Page 26 of The Shattered Kingdom (The Cursed Kingdom #2)

MASON

ABBY SITS ON the couch, her knees tucked into her chest as she stares into the fireplace. She’s been catatonic for the better part of the morning, pretty much from the moment she woke up. She gasped as she jolted upright in bed, her sudden movements putting Kie and me on high alert.

She refuses to tell me what she dreams about, but it’s weighing heavily on her.

I fear it was about me or Kie, about the bonds she’s made more than apparent she doesn’t want. Or maybe it was about Lillian. Or possibly Jackie. It could also be about the attempted murder. Or maybe about her family. There are too many options.

Kie stands in the kitchen. He’s staring at the counter, which he’s been doing for the past forty-five minutes. Things never used to be this awkward between us. I want to crawl out of my skin and disappear.

“You should relocate to my mother’s office today,” Kie says, breaking the silence.

Abby looks over. I shrug, my gaze flickering between the two before returning to the map on the dining table. Why hasn’t Abby told Kie about the map she found in my bedroom? What’s she waiting for?

“I don’t want your mother’s office,” I admit.

Each council member and several high-ranking nobles have offices on the property, but I was never given one.

I attend meetings when requested, but I never held my own.

The queen never found it necessary to provide me with an office despite my title of prince.

Kie and I shared more often than not, much to her annoyance.

The queen was never unkind to me, and I’d go as far as to say she treated me well when I was a young, frightened child, but we grew apart as I ventured into adulthood. She found me too troublesome to bother with, and I decided that every faerie besides Kie wasn’t worth my time.

“You should still take it,” Kie urges. “It sends the impression that you’re settling into your position.”

“Hm.” I’m not going to do that. “I’ll consider it.”

There’s shuffling outside, boots scraping against dirt before somebody knocks on our front door. I’ve never been more relieved to have a distraction. Kie is closer to the door, but he doesn’t answer. He moves toward Abby instead. I wait until he’s in position before responding.

Anox stands on the doorstep, frowning.

“What?” I ask.

“Do you two intend to hide in your home all day?” He sounds just like the queen, and I press my lips together as he continues. “We received word from Alpha Theon this morning.” He extends an arm, gesturing inside my home. “May I come in?”

My gaze shifts to the guards behind Anox. They’re pretending not to be eavesdropping, but I know better.

I move aside, allowing Anox to enter. I hate this little robed man, and I glare at the top of his head as he saunters inside with more confidence than he deserves. I’d strip him of his position if it wouldn’t cause such intense backlash.

Kie remains where he is, continuing to block Anox’s view of Abby. The council leader is wise to avoid looking even remotely in her direction.

Anox is an intelligent man. He knows better than to push the limits of a shifter whose mate was just attacked.

Inviting himself inside my home is already teetering on the edge, but we didn’t leave him many options.

Kie and I couldn’t agree on who should remain with Abby today, so we both decided to stay.

The mere thought of leaving her fills me with all-consuming dread. There’s no conceivable way I’ll be able to get anything productive done without her in my direct line of sight, not until we’ve dealt with the faeries who attacked her.

Anox clears his throat. “The scouts you sent to the Redstall Forest outpost met with one of Alpha Theon’s representatives late last night. It wasn’t the friendliest of exchanges, but we received this letter from Alpha Theon.”

Anox pulls a sealed letter from his robes. I’m surprised he didn’t take it upon himself to read the contents.

“Was there any mention of Callie or Lillian?” I ask, taking the letter.

“No.” Anox shakes his head. “Alpha Theon’s representative refused to speak with our scouts about anything of value. The letter was passed off, poorly concealed threats were shared, and our scouts were dismissed.”

Not surprising. Relations between the shifters and faeries have been steadily declining for years.

Anox gestures to the letter. “What does it say?”

Wouldn’t he like to know? I blink, pointedly tucking the letter into my pocket. Anox would never have been so daring with Queen Gitta. He’s testing my boundaries, seeing how much he can get away with .

“We’ll come to the council should we have any concerns,” I say.

Anox purses his lips. “Very well.”

He lowers his gaze and excuses himself, slamming the front door with more force than necessary. He’s upset with my dismissal. I don’t give a fuck. I wait until he’s gone before ripping open the letter.

There’s not much here—a date, time, and location.

“Alpha Theon has requested a meeting at the mouth of Traul River tomorrow morning,” I say.

Kie snorts. “He wants to meet on shifter lands? That’s not going to happen. We can meet on neutral ground, and—”

Traul River is deep within the forest. It’s easily a two-day trip for a faerie.

If there were magic, they could teleport, but it’s rare for a faerie to possess enough power to open back-to-back portals, especially in a location without magic to draw from.

Kie and maybe a few nobles can do it, but the list is small.

In theory, we could have a unit of faeries travel into the forest through a portal made by Kie.

It would weaken him to hold it open for so long, which wouldn’t leave him with enough strength to adequately protect Abby.

The soldiers can then open themselves a portal and retreat should things go south, but it’s risky.

There’s not enough margin for error, and it puts Abby at risk.

I don’t know any other faeries who can hold open a portal long enough for a unit of soldiers to travel through. I can make it if I shift into my animal form and run through the night.

I doubt my father would invite me onto his lands if he didn’t have something to share. He has either Callie or Lillian, probably both. He’s willing to negotiate.

“It’s not possible,” Kie says. “I’m not sure what game Alpha Theon is playing at, but—"

“I can do it,” I interrupt. I have no other choice. “If I take off from the entrance at Farbay and run throughout the night, I’ll make it to Traul River just before sunrise.”

Abby’s chewing her fingernails, gnawing at the skin like a little cannibal. She’s nervous for my safety. I can see it in her eyes. I can’t remember the last time somebody was worried about me, and my chest fills with warmth as her gaze flickers rapidly between me and Kie.

Kie shakes his head. “I can open a portal there and back. I’ll go.”

“Why?” His offer makes no sense. “Alpha Theon will be expecting me. He won’t be willing to negotiate with you, especially considering your recent title change. He wants to meet with the king. Me.”

My words are harsh, but they’re true. For the first time in our lives, my word holds more value than Kie’s.

“You can’t go, Mace,” Kie says. His voice is deceptively soft. He uses it when he’s trying not to upset me. “Your father isn’t the honorable man you think he is. He’ll take advantage of you, and it’s best if you remain here with Abby.”

I work my jaw side to side, my eyes darting toward Abby. I don’t appreciate what Kie’s implying, but I don’t want to lose my composure in front of her. I’m trying really fucking hard not to frighten her, and I’ve been doing an excellent job these past few days.

“I am perfectly capable of handling this meeting myself,” I insist.

Faeries hate shifters, especially my father. They want to see us eradicated, they always have, and Kie is no different. He may not voice his feelings out loud, especially not to me, but they’re there. He hates my kind, and he’ll disrespect my father. He can’t be the one to go.

Kie drags his fingers through his hair. “There are things you don’t know about Alpha Theon.”

“Like what?”

I’m under no illusions that my father is a wonderful, loving man. He abandoned me to the faeries. He’s a shit father, I know that, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a fair leader. Besides, I’m still his son. Family means something to shifters.

Kie looks like he wants to scream, but he won’t. He won’t lose composure. It’s not the way faeries operate.

Kie sucks in a deep breath before continuing.

“My mother offered your family to visit you on neutral grounds every summer for fifteen years, and she even offered to give you leave, allowing you to enter the shifter lands for a week for your eighteenth birthday. Every attempt, and there were hundreds, she made to reconnect you with your family was rejected.”

My heart thumps, and I swallow down the painful disappointment.

Kie continues. “My mother only ever received one letter from Alpha Theon that addressed you, and—”

“Where is it?”

Kie blinks. “What?”

“Where is the letter?”

I don’t care to hear his inaccurate interpretation of what my father said, and the queen was notorious for saving her correspondence. She was painfully organized, and nobody knows her office better than Kie. It was meant to be his one day, after all.

“I don’t think you—”

“Where. Is. It.”

Kie sighs. “Top left drawer of her desk.”

I turn toward Abby. “Stay here.”

Leaving her makes my skin itch, but I push the discomfort aside. Kie is more than capable of watching her for a few minutes. I repeat that to myself as I storm through the property .

The late queen’s office is beside Kie’s, and it’s locked. I break the handle and force my way inside, my ears ringing as I rip open the top drawer of her desk. There are several letters inside, and I flick through them before finding the one from my father. I faintly recognize his handwriting.

There are only two sentences inside.

Mason’s health is not my concern. Do not contact me regarding this issue again.

I check the date, sinking to the floor. I was a child when I was sent here, and my immune system wasn’t yet developed. I fell sick about four months after arriving, and the faeries didn’t have the means to treat me.

Queen Gitta promised to write to my father and ask him to send the pack doctor, but nothing ever came of it. I got better on my own after a few weeks.

I chew at my bottom lip, rereading those two sentences. This doesn’t change anything. We’ve secured a meeting with Alpha Theon, and I intend to go. If not for myself, then for Kie. Callie and Lillian betrayed the faeries and murdered his parents. He deserves answers.

Footfalls near, both with gaits I’m familiar with. I turn toward the broken door just as Abby and Kie walk inside. I don’t appreciate them following me.

Abby glances at the letter resting on my thighs, and she lingers by the door before slowly approaching. I remain seated, hating the pitying look in her eye as she reads my father’s calloused words.

I don’t want her pity.

Still, I don’t reject her comfort as she sets the letter aside and lowers herself onto my lap, straddling me. She never openly touches me, and I’m just desperate enough to let it happen.

She brushes her fingers down the side of my jaw. “I’m sorry, Mace. ”

Abby rarely uses my nickname, but I like it when she does. I especially like it when she follows it up by kissing my jaw. Her lips are soft, and my eyelids slip shut as her warm breath fans over my neck.

“Let Kie go.” My eyes fly open. Abby continues. “Stay here with me.”

“No.” I pull my face away from her lips, not appreciating her using kisses to mollify me. “There’s no magic. Kie will be weak and vulnerable.”

Abby trails her fingers down the side of my neck, her touch distracting. “What if both of you go? Kie opens the portals, and you keep him safe.”

“And what about you?” I ask. “We can’t leave you here. It’s not an option.”

Abby shrugs. “I can come, too.”

That’s never going to happen. Not in a million years.