“Easy. I won’t insult your judgment again. If you’ve agreed to take me, I must be top drawer, right?”
A week ago, she might’ve said that their alliance was pure expedience, but that was before they fought together, and she witnessed firsthand his extraordinary valor. Maybe the elder Pineda had wanted a tactician for a son, one who studied old tomes and memorized battle tactics. Instead, he’d gotten a bit of a clown with a smile warm enough to melt the heart of winter.
“Precisely.”
Briskly, she rose to find Dr. Wyeth, who pronounced the patient well enough to go about his business. The medical procedures eased the strange atmosphere, so things felt normal by the time Raff got dressed. She walked with him back to his quarters.
“Is tomorrow too soon to hold the wedding?” she asked.
“I’m up to it. Seems like you should ask your people, though, not me. They’re the ones who will have to scramble all night to get it done.”
“The service and decorations will be simple. Don’t expect too much.” On some level, that bothered her. This shouldn’t be rushed, promises made haphazardly, under duress.
“I never do,” he said softly.
For some reason, hearing that hurt her heart.
The first thing Raff did was call his people to his quarters. Tavros turned up first, then Skylett and Bibi, and finally Janek. Magda didn’t answer to him, so he didn’t expect her obedience.
“We thought you were going to die,” Tavros said.
“I have a lot to do yet,” Raff said.
“That didn’t save Beren,” Janek pointed out.
While that might be true, such pessimism didn’t help. “Come in, all of you. I need to brief you.” Once everyone was settled, he filled them in on his decision. “I’ll send word to Pine Ridge shortly regarding allocation of soldiers and technology. I intend to stay here for the next three months to fulfill my part of the bargain.”
“I have mixed feelings,” Bibi said.
Since she looked so young, most would pay no heed to her words, but she was also the youngest Seer in pack history, so he had to ask. “What troubles you?”
“The portents are dark down this path. I see betrayal and shadows in your near future and I could not find a glimpse of you emerging from that darkness.”
Skylett shivered, wrapping her hands around her arms. “You know she wouldn’t make such a revelation lightly. Perhaps—”
“I should go back on my word because two crows flew past your window at daybreak? It’s not that I don’t believe in your gifts, Bibi, but my options are limited. In times like these, fortune favors the bold.”
“Then you’re determined to move forward?” Janek asked.
“I’d all but made up my mind before we arrived, and nothing I’ve seen here makes me want to withdraw. The time for considering input has passed.”
“Understood,” Tavros said. “When is the grand event?”
“Tomorrow, provided her people are up to the task. The place will be bustling. Janek, will you stand beside me in place of family?” In truth, they were only distant cousins on his father’s side, but it was better than nothing. Sky was closer to him in terms of friendship, as she was like a younger sibling, but she wasn’t an actual blood relation and that probably mattered for Eldritch ceremonies.
“I’m honored.”
He ignored that; it was the sort of thing the elder wolf said, even if he didn’t mean it. Old school manners had no modern equivalent.
“I’m not sure what the ceremony will be like, but please be tolerant, even if it seems strange.”
“Princess Thalia appears to be thorough,” Tavros said. “She will strive for something that honors both Animari and Eldritch ways.”
“That’s true enough,” he said, pleased that one of his people didn’t hate this prospect.
Thalia’s time in Pine Ridge would be a lonely nightmare if people didn’t warm up to her. He could well imagine the whispers, sideways glances, and the subtle exclusion from pack socialization. Just because three months was a flicker of light to her, that was no reason for her to suffer.
“Do you have other news?” Bibi asked.
“For now, I need you to focus on the issue of defending her lands and defeating her enemies.”
“As you wish.” Her flat tone said she wasn’t thrilled with the assignment or having her warning disregarded.
I already knew this wouldn’t be easy. Doesn’t take a Seer to know that.
He turned to Tavros. “Get with the guards and see if you can find anything out about House Gilbraith. I need to know what kind of numbers they can field, how much sway they have over the other two, Manwaring and Vesavis. Learn what you can about them, too.”
“I can help in terms of historical house power, if not current military standing,” Janek said.
Right, that’s why I brought him. Of all the pack, he knows the most about Eldritch doings.
“Stick around and have a drink with me, old wolf. The rest of you are dismissed.”
The three young ones bowed and hurried off, leaving Raff to pour a drink for Janek. Handing over the tumbler, he said, “My attention span isn’t long, so try to make this a teacup history lesson.”
“As best I can. Vesavis is the least of the houses, politically insignificant and eternally hungry. They’re known for treachery and would not hesitate to make a deal and then break if they saw advantage elsewhere. On several occasions, they’ve nearly been wiped from existence when some intrigue imploded. I would not depend on them for support.”
“Noted. And Manwaring?”
“Informally, they’re known among the Eldritch as the Gray.”
“What does that mean?”
“They put up a pretext of neutrality while secretly working toward their own ends. The fact that they’ve come out against the princess so early in the game is
