Page 75 of The Kingdom of Flames and Ash

“We don’t have to explain ourselves to a thornling.” Father rocked back on his heels while spreading out his wings, quite an intimidating sight. “He entered not only our castle but our daughter’s room without permission, which is unforgivable. I shudder to even consider what he’d planned to do with her if Sorcha hadn’t intervened.”

My mouth dropped open. He hadn’t even considered the possibility that I’d manage to protect myself. However, before I was able to correct him, Sorcha cleared her throat.

“Your Majesty, it wasn’t I who protected her.” She folded her wings behind her back. “When I entered, Greason had already been handled.”

Father’s brows furrowed while Mother grinned.

“I guess what Hestia, Brenin, and Tavish mentioned earlier is true.” Mother smiled and dropped her hand back to her side. “You seem to be a worthy warrior yourself.”

“Tavish?” Greason spat out. “You’ve been spending time with the nightfiend as well? There have been whispers, but none of us in Gleann Solas believed it.”

That sparked anger deep within me. It was one thing to question my loyalties—Tavish was my fated mate, so I could understand the concern—but to question my parents, who’d sacrificed so much for their people, was insulting. “Speak like that to them again, and you won’t be able to so much as whisper once I remove your tongue. We may have had a misunderstanding upon my return, but know that they are my family, and I won’t tolerate them being disrespected.”

Nightbane rumbled pitifully, lifting his head and trying to face the threat. His head bobbed around like he was dizzy, which only fueled my rage even more.

Lira, I’m heading back. I can’t handle feeling all your emotions without knowing what’s going on. I—

We’re fine. I promise. Stay so we can handle the dragon threat and start our new life free and together tomorrow night. My parents are here, and the problem has been dealt with. He’s just accusing my parents of potential treason.

“Lira, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but I can handle punishment on my own.” Father smirked, pride gleaming in his eyes despite his words. He turned back to Greason. “But before anything else happens, I want to know who alerted you to Lira’s presence here so you knew to hide in her room for her return.”

“And how you knew that Nightbane was with me.” I pointed at the beast, who flopped back on the mattress, whimpering.

Even though I knew the answer, I kept my mouth shut, knowing that Father would want to hear the answer from him alone.

Greason stayed silent.

Holding out his hand, Father said, “Sorcha, take him to the holding cell so we can prepare him for torture. I want to know who informed him, who’s been whispering about us, and anything else that might be beneficial.”

Greason’s face flushed, and the trickle of blood down his neck congealed as the wound clotted. “I won’t inform you of anything. I dedicated my life to you, and all of you have abandoned me.”

“You were stationed at the cell to ensure no prisoners escaped. Not only did Lira steal a key from you, but she managed to free two Unseelie fae in the process. You were trained to evaluate threats, and you were aware of the connection my daughter had to the Unseelie king. You failed at your job, and I won’t risk anything like that happening again, not even if my own daughter is involved.”

Those few words were the equivalent of a punch in the gut, but I understood why he had to say them. I needed to remove my emotions from the equation and think like a royal. If his people were concerned, he needed to make it clear to everyone, including Sorcha, that our magic came first. And the truth was, I agreed it should come before me. But that didn’t make hearing it any easier.

“That’s good to hear, Your Majesty.” Sorcha bowed her head. “And, of course, I’d be honored to take him to the holding cell. Is there anything I should prepare?”

Father nodded. “The thorn whips, the short swords that won’t go too deep, and don’t forget the mistveil blossoms because hewilltell us everything he knows before his death.”

Even though it wasn’t the norm in Gleann Solas, unlike what Tavish had made the standard in Cuil Dorcha, an attack on the royal family meant death.

Sorcha grabbed Greason’s arm and yanked him upright. The male guard standing in the hallway hurried into the room and took the other side.

Father handed back her sword and stood tall and regal despite wearing his thin night tunic and lounge pants. “I’ll be there momentarily.”

“No,” Greason shouted, trying to dig his feet into the floor to stop the forward movement.

Still, the guards flew, the sound of them carrying him off heavy on my heart. I knew asking Father to spare him would be foolish. These were the rules, and most importantly, if he began making exceptions, more people would ask for them.

With the guards and my attacker gone, I hugged Nightbane, hating that he’d been caught in the cross fire.

“Are you okay, sprout?” Mother asked quietly, as if she were afraid that I’d be scared away like a mouse.

Well, if mice lived in Ardanos.

“I’m fine.” I straightened, begrudgingly letting go of Nightbane. “It just caught me off guard.”

“Do you have any speculation about who might have informed people?” Father pursed his lips. “I hate to think we have the same sort of traitors here that Tavish has to contend with in Cuil Dorcha.”

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