26. Bruno
26
brUNO
W hen the third day dawned, Bruno still wasn't sure what answer he was going to give.
But he knew the answer he wouldn't be giving. "I can't lose either of you," he said, pulling them both close as they walked to the Queen's court, the golden chains at his mates' ankles pulling them back. "I refuse. I'll get…a Faery lawyer to handle it like a custody case or something. I'll take on two Champions at once for both of you. I'll eat the Faery Code and spit it out on the Queen."
"You have to challenge for Eva," Margo said at once. "Get her out of here. I'll be alright. I'm stronger than she is."
"Take Margo," Eva protested. "The Queen can't hurt me like she once could, and Margo doesn't know Faery like I do."
Bruno gathered them both into his arms, Eva tucking perfectly into all the places between Margo and himself. They were like the pieces of one of Frank's machines, engineered to be together in every way. "I love you both," he said simply. "I can't choose between you. It's the cruelest thing she could ask of me."
Eva chuckled, muffled between them. "She thought she could tempt me back," she observed wryly. "She came to me in my dreams and tried to offer me my heart's deepest wishes to stay with her and rule by her side."
"She came to me, too," Margo said softly, stroking Eva's short hair. "She said that if I convinced you to stay, she could make me…not a monster."
"You aren't a monster," Eva protested as Bruno growled in agreement.
"She offered to take away all the things that make me feel like a monster," Margo amended. "But I told her that I already had that, because of the way you two look at me. I don't think she understands love."
"She understands what people think they want," Bruno said thoughtfully.
"What did she offer you?" Margo wanted to know.
Bruno felt his ears heat and his cave bear squirm. "I don't want to say," he protested. "It's enough that I said no."
There was a sudden disruption from the fringes of the crowd and the court parted in confusion as familiar figures pressed through.
"Move it, goat-man!" Harriet's ringing voice sent a horned satyr scurrying away. "I'm on the clock to meet with my wedding quartet and you're in my way. I've got a duel to fight, do you want to make it two?"
Tobias, despite his short stature, was not at all lost in the crowd as he strode at Harriet's side and let her clear the way. "You really do not want to fight her," he cheerfully warned the others.
"Harriet?" Margo's voice cracked in surprise .
"Tobias?" Bruno could not quite squelch his sudden feeling of hope.
"How did you get here?" the Queen asked crossly. "Do the gates of Faery mean nothing?"
"Your gargoyle buddy sent us an invitation," Harriet said. The Queen shot Gary an outraged look, but Harriet went on. "Eva and Margo are my employees, and I'm not losing them to some stuffed-up royal tart when I've finally got the business going smoothly. And I need Eva to design my wedding dress. I'm not settling for some off-the-rack affair when I could have one of her pieces."
The Queen's porcelain skin went almost green. "Your human contracts have no weight here."
"Sure," Harriet said. "But I've read your precious Code. Bruno, you want to challenge for Eva and I'll challenge for Margo? Either way, really."
"You will lose too ," the Queen hissed. "I'll just add more to my collection."
"I would challenge for either of them," Tobias said, stepping forward.
"And when you lose?"
"Excuse me! Sorry! Coming through!"
The path in the crowd had closed and scattered again in surprise as a second pair came hurrying up. Frank and Anita were both carrying wide trays covered in careful little towers of frothy dessert.
Anita was apologizing to everyone. "I'm so sorry we're late. The cupcakes had to cool enough to frost!"
"You brought cupcakes?" Harriet asked in disgust. "We're here for a duel ."
"Of course!" Anita said, nearly tipping over her tray in her eagerness. "But who wants to fight when there are cupcakes? There was nothing in the Code about not having refreshments. Try this one, it's blueberry lemon with a sprinkle of cardamom! I invented it this morning!"
"Is there a place we could put these down?" Frank asked courteously. "I might have to fight with someone to save Tobias or Bruno, and I don't want to put them on the ground."
"Does Faery have ants?" Anita asked eagerly, gazing around. "I've never been here before."
Some of the Queen's court melted away and returned with tables that appeared to be made of rigid lace. Anita cooed over them and put her tray down, immediately pausing to fix a smudged icing job as she chattered on. "It's a French buttercream frosting, because I wasn't sure how hot it would be or how long they would be out. That three day clause sort of complicates things, doesn't it? The last thing I wanted to do is give everyone food poisoning! Not that I've ever poisoned anyone, I promise."
"Sugar poisoning, maybe," Harriet said dryly. "Look, I haven't got all day. Who do I have to peck into submission to get my dressmaker and business manager back?"