Page 76 of Wingless Crow: Part 1

The smile disappeared from the king’s face. He stared his High General down. An argument was brewing. The tension thickened between them, ready to erupt.

Feeling uneasy, I dropped my legs down from around the king’s waist and attempted to stand on my own. With his hand under my bottom, he heaved me up, forcing me to cling to him with my legs again.

“See? You’re upsetting my pet,” he snapped at Voron, soothingly patting my butt. “Tonight, we’ll celebrate. Tomorrow, I want you in my sitting room first thing in the morning, not for a discussion, but to get my instructions on how I wish to proceed with this matter.” He pinned Voron with his stare, his next words coming with added emphasis, “That’s a direct order from the crown.”

With that, King Tiane whipped around and marched into the palace, whisking me away with him.

ChapterNineteen

SPARROW

“Don’t come out here, Sparrow.” Voron cut off my way to the outside terrace by placing himself between the exit and me. “Go back to your room.”

Brebie had relayed his order for me to stay in my bedroom today while she was getting me ready this morning. Except that the king had sent his guards to fetch me shortly after. And the king's orders superseded those of his High General.

“King Tiane sent for me,” I said quietly.

The royal guards escorting me walked around Voron and opened the doors to the terrace.

“Leave, Sparrow,” Voron insisted, not moving out of my way.

The intensity in his stare and the grave weight in his voice made me wish I indeed could get the hell out of there. I had no desire to participate in whatever “punishment ceremony” King Tiane had dreamed up. The details had been kept secret for the entire week of preparation, but the name alone didn’t sound very entertaining to me.

Unfortunately, the king had already spotted me from his chair out on the terrace.

“Come, baby chick!” He clapped his hands. “I’ve got a spot right here for you.” He gestured at a low stool with a pink cushion at his feet.

Voron’s hands fisted at his sides. He still wouldn’t move from my path, squaring his shoulders.

“Sorry…” I mumbled, stepping around him and out onto the terrace.

Wind caught the hem of my cloak the moment I left the shelter of the palace. It howled between the banisters and turrets outside, yanking at the rich clothes of the highborn sitting in chairs along the terrace.

The king reclined in a high-backed armchair in the middle, with Queen Pavline on his right. She greeted me with a polite half-smile, which was a sign of favor since etiquette didn’t dictate that she greet me at all. I had no rank and no title for the queen to have to acknowledge my presence.

I bowed to both royals and lowered my butt onto the pink cushion at the king’s feet. He tugged off my hood and wrapped his hand around the back of my neck. The wind blew out my curls that Brebie had so carefully arranged for me earlier. I shoved the loose hair out of my face but didn’t dare put the hood back on with the royal hand planted on my neck.

“Let me know what you think about this,” the king said with a note of fervent excitement.

He often asked my opinion about things like food, drinks, or performers. Though, he rarely listened to my answers. I wasn’t sure why he would even bother asking at all.

Dropping my head down, I cast a furtive glance back at the door. Voron stood there among the guards. All the guards wore identical uniforms, but a group of them, along with Alcon, tended to be hanging closer to Voron at all times. I recognized the men from seeing them in the receiving room where they took turns guarding their High General. Voron obviously trusted them the most.

Magnus made a circle around the palace, then landed on a vine branch above Voron’s head with a soft caw, as if letting his master know about his presence.

A moment later, wild screams and howls suddenly cut the air.

I jerked, startled, and the king squeezed the back of my neck lightly.

“Watch, Sparrow.”

The terrace was located on one of the lower levels of the palace. It was only about two or three floors above the ground, which was unusual for the royal court. The highborn preferred the higher floors for obvious reasons, leaving the lower ones to those without wings.

The palace grounds on this side had no flowerbeds, just paths running between neatly cut lawns with fountains. Royal guards led horses dragging giant metal cages along the wide paths.

“What is this?” I shrank back from the wild noises coming from the cages and flattened myself against King Tiane’s legs.

The cages were filled with creatures that looked like people but acted like animals. They growled, roared, and screamed. The horrible sounds reached through to my bones, chilling and terrifying.

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