you were protective, but I hadn’t heard the king couldn’t take care of himself.”
Kres bared his teeth in a facsimile of a smile. “Want me to show you what I can do with your knife?”
She laughed, but he noticed she did add a little space between the king and herself. “I am Niafe, daughter of Lady Nelb. I’ve come to warn you, Your Highness, my mother means you ill will.”
“And you just happened to come by to warn us because you’re such a devoted subject?” Kres asked, his voice heavy with sarcasm.
“Easy, mate,” Vohne murmured in his ear. “No reason to kill the messenger.”
“She’s not the messenger. A messenger would be someone carrying a message from one person to another. She’s the source,” Kres corrected his mate.
“I have a message from my mother,” Niafe offered with a shy smile.
Vohne gave Kres a smug look.
Kres scuffed his boot on the ground then afterwards felt guilty. Some worker would probably stay up all night obsessing about that smudge on the surface of his shiny boots. Maybe he’d hide them when he got back to the room.
“Focus, Kres,” Vohne admonished. “What’s your mother’s message, my lady?”
“I’m supposed to stab your mate.” She announced the words like she should be given a medal for not following her mother’s directive.
Vohne shoved Kres behind him. “And why didn’t you?”
Niafe laughed. “Two reasons. First, I’ve read the old texts and I don’t follow her beliefs. And second, your mate’s knife looks bigger than mine.”
Chapter Eight
They pulled Niafe into an empty room to minimise the number of people who could listen in. The guards blocked the door after a moment of argument. Neither of them trusted Niafe alone with the king and his mate, but Vohne insisted.
Unable to override the orders of their king, the soldiers reluctantly waited outside.
“You’re very brave to meet me alone,” Niafe said.
Vohne shrugged. “As you stated, my mate has a very large knife. You make the wrong move, and he’ll gut you.”
Niafe paled, giving Kres a nervous look. Vohne felt a momentary pang of guilt for making it appear as though his mate was seconds from snapping, but the look Kres gave Niafe had him holding back a laugh. His lover was extremely protective.
“Don’t worry. As long as you don’t make any sudden movements, you’re safe enough,” Kres assured her.
“Why don’t we sit down?” Vohne motioned towards the table and chairs. They’d wandered into one of the meeting rooms the scholars generally used for studies. From the cobwebs decorating the ceiling, he had a feeling it had been a while since anyone had concentrated on learning. Vohne made a mental note to get the scholars back on track. A society that didn’t focus on learning would falter. He wondered how much knowledge had been lost in the purge. Shaking his head, he focused on the task at hand. There would be time later to concentrate on the future of Thresl civilisation.
Once Vohne and Kres were settled with Niafe sitting across from them, closer to Vohne than Kres, she began her story.
“Ever since I was little, my mother has been telling me about how she should be the one ruling the kingdom. I used to dream of growing up and becoming queen.” Niafe said wistfully.
Kres growled in a manner worthy of a Thresl.
Vohne hid his smile.
She held up a hand in a defensive gesture. “I don’t dream of that anymore. I did until I grew old enough to understand my mother is insane. She did something. I don’t know what, but she did something to stop the two of you from meeting and triggering the change. There’s a man she goes to, a magic user. I think he cast a spell to prevent your last bonding. After all, if you never met your mate, you couldn’t change into the king.”
“Where is he now?” Vohne asked. He didn’t need her to explain to him how he changed. He knew the rules. Vohne had transformed more than any other Thresl in history.
“He died many
Kres bared his teeth in a facsimile of a smile. “Want me to show you what I can do with your knife?”
She laughed, but he noticed she did add a little space between the king and herself. “I am Niafe, daughter of Lady Nelb. I’ve come to warn you, Your Highness, my mother means you ill will.”
“And you just happened to come by to warn us because you’re such a devoted subject?” Kres asked, his voice heavy with sarcasm.
“Easy, mate,” Vohne murmured in his ear. “No reason to kill the messenger.”
“She’s not the messenger. A messenger would be someone carrying a message from one person to another. She’s the source,” Kres corrected his mate.
“I have a message from my mother,” Niafe offered with a shy smile.
Vohne gave Kres a smug look.
Kres scuffed his boot on the ground then afterwards felt guilty. Some worker would probably stay up all night obsessing about that smudge on the surface of his shiny boots. Maybe he’d hide them when he got back to the room.
“Focus, Kres,” Vohne admonished. “What’s your mother’s message, my lady?”
“I’m supposed to stab your mate.” She announced the words like she should be given a medal for not following her mother’s directive.
Vohne shoved Kres behind him. “And why didn’t you?”
Niafe laughed. “Two reasons. First, I’ve read the old texts and I don’t follow her beliefs. And second, your mate’s knife looks bigger than mine.”
Chapter Eight
They pulled Niafe into an empty room to minimise the number of people who could listen in. The guards blocked the door after a moment of argument. Neither of them trusted Niafe alone with the king and his mate, but Vohne insisted.
Unable to override the orders of their king, the soldiers reluctantly waited outside.
“You’re very brave to meet me alone,” Niafe said.
Vohne shrugged. “As you stated, my mate has a very large knife. You make the wrong move, and he’ll gut you.”
Niafe paled, giving Kres a nervous look. Vohne felt a momentary pang of guilt for making it appear as though his mate was seconds from snapping, but the look Kres gave Niafe had him holding back a laugh. His lover was extremely protective.
“Don’t worry. As long as you don’t make any sudden movements, you’re safe enough,” Kres assured her.
“Why don’t we sit down?” Vohne motioned towards the table and chairs. They’d wandered into one of the meeting rooms the scholars generally used for studies. From the cobwebs decorating the ceiling, he had a feeling it had been a while since anyone had concentrated on learning. Vohne made a mental note to get the scholars back on track. A society that didn’t focus on learning would falter. He wondered how much knowledge had been lost in the purge. Shaking his head, he focused on the task at hand. There would be time later to concentrate on the future of Thresl civilisation.
Once Vohne and Kres were settled with Niafe sitting across from them, closer to Vohne than Kres, she began her story.
“Ever since I was little, my mother has been telling me about how she should be the one ruling the kingdom. I used to dream of growing up and becoming queen.” Niafe said wistfully.
Kres growled in a manner worthy of a Thresl.
Vohne hid his smile.
She held up a hand in a defensive gesture. “I don’t dream of that anymore. I did until I grew old enough to understand my mother is insane. She did something. I don’t know what, but she did something to stop the two of you from meeting and triggering the change. There’s a man she goes to, a magic user. I think he cast a spell to prevent your last bonding. After all, if you never met your mate, you couldn’t change into the king.”
“Where is he now?” Vohne asked. He didn’t need her to explain to him how he changed. He knew the rules. Vohne had transformed more than any other Thresl in history.
“He died many
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