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“Of course no one could ever seriously imagine him as anything so frivolous.” As Ailana turned to Gerard, her usual diplomatic mask slipped back into place along with a rueful, sympathetic smile. “General de Moireul, I believe I speak for all of us when I say that you have our deepest respect and regret for any inconvenience or indignities that may have been inflicted upon you this week. Your sense of honor is so well-known and admired, I know you would never dream of pursuing any personal revenge through your exalted position. Still, regardless of what may have passed between you and our friend and ally…”
“I’m not discarding him,” Lorelei snapped. “I’m keeping him.”
Ailana blinked rapidly, several times in a row. “I beg your pardon?”
Ha. Apparently even the queen of ice and spies didn’t know everything after all! Lifting her chin to meet the other woman’s gaze full-on, Lorelei said, “You may be the first to congratulate us, if you like. Gerard is going to be my consort.”
“But … but you can’t! He can’t.” Ailana spun around to stare at all the other silent observers in the room. “Are you all hearing this madness?”
“I heard it.” Frowning, Saskia crossed her arms … but unlike Ailana, the witch queen looked more thoughtful than disturbed. “I thought something odd was happening between you two at the battlefield last week. I suppose this explains it after all.”
“Doesn’t it?” Lorelei beamed at her with perfect satisfaction. Saskia, of all people, knew how it felt to fall hopelessly in love with an official enemy; she wouldn’t be foolish enough to hold Gerard’s past allegiance against him in the coming years. “I knew he couldn’t hold out against me forever. I am irresistible, you know.”
Gerard let out a quiet, ironic huff of breath … but squeezed her fingers in wry agreement.
When he spoke, his words were aimed at Ailana, and his tone was perfectly calm. “Your Majesty, may I ask which particular aspect of the situation most concerns you? As you can see, I have no intention or desire for revenge. Lorelei’s intervention was not only of personal benefit but professionally timely. Her warning about the Emperor’s ambition to adopt Purification as a directive was a gift I won’t ignore—and I will promise you, as I’ve promised her already, that I will never lead any troops under that banner. We haven’t yet had time to discuss all the details of our future plans…”
He slid Lorelei a glance, and she shivered at the delicious reminder of what they had spent their time doing since their return. Gods, if only the others had let them have another hour! The things she wanted to do to this man…!
“But my own current plan,” he continued calmly, “is to enact a slow and carefully managed retirement from my role. I have a clear responsibility to remain Imperial high general long enough to persuade the Emperor and his private cabinet against the conscienceless course of action which he is currently considering. Afterwards, though, I should be able to tender my formal resignation and, soon afterwards, shift to Balravia for good.”
“Wait, I haven’t agreed to that plan.” Lorelei’s brows drew down into a scowl. “It would mean spending months apart. If not years!”
“Really?” He raised his eyebrows, a tiny, private smile tugging at the firm line of his lips. “For most people, it might. But I have heard rumors that one particularly scandalous queen is capable of creating extraordinarily powerful fae portals—and can use them to enter my own quarters at will, even in the very heart of the Empire. Surely, such a remarkable woman could find a way for us to spend a good deal of time together, regardless of my official residence or any outward appearances.”
Even so …
“I truly appreciate that thoughtful approach, General. However…” Ailana sighed. “What you two may not yet know is that we’ve run out of time for any quiet, peaceful strategies. If you don’t return to the Empire within the next hour, we may all be doomed.”
“He will not—!” Lorelei began hotly, turning back to her.
Gerard said, “What do you mean? What has happened?”
“You’ve been found out, Lorelei,” said Saskia. “The Emperor knows his Golden Beacon is missing, and fae magic was sensed at the scene.”
“What?” Lorelei’s stomach sank. “How? It’s only been two days in mortal time! Gerard wasn’t even due to arrive in the capital yet. I made certain, with the note I left…”
“Unfortunately,” said Ailana, “the Emperor doesn’t share your lover’s patience. Apparently, Otto wasn’t willing to wait long enough for General de Moireul to travel back across the continent with the troops in a slow procession, as planned. Instead, he sent a messenger by rail to demand General de Moireul’s immediate presence and report—and while the general’s soldiers did their best to shield his privacy, once a Gilded Wizard was drawn into the mix and sensed fae magic, all was lost.”
Oh, Sylvana. The world fell away from Lorelei like a chasm opening up before her feet, simmering joy transforming into abject horror. I have failed You after all.
She didn’t need anyone to tell her what the consequences would be.
Emperor Otto II had been desperate for months to find a suitable public excuse to adopt Purification. He would leap at this opportunity to blame the fae—and, by association, all other nonhuman creatures—for the abduction and loss of the public’s beloved Golden Beacon.
It was every Purifier’s dream come true: a foolproof way to pull the human continent together in united enmity. And if—when—that fae abductress was revealed to be Lorelei herself, Otto would whip up his populace behind the patriotic need to invade and annex Balravia in righteous vengeance.
“The messenger returned to Fiora just tonight,” Ailana said quietly. “The Emperor has summoned his private council into session now.”
“So there is still time.” Gerard’s grip on Lorelei’s hand was as warm and steady as his voice. “We can avert this. Lorelei will send me through a portal directly to the Imperial winter palace, so I may explain to the Emperor and the rest of the council that only a misunderstanding occurred. I am neither injured nor in need of any vengeance.”
“If only I hadn’t…” The words fell out from Lorelei’s numb lips like pebbles sinking into a deep, dark well.
If only she hadn’t trusted so confidently in her own instincts. If only—
“No.” Gerard released her hand, but only so that he could stride swiftly around the love seat that filled the space between them. He closed on her an instant later, his amber gaze intent and his broad shoulders blocking her view of the room and the disapproving friends around them as he caught up both of her hands in his. “Don’t even think it! If you hadn’t come for me when you did, Otto would have found another excuse soon enough—and when that one came, we both know I wouldn’t have had the strength of will to refuse him.”
His tone was bitterly self-deprecating, and it made her frown. “Don’t talk about yourself that way! You have a conscience. You would have argued against him, even then. I know you would have.”
