Page 14 of Bane of the Wild Hunt

I am going to weed out the ones who do not belong in command and strengthen our defensive position.

Despite a spike of concern for his intention to rattle the Imítheos authority so quickly, I couldn’t help smiling at the thought of how many griffins he was about to dismiss.

We reached the war room which was at the centre of the Archigeío. The most secure and secretive place in all of Ergastiri and probably in all of the city-states.

Or at least ithadbeen.

The double doors were thrown wide open with just one guard posted outside whilst innumerable servants scurried around in a panic to tidy the room. And not the usual war room attendants who were carefully vetted and selected. These were ordinary servants who usually attended to the dorm rooms and mess hall. Civilians. There wereciviliansinside the war room with the war table and all the maps with our kingdom’s defensive secrets on full display.

The servants froze and stared as we arrived because even they knew they were not supposed to be in there.

I felt Riordan’s fury spike, but he took a pause before finally addressing them.

“Thank you,” Riordan dismissed them calmly instead of reprimanding them.

I was genuinely impressed by his restraint. This was amajorpotential breach of security when the situation with the Wild Hunt was so uncertain. The incompetence of the new leadership was beyond disappointing if keeping the war room secure was no longer common sense.

It is. Which is how I know I am being baited into losing my composure in front of everyone and proving I am unfit to betheir king,Riordan assured me. He had waited for the servants to leave the room before he strode across the floor toward the war table.

I was astonished to realize he might be right. Myskiáwas well known for his impulsive and temperamental way of getting things done. He had good instincts and trusted himself to make decisions, so he rarely asked permission, explained himself, or sought advice. But he also had no patience for ineptitude, laziness, or entitlement, and his methods for dealing with it were wholly indiscriminate. The Queen’s Council had even been petitioned to demote myskiáfor punishing an Imítheos cadet with kitchen duty for disrespecting campus staff. The same punishment that had always been given to Ktínos was far toohumiliatingto be applied to an Imítheos. Riordan’s cousin, Nikos, who had championed the petition, claimed Riordan was nothing but a hotheaded bully who was abusing students. He was unfit to be a general.

Luckily, myskiá’seffectiveness was unquestionable, and Nikos failed in his attempts to oust him. But it made sense that someone might try to provoke his temper now in an effort to undermine him in front of his war cabinet.

I watched Riordan lean over the massive war table while his eyes tracked across the map and every pawn placed upon it. I saw that familiar look of confusion and disappointment on his face as he absorbed the information with a keenness I’d always envied. The man was brilliant when it came to processing information quickly. With just a single glance, Riordan could produce an entire battle strategy complete with an outline of the enemy strengths and weaknesses, terrain barriers and advantages, gaps in defenses, and even loss predictions. It was perhaps his most impressive talent, aside from his ability to inspire unfailing loyalty in the warriors around him.

“How bad is it?” I asked aloud as Iris and Theo moved around the table to look as well. They had been barred from this room the same as I was twenty years ago.

“It is no wonder the fey have been able to avoid being captured during their incursions. Who the fuck thought it was a good idea to unman most of the quadrant towers Riordan erected?” Iris asked as she leaned across the table to tap her finger on several different locations.

“That was Nikos,” said another voice.

Iris and Theo both stood up quickly as Dio Matthias, the Commander of Erétria, entered the war room with his loyalskiá, Hermes, right behind him. Their female mate had been killed in battle long ago, but the two males had been together for centuries. Dio and Hermes were two of only a select few Imítheos whose company I enjoyed.

“And why was my cousin’s opinion on matters of war and defense heeded when he still has not studied even a year at Ergastiri?” Riordan wanted to know.

“Ah,” said Dio, his weathered face wrinkling into a genuine smile. “I have missedyou, my boy.”

Riordan seemed to let it go, straightening with a smile to approach the older male so Dio could grab him into a hug before the other Imítheos could arrive and judge.

“I have missed you too,” Riordan said as they parted, offering another smile to Hermes who had gripped his shoulder affectionately.

“I hear you returned with a mate?” Dio verified.

“Her name is Amira, and she has not yet accepted me. She wished to get to know my home and my people first,” Riordan confided.

“Ah, then I shall appreciate her good sense as well,” Dio teased him with a smirk at me that made me want to roll my eyes in response.

“I am not sure that all of our people will make the best impression on her,” Hermes pointed out.

“All the more reason for her to be sure of her choice,” Riordan answered, but for the first time, I was astonished to feel a spike of vulnerability in him.

I’d never known Riordan to be uncertain of himself, and yet he was suddenly so anxious that it was hard even for me to breathe. Not because he regretted or doubted his own choice, as I hoped he would, but because she might not choose him. He worriedhewas not worthy ofher.

And it made me hate her even more.

“Indeed. Life for a witch will not be easy in Kórinthos. Are you sure of your desire?” Dio asked.

“I am. You will understand when you meet her.”

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