Page 63 of Spirit Rites

I can’t help my smile. “Well, we all know I’m no angel.”

“I don’t know, Kinsley.” I expect him to smile, but he doesn’t. Jorren interrupts us then, and Kaldar talks to him for a moment before turning back to me.

“Duty calls?” I ask before he can say anything.

“Yeah.”

He doesn’t look happy about it. “It’s okay, Kaldar. You're a king; I get it.”

“Your Highness.”

Kaldar turns away as two men in long jade robes approach him and talk to him. Jorren steps behind him, putting him near me. “Reika told me what you did,” he surprises me by saying. I look up at him, but he’s not looking at me. He’s watching the interaction between Kaldar and the two men in robes.

“It was nothing; I didn’t even really do anything.”

At this, Jorren turns to face me. His face is so intense, I want to look away, but I force myself to hold his gaze. “My mate and our daughter were in here. It’s not nothing to me.”

I suck in a breath and don’t know what to say to that. Taren saves me by jumping in. “I don’t know, Kinsley. First, you saved our king’s life on the way here; and now you saved the lives of the most defenseless of our people. I’d say Kaldar needs to be careful, or he’s going to lose his place as number one in the kingdom.”

I scoff, even as Jorren corrects him. “Number one in the kingdom only to some.”

My smile fades, and I look between the two of them. “What are you talking about?”

Taren glances over at Kaldar and then back at me. “Did he tell you what happened to his parents?”

“That they were murdered? Yes.” My voice is equally soft.

“Taren,” Jorren says in a warning voice, but Taren ignores him.

“Our kingdom is a little divided with Kaldar at the helm.”

“Why?” I ask. “He’s a good man.”

Taren nods. “The best, but he’s young. He’s the youngest king our kingdom has ever had.”

“That’s not a bad thing,” I say looking between the two of them.

“It’s not,” Taren’s quick to say. “But for a kingdom that is steeped in customs and the past, it’s difficult. There was alreadyunrest before his parents were killed. That was just the icing on the cake.”

“And now there are people that don’t want to follow Kaldar?” I ask.

They both nod. “There are those who don’t want him to be king.”

“Well, that’s just stupid. Kaldar’s the best person in this kingdom,” I blurt out, causing Taren to smile.

“Spoken like a true mate,” he says with a grin.

“I’m not just saying that as his mate. I mean it.”

Taren nods, his face serious now. “I know, and I agree.”

I lower my voice to a whisper. “If they don’t think he should lead, who do they think should lead?”

Jorren gives Taren a look. When neither of them say anything, I put my hands on my hips. “I’ll just ask Kaldar.” Taren grimaces.

“You’ll ask Kaldar what?” Reika asks, appearing out of nowhere and scaring me to death.

“Good grief, you people move so quietly.”