Page 82 of Bane of the Wild Hunt

“She killed one of the vampires who served Jade when they demanded her help to trap me,” Riordan insisted, amused by her humility in glossing over this point.

“And you wanted his… friendship?” verified Isaura, clearly suspicious that the witch must be omitting a part of the story. “It never occurred to you that you might use him to further your own power? Many witches before you have murdered our people for our feathers.”

The witch looked genuinely horrified by the question, and Riordan frowned at the councilor while his chosen mate shook her head emphatically.

“I would never hurt another living thing!” she tried to swear adamantly, but then her expression quickly faltered. “Besides the vampires that kept coming after him.”

The councillors all looked at Riordan, but the king’s focus was wholly on the witch. The way he looked at her made my heart hurt, but I did my best to stifle the ache.

“We were taken prisoner by Jade, and the witch broke her spell on me for… sadistic purposes. Amira risked her life to help me defeat her just long enough to get us all out of the prison,” Riordan picked up the story. “I had already set my heart on Amira by then, but it took some time for her to feel equally confident about me. She spent a year thinking that I was an animal and was rather surprised to find it was not the case,” heexplained with a look at the witch that made her roll her eyes at him.

They were so comfortable and open with one another, despite the skeptical gazes on them, that it made me feel sick with envy and yearning for… something.

“That all sounds lovely,” said Castor, although his tone was rather dismissive of them. “Miss Kelley, you must understand that the consort of a monarch would typically come from a family that was well known to the council. Romance and… friendship have very little to do with it,” he added with a disapproving glance at Riordan.

The witch’s expression grew sombre as she nodded at him knowingly. “I am perfectly aware that I am not what you would have preferred for him. For many reasons.”

Castor grunted and then considered Riordan’s frown as if he were deliberating on how to phrase his concerns so the king did not dismiss them for bigotry.

“I am convinced you are not an active threat to us,” Castor began, earning him a few raised eyebrows around the room, including mine. “I do not believe King Riordan would ever seek to undermine the safety of this kingdom. He and I may have had our differences, but I can say with absolute confidence that the defense and well-being of his people has always been his priority. So I trust his instincts in that particular arena.”

Not even Riordan could hide his surprise at such high praise coming from Castor of all people.

“It is tradition, but not a necessity that a consort bring leverage into a union. Alliances, trade, wealth, resources. None of which you possess, although it can be overlooked since you have a more… emotional value to our king. Something he deems to be important,” Castor pointed out, while the other councillors nodded like he was making great sense. “So I am left with concerns over breeding.”

“Excuse me?” the witch blurted as her eyes widened. She was completely taken off guard.

“I understand witches do not experience the same sort of difficulties that our kind is faced with,” Dio spoke up. “An argument could be made in her favour that she would be more likely to prove fruitful for our king.”

“True,” Isaura conceded, her shrewd eyes narrowing on the witch with an unasked question.

The witch cast a wide-eyed glance at Riordan, and he gave her thigh a comforting squeeze but did not intervene. He had said he would allow the councillors to voice their genuine concerns, and as long as they were not bigoted, then he would allow them to speak.

“She may produce many offspring, but will they all be healthy and mentally sound? We have no family history to refer to in terms of hereditary illnesses. How do we know how health concerns may differ for witches? And what if her offspring do not have wings or they cannot shift their form into that of a griffin?” Castor listed his concerns.

The witch looked mortified, and Riordan breathed in deeply for calm as he prepared to intervene.

“There is never any guarantee when it comes to the health of children. And I did not realize that wings and shifting were mandatory qualities of a monarch. My heirs require my blood to pass on the mantle as defender of the Vale and that is all. Do any of you have questions about whatgoodAmira could do here for us?”

I saw a couple councillors glancing in my direction, which meant they probably had concerns about the role that I would play in Riordan’s union. At least they knew better than to bring that up now.

“Right. Then let us consider this matter settled so we may move on to more appropriate business for this council. Likehow to protect our people and help them flourish,” suggested Riordan when they could come up with nothing else more substantial to raise concerns over.

Chapter twenty-four

SHE WANTED A MASTER

Rian

“Sweet Elements, Rian,” breathed Carrick.

We stood over Nuala who lay so still and silent on my bed that I might not have thought she lived. And neither of us seemed to know what to do with the poor creature.

“She must be cleaned,” I decided. Not just because of the smell, but because I was sure that she would also want to purge the remnants of her captivity.

Find me a bathtub and some small women’s clothing. Preferably something conservative,I thought to Darragh.

To his credit, the demidragon did not even question my strange request and sent me his agreement right away.

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