Page 63 of Enchanted Heir
“No, I don’t wish to use her to manipulate anyone. Entirely different than what you did.”
And then before I knew it was coming, Keir was barreling toward Krew. Krew moved from the table and met him halfway, as they tumbled to the hard floors in a heap of limbs and stupidry.
A punch was thrown, and they were flopping this way and that as they tried to get at each other.
“Owen,” I hissed. “Do something.”
He sighed. “They aren’t using magic yet. Just let them get it out. It’s been a long-time brewing.” And instead of helping the two brothers wrestling on the ground, he instead put up a sound barrier.
My eyes went watery as I looked at Owen and whispered, “But it’s because of me.”
On the ground before us, Keir struggled to roll back on top of Krew. “You’re only this pissed because you know I have a point.”
Krew landed a blow, and they were rolling again. Krew managed to somehow pin one of Keir’s shoulders to the ground and it looked like it was over, but then a blast of bright blue magic had him falling backward off of Keir.
Then both brother’s magic slithered in their veins as they prepared to take things to the next level. I wasn’t sure I had ever seen Krew’s navy magic so bright and barely contained.
“Enough,” Owen snapped.
Neither brother moved away nor looked like they were ready to back down. I stared at their hands, just waiting for someone to lift a finger and all hell to break loose within this room.
A green blast of magic blew both brothers backward. “No magic. Enough!”
Krew had a red spot by his right eye, and Keir had blood at his lip. They were beating the hell out of each other. Over me? I couldn’t move or speak though. Instead, I just felt my heart shattering. I didn’t want this. They couldn’t fight the king if they were too busy fighting each other.
Krew closed his palms but leaned in.
Owen shoved him back away from Keir, this time with his body and not his magic.
“I cannot believe,” Krew said from around Owen with a lethal tone, “that you truly cared for her at all if you would suggest what you did today. He left bruiseson her bodyand you would still dangle her in front of him like that for the cause?”
Keir stared back. “If it was anyone but her, it is whatyouwould’ve suggested.”
Krew’s chest heaved as he bit out, “We will not become him. I want him gone just as much as I ever did. But we will not become him. You know what I’m willing to give up, but do not force me to become him.”
“Jorah,” Owen said gently.
I somehow pried my eyes off the princes to look at his green eyes.
“Go shower. I’ll deal with these two,” he offered. He was so calm and collected while the other two were so angry, I didn’t quite know what to do with it.
Should I try to touch one of them to get their magic to calm down? Or should I just leave? I wiped at my eyes, realizing a few tears had leaked out. “Are you sure?”
Keir put up his hands. “I’ll go. I’m sorry if we scared you, Jorah. But once he calms down, try to talk to him about this, okay?” He headed for the door and stopped short before me. “Truly, I am sorry. With more people finding out about what you’ve been able to do in the forest, I only wanted to protect you on this end. Before our father finds out from someone else. I’m sorry, Jorah. If there was another way, I’d be all for it.”
And then he was gone.
Krew was still standing where he had been when Owen shoved him off, Owen in front of him.
“I guess I’ll go shower quick,” I provided.
So I left Owen to get Krew calmed down. As the hot water poured over me, I thought of everything that had just happened. Keir had said this time of year got to Krew, so was this the time of the year he lost Cessa? And was I truly just another Cessa in his eyes? Someone he was failing to protect? Because if that were the case, maybe he should send me away from the castle sooner rather than later.
But Keir did have a point in using the king to find out about my blood. As long as we got the answers also and looked like we were complying and being loyal subjects, it could work in our favor. Unless the results of whatever was in my blood were some sort of one in a million anomaly, in which case he’d just kill me. So wasn’t the logical option that we should figure it out first and then see how we could use that information to our advantage?
I rinsed and shut the water off. Hopefully Krew was calmed down because I had a lot of questions.
CHAPTER16
