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My hand found the back of her head, and I held her in place, taking her mouth. Gods, I’d missed this. She allowed it, opening for me, allowing my tongue to delve deep as my other hand pulled her close.

I pressed a kiss to her neck, enjoying the way her pulse thundered against my lips. “We’ll continue this later, wildcat,” I promised.

First, I needed to have a serious conversation with my brother.

CHAPTERFOURTEEN

My brother rarely wore his crown. And yet, he’d arrived at this camp in full regalia. That crown sat on the table in front of him now as he crossed his arms, surveying me with a frown.

“You seem changed.”

“I haven’t seen you for three years.”

He shrugged. “We have gone longer without meeting.”

He wasn’t wrong. Conreth preferred to keep me away from the castle as much as possible. He said it pleased him to have his court wonder where exactly I was and what secrets I could be learning—both in his kingdom and elsewhere.

“You ignored my order.” His voice was carefully neutral.

I just raised my eyebrow. “You told me to bring Prisca to the fae lands. I did.”

He frowned, likely attempting to remember the exact wording in his letter. “I hadn’t realized I would need to state my orders so plainly,” he said coolly. “I’ve never needed to be exact before.”

A reference to Prisca. I just waited.

“Tell me, what is it about this woman that makes you prioritize her? Why are you spending so much time training her?”

I needed to choose my words carefully. But by now, Conreth already knew how I felt about Prisca. “My priority remains our kingdom. But Prisca is fierce and brave and so incredibly loyal, that loyalty is going to get her killed one day, unless I can teach her how to stay alive.”

Conreth stared at me. “I already give you more freedom than anyone else,” he said. “If certain people were to learn you were ignoring my orders, they would expect consequences. And I would have no choice, Lorian. None.”

Of course he would have a choice. “If your rule is so precarious that you’re that reliant oncertainpeople, you have greater problems than my choice to bring Prisca here first.”

I saw the moment he decided to drop the subject. Not because he considered it closed, but because he wanted to change tactics.

“Where are we with the amulet?”

“My spies are still searching. There are rumors Regner has built several new residences—in an attempt to encourage us to split our attention. I believe we will find it in the north.”

“Why?”

I shrugged one shoulder. “My instincts urge us to prioritize that location.”

“Interesting. Instruct your spies to focus their attention to the north, then. In the meantime, I have a task for you,” he said.

Now that we weren’t discussing Prisca, Conreth’s body language had relaxed. But his eyes were still hard. “What kind of task?”

“A group of wildkin has begun acting strangely in the southeast, close to the Gromalian border.”

I took a seat across from him. “They’re ancient, vicious fae who wrestle with insanity. Exactly how do you define the term ‘acting strangely’?”

“Reports indicate a few of them have wandered across the border into Gromalia, only to return hours later.”

I cursed. If the wildkin were leaving our lands, they were up to no good. Chances were high they were hunting humans, and if the Gromalian king found out, it would end any chance of an alliance with him.

“They have also been venturing into our villages. Several children told their parents they saw Xantheros when they were playing in the forest near their homes.”

“They saw Xantheros, and he didn’t decide they’d make a tasty snack?”