Page 75 of The Queens and the Kings
His head snapped up. “Leaving? No. Why?”
“You’re all packed.”
“I’m always packed.”
“But . . . why?”
Henrik shrugged. “Just in case.”
In case of what? she longed to ask, but what was the point? In case of anything, probably. Britt closed the door behind her and exhaled. “Pedr still won’t let me into his quarters to check on him, but Denerfen gets in. That’s . . . something.”
“Do you need somewhere to sleep?”
“No. I can’t sleep while I’m worried about him, even if I’ve been up all night.”
“He needs some space. I’m sure you’ll work this out.”
Brow wrinkled, she admitted, “I was hard on him.”
Henrik shot her a half smile.
“You think?”
She pushed away from the door to join him at the porthole. A silky caress of fresh air slid over her cheeks. She closed her eyes, leaning into it. The stuffy ship collected air and humidity through the day, providing a stark contrast to the cool breeze.
“Is Denerfen with Pedr now?” he asked.
“Yes.”
Henrik chuckled, a rumbly sound that resonated through his chest. “He likes Pedr.”
“Pedr feeds him peppermints.”
“That’s the secret?”
She smiled. “I guess so.”
Exhaustion weighed on her. She wanted to slide into the folds of sleep and forget the whole day, but she couldn’t. Not with concern for Pedr interrupting every other thought. Not to mention wyverns and unknown minerals, amongst many perils. Like the Ladylord.
The Ladylord!
Her eyes flew open. Henrik and Einar had met the Ladylord on their own today. Before her harried questions escaped, she studied Henrik’s subdued expression.Subduedwas relative to Henrik. He had the visually emotive power of a plant.
But something was off.
Veryoff.
“How was your day in Klipporno with Einar?”
“Fine.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No.”
“Willyou talk about it?”
He sent her a long suffering expression that, despite her fatigue, made her smile. After a long pause, during which she considered leaving and trying later, he said, “Einar and I met with her yesterday. Eventually. At the end, we agreed to meet with the Ladylord’s General, but that’s it.”
