Page 9 of The Forsaken Heir

AURELIUS

S lapping down the file, I leaned back and sighed. I couldn’t focus. I’d been pouring over the reports, memos, and emails since returning from my diplomatic mission to the Hikshil tribe. It was shocking how much had piled up in less than a week.

Most of the paperwork involved the magical products our companies sold.

As of now, the biggest seller was a wrinkle cream the humans were eating up like mad.

As far as they knew, it was a combination of minerals, vitamins, and proprietary collagen peptides.

In reality, it was a watered-down magic-infused potion.

It did the job well enough to make us millions, but not so well that the humans would get suspicious.

That was all well and good, but the council was right.

The Laurents and the wolves beholden to them were encroaching on our supply lines.

I was in no mood to go over the information, but I had a meeting with my father and needed to be on point.

He was relying on me to be his right hand now that his time as king was growing short.

Even the few hours I’d spent drinking and chatting with Rasp and Vince the night before now looked like an ill-advised waste of time. But I’d needed to blow off steam.

“Your Highness?”

Spinning my chair around, I found one of our butlers standing at the entrance to my office.

“Yes, Titus?” I said.

He bowed. “Your father is ready for you.”

“Damn,” I muttered under my breath. “All right. Tell him I’m on my way.”

“Very well.” Titus bowed again and retreated down the hall.

I stuffed my laptop into my leather briefcase and added a few folders, then slung the bag over my shoulder.

The house was quiet as I walked down the halls.

We only had a skeleton staff on duty. Neither Father nor I enjoyed having servants wait on us hand and foot, but the true reason was one that both stung and shamed me.

The dragons were disappearing. Unlike the wolves, who always seemed to be expanding in numbers, our species had been in decline for centuries.

It was why I was afraid of increasing tensions with the Laurents.

War would be far more devastating to us than them.

Although, the odds of staying out of some sort of conflict was lessening by the day.

Bastion Laurent, heir apparent to the Laurent family, had much more aggressive intentions than his father before him.

From the intelligence we’d gathered, Bastion was pushing an agenda that leaned into the innate hatred wolves felt for dragons.

I feared it was only a matter of time before he or someone doing his bidding sent things tottering over the edge.

That kept me awake at night. Little as the rest of the royal families wanted to admit it, we needed to do all we could for peace.

Titus stood outside Father’s door, awaiting my arrival.

I sighed. “You can announce me.”

Titus opened the door and spoke. “Crown Prince Aurelius Decimus, Your Majesty.”

“Send him in,” Father called, his voice booming from within his study.

Titus stepped aside and let me pass. Father sat behind his huge, ornate desk, the light from his computer screen casting a glow across his face.

He grinned and crossed his arms over his flat, muscled stomach.

“My boy!”

I bowed my head slightly. “Father.”

He waved a hand at me in irritation. “Stop with the formality. We’re alone here, Aurelius. Call me dad.”

I took my seat opposite him and set down my briefcase.

“Okay. Hey, Dad ,” I said, grinning at him ruefully.

“Hey, son ,” he said, his eyes twinkling. “What should we start with? The trade agreement with the dragon families in the southwest?”

I chuckled. “Do you really call it a trade agreement when they’re under your rule?”

He rolled his eyes. “You know as well as I do that I don’t control our clan with an iron fist. There aren’t many of us, but we are spread across the country. Each region is free to rule themselves in a sense. You know this.”

“I know, Dad. I didn’t mean you should force them to operate under our terms, I just prefer to address things with a sense of reality. We’re the royal family, and every member of our extended clan looks to us. This suggested shipping timeline works for both parties, it really isn’t an issue.”

When my father leaned forward, there was a weariness on his face that I’d never seen before.

He was a good king, an honorable man, and a loving father.

But he was nearing the age of retirement and abdication.

The stress was beginning to show on his face.

The lines and wrinkles on his face that had shown up well beyond the age they would for a human had only become more pronounced in the years since my mother’s death.

Part of me thought some of my father’s will had shattered when he lost her.

“I suppose you’re right,” he said. “These last few weeks have been difficult. Benedictus has been pushing for us to be aggressive against the Laurents, and he’s beginning to gain traction with other noble houses.

I truly missed you while you were away.” He gave me a sad smile. “I rely on you and your mind.”

The question that had been stirring within me since I got word that the council would be meeting early surged in my mind. I decided to ask it before I lost my nerve.

“Why wasn’t I told about the early council meeting, Father?”

He winced at my use of the word father rather than dad . I typically used it as a sign of respect, but now it showed I was separating myself, lowering my station beneath him, even though he viewed us as near equals.

“It happened very fast,” he said at last. “Benedictus and the others requested an accelerated timeline.”

“Uh, huh,” I muttered. “Let me guess, there were other things on the agenda that were left out of the meeting once I arrived?”

He frowned. “Now that you mention it, one of the nobles that live within Benedictus’s lands was supposed to give a presentation.”

Probably some attempt to gain favor with my father without me around, or a suggestion for more aggressive actions toward the Laurents.

Everyone on the council knew I was vehemently against war with the Laurents.

Dragons were bigger, stronger, more powerful, and capable of flight, but the wolves outnumbered us.

By a lot. A cat was bigger than a mouse, but if it had to fight a thousand mice at once, things probably wouldn’t end well.

It was the one thing I feared more than anything, and why diplomacy and wariness needed to be used more than any other tactics.

I didn’t mention this to Dad, though. He already knew my position.

“That sounds like him. He’s trying to assert control by dictating meeting times,” I said. “He knows how easygoing you are, and, well, what a dick I am.”

Dad belted out a hearty laugh. “You make me sound like a pushover and yourself like a miserable prick.”

I shrugged. “You’re no pushover, but you have to admit that you give the other noble houses more leeway than Grandfather did.”

He grunted. “I loved my father, but yes, he was far stricter in the way he ruled. When I took over, I swore I’d give our people more agency. More freedom. It only made sense as our numbers dwindled. Perhaps I’ve taken it too far.” He stared past me, deep in thought.

“Anyway.” He shook his head. “Back to the business at hand. The Hikshil tribe. You didn’t get to talk about them much last night. How are the fae?”

“They’re fine,” I said, relaxing a bit as we switched topics.

“Still a bit old-fashioned. They mostly refuse to accept a lot of the luxuries of the modern world, and the ones they do use are mostly out of necessity. This was my first in-person visit, and it was eye-opening. These folks do have magic, so they aren’t wholly without comforts and conveniences. ”

“That’s good,” he said. He narrowed his eyes and gave me a weird grin. “Any of the fae ladies catch your eye?”

“Good God.” I sighed. “Stop. Please. No, I didn’t bang any fae, if that’s what you’re asking.”

He spread his hands. “A young man has needs. I know that as well as anyone. I’m not going to fault someone for sowing their wild oats.” His smile faltered. “There was a bit of discussion before you arrived last night, about me remarrying.”

“ Again ?” I asked, incredulously. “They’ve been doing this at least once a year since Mom died. It’s getting tiresome.”

The council had been pushing him to remarry and attempt to have more heirs. With me as the king’s lone offspring, the Decimus family had less leeway if something unfortunate happened.

“They do seem to be dead-set on it,” Dad admitted.

“Though, I can’t see myself being with anyone else.

Your mother…” His entire body seemed to sigh in sadness.

“Your mother was one of a kind. I’d rather abdicate early and let you take over than be with anyone else.

Plus, all the noble ladies they suggest are damn near two hundred years younger than I am.

Sure, they’re of marriageable age, but there’s something repugnant and vile about the idea of mating with someone younger than my own son.

” He shivered in disgust. “Besides, it took your mother and I well over a century to conceive you. I don’t see it happening with anyone else. ”

“You’re the king. The nobles can push and ask and beg all they want, but you are in charge. I’m glad you aren’t letting them force you into anything you don’t want.”

“Thank you for the vote of confidence,” he said, a sarcastic lilt to his voice. “But what of you and your romantic prospects? I’m not talking about a roll in the hay with a fae girl. I mean an actual mate.”