Page 91 of The Shattered Kingdom
“Explain,” I say the moment we’re alone.
Mason finally sets me on my feet. “No. I don’t wish to.”
“Well, it’s a good thing you’re an adult who understands that sometimes you have to do things you don’t want to do.” Mason tries escaping into the kitchen, but I’m hot on his heels. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with them acknowledging your violent tendencies. You’ve killed faeries, for fuck’s sake.”
Mason darts into the living room, trying to get away from me.
I sigh. “Mason, literally everybody knows you’re out of control. The faeries are terrified of you, and I’m pretty sure they have been since the day you arrived in the capital.”
He’s still frowning, and I pull him into a hug.
“Isn’t this nice?” I tease. I press my chin against his chest and peer up at him. “Don’t you enjoy me calming you? If it makes you feel better, I’ll let you tell people you boss me around when we’re alone.”
Mason shoots me a dirty look. “I already tell them that.”
The corners of his lips twitch, the slight break all I need to see. Mason’s embarrassed by Jackie’s remarks, but he enjoys my teasing. I’ve never played with Mason like this, and I like it.
“I don’t understand why you’re so embarrassed,” I say. “I don’t think you’re weak because you need some help leveling out. Besides, I kind of like the implication. You’re unhinged, and you need me to function.”
I slide my hands up the back of his shirt.
“Would you like to—”
The front door opens and Kie steps inside—with Jackie, Anox, and Lady Cassandra trailing behind.
“Sit,” Kie orders us, pointing to the dining table. “We aren’t finished.”
I sit. Mason stands in the corner of the room, rebelling.
“We need to discuss Abigail’s coronation,” Anox says. He gives Kie a sharp look. “We should do it alongside a formal announcement of Jacqueline’s new position.”
He’s looking for any way to soften the blow that a human is to be the queen consort. I don’t take offense to it, but I’d be lying if I said it didn’t hurt my feelings just the slightest bit. Being a human isn’t this awful thing they’re making it out to be.
Anox chews on his bottom lip. “I’d like to do it today. Thisconfusion with Lillian and Abigail has gone on for too long, and we should coronate her, then announce Jacqueline’s position on the council and Lord Bishop’s betrayal in one fell swoop.”
Today? Doesn’t that seem a bit soon?
“Abby hasn’t had time to prepare,” Kie says.
“She saw His Majesty’s ceremony, did she not?” Anox asks. “She knows what to expect, and the sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can focus our attention on the shifters.”
Mason presses himself against the back of my chair, his hands landing on my shoulders. “What do you want?” he asks me. “We’ll support whatever you decide.”
What do I want? That’s a good question, and I have no answer. I want this drama to disappear so I can be the pretty princess I’ve always dreamed of. I highly doubt that Ariel and Cinderella had to deal with this much politics.
“I want my family there,” I decide.
Lady Cassandra taps her fingers against the table. “I can retrieve them.”
Kie nods. “Yes. Go.”
I press my lips into a flat line. It’s nice to know that bringing them here has been this easy all along, yet somehow, I’ve been made to go all this time without them. I’ve been missing my family, which I haven’t kept a secret.
Lady Cassandra leaves, and our front door slams shut a second later. I turn toward Kie. “How does she know who they are?”
Kie smiles. “We know everything about you.”
That’s not as comforting as I believe he intends it to be.
