didn’t sit well with Orion, and realizing it was happening didn’t make it any less difficult. Self-doubt crept in as he recalled his earlier promise to Nava: they would leave if she wanted to. He resisted the urge to fidget, unwilling to show vulnerability in front of his father. That would only give him what he wanted.
“That doesn’t change what you did.”
The king gave a dismissive wave. “I knew you’d recover from their punishment.” He sounded far too lively for someone who looked as ill as he did. “It was the only way I could ensure that you wouldn’t use your gift on one of them.”
“You know full well I don’t use the curse if I can help it.” Orion pushed the words past gritted teeth. “And I don’t forgive you for hurting Nava and me, not even if your reasoning was that you feared I would hurt them.”
How could his father call something so wicked—stripping away the pieces of a soul—a gift?
The king reached for the wine and filled a crystal goblet before bringing it to his lips. The wine wasn’t poison, but the alarming speed with which his father gulped it down made Orion wonder if he was using it to dull his pain. “I didn’t know who she was to us then. You never told me you had a soulmate. Had I known, things would have been…different.”
“Perhaps I would have said something if I could remember a damn thing.” Orion sank into the chair, and Nava followed his lead. “You don’t look well. Why have you become this ill so quickly?”
“I didn't get an explanation from the gods, Orion. It may be because magic is dwindling in our world and the kingdom demands more of me.” The king waved his hand again and placed his empty glass on the table. “I’ll be better by morning. Going to the ports earlier took its toll on me.”
That had been on Orion’s mind ever since he’d woken up. Why had the king come all the way to the west side of the city when he could have simply sent the royal guards?
As if reading his thoughts, his father continued. “The treaties clearly specify the Crows can raid the night markets to search for deserters. However, they can’t take one of mine. No fae, no guards—much less my son.”
“So you came all the way because of the treaties?” Nava scratched her forehead. “I don’t understand how that works.”
“What is that you don’t understand?” his father asked. The bite of his condescending tone made Orion’s gut twist. Clearly, a civil conversation was not the king’s aim.
“Why does the Society of Crows even exist?” She raised her arms above her head and stretched.
“I thought you magic-wielders received a special education on the subject from your prestigious schools. Aren’t you all supposed to serve the Crown from youth? It’s the first thing they teach you there.”
“My parents did not send me to the army,” Nava said. “And my mother shielded me from the Crows and the Crown. She was part of the Society, but she didn’t agree with their methods.”
The king tapped his chin, studiously watching Nava as she spoke. “The ignorance of humans never ceases to amaze me. It’s unacceptable in a future queen.”
“If you can’t be nice, Nava and I will leave.” Orion rose from his chair.
“Sit down, Orion. We have to talk about what happened in the market. To answer your question, Nava, when the gods nearly obliterated our world, it was because of the wars between humans and fae.” The king continued to speak, undeterred by Orion’s glower. “The destruction of the natural resources and the gods’ favorite creations set them off. A few magic-wielding humans and fae managed to hold them at bay—for a time. But we were losing, so my family and those of the founders made a deal to pay the tithes in order to pacify them.”
Orion hadn’t heard this tale from his father before. Undoubtedly, the version that the Society of Crows taught their recruits wasn’t quite the same. King Oberon was likely closer to the true source of this ancient knowledge, since his father’s bloodline was directly connected to the fae founder.
