Page 252 of Between Two Kings

Caspen didn’t answer. Perhaps that was answer enough.

“Leo would never approve of anything that might hurt me.”

It was a weak argument. The bloodletting hurt her, and he had approved of that. Besides, they were far past that now. The weasel had changed things for Caspen. Too many of his people were dead because of it. Leo’s sins were piling up too high, costing too much.

“What will it take for you to forgive him?” Tem whispered.

Caspen rolled his shoulders. She knew she was asking the impossible. But it was true that Leo didn’t sanction the attack. He’d been horrified when he found out it had happened. Deep down, Tem was sure Caspen knew that. But Caspen was also angry.

“I will never forgive him.”

Tem’s heart fell. She wasn’t surprised, and she wasn’t about to argue. It was well within Caspen’s right to never speak to Leo again.

“But I will also not retaliate.”

Hope pierced her. “Really?”

“On one condition.”

The hope shattered.

“He must apologize to me in person.”

Tem nodded. “He told me he wanted to do that. Just come with me to dinner and I’m sure he’d be happy to—”

“No. I will not go to the castle again. He must come to me.”

“You want him to come here?”

“Yes.”

“He could get hurt. He could be killed.”

“That is none of my concern.”

Tem remembered how adamant Caspen had been about not allowing Gabriel under the mountain—how it was too dangerous for humans. Apparently, that caution didn’t extend to Leo. “It should be your concern.”

But Caspen only looked away, as immovable as stone. Tem couldn’t stand it when he was like this. She wanted to shake him—to scream at him. They were never going to get anything resolved if he chose to act this way. But Caspen had clearly made his choice.

“He owes me an apology. He can come here to give it.”

“Why do you even care? His word means nothing to you. You said so yourself.”

“Those are my terms, Tem. He does not have to accept them.”

“Your terms?”

“Yes.”

“And what will happen if he doesn’t meet your terms?”

Caspen didn’t answer. He was staring resolutely into the fire, his eyes narrowed. Any tenderness from their week together was gone. This went far beyond his rivalry with Leo or the recent fatalities among Caspen’s people. The weasel had opened a wound that had been festering for centuries—one that an apology from Leo was not likely to heal. Tem feared they were past the point of no return. She feared it was too late.

“Caspen,” she whispered. “What will happen?”

He rolled his shoulders, finally looking at her. “There will be consequences.”

It was all he said. But Tem knew the meaning behind his words—knew that any allowances he had granted Leo in the past were far gone now.