Page 69 of Their Chosen

I sighed, aggravated. Deciding not to say anything, I turned to him, my fist slamming into his stomach in answer and causing him to double over with an oomph as the air rushed from his lungs. “What the fuck was that for?” he demanded as he stood back up to square up against me.

“That was for being an unmitigated ass. For harassing her for days on end before revealing to her more than she was ready for tonight after having lowered her defenses sexually. She could have found out this information tomorrow, but you just had to mess with her head, like you have the whole time since you met her. Thankfully, she's reasonable and didn't get too upset,” I laid into him, tired of his bullshit.

He had the decency to look guilty, conflicting emotions running across his face as he thought of a way to respond. I didn't give him a chance. “I don't care what your issues are, but you are about to be bonded to her. Take care of your shit so it doesn't come back to hurt her in any way. You may be the prince for now, but while with her, we are equals, and I won't have you causing her any more pain.”

We both knew what I was referring to. We both could see the haunted look that crossed her face from time to time, the guarded nature that could only come from someone who had lived a hard life. She wasn’t ready to discuss it with us yet, but I hoped she would trust us enough at some point to let down those walls.

He regarded me, not bothering to make any excuses, standing up with his arm wrapped around his stomach where I’d punched him. “You're right. I can't promise that I won't still be an ass, years of practice and all that, but I can admit when I mess up. I shouldn't have flaunted that at her tonight. I'm working on getting my shit together, but certain circumstances don't make that easy for me.”

“What do you mean certain circumstances?” I questioned him, my eyes narrowing as I crowded his personal space threateningly.

He didn't back down, but his shoulders slumped as he avoided my glare. I could see the wheels turning in his mind, and when his eyes met mine again, the resolution and anger I saw was not what I expected.

“My mother is not what she presents to the courts. Everyone knows she can be ruthless, but they don't really know the depths of her depravity. She enjoys her power too much to ever let it go. I don't know what she has planned. I'm not privy to any of that information, but I know her well enough that I wouldn't put it past her to find a way to hold onto the throne.”

He continued, “I was really hoping there was some way out of this for Rhowyn, for both of us, but it doesn't appear that's an option available to us anymore. I haven't yet come to terms with that, and I'm not happy about it. I'll do my duty, but I don't have to like it.”

I nodded, taken aback by this new information from him. I wasn't sure how to respond. “Thank you for telling me this. You may be surprised to know that everyone really does know the depths she's willing to go to. They’ve all just given up hope. Unlike you, I haven't given up hope that I can change things somehow. I believe Rhowyn is our best shot at changing our futures, making sure the people and the land stay safe.” I stopped, considering how much to tell him, not quite sure he could be trusted.

He looked a little taken aback at the information that others knew about the madness of the Queen, her thirst for blood, and the desire for unlimited power. His confusion increased as he tried to read me. He wouldn't get anything from me that I didn't intend for him to see. I had practiced for too long at maintaining my demeanor. It wouldn't do for my true thoughts to slip out in the presence of the Queen or one of her lackeys.

“I'm sure you have questions. However, I'm not sure how much I can reveal to you yet. I have no guarantees on how close the two of you are. It's probably why you’re also unaware of the Court's knowledge. No one could risk revealing their true thoughts to the prince for fear it would be leaked to her. It would have ended in death if they were wrong to trust you,” I tried to explain to him.

“No one could hate her more than I do. I was hoping that these new trials would allow me the chance to escape her grasp, that I could finally be free from all the expectations and masks. Apparently, I should have known better,” he spat out vehemently, each word dripping with disgust at his mother.

I believed him, but I still didn't know if I could trust him. Would he run back to her if things didn't look to be going our way? Did she have her ways of gaining information from him? She had magic that we could never know, access to resources that we didn't. It wouldn't be beyond her reach to have a spell or way of making him talk.

I nodded at him. Deciding against revealing more to him tonight, I instead gave him an ultimatum. “If you really think that way, you'll be on board with helping us ensure Rhowyn is prepared for the trials. You’ll make sure that we’re all ready to face what will undoubtedly be the riskiest trials in fae history. If she plans to hold onto power, she'll have something in store to ensure that no one can win. As Consorts, we must ensure that Rhowyn survives them. In fact, I have every belief that she can win the trials, but we will still need to be ready for anything the Queen can throw at us. We can't do any of it unless you’re on the same page as us. Think you can set aside your own desires so that the people no longer have to suffer under her tyranny?”

He ran a hand through his hair, mussing it even more than it had been after his interlude with Rhowyn. I could see the moment he recognized that I was right. That our only hope from here on out was Rhowyn.

He sighed, “Yeah.”

I nodded sharply. “Then get some sleep. We've got another busy day of trying to prepare her for the shit storm that's about to hit us all. And we'll need to accept the bonds.”

He didn't respond to me, just sighed at those truths before he turned on his heel to head to his room. “Oh, Lennox?” I stopped him as he reached the door to our hall.

“What now?” he huffed, apparently still acting the spoiled brat.

“Do you know where Callum headed off to? Or why he's remained so scarce?”

He shrugged. “Not a clue. We haven't been close in years. Not since...” he trailed off. He didn't finish his thought, but instead left me to stand there by myself to wonder what the Autumn consort was up to.

I knew all of his history, and I had hoped at one point to get him on board with my plans but was never able to get close to him. He was elusive and more shut down than I was, which was saying something.

I walked over and poured myself a glass of whiskey, plopped myself down in the chair across from the fireplace, and proceeded to watch the flames dance as I waited for Callum to return. He and I needed to have a serious talk.

Chapter Twenty Nine: Callum

We walked down to the training room again as a group, but Rhowyn and Baer were up ahead, joking around. Baer teased her about something and caused her to blush. Such a pretty color on her creamy, olive skin. I could picture her with that same color in her cheeks for a completely different reason.

Arryn and Lennox followed behind them, lost in their own thoughts but both very aware of her every move. I was at the rear of the group, out of sight and out of mind. Or at least that's what I had thought because just then, Arryn glanced at me over his shoulder, his gaze hard after our conversation last night.

After going back and forth with my thoughts last night, I was no closer to a decision on what to do with my Chosen. I still wasn't fully comfortable or sure in my decision to accept the consort bond. Doing so would either be the best thing or the worst thing for my people. And there was still the problem with her sticking around after the trials. Was it worth putting all my hopes on her?

For the last several years, I had been trying to survive and to protect my people from any further punishments from the Queen. I hated her with every ounce of my being, but I'd had to swallow that loathing for years in hopes of being able to bring her down for good. I hadn't been making any headway, only suffering through her favorite forms of torture for her own twisted pleasures. And now, with this consort bond, I had the opportunity to overthrow the bitch. But I couldn't shake the dread that filled me, the anger at the situation that made this all or nothing.

I knew absolutely nothing about this woman, how she wound up on Earth, what her motivations were, or what kind of queen she would be if we succeeded. All I knew was that I'd rather die than allow another sadistic queen on the throne. All the other choices were either too similar to our current queen, both strong and manipulative, or too weak for their own good. If we were to succeed, we needed someone who could make the hard decisions while also maintaining her virtues. Inevitably, each hard decision would chip away at a person, hardening them into a shadow of their former naïve selves.

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