Page 24 of Luca

Okay, there was a story here, and I was desperate to know it. Were they… ex-lovers or something? Nah, Cair wouldn’t drop that on me without warning, and from what he’d told me of his past, he’d only ever had flings with nagas, orcs, and other Fae, so that theory was impossible. It was clear they had a bond of some kind, and as Ivar was visibly much older than Cair, it seemed plausible that he’d been a mentor or a teacher, maybe even an adviser.

“Before you go, take this…” Ivar dipped under his table with a pained grunt, coming back up with a package in his hands—a sizable item swathed in linen cloth. “It’s not much, or anything extravagant, but consider it a belated mating gift.”

Seeing that my hands were occupied, Cair took the item and peeled back the covering for me to see. It was a dagger, the blade safely tucked inside its scabbard, while the marble hilt, painted with intricate swirling patterns, stood out against the white cloth. “Thank you,” I said, my eyes wide in awe. “You’re too kind.”

“Keep it close,” he suggested. “You never know when it’ll come in handy.”

I nodded in agreement, as Cair wrapped it back up before stepping behind me to store it away in my pack. I would have reached out to shake Ivar’s hand then, to show him my gratitude in the only way I knew how, but with a half-eaten pastry in one palm and the crumbed remnants of said pastry on the other, I thought better of it.

I smiled instead. “It was nice to meet you, Ivar.”

“Until next time, Your Royal Highnesses.” He placed a hand to his chest and bowed once more in a gesture of respect. Cair mirrored him with a dip of his head before guiding us away.

We rejoined the flurry, slotting effortlessly in between two couples strolling leisurely beside the stalls. I tried to wait until we were a respectable distance away from Ivar’s shop to let my mouth run away with me, I really did, but the question burst out of me before we even made it fully across the street.

“Soooo, how do you two know each other?”

Cair smirked as if he’d expected it—he knew me too well—before leaning close to murmur so quietly that only I could hear. “Ivar is the oldest and most loyal spy on my payroll.”

“What?” I stopped in my tracks, peering back at the frail old satyr, selling pretty pastries and smiling as if he hadn’t a care in the world. “I never would have guessed.”

“I’m afraid that is the point, pet,” he said, amused, as he ushered me to keep walking. “I have known him since I was a youngling. He worked in the palace kitchens, but retired from the position not long before I left for the human realm. My most recent reports mentioned that he’d set up a cake shop here in memory of his wife. I thought it polite to stop by and formally introduce you.”

“How did he become part of your…” I glanced around, realizing there were too many inhuman ears. “Team?”

Cair guided me to the edge of the market, to a small gap between two shops, away from the bulk of the crowd. I nibbled my pastry as he spoke. “I typically hire those who are the least likely to be suspected and have proved themselves loyal to me, in one capacity or another. Ivar is older, yes, but he was already familiar with the complexities of our family, and he’d always been kind to Teighan. When the other cooks saw fit to deprive my brother of food, Ivar would make sure he was fed first and double. He wasn’t afraid of anything, least of all being punished for favoring the king’s bastard.”

My blood boiled at the mention of Tee’s mistreatment. No one deserved what he’d gone through, but it was at least a little relieving to hear he’d had someone besides Cair willing to fight for him.

“He sounds like a decent guy,” I said, licking another stripe through the cream and jam. “I knew you had…peopleworking for you, but I didn’t quite realize they’d be outside the capital too.”

“A prince needs eyes, ears, and swords in every corner of the land, especially when he’s absent from his place at court for one hundred years. My field agents are an invaluable resource. They worked alongside my soldiers and councillors, keeping the peace while I was gone. They live as normal civilians, but would report any whispers of unrest or revolt so I could devise the best course of action and suppress it quickly.”

My eyes widened. “You organized all of them while you were in the human realm?”

“Of course,” he said, matter-of-factly. “Being in the human realm did not release me from my duties. Not entirely. Rathe handled anything I could not oversee personally, but I corresponded with my forces often, kept everything in motion. I wanted my absence to be purely superficial, no real changes except for the fact that I was not here physically. I’d never abandon my people, or those who pledged their loyalty to me, but I had to leave. For my sanity, if nothing else.”

A weary look passed over his face, his gaze growing distant, and through our bond, I felt the creeping tingle of sadness and longing.

“You’re not really happy here, are you?” I said.

He seemed to blink out of a deep thought, the smile that slipped into place not quite reaching his eyes. His hand rose to cup my cheek. “I am happy wherever you are, sweetheart.”

“I know, but I mean…” I leaned into his touch, covering his hand with the one not holding a half-eaten confectionery. “You’d behappierin the human realm, wouldn’t you? Without the responsibility of the crown looming over you?”

It was obvious from his pause and clenching jaw that he wanted to deny it—to spare my feelings and lessen my worry, most likely. That was just the type of guy he was. After a moment of hesitating and studying my resolute expression, he sighed, letting his hand slip from my cheek as he leaned back against the shop wall.

“It is… more complex than that, but yes.” The answer I’d been expecting. “The club is a home I made for myself, and for Tee. It was somewhere I could be selfish. I could travel whenever and wherever I wanted, see new sights, learn new things, watch the humans advance throughout the decades, and pretend to live as if I were never a prince. I wasn’tfreeby any means—I still had responsibilities—but not being in the Otherworld, directly answering to my father, was surreal. They were the best years of my life, especially those last few months when a little human came sauntering into my den asking for a job.”

I huffed a laugh and grumbled, “I don’tsaunter.”

Cair didn’t seem convinced, but said nothing.

The beat of silence stretched for a moment, my mind whirring as I stared down at the amber jam oozing from the tart. I even gently squeezed the pastry to watch more burst out—a mindless distraction.

“I’m not trying to make this about me,” I said. “But I never imagined an existence among royalty. I wouldn’t change meeting you for the world, and I’ll stand by you forever, in any capacity, but this life does make me anxious sometimes.” I let out a self-deprecating laugh. “Okay, a lot of the time. And the thought of being on the throne beside you—even if it is thousands of years from now and I have time to prepare—fills me with dread.” I lifted my gaze to Cair, smiling sympathetically. “And I’ve only had to worry about it fora year. I can’t begin to imagine how you’ve felt your entire life. I don’t blame you for wanting some semblance of peace from it.”

“You know I would never make you do anything you were uncomfortable with.”

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