36. Aurelia

Chapter 36

Aurelia

A week later and I was still floating on a cloud. My nights with Weston were on a whole different level. Primal desire sang through all four of us, the wolves thrumming with need, the humans unable to keep our hands off each other. It was hot and passionate and wonderful and delicious.

We'd even tried the tying-up thing—first me, then him. Both were damn fun. I'd been a bit of a ghost toward the others, something Hadriel had given me shit for last night when he barged into Weston's chambers before we retired to bed. He was busy, too, though. He was still checking in the cities and towns, talking to people and learning all the gossip.

At least we both had something to show for it. They'd questioned the one guy he'd found, leading to two more. Hadriel had found another since, delivering her to Weston. One by one, they were ridding the kingdom of all Granny's spies. Anyone new coming in was watched, the reason plainly given: Granny's people are not welcome, and if you are with her, you are against us. People seemed okay with that.

Weston was always on edge, though. Constantly vigilant. He would not rest while she was at large. It made me swoon to think about. Granny would have a much harder time than she ever imagined trying to get to me.

I almost dared to dream she'd just give up and let me live my life with the man of my dreams.

"Good morning, Captive Lady," Vemar said when I stepped out the door. Dark circles ringed his eyes, and he had no pep in his tone.

I stalled. "You okay?"

He sighed and ran his hand down his face. "There was a serious party last night. I had way too much mead, one thing led to another, and suddenly I'm being pounded in the ass by the head maid's purple strap-on. That thing is unrelenting. Things got a little fuzzy after that. I think I stuck my dick in every single female in the castle, along with a few guys thrown in for good measure. I woke up spooning Calia. I'm hung-the-fuck-over and my dick is rubbed raw. How was your night?"

I blinked maybe a few too many times. "Quiet." We started walking. "Why don't you go back to bed? You don't need to keep my hours, Vemar. I'm used to this. I'm not used to having so much fun."

"Nah. I'll grab one of the queen's hangover elixirs. That'll do me. Oh, I heard they have people testing your products now."

"Yeah. We were phase one, I guess, and now the queen is passing them out to volunteers for phase two. If those work, we'll start trying them out in the various markets. Which reminds me, we need to stop by my room. I need to grab the packaging mock-ups. I want to see if the queen has any notes."

"You're on fire."

"Things go incredibly quickly when I have help. Did Calia mention anything about me?"

"Nope, but she was definitely working off some frustration. I don't think negotiations are going well between her and Nyfain. For her, anyway. Nyfain holds all the cards."

"That's probably my fault. I didn't even tell Calia I wasn't accepting her offer. I was so fired up about Granny that I wasn't thinking about the big picture."

"Don't worry about it. They both want you for their own reasons. Let them squabble. So you don't get training in your fairy magic—so what? You still have the pack, your plants, your food, your art, and your friends. You've got plenty."

I smiled and bumped his shoulder with mine fondly. I understood why Hadriel liked him so much and wanted to always work as a team, even if they were currently going in two different directions. He was kind and loyal and supportive while also being fiery and rage-filled and (still) supportive. Nothing fazed him until he was trying to bust a head in. He was remarkably calm for a dragon.

"This is true." I laughed.

As we entered the work shed, I noticed a weak, glowing throb of pink lighting up the interior.

"They must've picked another couple Moonfire Lily petals to work on," I said, glancing at the basket in the corner.

In order to gain experience about plants, the ladies tended to read everything they could—which wasn't much about the Moonfire Lily—and then heavily experiment. They tried everything: when to pick it, how to dry it, maybe not dry it, not burn it. I'd soon be enlisted to try things with my contraptions, adding to their compiled notes about the plants they used. They were a fountain of knowledge, loved their job, and were great at the work.

I was in fucking dreamland.

"The basket is empty," Vemar said, searching for the origin of the glow.

"Hello." Arleth and Delaney walked into the work shed, their eyes puffy and their hair and clothes not quite as pristine as usual.

"What are you guys doing up so early?" I asked, pausing in my pursuit of the glow with a hand on the desk.

"We knew that if you discovered Finley's new elixir," Delaney said, "you'd try it without preamble, but we don't know if it is viable."

Arleth looked at the ceiling as the next pink throb started, a smile spreading across her face. "Look," she breathed, pointing at the ceiling for Delaney.

"That's worth the experiment right there," Delaney said, watching the light climb in strength, hitting its zenith.

"Don't keep me waiting—is that an elixir that glows?" I half shouted, pushing forward to see.

Arleth laughed, crowding around the cauldron with me. "Finley has been thinking about the properties of that Moonfire Lily. It seems like an amazing way to strengthen Everlass without it turning dangerous. Using it is like making a maximum-strength elixir or something. Just as you can make various strengths to your creations, we can use the Moonfire Lily to make certain brews stronger."

"I need to design a new logo," I said wistfully, turning back to what I'd laid on the desk.

Finley walked in with brisk movements, glancing around the room upon entry. Hannon was at her back, smiling at me in hello.

"Hey, Hannon! Where've you been?" I asked, stepping out of the way so Finley could look at her elixir. I hadn't seen him in several weeks; he hadn't been wandering around the castle or stopped into the work shed.

"I was sent away for a bit to give you and Weston space." He grinned and glanced at his sister, who rolled her eyes.

"That wasn't why," she replied.

He quirked an eyebrow at her. "I can tell that you're lying."

Finley scowled at him. "Fine. It wasn't the only reason why. We needed you to speak with that court."

He winked at me. "I hear the fairies are after you."

Arleth scoffed. " After her is an understatement. They're at the stage of threatening to ‘take what is theirs.'"

I turned toward her with widened eyes. This was the first I was hearing about this. The king hadn't been keeping Weston or me in on the negotiations, saying it was so that we could focus more on the pack and the product, that this was a matter of the kingdom and no longer an individual concern. I was more than happy to ignore it, but I didn't want to cause a problem for Nyfain or create a bigger problem for myself.

"What's that, now?" Vemar asked, pausing in getting his things ready for the day.

Delaney chuckled darkly. "Don't worry about it, Vemar. If that king wants to try his hand at attacking this kingdom, he'll be quickly reminded of which one of us is battle-worthy. He'll lose his ass."

"Don't feel bad about this, Aurelia," Hannon told me, feeling my turbulent emotions.

"I'm not trying to cause a war," I said. "I'm sure there's something I can?—"

"No." Arleth held up a hand. "Absolutely not, no. You will not lower yourself to make nice with a court that is essentially threatening to abduct and imprison you. Well, except maybe with this court, but that was a totally different situation."

Finley started laughing. "Stealers, keepers, huh, Arleth?"

Arleth pressed her lips together primly, and Delaney started laughing with Finley.

Finley turned toward me, unconcerned. "Don't worry about it, Aurelia. This is good practice for Nyfain against a more experienced ruler. They've made trades in the past, but this is the first time both parties really want something. It's bound to get heated." She shrugged. "Besides, that fairy king can be a real dickhead. It's time someone gave him hell. Nyfain is giddy to have a reason to do it."

"What is it about you that everyone wants to abduct and imprison you?" Vemar asked me with a grin. Fire coiled in his eyes. He'd probably like it if the fairies came for me. It would give him the excuse to rage.

"They don't know who might've sired her," Arleth said, watching Finley stir the contents of the cauldron. "How could they possibly try to claim her as their rogue fairy? They don't even know which side her fairy blood might've been on!"

"Her mother's," Hannon said, and the others turned to look at him. He faced me, though. "Nyfain and Finley sent me to the Flamma court. I was there for various reasons—there is still a collection of dragon villages in the hills. I asked for, and was denied, royal permission to visit them. Those dragons are mostly ignored, but apparently the wolves don't want to lose any more dragons to this kingdom."

The world fuzzed around me as I waited with bated breath to hear what he had to say about my mother.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Vemar asked, sitting down to his work. "I still have a house there. They can't deny me admittance."

"This was a political move," Finley told him. "Our relationship is strained. We wanted to see just how strained."

"While I was there, I had a chance to speak to a certain possible biological father," Hannon continued.

Cold washed through me, memories of my mom when she spoke about my dad collecting near the surface. I couldn't deny my curiosity—what he might be like, if we shared any traits. What she'd seen in him, what had attracted her and held on. Forgiveness and my aversion to do so.

Hannon smiled kindly. "You have Weston and a budding family here, Aurelia. You don't need to trouble yourself with a man who isn't worth the fancy boots he walks in."

"I haven't heard any of this." Arleth put a hand to her hip as Finley sprinkled in some herb or other.

"Hannon debriefed us last night," Finley said. "We were going to have a meeting about it today."

"Now is as good a time as any," Delaney said. "We've got plans tonight."

Hannon glanced at me before looking at the ground. He sat in his usual seat in the back corner, crossing an ankle over his knee.

Finley looked over at him. "Go ahead and tell them."

"At first he denied any involvement with anyone other than his mate. Cheap words. He's known in that court for his wandering eye and having many mistresses. After some chatting and a mild threat or two, he started to be a lot more honest. He remembered your mom, Aurelia. He did a good job affecting sneers and disdain, but I had the sense he'd genuinely liked her. His memories were fond, even after all this time. His remorse at having sent her away was palpable. I highly doubt she was deceived in his regard for her."

"So, it is him, then?" I asked, my gut tightening.

Hannon inclined his head. "There's a likeness between you and him."

I released the breath I'd been holding, unsure how to feel. Hearing about a person from the past, one I was assured I'd never meet or know any more about, and then learning that he was not only flesh and blood, but had talked about my mother and me with Hannon.. . It was a lot to process. The whole situation suddenly seemed... really real.

"Does he know I exist?" I asked in a small voice, wondering if maybe my mom hadn't actually told him. Maybe she'd known she was a mistress and decided to take matters into her own hands rather than disrupt a court or make him choose. Maybe, if he hadn't known, and learned he had another daughter, he might be remorseful he hadn't known me, would be sick that I'd grown up like I had, wishing he'd known so he could've helped...

Hannon looked at Finley.

"He does now," she said smugly. She wiped her hands on a towel and turned around. "Fuck that guy and that court." She paused to look at us over her shoulder. "That's between us, obviously."

"Obviously," Arleth murmured.

"Tell them, Hannon," Finley pushed.

Hannon's gaze was compassionate. He felt my emotions where the others couldn't and was the only one who knew I wasn't as unaffected about this as I'd previously claimed. Or even as I'd like to be, really.

"I told him you were out in the world." He tilted his head, sorrow slipping into his eyes. I steeled myself for bad news. "He thought I was trying to bribe him until I mentioned that you are the true mate of Weston, the dragon king's wolf beta."

"Then he perked right up, that dickface," Finley groused. "Didn't care about you when you were just some kid he didn't want. Oh, but a kid with a power level stronger than his? The true mate of the prized wolf of the magical world? He changed his tune, and quick." She leveled a finger at me. "I'm not telling you what to do with your life, and you can have a relationship with him if you want, but I'm going to treat that fucker like the piece of shit he is."

My heart sank as Vemar said, "Hear, hear."

No, then. No silver lining to be had here.

I shouldered the disappointment for a moment and then pushed it away. I told myself this was better, actually. I never had to wonder how things might've been different if he'd known. I didn't have to go back and question the truth of my mother's information. I'd lost what I had with Granny and it had nearly broken me, but I would've died if I learned my mother had lied. No, this was for the best. I had my budding family here, as they'd said. I had all I needed without trying to reshape the past.

"Albeit royally," Arleth told Finley. "With icy disdain and well-placed bursts of rage."

"Yes, yes, fine." Finley waved her away. "Professionally speaking, I'm going to treat him like a piece of shit. No hard feelings."

"Their court now knows that his blood daughter exists," Hannon said, checking in on how I was feeling. It was really very nice having someone who knew what was going on without my having to speak it aloud, especially considering it was something I'd been trained against by many long years with Granny and a village who didn't want to hear my voice. "They know her power and are eager for a connection. They don't know anything about her fairy magic, though. I didn't have details on that information."

"They'd only want her more if they knew how hard the fairies were trying to get her, ‘dirty blood' and all," Finley said. "The fairies don't want to share, though. It would be a mess if all this was in their hands." She nodded at me. "You made the right decision. Nyfain won't let them push you around because he would die before he let them push him around, and you're in his care. You've got the angriest fucker in this world on your side. You'll come out just fine."

"So he doesn't have any fairy in him?" I asked Hannon.

"No. That must've been your mom."

"Except I know for sure both my grandparents on her side were wolves. That's my lot in life, then? A family full of cheaters?"

Finley quirked an eyebrow at Arleth, and I wondered what that was about. Finley then laughed.

"Your dad is gross, yes. Sorry about that, but look, he gave you a healthy dose of power. Take it for what it's worth. Your grandparents, though? Honestly, you have no idea. Maybe your grandma got involved with a fairy, it didn't work out, and your grandfather claimed your mom as his and then helped raise her. That happens all the time. Maybe they both had fairy blood and that was why they found each other, but neither wanted to admit it. That happens, too, in that secular kind of kingdom. No one wants to be different. Without asking them, there really is no way to know what went down. You should give them the benefit of the doubt. All of them. Except your scourge of a father. Fuck that guy, the cheating bastard."

"I got the feeling that he and his mate are together simply to further their bloodlines," Hannon said. "I don't think she is faithful, either."

"But did she send her kid away?" Finley demanded. "He sent his pregnant mistress to another fucking kingdom, Hannon. Then just pretended his child didn't exist. That's a rare level of fucked up. I'm glad it worked out this way—now he gets to meet her at court and see what he tossed away. He'll also get to deal with her very powerful mate, who I will make sure has the best gods-damned status of his kind just so he can toss it in that turd's face. We don't need longevity as a kingdom; we just need a shitload of gold. Fuck that guy. Fuck that whole kingdom."

She nodded adamantly, and I wrestled with a smile, my entire being feeling light and content. No, I didn't need a specter from the past. I had these people, who clearly cared about me and would battle on my behalf. I had Weston. It was more than I could've ever asked for.

"Wait until he meets the very mean protector of her asshole," Vemar growled.

"Yeah, or deals with Hadriel's very cutting jabs," Finley added. "Or the host of dragons that will have her back?—"

"Okay, okay." I put up my hands, my smile winning. "It's really sweet that you all have my back, but I'm not putting much effort into caring about him one way or the other. Yes, he did my mom wrong, and, by association, me too. But Granny did worse. I need to focus on that first."

"Speaking of that," Hannon said lightly. "The Flamma court wanted to know why it took people so long to find this very strong wolf. I got the feeling they didn't really believe me. I recounted your story, Aurelia, about your being suppressed and Granny telling you that you didn't have magic in an effort to keep you content in her trappings. I might've embellished a little about your setup."

"I doubt that is possible," Vemar murmured.

"I mentioned that Granny knew Aurelia's history as well as I did, and how easy it was for us to put a possible name to her bio-dad. They were already displeased with Granny because of the types of products crossing their borders, but it had never been personal. Now it is."

Finley furrowed her brow. "You didn't tell me this."

"I wanted Aurelia to be the first to know. I don't know if they are going to take any action against Granny, but they might cite a grievance with the Red Lupine court."

"That won't amount to anything," Arleth said. "Except maybe a strained relationship with the Red Lupine Court and Granny. If anything goes wrong with Granny's business or they start bringing in less gold, they'll exile her or make some other statement and pass her off to Flamma as a show of faith. She'll just be on thin ice if Flamma contacts Red Lupine."

I looked over my workstation, trying to push aside the dread I felt knowing Granny's life was closing down around her. I hated that it was coming to this. I wished she hadn't put me in this position. I didn't want to hurt her; I didn't want to treat her like she had treated me. With the product, though, there was no choice. She had to be shut down, and I was the only one who could do it.

"We're going to be the reason they start bringing in less gold," I murmured, and Hannon's gaze rooted to me. "Speaking of, Finley, here are the mock-ups for the art. Also, what is in that Moonfire Lily brew, and when can I drink it?"

Finley stepped to the desk where I'd put the art. She smiled when she looked at the dragon one. Nyfain's great golden dragon spread its wings in the image, but the coloring of the rest of the packaging matched her dragon.

"His form is just so intense," I muttered. "And he's golden. He was made to be a symbol."

"His dragon will be happy to hear your thoughts." She laughed and passed it off to Arleth. "I love it."

"This is..." Arleth puffed out her chest a bit as she showed Delaney the mock-up.

"It looks very fine," Delaney said. "Like a luxury item. Maybe too fine?"

"People like luxury, and it'll still be affordable." I handed off the other.

Finley quirked a brow. "This one is very..."

"Loud," Arleth said, looking over her shoulder.

"Bold," Finley said. "Fuchsia? That's what you want to go with for the Moonfire Lily products?"

"Oh." I bit my lip. "I was actually thinking of the stuff I make. I didn't know we were doing a special line for the Moonfire Lily. See the fairy on the symbol?"

"No." Finley shook her head. "Get rid of the fairy on this one. Keep the wolf. Dragons have Everlass. Wolves have Moonfire Lily. If the glowing elixir I made works out, I'm thinking your lily is going to be all the rage, and what's better? The fairies won't have a fucking clue what it is, how we made it, and, most importantly, how we got an elixir to glow. If the fairies play nice, maybe we'll put a fairy on something else. Now. Let's get to work, people. There needs to be a reason I got up this horribly fucking early."

"It's good for you," Vemar told her.

She scowled at him. "Tell me that again and see what happens."

Vemar laughed delightedly. "Maybe I will, Strange Lady." Vemar reserved pet names for people he liked, though I didn't know the origin of Finley's nickname. "I could use a good battle."