Page 78 of The Fae King's Labyrinth

Calypso ate and I talked. Both Illeron and Avril asked questions occasionally, but as the meal disappeared, Calypso’s eyes began to close. Eventually her head came to rest against my upper arm, and as delighted as I was by the contact, sleeping while sitting up wasn’t good for her.

“I had hoped we could beg a night’s hospitality from you,” I said. “As you can see, Callie is weary and I dare not bring her back to my castle with my mother on the run.”

“Of course,” Avril responded before Illeron could. “Come with me.” She rose and came around the counter to Calypso’s side. “I’ll show you where Az usually sleeps when he visits. He can join you when he and Illeron have finished strategizing.”

Illeron and I watched them depart without speaking, but the moment the door closed behind them, he turned to me. “How bad was the damage?”

I grimaced. “Mother would’ve wiped her of all personality and will and replaced Callie with a reflection of herself if Oran hadn’t been there.” My rage roared to life once more when I considered how close Calypso had come to a fate worse than death. With great effort, I wrestled it down.

Illeron rose, and I followed as he turned toward the corridor. “Casimir selected the best scouts in our ranks and sent them out searching for any sightings of your mother and her lover.” Weclimbed the stairs to the upper floor. “He will report back the moment they hear word, but in the meantime, I have questions.”

“So do I,” I informed him. “The most pressing one is whether or not my mother betrayed me to the Unseelies.”

“I doubt it.” Illeron stalked into his study and flung himself into the comfortable-looking chair behind his desk. “Sit.” He motioned toward the upholstered chair across from him.

“How do you figure that?” I asked as I lowered myself into the offered chair with far more reserve. I didn’t have the energy for flinging anything, me included.

Illeron’s eyebrow rose. “It wouldn’t serve her purpose.” Illeron’s gaze intensified as he narrowed in on my expression. “Are you certain you’re well? The Az I know would’ve spotted that a mile away.”

I rubbed my face. “I don’t know anymore. My life has been upside down for so long. I shouldn’t be so shaken by these past few days, but I am.”

“Because of Callie?”

I closed my eyes. “I guess.” Opening them again, I regarded my friend from across his desk. “Only a few short weeks ago, I was responsible for a nation, fighting a curse, and struggling to keep up with its variations. Now I’m married, freed, setting my defenses against my mother, and finally tracking down the traitor who handed my enemy my true name.”

Illeron nodded. “Suspects?”

Leave it to Illeron to focus on the traitor. “My mother, Grizzlemunch, and Soren.”

“Your mother doesn’t make sense. She wants power and sees you as her vehicle to gain it. Getting you cursed defeats that purpose. Why is your secretary a new suspect?”

“He hates Callie.”

“And that’s why you think he handed over your true name? That makes no sense. She wasn’t even in the equation when you were cursed.”

I shrugged. “He’s perpetually indicating that I am falling short of my responsibilities. He hounds me night and day with work. Resists any changes I make to improve the kingdom. And now, he seems irritated that she is around and demanding attention.”

“It sounds as though he doesn’t like the fact you have a wife.”

“A companion,” I clarified. “He thinks she is my companion, not my wife.”

Illeron’s scrutiny intensified. “Exactly how many people have you told about your marriage?”

I squinted at nothing while I counted. “The Great Pooka, Ghost, Oran, my parents, you, and Avril. Some servants in Oran’s household know now. Those are the only people who know I am free from my curse too. Though some in my household might have reasoned it out.”

“I’m sure they have.” Illeron nodded. “Servants have a tendency to figure out more than we suspect or desire.” He studied me. “How has your household responded to Callie’s presence?”

“After the initial fuss that she’s female, they adapted well.” I considered the parade of servants that had worked its way through my office over the past few days and frowned. “Perhaps too well. She has had more visitors than I during the time we were home.”

Illeron’s sly grin caught my eye. “Should I be concerned?” I asked. After all, he’d been married to a human for quite a while. He might offer some insight. “Anything I should adjust?”

Illeron’s eyebrows rose. “Everything. Marriage is a commitment that affects everything. She’ll need friends,freedom, a purpose, control over parts of her life, and more. Have you dissolved the male-only rule in your court yet?”

“I considered it.” It had crossed my mind at the very least. I rubbed my face. Too many thoughts raced through my brain. I grasped at one. “What do you mean about her needing purpose and control?”

“What was Callie’s life like before the curse got involved?”

“Hard labor. Helping run a farm, tending her spoiled sister’s children, and catering to her sister’s whims.” Anger coiled in my gut once more.

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