by Gwynn White
Felix’s jaw set in a hard line, and she wondered if he’d answer. Felix Avanov clearly didn’t like receiving ultimatums. Trouble was, despite her agony at every one of Axel’s ragged breaths, she wouldn’t back down. He would answer her, and she would save Axel. It was the only way this would end. She ignored Malika’s gasps of shock and focused on Felix.
Finally, Lukan broke the impasse. “He only had one dose. He got it off a dead raider who took you and your sister to Tanamre.”
Lynx had barely processed his words when her knees buckled. She had to grab onto the bed for support. “You . . . you murdered one of my raiders? Which one?”
On arriving at Tanamre, she had commanded three men who had accompanied them to reconnoiter the Chenayan military base—Onyx, Ash, and Buzzard—while Heron escorted her and Kestrel into the camp. Which of them had been killed? It couldn’t be Heron, could it?
“What does it matter?” Felix snarled. “These are trifles compared to my son.”
Lynx swung her fist to hit Felix, but Stefan grabbed her arm.
“No, Your Majesty,” Stefan whispered, as if he were reminding her of her station. “That would not be wise.” He gestured to Axel writhing on the bed. “Please, focus and save my friend.”
Lynx lowered her arm, then fixed Felix with her hardest, coldest stare. “From your own lips . . . how much murghi do you hold?”
Felix pulled out his handkerchief and started blowing his nose. Lynx leaped forward, snatched the filthy cloth away, and tossed it on the floor.
“Answer my question, or I walk out of here, and Axel dies.” Her firm voice betrayed nothing of the pain and anguish hiding behind the façade of her gambit.
Malika’s accusing stare was almost too painful to bear. Hopefully, she would give Lynx a chance to explain when all this was over. Who could have imagined that the opinion of a Chenayan girl could ever mean so much to me?
Lukan, who had been strangely quiet, now drifted over and stood next to Lynx. Sneering, he said, “Well, Uncle, it seems you have finally met someone who will not let you hide behind your rag. It looks to me as if she has you on the run.”
Lynx shot him a look, wondering why he was siding with her. Whatever he wants, he’s not getting it. Ever.
Felix pulled his cape tighter around his shoulders and brushed his wispy hair from his face. “There was one dose, and only one raider died. My operators barely escaped with their lives. Heron . . . your raider? Is that your lieutenant’s name? He tracked them mercilessly.”
Lynx wanted to heave a sigh of relief, but she didn’t, working hard to maintain her icy stare as Felix said, “If it hadn’t been for the waiting airship, he probably would have caught them.”
Lynx studied Felix’s face. Finally, she let out that sigh. For the first time since meeting him, the Lord of the Household’s expression blazed truth. She moved to Axel and ran her fingers gently down his beautiful arm. Then, she picked up the cloth and knelt to wipe his face.
Although she knew he would not understand her, she pressed her lips to his ear and whispered, “Even if he had more stocks of poison, I would have found a way to save you. You know that, don’t you?” Ignoring Lukan’s gasp of protest, she dropped a kiss on the side of Axel’s face.
She stood to face her audience, delighted to see a softening in Malika’s eyes. Perhaps she understood after all. “My uncle, Bear. Summon him so I can brief him on what to write to my father.”
Felix and Lukan exchanged heavy looks.
Lynx’s heart raced. “I haven’t seen my uncle since the ball. Where is he?”
Felix cleared his throat. “Beyond our service. We will have to plan without him.”
“What does that mean?”
“He’s dead,” Lukan said bluntly. He pointed to Felix. “He killed him. Apparently, Bear said he would help you spy.”
A combination of rage and guilt almost floored Lynx.
Lukan seemed not to notice. He glowered at Felix. “Just another bit of conniving my uncle has been engaged in these last few days.”
Lynx struck Felix across the face. He staggered, falling back toward the chair, missed it, and crumpled onto the floor.
“You murdered my uncle!” she screamed. “And my raider! You planned to kill me! And now you want my help? If it wasn’t for your son, I would tell you to drown in your own snot, you despicable little man.”
Lukan snorted a laugh, and Stefan’s and Malika’s eyes widened. Felix’s hands clawed at the air, and he tried to rise.
“I warned you, Uncle, but you didn’t listen,” Lukan said, with obvious delight, doing nothing to help him.
Lynx longed to know what Felix had done to anger Lukan, but there was no time to worry about that now. She had another agenda with her new husband. While Stefan and Malika helped Felix up, she spun to face Lukan. “And you, you rat. You wanted me dead, too. You won’t get away with it. I keep a long memory of my enemies.”
“How dare you,” Lukan said right back. “I told you, I had nothing to do with this. Like you, I’m an innocent bystander. This was all Felix.”
“Then why did Axel see you talking to the assassin about killing me?”
Lukan’s face paled. His mouth snapped closed; clearly he was marshaling his thoughts.
With no interest in what he had to say, Lynx pivoted back to Stefan. “Colonel Zarot, it seems you are the only one here I can trust—”
“You have other allies, too, Lynx.” Tao stepped into the room. “I will ensure any message you send to your father is carried by a loyal bearer.” Cold eyes turned to Lukan. “Someone not so easily swayed by my uncle.”
Lynx just resisted the urge to throw her arm around him. “There is no time for a message.” She brushed Axel’s matted hair. “Those airships Felix spoke of,” she glared at the Lord of the Household, who glared right back with vengeance and fury, “how fast are they?” She had no idea what an airship was, but she wasn’t going to waste any more time to find out.
“Faster than a train,” Stefan said. “He’ll be in Norin in three days. Unless your tribe has moved.”
Another squeak of relief escaped Lynx. Thanks to the egg raid planned for the wedding, the Norin would still be camped near Tanamre. “Three days it is. I’ll write to my father. Bring me ink and paper.”
Stefan moved to obey. He returned moments later, handing her everything she needed. She sat on the edge of the bed, next to Axel, with the paper balanced on her knee. Felix loomed over her expectantly. Stefan held the ink pot. Her skin burned, aware of Lukan watching her through hooded eyes.
“What are you going to say?” Malika knelt next to her brother, gently caressing his unharmed shoulder.
Lynx had no idea.
Father, I love him. Heal him for me. She couldn’t see her father accepting that when she was honor-bound to marry Lukan. But I did marry Lukan. That doesn’t mean my heart belongs to him.
She dipped her quill in the ink and wrote: Father, My honor remains in Cian, but I send you my heart. Please counter his murghi. She paused, realizing her father may think she had written the letter under duress. That meant she had to include something more personal. It was risky, but she added: The ruby next to his eye means nothing. But the guardsmen’s jaspers contain powers derived from technology predating the Burning. Axel will explain everything. She signed and folded the letter, wishing she had some sealing wax.
Felix obliged, dripping the melting wax onto the letter. Lynx hesitated, unsure of what to seal it with.
Tao stepped forward and pressed his signet ring into the hot wax. “Let him know you have other friends here.” Tao was still shooting glares at Lukan. Clearly, Tao had no trouble believing Lukan wanted her dead.
The wax had not yet hardened when Felix commanded, “Out with the bed. The airship is waiting at the launch pad.”
Tao and Stefan each grabbed an end and hefted the bed up, ready to march Axel from the room.
“Wait, Father,” Malika cried. “You can’t let him go alone. He needs
someone to watch over him.”
“One of the priestesses, surely,” Stefan said, looking between Malika and Felix.
Lukan stepped forward, staring coolly at Stefan. “As emperor, I make that call, and I think it fitting that Colonel Zarot go.”
Stefan’s eyes darted to Lynx. With him gone, she was minus a vital ally. Still, Malika was right; Axel could not travel alone. She nodded, as if she had the power of veto or ratification over the emperor’s commands.
“Go. Tell Heron I send my love. Explain . . .” She paused. “You’ll know what to do when you meet him.”
“Enough of all this waffling,” Felix snapped, moving to the door.
Lynx was about to follow Axel when Lukan grabbed her arm. “You and I need to talk.”
Chapter Forty-Three
Lynx wanted to shake Lukan off, to go with Axel, but Lukan needed dealing with. She could not live with a potential murderer. After waiting for the room to clear, she turned to him. “You do know that from now on, it’s war.”
Lukan’s breath hitched, and then he pleaded, “Lynx, listen to me, you’ve got it all wrong. I planned to save you. Honestly, I did. I had this whole speech worked out that I was going to give the high-born. It would have changed everything.”
“A speech? That was going to save me from a quarrel?” Lynx shook her head in disbelief. “Tell that to Axel!”
Anger flashed across Lukan’s face, and his eyes narrowed. “Don’t talk to me about Axel. I had to stand in front of the whole court, watching while you kissed him not five minutes after we married.”
Ignoring his outburst, Lynx added, “I wouldn’t have needed saving if you hadn’t plotted to kill me in the first place.” Why she was debating with him, she’d never know, when all she wanted was to break his neck.
Because I’m not ready to take on the Fifteen yet. Until I am, I have to manage this man. For that, she had to bring him firmly under control. Everything she knew about him screamed that fear and humiliation where the best tools for nobbling Lukan Avanov.
Lukan confirmed her thoughts by saying, “I’ve now told you over and over that my intentions were pure, but you have chosen not to believe me. Lynx, you have humiliated me in every possible way.”
“And humiliation beats premeditated murder every time.” Lynx laughed mockingly. “Lukan, even if I believe you, you sported with my life.”
“What about Axel?” Lukan demanded indignantly. “Did he tell you what everyone was planning?”
“No. He didn’t. But that’s not the point. He made a choice to use his life to protect mine.” She scowled at him. “And what about next time?”
“Next time?”
“Yes! Next time your uncle decides I’m not worthy to live? How can I trust you not to plot against me again?”
Lukan’s hands gripped his hair and then fell back to his sides. He strode across the room and hit the wall with his palm. “Because I want you. I’ve always wanted you, since the day I first saw you. You know that. Why would I harm you?”
The memory of Lukan leering at her across the hall during the summer burned harsh in Lynx’s mind. Still, she would have expected the threat of her son to have changed that. Apparently, she was wrong. “Want is not love. I’m nothing but an object to you. I saw that at the ball. And it played out again so beautifully when you schemed with Felix to kill me.”
Another slap on the wall, then Lukan faced her. “Look, you’re right when you say I don’t love you. I can’t possibly because I hardly know you. But I’m willing to try, and that’s a start. I—I can even overlook this . . . obsession of yours with my cousin, if you promise to conduct yourself properly as my wife—especially when he returns. I cannot have the court talking about you and Axel behind my back.”
Lynx’s mouth dropped in disbelief. She snapped it closed. Did he really think she could let this go? That she could trust him again? With no qualm or conscience, he had been willing to cross his uncle in their deal. What stopped him from backstabbing her if it suited his agenda? Lukan Avanov was a man devoid of honor. And men devoid of honor were like vipers—only to be trusted when their heads were crushed between two rocks.
In the face of her stony silence, he cried, “You know Felix! You know how manipulative he is. What was I supposed to do?”
Lynx pointed to the empty space where Axel’s bed had stood. “You fight for what is right, for what you believe in, no matter the cost. As much as I love Axel, I was not letting your pathetic uncle intimidate me. It’s called having a backbone.”
Lukan shook his head, studying his feet. “Well, maybe I’m not as strong as you are.”
“No, you’re not,” Lynx agreed. She folded her arms and studied him.
Sniveling weakling that he was, she’d get no assurances from him. It was time to discover how Lukan saw the future—and to tell him what to expect if he had any illusions about trying to kill her again.
She did not intend on becoming a typical Norin bride married to a murderous Chenayan emperor. “What are your plans for your reign? More of what your father served up? Or do you see things changing in Chenaya?”
Lukan slumped down onto the chair. “There is so much to consider.”
“Would you take guidance? Counsel on how to rule, what to change?”
He looked up at her. “From whom?”
“Me.”
“A woman.” He shook his head. “What would the Fifteen say? Empresses are supposed to look pretty and host balls, not make decisions on government. Especially the kind of decisions you’ll want to make.”
It would do no harm to remind Lukan of the curse if he would not see reason. “I am sure you’re aware that I am the woman Dmitri spoke of.”
Lukan leaped to his feet. “Are you threatening me? I won’t tolerate it. I’m emperor now, and I won’t be bullied by anyone ever again.”
“Yes, a thousand witnesses saw you and Felix murder the emperor. I doubt any of them would dare cross you. Me, I’m not so reticent.”
Hoping he didn’t notice her blush, Lynx walked right up to him and deliberately brushed her body against his. His breath sped up, and his groin immediately responded. Lynx gritted her teeth against the pressure on her leg.
“Lukan, you chose me to marry you because you think I’m a plaything. That was a serious misjudgment.” She pinched his testicles through his clothing. He screeched—more in surprise than pain, given that she hadn’t squeezed hard—and jumped back. Lynx let him go. “Try to hurt me, and I will emasculate you in ways you can only begin to imagine.”
Lukan shook his head, his face more bemused than angry. When he finally spoke, his voice was mournful. “You never gave us a chance. From the moment you arrived here, you were determined to despise me. Why? Why even agree to the marriage?”
It was time to enlighten him. “The only reason I married you was to fulfill an oath to my father. I’ve done that now.” She remembered her letter to her father with its promise that Axel would tell him everything there was to know about the ice crystals. Her heart burst into song, and she couldn’t resist grinning. “Winds know, I am freer now than I have ever been.”
Lukan’s beautiful face turned scornful. “Free? You’re still my wife. My empress. You live here, in my palace. You’ll do what I say. I hardly call that free.”
Before he could get too comfortable with his delusions, Lynx said, “Don’t for a minute think you’ll control me.”
Lukan’s head hitched to the side, dark eyes calculating. “An oath to your father, you say? Don’t you Norin consider yourselves cursed if you break them?”
How did Lukan know that? Lynx shifted, suddenly uncomfortable—and hating herself for it.
“The cursing is moot,” she snapped, determined to quell any advantage he may think he had. “My oath was fulfilled when I married you today.”
A triumphant smile danced across Lukan’s lips. “Then I hate to break this to you, but our marriage is not yet complete. Your oath to your father still stands.” He laughed
.
Voice ominous with threat, Lynx demanded, “What do you mean?”
In Norin, marriage vows uttered together in front of witnesses constituted a legally binding contract. Mott had demanded to see bloodied sheets to confirm that she had indeed slept with Lukan, but he’d said nothing about needing them to clinch the marriage.
“Sex.” Lukan stepped back from her, gloating. “No marriage in Chenaya is legal until it is consummated. Today, you and I have merely performed a spectacle for the masses. The legal stuff happens in bed. My bed, which you will never be invited to.”
Lynx’s blood chilled. She wanted to ask if he was joking, but that would show weakness. Not something she could ever admit to with Lukan.
Lukan’s grin widened. “So, you can’t touch me until I have sex with you, and I won’t touch you. Who’s emasculated now?” He gave her a mock bow. “I do like how the day has turned out.”
Lynx opened and closed her mouth. Was it possible she had lost?
The burning in her leg, where just moments before she had felt the pressure of his groin, said that this war was far from over. She pulled her lips back in her most savage grin.
“Oh, Lukan. You are as good as had. Enjoy your gloating while it lasts.” Lynx slunk toward him, swinging her hips provocatively.
Lukan’s confident swagger faltered. His eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. And then he was gone, skidding out the door.
Lynx laughed after him. “Like I said, Lukan, this war has only just started.”
Her laughter faded. She had discovered every Chenayan secret—and more—that she had set out to find when coming here. No longer a Norin warrior princess, she was now empress of Chenaya with real power over her weakling husband.
But was all that enough to fulfil Dmitri’s curse?
Not without Axel at my side.
No matter what happened, Axel had to survive.
She strode over and flung open the window. Not caring who heard her, she leaned out and cried to the Winds, “Watch over and protect Axel and I will make you an oath that I will devote my life to fulfilling Dmitri’s curse.”