Page 91 of His Realm

“What were you promised?”

She stepped closer. “Ødger calls for a cadoc with Varic for you, and if he wins, he promised a seat for Chryos.”

It wasn’t a real answer, there were no real details and she hadn’t explained herself, but I let it go and focused on the first part. “I have no idea what that is.”

“I’ll tell you,” Cirillo said beside me, reaching for Carice. “Come here before you shake yourself to death.”

She mewled, voice gone, and rushed into his arms, wrapping herself tight around him. They made a beautiful pair.

I turned then to the woman with the mischievous light in her eyes and the arched eyebrow. “You are not what I expected, lady.”

Her laugh was not soft or demure but loud and husky. I liked the sound.

“You are the siren Keres, are you not?”

She nodded, and I saw it then, the flicker of concern in her eyes. She wasn’t scared, it wasn’t that, but she was looking to me to be a safe harbor. I reached for her, and she grasped my hand, holding tight, like I was her lifeline.

“Come close,” Ødger Maedoc bid me then.

Bringing Keres with me, arm in arm, I approached Ødger’s throne, which wasn’t as high as Messina’s, maybe halfway, but he was still looking down on me when I reached the stairs. My old buddy Sorin was standing beside him.

“Did you enjoy your tour of my holding, my consort?” he said patronizingly.

“I did,” I replied, smiling at him. “My companion, Lord Cirillo, and I killed some men who would have raped and possibly murdered a young woman, so we got our exercise in and everything, which was great.”

Instantly, he was glaring at me. “You mock me.”

“You started it,” I snapped. “How dare you kidnap me or Lord Cirillo. We are both citizens of the crown, and what you’ve done violates the laws of Ascalon.”

“I do not abide by the laws of Ascalon!” he roared. “We live free here beyond the reach of the king.”

“Which is fine,” I assured him, smiling. “But your men weren’t here, were they? You sent them to a place where the laws are followed and then violated them.”

He stared at me.

“Here, I get it. You make the laws. But you stepped out of what was allowed in the agreement between your father and the king, and kidnapped me from my prince. That,” I said, raising my voice, “is not allowed, and you will pay for it.”

“I—”

“The courtesan Keres is my courtier. Her status was changed between us, privately, as it should be, and as such, she belongs to me and will reside with me within these walls.”

“My consort,” Balon rushed out, “Keres was given to⁠—”

“She cannot be given by anyone but me,” I corrected him, then turned to Ødger. “And while I understand that in Ophir you are the law, myself, Lord Cirillo, Keres, and the Lady Carice do not belong here, are not your citizens, and so the laws we bide by are those of the king. We all belong to the crown.”

“The king himself offered Keres to my brother,” Ødger told me. “Therefore she⁠—”

“He made a mistake, and if you want to call and talk to him, I’m sure this matter can be quickly resolved.”

Since he didn’t have a phone, calling would be a neat trick and we both knew it, and fury twisted his already frightening features.

“The Lady Carice knows of the change for my courtier. You may ask her,” I offered, because there was no way Carice was going to contradict anything I said.

“I would not ask for the word of a whore.”

I felt myself bristle but took a breath instead of shooting from the hip. “The Lady Carice was the courtesan of our beloved Prince Cassius,” I replied icily. “She is not now, nor has ever been…a whore.”

“You—”