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“I didn’t call you here to argue semantics, Flora,” she drawled before taking a long sip of wine. “I called you here to win a war.”
I was so angry, a fog of red clouded my vision.
I gave a start when Derrick squeezed my knee, giving me a reassuring smile. Calm, darling. Our daughters need us to get along.
I scowled at him but said nothing. He was right, loathe though I was to admit it.
“What word do you have, Malvolia?” Marius asked.
She leaned back in her chair, grasping the side of the table with whitened knuckles. Then her face hardened to granite. “Fachnan has been resurrected.”
It felt as if my heart had fallen out of my chest as I gaped at her. “How?”
Malvolia’s lips twisted into a wicked snarl. “We believe his mage practiced necromancy, though my spies report that whatever is living inside Fachnan’s body is not Fachnan.”
“A demon?” Marius asked.
She nodded then grasped the stem of her goblet. “What else would it be?”
My soul felt as if it had left my body, and I was vaguely aware of servants piling food on my plate. It felt as if I was watching my mates and sister speak from far away. How had this happened? And if Selig could resurrect Fachnan, what else could he do?
“What do you think they’re planning?” Derrick asked.
“I’m not sure.” Malvolia pushed the food around on her plate. “The soldiers and citizens of Peloponese have fled the city and have sought sanctuary in either Windhaven or the countryside. My spies report the city is far too quiet.”
Marius’s throat bobbled. “So what are you planning?”
“My troops have already secured Windhaven.” She looked up from her plate, a cold gleam in her eyes. “Tomorrow, we join them and take over Peloponese.”
“Tomorrow?” I looked to Marius and Derrick for support. “Shouldn’t we wait for our daughters?”
Malvolia’s face fell before she plastered on an impassive expression. “No one has seen or heard from them in a week.”
What was she implying? That something had happened to them? No. They were safe. They had their mates and a dragon protecting them. “They will show. We must be patient.”
“We have no time to be patient.” Malvolia stabbed a piece of meat with her fork. “Caldaria makes up almost half the Fae realm. Its borders are easy targets for a demon invasion, and once the demons breach Caldaria and then Windhaven, it will be easier for them to attack us.”
“The demons have clearly already invaded.” I couldn’t stop thinking about my daughters. Malvolia’s harsh words were like she’d thrust a fist through my chest and squeezed my beating heart until my blood oozed down her fingers. “I still think we should wait for Tari and Shiri,” I rasped, unable to keep the tremor from my voice. I looked to my mates, disappointed when they averted their gazes.
Darling, she may be right, Marius projected to me.
My heart faltered when Derrick grunted his agreement, avoiding looking me in the eyes as he cut into his ham.
Malvolia’s mouth flattened into a grim line. “Flora, my spies have more disturbing news.”
Tremors rattled my bones. How could it get any worse? “W-what?”
Malvolia downed her wine in a few gulps and then motioned to her lover to refill the goblet, ignoring him while he hovered over her and poured. “The trolls of the Periculian Mountains have disappeared.”
“What?” I blurted. “They’re as tall as castle turrets. How can they just vanish?”
“Where did they go?” Derrick asked.
Malvolia drank several more gulps of wine. “I don’t know, but I sent a team of spies over the eastern coastal border, and they said there are no more signs of the giants.”
This couldn’t be believed.
“Can demons possess giants?” Marius asked.
