Page 127 of Fallen Heirs

“Open this cell and we’ll see how you fare this time!”

“You believed in your own press so much that you lost sight of the truth. You arenothing.”

As he roared and continued roaring, completely irate, she stepped up closer, not the least bit afraid or rattled at being so close to him.

“You tried to break me, but you failed. You tried to ruin me and you couldn’t. You made the worst mistake of your life when you made an enemy out of me. You see, I know who I am now. I know my purpose. And now, no matter what you try to do, no matter if Lenora comes for you, I’ll be here to make sure you fall. Enjoy your last few hours wasting away like a useless has-been in this cell.”

He moved to speak, but she flicked her hand, re-establishing the soundproofed nature of the cell, breaking the connection.“I’m done with you.”

With that, she turned on her heel and sauntered away around the edge of the building, taking a covert route toward the central quarters, back to her room.

“Well, then,” my father spoke. “That was certainly something.” He turned to me, facing me head-on. “She’ll make a fine queen one day. The royal bloodline will be secure with her.”

“Uh uh, no royal bloodline talk.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “You haven’t considered it?”

“You know I consider everything. She’s too young. She spent a lot of her life in denial about who she really is. She’s just come into herself, but in the most painful way imaginable. When this is all over, she needs to live her life freely, not weighed down by anything, no pressures.”

A broad smile crept across his face. “As you wish.”

“Really? Just like that?”

“If that’s what it takes to ensure her wellbeing and that she remains happily by your side, yes.”

“You really have grown fond of her, haven’t you?”

“That I have.”

“Who knew you were capable of such gentleness and consideration—outside of that toward me anyway?”

He rolled his eyes. “You will perform the union ceremony, though, yes?”

I could hear it in his voice and see the strain all over his face not to issue it as an order.

He was going to so much effort to do what I needed, to make allowances for this unconventional situation by traditional DFR standards. The least we could do was give him this. “Of course.”

“Thank you, son.”

I grasped his arm. “Thankyou,Father. Your attitude toward Alena, toward everything lately… it means a great deal to me.”

“I want you content and fulfilled. It is my wish for you.” He gestured at the troops in the distance. “You need to know also just how very proud I am of you, what you’ve accomplished here, what you will continue to, and how far you’ve come.”

“Thank you.”

We were just about to embrace when green smoke erupted, pulling us up short as Marlowe materialized.

He smiled out at me, then addressed my father, “Love, Elliot is awake. It’s time.”

“If we were trackingdark magic, yes, but in my case, it won’t work as efficiently. The greater the distance between me and the store of my magic, the more of an issue it will prove to be if the foundation of the spell isn’t strong,” Elliot was explaining to my father as the two of them worked on the spell to locate his stolen magic wherever the hell it might be.

“Then we employ a blood link, that of your son’s, to assist.”

Elliot nodded at him. “That’s definitely feasible.” He looked out at me as I stood watching them in the lab I’d set up when I’d built this base of operations. Elliot was shuffling back and forth with the aid of a cane, still weak without his magic to facilitate his rapid healing, while his new woman, Vanessa, fussed over the equipment, bringing him exactly what he needed at the precise moment he needed it. She was good, I’d give her that, and already very well-attuned to him. They made a good team.

Strangely, so did he and my father.

Despite their differences, they were bouncing ideas off one another very well and making good progress.

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