Chapter 5

5

“ I ’m not a royal, and I’m not important.” I shook my head and dug my proverbial heels in. “I shouldn’t be here.”

Baldric had come in to detach me from the IV line but I swayed on my feet, staring at Mike where he stood near the door with his arms crossed over his chest.

“You might not be a royal but you belong at my side.” He stubbornly met my gaze, his lips pressed into a thin line, his teeth gritted. “This is an emergency, Tavi. I need you with me.”

He staunchly refused to budge and we ended up in a staring contest of epic proportions.

It definitely helped distract me from the squirming in my gut. My attention returned again and again to the bite on my arm that refused to heal and the transfusion I had to be given daily just to stay upright.

It would take every ounce of strength to make it through this no matter how optimistic Mike felt.

He’d woken me up in the hospital and demanded that I join him for this meeting. With King Tywin in critical condition, his second in command, Premier Cosmo Foxfall, had called an emergency gathering of the Elder Council and any courtiers in residence.

Mike was required to sit through the meeting. But I wasn’t.

I was a nobody.

With all those eyes on me, and my wits stunted from the stupid bite, this was asking for trouble.

“Why me?” Why did hearing him say he needed me only increase the squirming sensation?

He stared at me like I’d grown another head. “You keep me centered. Not to mention you have insight I might not necessarily think about, and right now, with my head spinning, I’m having a hard time focusing on the important things.”

I wasn’t in a better position but I kept my mouth shut. Because damn, the compliment was nice to hear.

“You’re being too sweet to me. Is it because I almost died?” The longer he held my gaze, the harder it was to stay composed.

“I’m being sweet because you deserve it.” He moved away from his perch and crossed to where I stood a little wobbly, but every part of me leaning toward him. “But I’m also being selfish. I can’t do this alone and I don’t trust anyone else.”

Something inside of me relaxed in his presence even as he dragged me closer. Electricity pulsed between us when Mike lowered his lips and captured mine in a sweet kiss.

I drew in a sharp breath colored with his scent, and for a heartbeat the rest of the world fell away and there was only the two of us.

I felt that way about him, calm in his presence, and safe. That was the important part. I’d never felt as safe as I did when Mike and I were alone.

“Come on. You look beautiful, by the way,” he murmured, drawing away.

“Lies. You’re full of them today.”

Baldric had removed the IV but hadn’t helped me dress. Some of my things had been brought over from my room in the castle to make me comfortable.

Maybe I should have gone with a dress or something fancy but those kinds of things weren’t staples of my wardrobe.

I’d ended up going with something I might have worn when I interned at Uncle Will’s law firm: a pair of pressed black pants, and a sapphire-colored silk blouse, tight around the wrists and under the bust, with tiny pearl buttons between my breasts.

For Faerie, I was severely underdressed.

Mike didn’t seem to care, although he looked regal in a sharply cut blazer the same color as his eyes, verdant forest green struck through with gold thread.

This was the prince. And he wanted me with him.

The sweetness of the moment faded, as I knew it would, when the intrusive thoughts returned with a vengeance. The king wouldn’t be in a coma if it weren’t for me.

I’d provided the Augundae Imperium to Barbara. And Barbara was in custody. If she told the guards where she’d got the weapon?—

I was in trouble.

On so many levels it wasn’t even funny.

What else was new?

Mike looped his fingers through mine, tucking me close to his side and keeping his strides short to accommodate me. The walk back to the castle was the only softness we’d experience today.

The sinking sensation in my gut grew worse the closer we got.

Rather than taking a chance on alienating some very important people, drawing more attention to myself, I sent Noren back to his space in the royal menagerie the moment we reached the main courtyard of the castle.

Every part of me stiffened, tensing at the sight of the old place. Especially with the direwolf slinking around the garden and out of sight.

“It’s going to be okay,” Mike added. He tightened his grip on my hand. “I’ll protect you when he’s not around.”

“Do you have any idea what they’re going to discuss?” My voice shook.

He stared grimly ahead, his profile cut from granite. “I’ve never been in this situation before. Cosmo Foxfall reached the level of Premier for his skills, both with policy and with military. He’s ruthless and strong-willed. But whatever he determines is the best course of action in my father’s…absence will have to be approved by the Elder Council.”

He’d chosen his words with care.

It sounded terrifying.

My footsteps felt bogged down by cement. We made it through the main castle gates and into absolute chaos.

Voices lifted in fear and anger rang out from the space adjacent to the main throne room. Although stone-faced guards manned the door, including Captain Hezarwick, they all looked distinctly ill at ease.

Mike took a moment to compose himself before his grip tightened even further on my hand, hard enough to crack my knuckles, and then he pushed through the door before anyone announced him, his personal retinue behind us.

If I expected a pause in conversation, I was mistaken. No one took a breath to show any sort of reaction to the arrival of the prince. And to my further surprise, Queen Laina wasn’t in attendance.

The worry among the attendees thickened the air into something palpable.

I shouldn't be here.

The premier commandeered the head of the long polished table, with the rest of the attendees gathered around him. They stood as Mike approached, and I flinched at the way the temperature in the room dropped to frosty indifference.

“You’re sitting in my father’s seat,” Mike pointed out.

Conversation dropped to a dull roar.

Foxfall visibly bristled at Mike’s tone. He stood a hair shorter than the rest of the gathered courtiers, wearing a robe of spun silk the color of spring violets.

A row of black-beetle buttons held the two sides together and he tugged the lapels straighter. His eyes were wide set and too far apart for him to claim any of the fae’s normal beauty.

“As I’m sure you are no doubt aware, the king is unable to put in an appearance, thus the reason for our meeting today.”

Cosmo flicked his gaze over me, promptly dismissed me, and flashed his sharp teeth at Mike in a smile.

Dead eyes, I realized at once. Cosmo Foxfall might have the power to back up his position as second in command but he had dead eyes and they gave nothing away, which spelled disaster.

Mike wanted my opinion? My senses screamed to get the hell out of here and fast.

“Yes, I am aware of my father’s condition.” Mike stood to attention. “He’s in a coma, fully unmakeable.”

The two of them squared off silently against each other before Cosmo bowed his head and ducked to the side, automatically shifting the others down a seat to allow Mike the chair.

Rather than sitting, Mike remained standing with me at his side.

I should not be here!

Several sets of eyes remained fastened on me and I fought against the urge to sink down and disappear under the table. I gave a soft tug against Mike but he refused to let go of my hand.

“While we’re on the subject of the king, I will enlighten the rest of the room to the facts.” Mike curled his free hand into a fist. He paused until a full lull spread through the space. “We aren’t sure what the device did to harm him and we won’t likely know until he wakes up on his own and tells us. Our best doctors are unable to rouse him from his coma.”

“Oh?” Cosmo’s smile sharpened. “Haven’t you heard, Prince Michael? We have discovered exactly what sort of device made its way back through the wards of this castle.”

Mike went straight, stiff. “Why am I only hearing about this now?”

Cosmo’s tone had the small hairs at the back of my neck rising to attention, and without Noren there for protection, my own wolf began to wake.

Her hackles rose, bristling at the energy in the room. Something was going on here beneath the surface.

What did Cosmo really know and how in the world had he figured things out?

Why hadn’t he come to Mike straight away with the news?

“The device the witch used is our very own missing artifact, the Augundae Imperium .” Cosmo paused for dramatic effect. “It disappeared during transport from the Fae Academy for Halflings in the mortal realm.”

“I’m not sure what you’re implying, Foxfall…” Mike trailed off. He glared at the premier.

“I’ve made the executive decision to destroy the device. We’ve seen clearly the sort of devastation it causes in the wrong hands.” Cosmo studied his nails, his lips pursed. “Our own monarch was subject to untold horror at the hands of the device. It was too unstable to be left in one piece.”

“You destroyed it? Without talking to me first?” The bite in Mike’s voice brought me to attention and the rest of the room held its collective breath. “How dare you! That wasn’t your decision to make.”

In the silence, several low murmurs began, the other courtiers chatting amongst themselves in tones too low for even my sensitive hearing to make out.

The members of the Elder Council, with the lower half of their faces obscured by masks, remained stoic and quiet as a tomb. Taking in the proceedings and cataloging everything.

The premier appeared unbothered.

“My father wanted the Imperium because of the Faerie Prophecy,” Mike continued in a low growl.

I stepped closer to him automatically.

“The prophecy will come to pass no matter what measures Tywin tried to enact. The fact remains: The device was much too powerful to be in the hands of any person. I acted in the best interest of this city and the realm. The Imperium has been destroyed.”

He held his open palms in front of him in a what’s-done-is-done gesture I automatically hated.

He was the type of person who took matters into his own hands and damned anyone else who stepped up to try and challenge him. I knew the type, marking him in a heartbeat as someone to watch.

His history and his skills elevated him to his station for a reason. We’d have to watch him. Who knew what else he’d try?

Mike waited another beat before he inclined his head. “Fine.” That was all he said. And then, “What plan does the Council have for the intruder?”

The Elder Council remained quiet.

Once again, Cosmo took up the thread of the conversation. “We will be sending a team down to the dungeons to interrogate the witch and find out exactly how the Imperium got into her hands. Rest assured, your Royal Highness. We will get to the bottom of this matter. I’ve already taken steps to ensure the wards around the castle are bolstered and this sort of thing never happens again.”

My mouth went dry, throat constricting painfully until it felt impossible to draw in a breath.

Terror lived in every fiber of my being. Oh shit, no .

My entire world stood poised and ready to crash down.

If they got Barbara to talk, then they would inevitably find out about me.