30. Chapter Thirty

"I'm going home," Heath declared. "I'm going to check in with my children. I'm certain you, Brion, can manage the protection of your wife and sons for one evening."

"Wonderful idea," Cassius said, turning to us as he nodded.

"I can defend my family for one evening, yes," Brion agreed. "But we're leaving. I'm taking everyone here to Cassius' estate. It'll be safer for us in the fae realms."

"I haven't given you any sort of permission to use my home as your own," Cassius snapped, whipping back to glare at his father faster than I thought possible. "You'll allow Heath and Jacqueline to check in with their own while we discuss where we're going to go." Cassius moved swiftly, putting himself between his father and us. "I am tired of watching you walk all over two people who are by no means required to follow you. You've blackmailed them, you've lied to them. I am done watching it."

"That's too bad," Brion said, stepping closer to his son. He lifted a hand and snapped his fingers again. Eamon walked to the main entrance of Kick Shot and opened the door, and I recognized the place it revealed, the entranceway to Cassius and Sorcha's home. "We're leaving. I need the evening in the fae realms to solidify my power, just as you will need it. This is not up for discussion."

He entered into fae realms without us. I saw him wait on the other side, tapping his foot as servants came running in confusion.

Cassius turned to us. "I apologize for his behavior," he whispered. "You'll have the same rooms, and I'll make sure they're far from his."

"Thanks for trying," Heath replied, rubbing his temples. "Any way to make our phones work in the fae realms?"

"No, sadly not," Cassius answered.

"Is he right about your magic?" Heath pulled out his phone and started texting people. I looked over his shoulder to see it was to Carey and Landon in a group text. "Add Dirk and Oliver, please," I added before Cassius had the chance to answer my question. Heath nodded sharply.

"He is," Cassius confirmed, sighing heavily once we were done talking and the texts were sent. "As members of the royal family, we are stronger in the fae realms. Being in the mortal realm isn't fatal, but our magic doesn't…recharge as quickly as it should. We drain faster as well, and we're not as capable, which leaves us somewhat vulnerable to clan fae when we're here, who come from some part human as well. Oisin is also royal, but that changes nothing. He'll have clan fae working for him. He's partial to a few of the clans, and they'll die for him."

"I see." Kind of.

I followed Cassius and Sorcha through the door, and he personally led Heath and me back to the room we had shared only the night before. I had hoped to be free of the fae realms when he helped Rian get us home, but now it felt as if this wasn't even close to being over.

"I hope you both get a good night's sleep. I'll send Leith to wake you in the morning."

"Neither of us is prepared for a war," Heath said, stopping Cassius from closing the door. "We don't have weapons, armor—"

"There's no reason to think you should fight," Cassius said softly. "If I arm either of you, Oisin's people could take offense. I would be arming those who aren't fae against the current king. You both have weapons of your own. I'm sure whatever you decide, my father will agree with you. At the end of the day, you both know your limits far better than we do."

"How do you do it?" I asked softly, shaking my head in dismay. Cassius was just falling in line for his father. "He…" I waved a hand at him. There was still a hint of red on his cheek. Alvina might have missed it, but since I knew how it got there, I knew it wasn't just a flush.

"Once this is over, I can disappear with my wife again," the prince answered. "And my brothers need me. I'll put up with my father if it means helping others. It's a sacrifice I have to be willing to make."

"Rian needs you," Heath agreed. "I'm not sure the others do."

Cassius snorted, a very undignified noise. "Yes, I've noticed that as well. They're very much his sons. He's trained them, certainly." He leaned on the door frame and shoved his hands in his pockets. His red hair fell over his face, and his glamour slipped away. For a moment, he was a disheveled and very sexy man. The whole falling apart thing worked for him. "He's not a bad king."

"No, he's just a poor father," Heath growled. "Every single person in this mess deserved better."

Cassius looked up, nodding. "Yes, we all did, but we're not going to get better. Not until the game is done."

"Is everything a game?" I snarled, throwing my hands up before shoving a finger at the prince. "Do you really think that's an acceptable way to let him behave? Like we're all pieces on his fucking chessboard? He's white, Oisin's black, and fucking no one cares about our lives?"

Cassius seemed wounded by my words and closed his eyes. "To my father, right now…yes."

"Look…" I ran a hand through my hair. "If you ever need to get away from him, you are always welcome in my territory, okay? I can't imagine."

"Can't you? Hasan is your father."

I winced. Yes, and Hasan could manipulate his children with ease, but at least we all knew he loved us. I was unsure if Brion was capable of it, wasn't even sure if Brion loved his wife or just looked at her as his property. It was how he treated his sons.

"The offer stands," Heath said, crossing his arms. "That's not how fathers should treat their sons. You're not his dogs of war to call out when he needs you and get a pat on the head when you do the right thing." I nodded quickly. Heath was saying everything right.

"Thank you for the offer," Cassius said, a small smile beginning to form. "You're both good people. I'm glad, considering the circumstances, I've met you. Have a good evening. Tomorrow morning, my father will expect you to have a plan to protect Fiona during his duel with Oisin. Have a good night." Cassius quickly stepped back and closed the door before Heath could stop him this time.

"He's like a kicked dog," Heath growled softly. "You can see it. His father made decisions and enacted them before his son even had the chance to say anything. He's disregarded, treated poorly. If it weren't for Sorcha, I would walk out and say fuck the consequences. I can't fight for a man like him."

"I know," I whispered. "Different types of men who lead in vastly different ways. Brion, Hasan, you, Oisin, and tomorrow Callahan will be around to watch all of this play out."

"Corissa will be at his side to temper him at least…The entire Tribunal will be there tomorrow." Heath pushed a hand through his hair. "Isaiah and Maria of the vampires, Johann and Matilda of the witches."

"Let's go back to Callahan and Corissa, though. How will they react seeing you among Brion's side?" I crossed my arms and started to pace.

"It doesn't matter. I'm a lone wolf, Alpha of only my son, and no official pack to my name. What trouble I get into might personally offend them, but my being there isn't considered a declaration of their support. If I was still an Alpha on the Council, talking to Callahan on a regular basis, then yes, I would be looking at a severe punishment. This has nothing to do with werewolves. If I get myself killed running around with you, they can sleep a little easier at night."

"I wish things weren't so complicated," I whispered, rubbing my arms as I started another loop around the room. "We need to think about Fiona, though, her protection."

"Yes. You should be in werecat—"

I shook my head, and he stopped talking.

"Maybe the other way around." I stopped at the large window overlooking the pretty grounds outside. It was a dark night, but there were little lights all over the grounds, illuminating it, quite romantic with its soft blue glow. "You Change slower. If you go in with your wolf form, you won't need a weapon. I Change in less than a minute. If there's trouble, you can handle Fiona until I get into the game, so could Cassius and Sorcha. I know they won't let her die, even if things are…tense between all of them. She also has three sons. You're safer as a wolf. I can become a cat quickly enough."

"Okay." Heath nodded slowly, and I could practically hear the gears turning in his head. "I'm used to staying in human form when we do these things, but if you think I should be a wolf, I can understand the logic."

"Yeah, I think we're both most effective in our Changed forms. In fact, I know we are."

"We are, and we can still communicate. You can still communicate with the outside world. It'll be all we need. Maybe we can ask one of Cassius' people, if any decide to attend, to keep some clothing that will fit us."

"I'm sure we can find one person willing to help us with that." I tapped my foot. "We just need to survive tomorrow, Heath. That's all." A sense of foreboding came over me as I turned to him once more. "Why does it terrify me?"

"Because we're not in our own realm." He reached out and touched my shoulders, letting his fingers glide over my upper arms. Slowly, they made their way around me, and he brought me into a warm embrace. "And we're dealing with powers neither of us stands a chance against or know much about." He kissed the top of my head. "And we both hate Brion."

I nodded. All of that sounded right.

"Tomorrow is going to go badly," I said, feeling confident in my assumption.

"Yeah, it probably is," he said, his embrace growing tighter.

Eventually, I pulled out of his arms and went to the door. I looked out of our room, searching the hall for anyone who might be available. I saw a guy standing at the end of the hall, a sword at his waist and a spear in his hand.

"Um…we need to talk to someone about tomorrow," I said, hoping he would hear me.

He turned, showing me he was, in fact, real and alive. For a moment, I had wondered if a new statue had popped up suddenly. His short fae ears said he was a clan fae—a fae with a human ancestor who had a child with either Oberon or Titania.

"What do you need, and I'll tell—"

"I'm here," someone declared, coming up the stairs I couldn't see. Leith revealed himself a moment later.

"Sir, you should be asleep," the guard in the hall quickly said.

"There's no sleep to be had this week," Leith retorted, passing the guard and stopping in front of me, waiting for me to say something.

"How did you…" I pointed down the hall, confused by his perfectly timed arrival.

"I know when any door in this house opens," he said as if it wasn't a big deal. "I was able to excuse myself from the meetings happening in the family wing to come see what you needed."

Explaining quickly, Leith nodded as I spoke, listening attentively.

"I'll have it prepared for you tomorrow. We have some simple clothing that can be spared. I have someone on staff who can spell them, so they will fit you. I'll be back at dawn for you to try them on, then pack them for the trip." He didn't move. "Would you also like me to relay your plans for tomorrow to the lord?"

"Why do you call him Lord and not Prince?" I asked. "And yes, please relay it. It would save us the trouble of doing it in the morning."

"We call the lord what he wishes to be called, by the title he wishes to use," Lieth answered. "If that's all, I hope you both have a good evening. Please get some rest. No one will disturb you until breakfast is ready to be served." He turned and walked away, leaving Heath and me in the thick silence of the large castle.

I closed the door and began to strip, knowing what I intended to do. I needed to sleep, but I was too awake for it, and I was desperate for something. Desperate to reaffirm although this was happening, it would be okay because I had someone with me. It had to be okay. Heath didn't move until I had my hands on his shirt, desperate to touch him, to feel his skin against mine. I caught his lips in a needy kiss as I fought to keep myself from tearing the shirt off him. He pulled it over his head and threw it aside.

We were naked in the bed sometime later, and I had gotten what I needed, feeling better but not by much. Heath held me against his chest, and the sense of something bad coming refused to leave me.

"Heath?"

"Yeah?" He didn't move, but I was glad he was still awake. I needed to say something to him before I lost the chance.

"I lo—"

"Don't do that to me," he whispered. "Don't say it because you think one of us is going to die."

"But—"

"Stay alive and tell me tomorrow. Tell me when we have dinner together on a quiet Saturday. Tell me when I drop Carey off, or I'm enjoying a beer on the back porch. Tell me anytime except now. Don't tell me right now as the first time, burdened by everything going on." He turned to me, his eyes ice blue in the night. "Don't tell me right now and make it sound like a goodbye."

"Okay." It stung, but I understood his meaning.

He closed his eyes and didn't open them again, so I forced my own closed. Even though I didn't get a chance to say it, I was glad he didn't question whether I actually felt it.

"I love you, too," he finally whispered.