Defiance (Rise of the Iliri Book 3)

by Auryn Hadley

  "You see, Mr. Claudiu? The iliri are no real threat to you, nor to Anglia. Why would your histories concern me?"

  The older man looked confused. "But sire? The iliri are a lesser species, they do nothing to improve our countries, and they try to subvert our cultures. They're a drain on our social and economic resources. Anglia has kept her people pure," he said, glancing again at Sal, "and I am sure that I can show you the strains these beasts have put on the continent over the last century."

  The man grabbed a stack of papers from near his feet and stepped forward, intending to hand them to the King. Before he made it more than a step, the grauori stood, their lips curling. A low rumbled shook in Sal's chest. Elius Claudiu paused, looking first at one beast and then the other before stepping back. When his feet left the dais, the grauori relaxed and lay back down.

  "I will view your papers tomorrow, Mr. Claudiu," Dominik said. "I do not typically hold court at this hour. I understand, though, the distance you've traveled and your excitement to present your information, but it will keep another night."

  "Yes, sire." Elius sighed, realizing that his pressing was not working in his favor.

  That's when Sal caught the King checking out the woman. The girl batted her eyelashes at him flirtatiously, and Dominik smiled at her before he spoke again. "My guard here will escort you all to your chambers. You're welcome to come and go as you please, and I will notify you when I have a break in my schedule. Please, have a good night and recover from your long journey." Then he turned to Ilija and nodded.

  The soldier stepped forward, gesturing for the Terric envoy to follow him from the room. On their way out, Sal heard sighing and grumbling, but soon the throne room was empty.

  "Do na touch the girl, sire," Jase whispered over Dominik's shoulder.

  Dom glanced back, startled, with a guilty look on his face. "Why not? She's attractive, and she seems more than interested. Isn't this supposed to be the best part of being a king?"

  Sal hid her smile as Jase continued, "She'll also kill ya. She is na his daughter, and that is na a historian."

  Chapter 20

  Dom paled visibly. "Should I ask how you know this? Have you met this envoy before?"

  Sal answered him. "Human men respond to direct eye contact from women. A glance away after three seconds shows interest in sex. Your body knows that even if your mind does not. A well-trained assassin will make herself play to your desires until she is alone with you. Depending on your reputation for things, oh, like preventing your guards in your room," she added pointedly, "you give her sufficient time to poison or slaughter you. She could easily walk out of your chambers openly, and escape before your body was even cold."

  "And the man?" Dom asked, scared to hear the answer.

  "His hands," Jase answered. "He has the same calluses that I do, sire. I did na get them from books, neither. I bet if ya ask, he knows na about history. And watch them when they walk. Both balance easily, their weight centered, ready ta dodge an unexpected attack."

  Dom nodded, gesturing for them to move to his private offices. "Damn. Thank you for letting me know. Should I be worried now?"

  "No," Sal assured him. "Just make sure you're not alone with them. Hwa?"

  The grey male glanced over at her. "Ya?"

  "Feel like playing a faithful pet for a while?" she asked.

  "Ya, if da king can ge' da cooks ra stop burrnin da food."

  Dom paused at the door. "Ok. So, I take it I just got a real big dog? I know what his nod means, but completely missed what he said."

  He held the door while the rest moved into the more comfortable rooms the King kept as his private offices. The grauori sprawled across the floor, and the iliri leaned casually against the wall as Dom tossed himself into the chair behind his desk.

  "Hwa said," Sal translated, "if you can get the cooks to stop burning his food, he'll play the part of your pet. I doubt an assassin could get past him. Hwa's senses are stronger than my own, and both of those humans are inexperienced with the grauori. You'll owe Roo, though. She'll likely be sleeping alone now."

  Dom sighed. "No reason I can't have two mutts. But I'm not sharing my bed."

  Roo whuffed at that and sent to Sal, I don't want his bed, just a nice place by the fire.

  Sal laughed and relayed her thought. "She'll be happy to curl by the fire. And no, Dom, they don't care if you have female company. No more than you care if the horses breed in the pastures. They'll respect your privacy as much as possible."

  "Thanks, Sal." From the tone of his voice, Dom meant it. "Is it possible to have you present at the meeting tomorrow?"

  "If that is your command, sire, then yes. I answer directly to you."

  "Yeah, but not well." He chuckled but stopped quickly when he saw Jase look at her.

  Sal shook her head, and Jase smiled. "He tried, did he na?" He sounded amused.

  "I think it's a human thing, killer."

  Dominik was blushing and looking at his feet. Jase jerked his chin at the man. "I warned ya, Yer Majesty, bu' ya did na believe me."

  "I just don't understand you. Either of you," Dom admitted, finally raising his head. "Any other man would be threatening to kill me, not just laughing at my foolish pride."

  Jase shrugged. "Iliri are matriarchal. Sal chooses whom ta bed, na me. I do na own her. No more than ya'd expect a wife ta complain about yer dalliances, I would assume. I also know what the smell of a human does ta us. Yer lucky she has as much control as she does."

  "What do you mean?" Dom asked.

  Jase looked at the King calmly. "I could na have walked inta yer room tonight, sire. I woulda ripped the girl's throat out – or yers. Terric is correct, in some ways."

  Dom looked between them for a long moment, then asked, "Answer me something honestly?"

  They nodded.

  "Are you a threat to humans? You both seem so civilized at times, and then you remind me that you aren't. What is it the iliri want? Or the grauori, for that matter?"

  The pack looked to Sal. She could feel partial thoughts from all of them but wasn't sure she could explain it to a human. "Peace, freedom, the ability to hunt when we want. We can agree on a truce with humans. We're a lot like your kind now – well the iliri. The grauori just want to be safe from you. They want to die from old age, not snares and bows. I want to have the choice to live my life as I want." She paused, thinking. "Sire, I would like to retire from the army one day, grow old, and complain about my aches. I don't have that option. I'm a conscript. The Conglomerate military owns my life. They value me because I've proven myself to be valuable, but they still own me. I will never be free. I will never have the option of owning a home. I will die in battle, or from a wound sustained in battle."

  Dom nodded at her, encouraging her.

  "That is why we are the way we are, sire. We live every moment to the fullest, knowing that tomorrow may be our last. We want the same things you do, just in different ways. Our families are our packs, not our children – because many of us won't live long enough to have them. Our goals are a moment of passion with our mates, with our bellies full and our wounds healed. We are not a threat to humans if humans would stop trying to own us."

  While she spoke, Jase stepped closer and took her hand. Putting voice to the desires of an entire people was so easy, yet the whole was hard to convey. Admitting her fears to a human? That was even harder. Her people had survived for so long by pretending to be only what was expected and never asking for more. Yet here she was laying it all out. If the man wanted to, he could easily use it against them.

  "Then why does Terric want you gone so badly?" Dom asked.

  "It's the histories, I think," Jase said. "We were here first, sire. The grauori, that is. Ya made slaves of them, and then ya started changing them, like we do ta the horses. Breed one ta the other until ya get what ya want. Ya made us stand up straighter, ya crossed the pairs that looked more human. Ya did this fer centuries, and eventually, somethan like Sal came out. Humans see h
er as exotic and want her. When ya kept killing off yer women with babies, the men got bored, and the iliri were there. Eventually, babies happened. Iliri mothers taught the kids their history and those kids taught their kids. 'Ventually, the kids were so nearly human no one could tell 'em apart, but they'd still heard what happened. Knowing ya only exist because yer amma was raped? It causes a bit of resentment, ya un'erstand. Yer whole culture started changing. Dividing. Well, not Anglia's, but the Eastern countries did."

  Sal added, "The histories say that you used us for labor. We guarded the farms; we harvested crops. We did the hard work so that the few humans at the time could get rich and live comfortable lives. Who wouldn't want that? Why do you think the iliri are able to be conscripted still?"

  "But they don't want to enslave you, Sal. They want to exterminate you," Dom pointed out.

  "Sure, to a point. Get us under control. There's so many of us who can pass as human, Dom, but aren't. But we're people. Grauori and iliri, we're both people, just like you. And if this does become a full out war, I don't think the humans will win. I also don't think we can stop the bloodshed. We're faster than you and stronger. We might be smaller, but we're still stronger."

  "So," Dom said, tapping his finger on his desk. "You think that if I join with Terric, the grauori will rise up against us? The iliri will join them? Your argument is that I shouldn't join Terric because we'd lose?"

  Hwa chuckled and glanced at Sal. Translate, please?

  Sure.

  Tell him that the grauori have resisted violence because we want to be recognized. We want to be a part of the country, not forced to hide in our dens.

  "Sire, the grauori live among you and are your people as well. All they want is to be treated as equals. They want to be Anglians."

  "Ok. So why should I refuse what Terric is offering me?" Dom pressed.

  Sal looked at him pointedly. "Because it's what's right. You also need to know that the Emperor is calling himself the child of the gods. He has no intention of allowing Anglia to remain independent. He wants your population as his own. He wants the metals under the Conglomerate."

  Dom sucked in a breath. "The Conglomerate has metal?"

  "We do na know." Jase spoke honestly. "The Emperor says there is, but we do na know 'bout any."

  "Ok. But look at it from my point of view. If I join with Terric, I could get a share of that metal. I could get a booming economy for my people. What does the Conglomerate offer me in return? War? The cost of war?"

  "Not exactly. How good will trade be with nations that no longer exist? If the Conglomerate and Myrosica are gone, who will you sell your goods to? If the Emperor kills you and takes your people as his own, enforcing laws regulating marriages and the production of children, and demanding tithes to him because of his self-perceived status, how does that help your people? Sire, that is the reality we are truly looking at." Sal sighed, then looked to Jase.

  I'm about to do something very bad. Can you and the mutts leave the room?

  What are ya thinking, kitten?

  I'm going to give the King confidential information, Jase. I don't want this to come back on you all in any way. Please?

  He nodded and glanced at the mutts. As a group, they moved to the door, Sal watching them.

  "Um?" Dom asked.

  "One moment, sire," she begged.

  Dom waited until the door closed behind them, then Sal spoke again. "I will not risk my pack for this. What I am about to tell you is confidential. It is well above my clearance level."

  "So how do you know it?"

  "Do you trust me, Dom?" she asked.

  He thought about it for a moment, then shrugged. "I'd like to think so."

  "What I am about to tell you is something that few humans know. I only know of two, and one is a Black Blade."

  Dominik nodded, encouraging her to go on.

  "My commanding officer is my lover. Don't let that confuse you. I keep two mates. It's the way of my people. The iliri have special abilities, few of which I will impart to you, but accept that we can share a portion of our thoughts with each other. In moments of, shall we say, ecstasy, things often slip through. Because of this, Blaec – Major Blaec Doll, commander of the Black Blades – has given up on keeping information from me. My human clearance differs from my iliri."

  Dominik's eyes were growing wider with each sentence. "That's how you asked them to leave, isn't it?"

  "Yeah. And the grauori speak much more clearly in our heads," Sal explained. "But Parliament has retrieved documents stating that the Emperor already has plans for your demise. He hopes to wed you to a Terran woman. Then you will be carefully assassinated, leaving her in charge of Anglia. Once he has accomplished that, he will use your army to push into Viraenova. He thinks of your people as expendable."

  "And you're sure of this?"

  "No. But that's what he's telling his officers. That part I am sure of. I've seen the memories of the actual documents. You should also know that the Emperor is convinced that only those from specific bloodlines are pure enough to continue. I don't think yours is among them. My unit intercepted crates of Iliran histories, and we can barely follow what's written. The information and language is so different from what we have now, but those same crates somehow convinced him that he is descended from sky gods."

  "Sal, what is a god?"

  "A creature whose existence can not be proven, who is all powerful, and who somehow has the inalienable right to have his way. The concept is baffling to me, too, but the Emperor's speeches and messages between his officers all make this very clear. He thinks he is the child of a god and he therefore has the right to dictate the life of all people. He feels that pedigrees and ancestry should determine your professions and that only those who can be traced to some 'star fall' should be allowed to procreate. Dom, the man, is crazy."

  Dominik stood, pouring himself a drink. "Yeah. That's a good reason right there, but I can't tell my council that without proof."

  Sal lowered her voice. "I'd prefer you don't tell them that at all."

  Suddenly Dom laughed. "Ok, so how do you keep that from Jase then?"

  "I don't. He knows it as well as I do. I simply want to allow him plausible deniability about me breaking orders. No one hides anything from Jase."

  Dom glanced up. "What do you mean, Sal?"

  "If he's touched you, he knows you, sire. Both the good and the bad. He knows your character, and he knows what you find important. Why do you think he doesn't touch anyone."

  "But you," Dom added.

  "Yeah, and a few others. But usually only if he's wanting a read, or the person is honest enough for him to touch them again. Iliri don't tend to lie because of this. You never know which of us is a reader. It has its limitations, like skin to skin only. We think the Emperor knows of our abilities, and we think we scare the shit out of him."

  Dom swallowed his drink in a single gulp. "Honestly, Sal? You scare the shit out of me too, but I find you refreshing somehow." He walked across the room to stand before her. His expression was serious as he looked down into her white, slit eyes. "You're like nothing I've ever met. When you bit me earlier, I was sure that you wouldn't stop, because of the berzerker thing you told me about. Yet the more I am with you, the more I find myself turning to you – and not my council – for advice. You're the only one that is honest with me." He paused, sighing deeply. "Sal, I'm surrounded by nobles who think everyone else is beneath them. They can't seem to remember that I was in that group not so long ago. I have no clue what I'm doing, and you seem to be the only one who gives a shit about us."

  "I do. No one deserves to be relegated to second class because of something they can't control. Doesn't matter if that's their species, their parents..." She looked right in his eyes. "Or her gender."

  His mouth twitched in a weak smile. "So you do have your own agenda, huh?"

  "Only to see all of us have the same opportunities. And maybe to survive for a few more years."

  "Yeah."
The King stepped back, letting his eyes close and shoulders relax. "That's what I thought. It just doesn't make any sense for me to lean on you like this. I should be bending Lord Otso's ear, not yours. I'm supposed to be learning how to be a king like my grandfather, but here we are, and I'm asking an iliri woman for advice. One who isn't even my citizen! Don't make me regret this?"

  "Dom, honesty brings honesty. I respect you, and I trust you. Jase says that you're a good man and that you truly want to do what is right for people, even if that means making your own life harder. He saw that your childhood as the son of a bastard shaped the man you are now and that you don't place yourself above others, but work for them instead. This is why I'm here. You are the only man in Anglia who can save my people – and your own in the process. I'll help you as much as I can." She tilted her head, letting a smile show. "Just don't make me regret it either, ok?"

  "Ok, Sal." Dom said softly. "Send that letter to Parliament. Tell the Conglomerate they can count on me. I'll play politics with Terric tomorrow and send them home empty handed. Get my army ready. Get them more than ready, because I think we're going to war."

  "Are you sure?" That wasn't at all what she'd expected from this talk. "I won't be sending a letter, Dom. If this is what you want, they'll know tonight. Shouldn't you speak to your council before you make a decision this important to your people? Don't they have to agree to an alliance with the CFC?"

  He smiled as he reached up, touching the length of her ear. "No, I don't think so. That you even ask says you care more than any of those nobles. Tell Parliament, but tell them that I require you to be here to help me."

  Sal nodded and opened her mind. Roo, I need a link home.

  Chapter 21

  The next morning, light streamed through the windows while Sal sat comfortably in her office across the hall from the King's rooms. Her desk was stacked with soldiers' files. Some were reports of those performing poorly, others those who were excelling. In her hand, she held a file for Sergeant Ilija Vayu. She hadn't requested it. His captain had singled him out as an example of a soldier deserving a promotion.