Page 121 of Hunt Me

“Duke Mirren?” Ezra called. Duke Mirren stepped forward with Matilda’s crown and bowed. Ezra plucked the crown off the pillow, bowed, and offered it to Luka to crown his bride.

Matilda started to lower her head when he stopped her.

“You will never lower your head—not for me, the crown, or Night Falls. Hold your head up, Matilda.”

Matilda held back tears as she straightened. The tears spilled forward when the weight of the bejeweled crown rested upon her head.

“It is official—blessed by the gods and guided by fate beneath the moon. I hereby acknowledge you, Queen Matilda Seraphina Alesi.”

“Thank you, my King.”

Luka didn’t hesitate to wrap her in his embrace as the small group of witnesses cheered and clapped. His lips found hers once more, and he didn’t stop loving her until Duke Gustafson made an announcement.

“I apologize for the interruption, but we’d like to take a moment to bequeath your wedding gift.”

He clapped his hands, and the doors swung open. A bedraggled man in manacles was escorted by two guards flanking him, and one in the rear with a spear, ready to impale him at a moment’s notice.

Matilda gasped when he came closer.

“What is it, my Queen?”

“That’s him,” she whispered, pointing at the man.

“Him? Who is he?” Luka questioned, giving the disheveled man a once-over.

“It’s Gregorio. The man who propositioned me to assassinate you.”

45

Well Kept Secrets

Luka’s top lip curled when the prisoner spat at his boot. Luck of the gods, he missed, but the gods wouldn’t prevent him from ending the feral being’s life.

“What is your name?” he asked. “Your given name?”

He nodded when he received nothing but silence. Truthfully, he hadn’t expected the man to speak so easily.

“How did you find him?” Matilda asked the dukes.

“He’s a mouthy fellow,” Duke Gustafson answered with a satisfied smirk. “As you know, I have eyes and ears all over Night Falls as well as a few in Moonshire. Our friend here had consumed too much mead one night and lay with one of my spies in the brothel. Chalices were passed as heat was exchanged and the young man ranted about his disdain for King Alesi and the huntress who failed to end him. I was alerted to the treachery, and the spy kept him entertained until my men could fetch him.

“You piece of shit,” Gregorio muttered.

“Ah! He speaks!” Duke Gustafson said, finding amusement in the prisoner’s tenacity.

“Shall we end him now, or end him publicly?” Duke Mirren inquired, ready to shed blood as always.

“What are you thinking, Duke Mirren? Hanging or guillotine?” Duke Brennan asked, kicking Gregorio in the back.

Duke Mirren grinned. “The messier, the better.”

“Let’s not make a snap decision out of haste,” Luka warned. “I have questions. Who hired you? I don’t wish to make assumptions, but a man with your wealth doesn’t frequent brothels. A man of such stature would have a consort of concubines.”

Matilda snorted. “Where are your concubines?”

Luka narrowed his eyes at her. “I have no concubines. You are aware of this.”

“‘Tis a shame that your ugliness scared them away.”