Chapter 13

13

Rejection perceived as spurn ensures future infernos doth burn.

~ “The Mating Season” by the bard Nogorathi

Despite Kaylina promising that the sentinel would welcome Vlerion, or at least allow him on the premises without launching vines toward his throat, he insisted on returning to ranger headquarters. No guards, assassins, mercenaries, or anyone else armed and angry chased them through the streets. A single horse-drawn carriage had come down the plateau after them, but it hadn’t been in a hurry and might not have had anything to do with their departure. It was as if Kaylina and Vlerion had been released from the royal castle with heartfelt claps on the back and an invitation to return anytime, instead of riding out against the wishes of the queen, the prince, and the spymaster.

Admittedly, the queen hadn’t seemed to care much about Vlerion’s presence in the castle, and the prince’s main objection had been roaring taybarri making too much noise in the courtyard. But Spymaster Milnor… he wanted Vlerion dead. No doubt there.

Again, Kaylina debated how to sway Vlerion to return to Stillguard Castle with her. The sentinel might not be willing to protect him, but it had proven it would protect her and the premises, and, as long as she stood next to Vlerion, that should include him. Further, fewer enemies might think to look for him there, at least at first.

“You needn’t come with me,” Vlerion said as they approached the gate to headquarters, a yawning ranger watching them approach. “I’m certain your brother wants your help, and I doubt Sergeant Zhani is waiting inside with practice blades to resume your training.”

An eyebrow twitch was the only indication he gave that he knew there hadn’t been any training whatsoever that day. It wasn’t Kaylina’s fault she’d been busy. Part of the time that she’d been busy, she’d been trying to rescue him.

“Frayvar would like my help—you know he’s bereft without my presence—but he’d like your help too. Why don’t you come back with me? I’ll show you how to wash dishes. As a nobleman, you’ve probably never learned that important life skill.”

“I’ve washed my mess kit numerous times while patrolling the mountain borders, and new rangers often help in the kitchen during their early years of training. If you haven’t spent time at the sink here yet, I’ll make sure the staffing sergeant knows you yearn to experience all aspects of rangerdom.”

“Goodness, Vlerion. I invite you home so my cursed castle can protect you, and you fantasize about arranging extra duties for me. That’s rude.”

“As you’ve accused aristocrats of being before.”

“Not without merit.”

“Indeed.” Vlerion smiled but didn’t slow his mount as they rode up to the gate, the guard pushing it open for them.

If the young ranger knew Vlerion had been detained in the royal castle, he didn’t comment on it. Kaylina hoped there wouldn’t be further trouble that night but suspected the only reason it hadn’t followed them down from the plateau was that Milnor hadn’t yet learned Vlerion was gone.

In the courtyard, Vlerion pulled Crenoch to an abrupt stop. Levitke almost ran into his rump. She did step on his tail, which resulted in him turning his head and snapping his teeth at her. She bared her own teeth, then phhhted her tongue against them.

“You were right to expect trouble,” Vlerion told Kaylina, ignoring the interplay between the taybarri and looking at a black carriage in the center of the courtyard. Four beautiful stallions were harnessed to it.

“Is that it?”

Vlerion grunted. “Probably.”

There was nothing remarkable about the carriage except that six Castle Guards were stationed around it. Across the courtyard, the door to the office building opened, and Captain Targon jogged out. He noticed Vlerion and Kaylina—glancing twice and seeming surprised at their presence—but headed toward the carriage without hesitation.

Its door opened, and a cloaked person with a fur-trimmed hood covering his face stepped out. Or was that her face? The cloak made it hard to tell until the woman held up a hand toward Targon while looking at Vlerion.

From that angle, enough lamps burned around the courtyard to reveal her face. Queen Petalira.

“Uh-oh,” Kaylina muttered, worried the woman had found out that she’d eavesdropped and wasn’t pleased about it.

But how could she have beaten them here? She must have left the castle right after they had and taken another route, the driver hurrying to beat them here. Maybe she’d even been in the stable, getting ready to depart while Vlerion and Kaylina had ridden out. Was this the carriage they’d seen coming down from the plateau behind them?

Petalira’s gaze remained on Vlerion. She didn’t look at Kaylina, didn’t acknowledge her in any way.

Vlerion lifted his chin with his usual haughty aristocratic pride. Since he hadn’t been eavesdropping, he wouldn’t have a guilty conscience about it.

“Can we help you… my lady?” Targon asked, not drawing attention to her rank—her identity—since she’d come incognito.

“I have a proposition for Lord Vlerion,” Petalira said.

“For Lord… Vlerion?” Did Targon sound offended? Since he’d been the recipient of the queen’s… propositions before?

Kaylina doubted Petalira had sex in mind tonight. Even if she thought Vlerion, who was thirty years her junior, would be open to that, she’d admitted she knew about the beast curse. She wouldn’t be foolish enough to try to entice him into her bed.

At least Kaylina thought. And hoped. She couldn’t keep from frowning at Petalira.

“Yes. It has nothing to do with you, Captain. I will speak with Lord Vlerion in private.” For the first time, Petalira looked at Kaylina but only to frown at her.

Targon also looked at Kaylina, but all he said was, “You can use my office, my lady.”

“Lord Vlerion?” Petalira extended her hand in the direction of the two-story building.

Stiff and with palpable reluctance, Vlerion slid off Crenoch’s back.

Kaylina also dismounted and stepped toward Vlerion, as if to take Crenoch and Levitke to the stable together. The taybarri were smart enough to do that themselves, but it gave her a reason to get close to Vlerion.

“I should have gone home with you,” he murmured.

“ Obviously .”

He gave her a wry look.

“It’s not too late to run. The gate is still open.” Kaylina kept herself from saying the sentinel would be delighted to threaten Petalira if she and her men pursued them. It probably wasn’t appropriate to fantasize about such things, even if the queen had once had her thrown into the dungeon.

“I’ll see what she’s here to propose .”

“Not what she proposes to Targon, I hope,” Kaylina said.

Vlerion snorted. “I shall also hope that.”

Petalira folded her arms over her chest, doubtless not used to being kept waiting. She looked like she might command Targon or maybe her guards to assist Vlerion in walking more swiftly to the office. But he touched Kaylina’s arm, then headed in that direction before the queen could start issuing orders.

Cloak sweeping over the stone ground of the courtyard, Petalira moved to walk at Vlerion’s side. She rested her arm on his as they strode toward the office building.

Kaylina stared, surprised by the familiarity. From her eavesdropping, she hadn’t gotten the impression that the queen liked Vlerion.

Targon stepped back to make room for them to pass. If the touching surprised him, he didn’t show it, but he did watch it, his gaze trailing them as they entered the office building and headed up the stairs by the door.

Kaylina absently patted Crenoch and Levitke while debating if she might eavesdrop on another conversation tonight. Since she’d twice listened from the back entrance to Targon’s office, she knew how to get to it, but… with the captain standing in front of the door, it wasn’t as if she could amble in.

She willed him to go away, but, not surprisingly, nothing happened. Sadly, there weren’t any trees nearby. If one had been planted by the office building, she might have convinced it to whack him with a branch, but there were only two in the courtyard, and they were on the far side. Alas, fantasizing about one’s superiors being mangled by branches was probably also not appropriate.

“I’m going to try to listen in on that conversation,” Kaylina whispered to the taybarri. “Can you guys feed and groom yourselves?”

This time, they both made phhht noises with their tongues, but they sashayed in the direction of the stable. Levitke paused to use a rear foot to scratch her belly. By luck, or more likely design, she positioned herself to block the six guards’ view of the office building.

Kaylina walked in that direction, taking the assistance as a sign that Levitke approved of her plan to eavesdrop. Crenoch also paused, whuffing a few times at the stallions hitched to the carriage. They were amiable whuffs, but the horses looked at him with wide eyes. Taybarri were, after all, predators. The exchange drew the attention of the guards.

Unfortunately, Targon remained outside the office building, and his gaze swung from the door to the taybarri and finally to Kaylina as she approached. His eyes narrowed, and she had a feeling he knew right away that Crenoch and Levitke were helping her.

“I need to use the lavatory,” she told him.

“As you know, there are several nearby and appropriate for the use of trainee rangers.” Targon pointed toward a door by the stable.

“Yes, but I prefer the one in the visiting officer quarters.” Kaylina pointed through the door toward the end of the hall where that suite accessed the secret passageway that led to his office. There wasn’t much point in coming up with a more convoluted excuse—he would see through anything she said.

“I’ll bet. You’re a pain in the ass, Korbian.”

“As you’ve mentioned numerous times before.”

“I keep waiting for Vlerion to flog some reverence into you, an amount appropriate to your menial station in life.”

He’d mentioned that numerous times before too.

“Earlier, he suggested extra duties such as dish washing to me.”

“Good.”

“I need to find out what’s going on,” Kaylina said. “I overheard Spymaster Milnor talking to the queen in the castle.”

Targon grunted without surprise at her admission of eavesdropping.

“Look, it’s important. Milnor wants Vlerion dead, and Petalira wants… I don’t know what exactly, but she doesn’t like Vlerion.”

“Oh, I’m aware of what she likes and doesn’t like.”

Right, they slept together regularly.

“She may be planning to get rid of him right now, when they’re alone.” Kaylina stepped closer to Targon, wishing she dared lunge past him to the door, but he was a strong and fit ranger. He would have no trouble stopping her. “Sabor had potions that he could fling around. Maybe she’s got something similar. He’s noble and wouldn’t raise a hand against her, even if he was in danger.”

Kaylina didn’t believe Petalira could kill Vlerion, but she would throw out anything and everything she could think of that might sway Targon. Even if the captain didn’t adore her, he liked Vlerion and tried to protect him.

Targon sighed, glanced toward the taybarri still blocking the view of the guards, then gripped her elbow. “Come on.”

Though startled by the touch, Kaylina followed him into the building. Targon kept the grip as he walked down the hall with her. She was tempted to object to his unwelcome touch, but they were going in the direction she wanted. She must have bristled and glared noticeably, however, because he released her.

“I suppose if I’m too handsy with you, you’ll convince one of the trees around headquarters to fall on me,” he said.

“I was lamenting that there are only two in the courtyard.”

“I don’t doubt it.” Targon didn’t sound worried. “Good thing I got rid of the potted plants in here that my predecessor liked. He thought rangers should embrace nature. I prefer to embrace it outdoors.”

He led her into the suite she’d mentioned, heading for the secret door at the back. He opened it and stepped inside.

Kaylina hesitated. She hadn’t imagined Targon eavesdropping with her. When she’d been alone in the dark passageway with Vlerion, she hadn’t worried, but Targon ogled her chest far too often for her to want to be alone in the dark with him.

He paused and looked back, maybe guessing the reason for her hesitation. A gentleman would have promised not to touch her or do anything untoward. He leered at her chest, his eyes glinting with humor.

“How badly do you want to listen?” he asked.

“You’re an ass. My lord.”

Targon’s eyes slitted at the insult. “And you’re so in need of flogging. If I didn’t think— know —Vlerion would be furious—and dangerous—I’d handle your discipline myself.”

“Does your sister know how often you fantasize about beating women?”

“It’s trainee rangers and upstart commoners that need a firm hand, not women specifically. And I’d ask when you met Shylea, but they’re already talking, I’m sure.” He pointed toward the passageway ahead, then headed up it, leaving her to decide how badly she wanted to listen in.

“Badly,” Kaylina muttered, then braced herself and followed Targon into the dark.