Page 161 of The Primal of Blood and Bone (Blood and Ash #6)

Even though the servants had been vetted, I was of the mind that trust was rarely absolute. I kept my senses open, quickly sorting through the wave of emotions. Cool surprise gave away to the bubbly sweetness of awe, but there was an undercurrent of bitterness, too. Fear.

And fear either made people incredibly wise or fatally foolish.

Their wariness was expected, but I had a feeling it wasn’t because of who we were.

The astonishment ran deeper than deference as if there was some kind of instinctive recognition.

I hadn’t paid much attention to their reactions before when I crossed paths with mortals. I couldn’t really ignore it now.

All at once, the mortals seemed to snap out of their daze and dropped to their knees, heads bowing as the hush of the atrium stretched on.

“There is no need to bow before us,” I spoke. “Rise to stand with us and not beneath us.”

The ripple of shock echoed in each face as they shuffled to their feet, hesitant and unsure.

Considering how the Blood Crown had demanded reverence, my words were likely the last thing they expected.

But it was Poppy’s response—the emotions that filtered out to me through her shield—that caught my attention.

It tasted like warm, buttery cake. Approval.

My lips curved up, knowing she liked what I’d said. She didn’t want to be worshipped. And contrary to what some likely believed, neither did I.

“Please, return to your duties,” Hisa commanded in a tone that sounded surprisingly friendly for her.

The servants exchanged quick glances and then scattered, nearly bouncing into one another as they did. A few lingered for a handful of seconds, their eyes trained on Poppy, before quickly spinning around and rushing off.

“I’m surprised they didn’t approach,” Poppy commented quietly, nodding at the guards in the hall.

“They’ve been instructed not to,” Hisa explained. And then quickly added in a rush, “Not in a way that suggests they are not allowed, but in—”

“I understand,” Poppy interjected, smiling at Hisa’s back. “Thank you.”

I sensed Kieran’s nearness as Hisa led us down one of the northern halls lined with closed doors trimmed in gold—doors I suspected had been recently painted ivory to cover the crimson.

“The generals are also in attendance,” Hisa advised, her steps slowing.

“Sounds good,” I told her, realizing we weren’t going to the chamber where we’d met with the generals last time.

Hisa stopped in front of a set of double doors toward the end of the hall, knocking once before pushing the doors open to reveal a large, circular chamber likely not used by the Blood Crown during the day due to its tall windows.

Placing a hand on Poppy’s lower back as we entered, I scanned the chamber, taking note of the smaller antechambers on either side.

Mostly empty settees and armchairs surrounded an oval table in the center of the space.

Chairs scratched over the stone floor as their occupants pushed back and stood to face us, murmuring greetings.

All the generals we’d met with before were present. So were Naill and—

“Poppy!” a familiar voice exclaimed. A second later, Netta rushed out of the antechamber, nearly knocking her brother aside.

My lips lifted into a grin as Kieran shot his sister a glare.

Netta streaked past me like I was nothing more than an old, worn boot, her tight braids streaming out behind her. She threw her arms around Poppy, causing her to stagger back several steps.

“Wow,” I muttered. “Don’t mind me. I’m just invisible.”

“You and me both,” Emil said under his breath. “But you’re not sleeping with her.”

Tilting my head, I peered at him as Delano coughed quietly. Emil’s stare met mine. I arched a brow. “Come again?”

Emil seemed to realize what he’d said and immediately pivoted on his heel, heading toward a serving table where decanters, pitchers, and glasses had been laid out.

I turned back to Poppy. Netta still had her in a fierce hug, lifting her onto the tips of her boots. My lips flattened. “Please don’t break my wife, Netta.”

“Shush it,” Netta replied, and I caught Poppy’s muffled giggle.

Gods, that sound…

It was light and infectious. My grin was looser when I looked up, catching General Aylard’s stiff posture as he stood between the dark-haired La’Sere and General Murin. He watched Netta and Poppy with an air of impatience and something akin to disgust.

Resisting the urge to peel Netta off Poppy before the damn wolven snapped a rib was as hard as not giving in to the desire to snap Aylard’s neck. I forced my legs to move past them. After everything, Poppy needed this. Her ribs would be fine, and Aylard could go fuck himself.

I made my way to where Kieran stood by the end of the table. “Thad?”

He’s in his chambers , he replied through the link. He’s injured .

I stiffened, now understanding why he’d been so late returning. How badly?

He’ll recover.

Before I could question him further, he said, How’s Poppy?

A muscle in my jaw ticked, and I debated not answering him. But even I wasn’t that big of a dick. I found her at the Cliffs of Sorrow.

His head cut toward me and then went to where Poppy stood with his sister. What the fuck was she doing there?

Trying to see if she felt connected to them.

Kieran exhaled slowly. Makes sense that she would . A moment passed. Did she?

I shook my head.

Not sure if that’s good or bad.

Neither was I.

Kieran pulled his gaze from her. Your father has returned, too.

My head swung toward him, but before I could question him, Poppy spoke. “We apologize for keeping you all waiting.”

“We’re glad you finally…decided to join us,” General Aylard replied. “We were worried there would be another long absence.”

I started to step forward, my hand dropping to the hilt of a dagger, but Poppy’s smile stopped me. It was sharp, like the blade strapped to my chest, and the eather stirred inside me, responding to the rise in hers.

“I’m sure,” she said. The uncertain girl from before, the one who was worried about what Seraphena would think of her, was gone.

A Queen had spoken. A Primal god held Aylard’s stare until he backed up, and Netta moved to stand behind her, her arms crossed as she eyed Aylard with open dislike.

Please, don’t throw the dagger, her voice came through the link. He’s not worth the effort.

Smirking, I lowered my hand as Sven stepped forward with a smile. “We haven’t been waiting that long, Your—” He caught himself. “Penellaphe.”

“Thank you. I do hope the rest of you weren’t as concerned as Aylard,” Poppy said, sending the general a pointed look.

Aylard’s throat bobbed on a swallow.

Poppy’s smile increased.

Beside me, Kieran sighed and then gestured toward the table. “Shall we sit?”

With a nod, Poppy started to go but stopped and turned back to Sven instead. “Have you found anything of use in your research?”

“Not yet, but Perry’s still looking,” he answered.

“Please let us know if there is any way we can assist.”

“Of course.” Sven bowed his head.

Poppy walked toward us with a smooth, predatory grace that all eyes in the chamber followed.

She was unaware of both things, but her next actions?

She knew exactly what she was doing when her shoulder skimmed Aylard’s armored one, forcing him to take a step back.

Grinning, I pulled out the chair at the head of the table.

“My Queen,” I murmured.

With a roll of her eyes directed at me, she sat. The others followed suit, with Kieran taking the chair on her left and me to her right. Netta sat beside her brother, but neither Emil nor Delano took a seat, leaving two open as they moved to stand beside Naill.

Eyeing the empty seats for a moment, I leaned back and shifted my attention to the generals as Poppy cleared her throat.

“We were told Thad returned,” she said.

“He has,” Sven replied from where he sat between Aylard and Damron, a slight frown pulling at his brow. “I assume Reaver did not advise you of his condition?”

Poppy stiffened beside me. “No, he did not. Was Thad injured?”

“He was,” Kieran answered, shifting closer to Poppy. “But he will recover.”

Worry bled into her features. “What happened?”

“General Da’Neer will be able to go into better detail when he rejoins us,” Lizeth offered, and I felt the faint splash of Poppy’s surprise sneaking past her shields, quickly followed by woodsy relief.

No sooner had she finished speaking than the sound of footsteps drew my gaze to the closed doors. Two pairs. A knock came, and Emil opened them.

My brother was the first to enter, his white linen shirt tucked into dark trousers that seemed to hang from his tall frame.

My gaze lifted to his face. The shadows beneath his eyes weren’t as stark as they had been, but with his hair pulled back into a knot at the nape of his neck, there was no way I didn’t see how lean his face had gotten.

I’d noticed it yesterday, and he’d fed at some point, but I doubted it had included much food. He wasn’t taking care of himself.

The second set of steps ground to a halt. I slowly moved my stare to the man behind my brother.

My father had shed his armor, opting for the plain black uniform of a common soldier. His sandy-blond hair was longer than I recalled, damn near reaching his chin. When our eyes met, the first thing I thought was how much he looked like Attes.

“Valyn?” Poppy called quietly, leaning forward in concern—

I frowned and focused on her. It wasn’t concern I was picking up from her. It was the coolness of shock, nearly equal to what my father was feeling.

I reached out to her through the link. Is something wrong?

Poppy’s brows knitted as she still stared at my father. I exchanged a glance with Kieran. Clearly, he had no idea what was going on.

Malik dropped into the seat beside me. “This is awkward,” he murmured.