Page 30 of Exiled Heir

He had blond hair, although not nearly as white as Cade’s. When he saw us, he bared his teeth in a mockery of a smile.

One sniff told me that the seated man was a werewolf, while the pacing man was human.

“Prince Bartlett.Thankyou forgracingus with your presence. We are so grateful for the opportunity to meet you and yourconsort.” At the last, his voice rose into nearly a roar, the word becoming an accusation.

ChapterEleven

“The consort I didn’t even know about! The oneLeonhad to tell me about!” The blond’s words decreased in volume, although the venom in them had to sting. Based on the bitterness and his scent, I pegged him as Isaac, the second-in-command.

Cade’s shoulders tensed, but his breathing stayed relaxed. Short breath in, long breath out.

Ignoring the other man, he walked to the head of the table. I glanced at the setup. Isaac’s partner, the werewolf, had left the seat at the right of the head empty. That was where Isaac would sit.

As I followed Cade, I could feel two sets of eyes on me. I stared down the werewolf first, an old habit because in most situations, the wolf was the one I was worried about. Then again, I had spent eleven years avoiding mages, so I might need to change my standard practice.

The wolf immediately averted his gaze, looking down and to the side, tilting his head to show his neck. I frowned at the quick sign of submission. Up close, I could see his delicate features, a fine nose, plush lips, eyelashes that fanned across his cheeks.

Last night, Tyson had been aggressive, every bit the alpha werewolf. Nia hadn’t shown any signs of dominance or submission. She had definitely been a wolf, but it was as though she was trying to tell me she didn’t play the hierarchy games that most of us learned as soon as we could toddle over and grab our siblings’ hair to grind their faces into the dirt.

Cade took his seat without saying anything, and I pulled out the chair on his left, slouching in it, making every move pointed and heavy. Isaac’s partner had already shown submission, but I didn’t understand it. Was it a trick? Was he trying to pull something?

“Miles, this is Isaac and his consort, Jay.” Cade gestured to each of them in turn.

I dragged my eyes away from Jay to find that Isaac was glaring at me, a protective hand curved around Jay’s shoulder.

“Nice to meet you.” I kept the words short, looking between them, trying to read the relationship.

“What is this, Cade?” Isaac still stood next to Jay, his hand tight on his consort’s shoulder.

Cade shook his head, leaning forward and gripping his hands tightly together. “Whatisthis? I found a consort.Youdid. Sonja did. Why is everyone acting like I walked stark naked into House Morrison and offered a complete surrender of all of our positions?”

I kept my face neutral, years of listening to Declan make equally strange pronouncements keeping me from any show of surprise. Even I knew that House Morrison was the mage house gunning for House Bartlett. I didn’t know any of the details, but from my understanding, they were growing faster than House Bartlett, becoming more powerful every year.

“Because none of us have even heard of this werewolf.” Isaac released his consort’s shoulder.

“I’ve heard of you,” I said. Cade threw me a narrow-eyed look, but I hadn’t learned to gamble at Declan’s tables without learning how to bluff. “Isaac Bartlett. Cade’s second. You’re the only one in this house he trusts. I look forward to working with you to keep him and the house safe.”

Isaac’s eyes widened, then narrowed, his jaw tightening before he managed to say, “You look forward to working together?”

I fought the urge to sit up straight, to act as though I had done something wrong. It wasn’t even a real lie. I did have House Bartlett’s best intentions at heart. Or, I hadCadeBartlett’s best intentions at heart. Cade was my ticket to five hundred thousand dollars and the freedom from Declan’s bounty on my head.

“What did you tell him?” Isaac turned to Cade, dismissing me with a glance.

“I told him what he needed to know,” Cade said, his tone solemn. “I didn’t lie to him.”

Through careful control, I didn’t roll my eyes, since getting information from Cade had been about as easy as pulling a lion’s teeth without anesthesia.

“He told you what you need to know? He told you thatthree peoplehave died? That his car was bombed? That the entire Firefly Lounge was poisoned while he was having a drink there? He told you that?” Isaac stared at me, but my poker face was better than anyone else’s on Declan’s crew.

I didn’t give away anything. Not even the twinge I felt when I heard the name Firefly Lounge. That was one of Declan’s favorite establishments because people paid for the prestige of going, when Declan paid the same for vodka when he charged forty dollars a drink at Firefly or ten dollars a drink at one of his less exclusive bars. I hadn’t heard about a poisoning there, which meant that Declan had kept it secret. He would have had some people in on it. Who? JD?

It didn’t matter that it happened after I was already on the run. My first instinct was to make sure Declan and the organization were protected from any blowback.

“He told me people were killed,” I said.

“Threeof ours dead. Half the nightclub is still in the hospital, even two weeks later. And then he brings in you?”

Isaac paced forward, circling behind Cade until he was in my space.