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Béke Day Thirteen
“Liliana didn’t return to the apartment last night,” Endre told me as he sank onto my bed.
I adjusted the Night Crown in the mirror, glancing at my downcast friend as his messy black hair fell into his face. “Where do you think she went?”
He buried his face in his hands. “I don’t know. Somewhere with Izidora. Maybe she stayed with her.”
The tension between Endre and Liliana had been growing during our time here, and the purple circles under my best friend’s eyes showed his stress. They were on full display as he lifted his gaze to meet mine in the mirror. “Why did you threaten her last night? She would have come back if you hadn’t been a dick.”
Buttoning up my jacket, I replied, “Liliana needs to know her place. If she chooses to remain a citizen of the Night Realm, then she must obey her king. If she chooses to pledge her allegiance to the Iron Realm, then she’s not my problem. But she won’t choose a side, therefore, she belongs to me.”
A flicker of annoyance swept through me. The answer should have been obvious to him. Instead, his peridot eyes dimmed, and he pushed off from the bed with a heaviness that was, unfortunately, all too relatable. “Liliana will go where Izidora does. Do you really think you can convince Izidora to choose you at this point?”
Time was running out – the following day, Izidora and Ruslan would marry and be crowned as the monarchs of the Iron Realm. Which meant I had one last day to get her alone and tell her my theory of the prophecy, that this tug between us still existed because she could choose both. Not that I had told Endre or any of my other friends what I had seen during the masquerade. I needed their continued support in this, and so long as they believed Izidora hadn’t yet chosen a mate, I could continue to establish my rule.
I also hadn’t told them we were on our own with the war we planned to wage against the Iron Realm.
“I have a plan,” I replied coolly.
Endre heaved a sigh. “I wish you would tell me. Or Viktor. Or anyone, really. You spend too much time in your own head, Kazimir.”
“No one understands the pain I’m going through,” I ground out, jerking my jacket one last time before facing my friend.
“And no one will unless you tell them,” Endre retorted. “Did you forget that the rest of us lost our brothers too? We’re all still grieving over here. But we’re pushing that aside to help you, and you are being an asshole to everyone. Figure your shit out.” He stomped from the room without a backward glance.
I remained motionless, rooted in place by my friend’s harsh words. Endre rarely snapped, so his words were like a slap to the face. I returned to myself when I heard Vadim say, “The parade starts in half an hour. We need to get going.”
“Yeah, I know. He’s almost finished in there,” I heard Endre mumble through the walls.
Gathering myself and slipping into my kingly facade, I entered the living area where the Night Fae, minus Liliana, waited for me. Domi’s eyes were hard, and she quickly busied herself with her nails when I entered. “Shall we?”
Without waiting for a response, I swept through the room, out the doors, and into the hall where servants and guards all wound their way to the front doors and into the afternoon sun. The parade would take place on the main thoroughfare in Radence, and at the end of the course, the nobility had special seats and a private area to tie up our horses.
Fek stomped his foot when we arrived in the stables to collect our mounts, his glossy black mane shining in the sun. I rubbed his nose, offering him a lump of sugar before mounting and guiding him through the crowd trailing into the city. A light dusting of snow from the previous night’s storm coated the roofs and sides of the road, and the bright sun glinting off of the snow speared into my eyes. Fek’s hooves clopped against the slush-covered cobbled road, the snow there trampled by the hundreds of feet that had already crossed it as people fought for the best view of the upcoming parade.
The stone houses and buildings we passed were overflowing with people eating and drinking as they celebrated the last days of Béke. Ales overflowed and spilled along the ground, meat roasted over open fires, and people sang off-tune, grasping each other by the arm as they went round and round. Their carefree spirits almost made me feel normal, but the day’s mission was never far from the front of my mind.
I had to find Izidora. I had to get her alone. And I had to tell her that she could still accept our bond.
Making her jealous hadn’t worked, though I hadn’t regretted my time with Taya at all. She fucked like a goddess, and sinkinginto her tight pussy had been the relief I needed these past few days.
Turning down a side street toward the road that led to the private seating area, I scanned for any sign of Izidora, or of Liliana, Drazen, or Zuriel, because wherever they were, she was likely close by. The string that tugged me to her was faint, and I maintained a bit of focus there, waiting for it to tell me which direction to go. As we stepped closer to the stands, it began thrumming. I picked my head up, searching for a hint of chestnut hair among the crowd.
I spotted her just as we halted at the posts where a dozen horses were already hitched, and a handful of young males stepped forward to take our reins. Without looking away from Izidora, I handed mine off, not waiting for any of the other Night Fae to join me before I slipped into the crowd, headed in her direction.
Unfortunately, she was surrounded by her friends, which made discreetly pulling her aside impossible.
“There you are. Let’s go get seats beside the fire,” Vadim said, hand latching onto my arm. I tore my gaze from Izidora to find him, Viktor, and Endre waiting.
“Yeah, sure. It’s cold as fuck,” I replied, falling in stride with them as we made our way toward a row of seats on the lowest level. The fire in front of them offered a surprising amount of warmth for how small the flames were.
“Slavian told me these were created with a special type of magic that allows them to put out a lot of heat without taking up too much space. They’re portable too, so they can be moved around when necessary. They only need to use their magic to relight the fire,” Vadim said as if he was reading my mind.
“The Iron Realm certainly has been busy with its inventions the last few decades,” Viktor grumbled, no doubt trying to think of something useful to create for the Night Realm. He hatednot being the smartest or most strategic in a room, and he fell behind as Ruslan and Drazen flaunted one new creation after another.
That tug in my belly caught my attention, and I glanced over my shoulder to discover Izidora and Ruslan arriving with their troop of followers. She didn’t even look at me as she walked by, heading up the stairs to the highest level. She and Liliana took the seats in the middle, and a pained noise slipped from Endre’s throat as Liliana ignored him too.
Vadim rubbed him on the shoulder reassuringly. “I can’t believe I’m comforting you over my sister, but it will be okay, Endre. Give her time.”
