Page 5 of A Kingdom of Monsters

“Probably not...” Scion wouldn’t meet my eyes. “It’s not as if he could contract a common plague.”

I narrowed my eyes, my anxiety rising. The Fae could not lie, and therefore found many creative ways to spin the truth to avoid being forthright. I’d been around the Everlasts–and Scion especially–long enough to know that “probably” and “perhaps” were as good as an omission of wrongdoing.

“I wouldn’t concern yourself, Lonnie,” Idris said casually.

Scion and I both turned to look at the other Fae male, who stood several paces back from us, with his hands in his pockets. Scion frowned. “Why?”

Idris raised a brow. “Your cousin just gained a powerful amount of new magic. That’s taxing on the body, but he’ll recover eventually.”

Scion looked mollified, nodding as if that made sense, but I was still confused.

“What new magic?” I asked, feeling uncomfortable at being out of the loop.

A momentary expression of annoyance flickered across Scion's too-handsome face, as if he was trying to suppress an eye roll. If this conversation had taken place three months ago, he would have definitely ridiculed my lack of comprehension. But now, it seemed like Scion was making an effort to be more patient and understanding for my sake.

“Bael’s never been able to transform at will before,” Scion said.

“What changed?”

Scion shrugged. “I’m not sure. I would say it was due to the mating. Mating always results in increased power for both partners. But since you haven’t completed your bond, I can’t say for sure if that’s the reason.”

“Maybe it’s because he’s now the king of Underneath,” Idris theorized.

“Maybe,” Scion agreed. “Whatever the case, Bael’s power has increased, possibly beyond mine.”

“Does that bother you?”

He let out a bark of harsh laughter. “No.”

Even as I heard the honesty in his answer, I glanced at him, searching for any hint of jealousy or resentment on his face. There was none. “I would have thought you’d envy anyone with stronger magic.”

“No, not at all. I—” Scion broke off abruptly, leaving his sentence hanging in mid-air. He let go of me, and turned sharply to look over his shoulder. “By the fucking Source!”

I turned and followed Scion’s gaze, already knowing whom I was likely to see. Sure enough, my gaze immediately landed on Ambrose striding toward us.

“Why doesn’t he stay in his half of the castle?”

“Which half is that?” I asked blandly.

“Whichever half I am not in,” Scion growled.

“He can hear you, you know.”

“I hope so,” Scion raised his voice to a near yell. “Then maybe the prick would turn around and leave us the fuck alone.”

I watched as Ambrose laughed and shook his head, not changing course as he carved a wide path toward us across the lawn. His expression was amused, but otherwise he looked every inch the fierce rebel leader, with his bright white hair falling wildly around his shoulders and his shirt open at the neck to display a hint of his tattoos.

Pointedly ignoring Scion, Ambrose nodded a greeting to Idris, then stopped in front of me and grinned. “Hello, Love. How is practice.”

“Er, good…fine…I mean. It’s great.” I flushed, even as my throat began to burn. He’d flustered me enough to lie by mistake, and I looked down hiding both my face and my watering eyes.

I felt Scion’s sharp gaze on me, probably wondering what the hell was wrong with me. It was a good question, really.

Last night had been far less awkward, but perhaps that was because it had been the middle of the night. No one had been around to witness my awkwardness.

Indeed, there was really no need for me to feel so uneasy around Ambrose. On the ship, we were relaxed around each other, almost like friends. But now, I couldn't help but feel on edge.

Perhaps it was because I knew how my mates felt about him, and their mistrust was rubbing off on me. Or perhaps it was due to that night we’d spent together in Underneath. Just because we hadn’t slept together, didn’t make what I’d done any less embarrassing to think about. Then, there was the strange moment between us last night. It had been so fleeting, I was half sure I’d imagined it.

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