Times like this, Raff would’ve traded a year of his life for a quick brain like Korin’s. “Spell it out for me.”
“It means they don’t see her as a true threat. If they feared her reprisal, they wouldn’t have acted so fast. In my opinion, this heralds a power shift. You should prepare yourself for the other three houses to align with Gilbraith.”
“Tell me about them.”
“They have been vying with House Talfayen for centuries, and they have a sprinkling of royal blood in their lineage. Not a direct declination like Princess Thalia, but enough through a distaff family connection that it has been impossible for anyone in either family to take the throne.”
“Do you think her decision to ally with me will ultimately hurt her cause?”
Janek hesitated.
“Don’t swallow it. Tell me the truth!”
“Likely, yes. The Eldritch will see it as weakness and desperation instead of a wise strategic maneuver.”
Raff showed his teeth; it did not qualify as a smile. “Then we’ll prove them wrong, old wolf. Give me something I can use.”
“Since Vesavis is known to be untrustworthy, we could work to weaken the cohesion of those allied against us.”
“You mean, make Gilbraith and Manwaring think that Vesavis is hedging its bets, ready to flip if things look good for Thalia?”
“It’s probably not even that far from the truth,” Janek said. “We’d only be hastening that conclusion.”
“Divide and conquer, works for me. Put together a concrete plan and tell me what resources you need to get it done. Thalia will want to know, as soon as you’re ready.”
“As you say.” Taking that as dismissal, Janek drained his drink and rose. “She will help us, won’t she? When the time comes.”
Raff couldn’t even blame the old wolf for his doubts. It was hard not to fear the worst since historically, wolves had no close ties to the Eldritch. If she was like the assholes in House Vesavis, she might take their help and then later, let Pine Ridge burn when Tycho’s forces hit the border.
It’s not like she loves me, or my people. But…
“If I’m good at anything, it’s reading people’s hearts. And I’m betting my life that she keeps her promises,” he said.
“That’s good enough for me.”
Raff walked Janek to the door and was startled to find Thalia frozen, her hand suspended as if she’d been about to knock. The old wolf greeted her like a courtier in passing by. Heat flooded Raff’s cheeks, blazing worse than any fever.
Dammit all, she caught me being sincere.
“Did you mean it?” she asked.
No pretense that she hadn’t overheard.
This, this was why he thought that. While she might be good at scheming and intrigue, with him, she was as straightforward as an arrow to the heart.
He answered in a gruff tone, wishing she’d go away. “I’m not in the habit of saying shit I don’t mean.”
“Neither am I, Lord Wolf. But then, you seem to know that quite well already.” To his astonishment, she kissed his cheek before rushing away.
8.
Thalia didn’t sleep that night.
Not because she’d yielded to impulse, but because there was so much to prepare for the wedding service. First, she stopped in the kitchens to see how the food for the feast was coming along. The staff was too busy chopping to spare more than a moment.
“Do you need anything?” she asked.
“Please don’t trouble yourself,” the head cook said.
Which translated roughly to, ‘please get out of my kitchen’. Thalia was familiar with such code and didn’t dally among the boiling pots. She met Lileth in the back corridor, and it seemed as if the older woman was looking for her. Lil wore a grave expression, one that heralded nothing good.
“Problem?” she asked.
“Gavriel wants a word.”
Thalia swallowed a sigh. “Can it wait?”
“I don’t think it can.”
If he deemed it important enough to interrupt her work, she’d better make time. “Is he in the strategy room?”
“He was when I left.”
“On my way. Why didn’t he call me?”
Lil’s expression darkened. “The connection may not be secure.”
As she headed to hear Gavriel’s grim tidings—which could be the name of a particularly gloomy children’s tale—it occurred to her that this was a hell of a way to spend the night before her wedding. While Thalia had never fantasized about what it would be like, she had never imagined that she’d be forced to such a strategy by threats from all sides. There would be no tender words or floral bouquets, no time spent putting scented lotion on her skin in hopes that her chosen mate found her beautiful.
Thalia didn’t have close friendships, either, nobody to gather in her room and giggle over how wonderful or terrible her first night might be. For her, such relationships constituted vulnerability. She had supporters, not confidants, and while she didn’t regret the choices that had kept her safe, sometimes security was lonely.
Gavriel stood before the window, staring out the narrow opening into the dark. He turned as she entered, a shadow with red-hot coals for eyes. Sometimes his intensity gave her the shivers, for devotion like his could turn dark under the right circumstances. He executed a brief bow, waiting for her to reach the grouping of chairs arranged on a worn antique rug.
“Sit down,” she invited.
“I’ll be brief. I know that you’re busy.”
“Go ahead.”
“I would like to be discharged from your direct service,” he said quietly.
Of all the words she could’ve pictured Gavriel speaking, those never came to mind. She covered her surprise with a question. “Will you tell me why?”
“Magda Versai is pursuing an investigation related to the disappearance of the Ash Valley second. I believe the trail could lead us to an insurgent stronghold, where your father’s followers are hiding.”
“So it’s likely that the jaguar cut a deal with my father and is now working for the traitors and the Golgoth?”
Gavriel lifted a shoulder, never one to make judgments before all facts were available. “She picked up a hint of him from one of our patrols, but everything was in such disarray that we
