CHAPTER 16

URBAN

“Caulder’s postponed our wedding.”

“What?! Why? That’s insane. This is all just insane. I don’t understand why he’s making such a big deal out of this in the first place. People meet their one true love all the time in High Cliff, and no one treats it like some kingdom-wide conspiracy. Urban did ~nothing~ wrong!”

Allera’s outraged voice from the other side of my chamber irritated my already pounding headache until I had to gnash my teeth and press my fists to either side of my temples.

“It’s because of ~who~ he mated himself to,” Brentley tried to explain, his tone more logical and soothing, yet it grated on my nerves as well.

Damn. Could they not discuss me in another room?

Besides, what was there to discuss? My sister’s outrage was frankly perplexing. She’d begged and pleaded and demanded I keep my bond to Vienne secret because she feared no one would understand. Now, here we were, and no one understood, yet she was shocked and appalled by their reactions as if she’d never thought to guess they’d behave that way.

It was strange.

“Vienne holds a highly honored position in our realm,” Brentley said. “She’s a direct descendant of one of the founding families. I’m sure if Urban had attached himself to any other female, this wouldn’t seem quite so—”

“I don’t give a fuck who she is,” Allera snarled. “Status means nothing to the mark. And furthermore, Urban didn’t intentionally set out to bond himself to anyone, certainly not an already married woman. He had no ~choice~ in the matter. Besides, what’s the very worst thing that could come from this? He tries to cuckold your cousin and tempt Vienne into his own bed? Wow. That would be so devastating to the ~kingdom~.” She rolled her eyes, matching the sarcasm in her voice. “But he hasn’t even done that. He’s kept his distance from her and not even talked to her, so… What’s the true problem here? Is it just because we’re from High Cliff?”

“No! No, of course not. Caulder is just—”

“Being an idiot,” Allera muttered.

“He’s not. ~Allera~, please see reason. It was a shock to learn your brother could even… You know… bring anyone back from the dead. Anyone would be understandably leery, especially Caulder, after what happened to our parents.”

“Were ~you~?” Allera spat back. “Did ~you~ automatically think Urban had some evil, undermining goal in plan when he ~saved~ her?”

Brentley hissed out a long, exasperated sigh. “Well… no,” he finally admitted.

“And neither did Nicolette,” Allera was quick to add. “I find both of you to be of a logical and sound mind. You lost your parents the same way Caulder did, and ~you~ two didn’t automatically accuse Urban of wicked sorcery.”

“Yes, but you must understand—”

“I understand that my brother was treated like a ~villain~ for his heroic deed. Everyone seems a hell of a lot more concerned with the fact that he put his mouth on Vienne than how she’s actually faring.”

Unable to bear their argument any longer, I lifted my face from where I was sitting on the edge of my bed. “I can hear you two, you know. And your argument solves nothing but to make my headache grow tenfold.”

“Urban,” Allera murmured, her voice full of sympathy and her gaze the same. She came to me and set her palm against my cheek. “How are you feeling?”

I was nauseated. And my head was pounding while my skin was burning up until I was sweating even though I felt chilled to the bone. I couldn’t tell if it was my own malady I was experiencing—because I’d never brought anyone back from the dead before; I wasn’t sure how much energy it was supposed to suck from me—or if it was Vienne trying to heal from her experience that I was getting a sense of. In either case, I wanted to lie down in my bed and sleep for about three days straight. Except my worry for her kept me alert and edgy, waiting for the slightest news that she was okay.

Brushing my sister’s hand away, I sent her an irritated glance before muttering, “I’m fine.”

She wrinkled her brow, letting me know she realized I was lying. Then she said, “I’ll make sure nothing happens to you, little brother. You did nothing wrong. I’ll convince them of it.”

I sniffed and closed my eyes as I shook my head. “Like I care about that.” When I opened them again, I glanced past her toward Brentley. “Can you find out how she’s doing?”

The Donnelly prince looked momentarily boggled by the question before he stammered, “Oh! I, uh… Sure. I’ll go check now.”

I watched him leave. Allera was right about one thing. It was awfully curious why everyone was so concerned about what I had done while no one seemed to care if Vienne was truly okay or not.

To further my frustrations over that very fact, a knock came at my door before it opened. Indigo, one of my own men who’d come from High Cliff with us, stepped inside.

“My prince,” he said, bowing out his loyalty. “The Donnelly king wishes to question you in the Throne Room at once.”

“What?” Allera demanded, outraged. “Right ~now~? It’s the middle of the goddamn night. This is madness.”

Indigo looked regretful when he answered, “They said at once, my lady.”

She muttered an obscenity under her breath and stormed toward the door. I glanced toward the window. Through the thin layer of clear rock, I could see the stars outside twinkling brightly, even as the sky began to lighten and change colors with the approaching dawn.

It felt like a sign of hope to me. I might die before the day was over, executed for whatever reason the crown saw fit, but it would be okay, because Vienne was alive.

I would damn the consequences of my actions over and over again an unlimited amount of times to keep her breathing.

At peace with my decision and ready to face the king and his cousin, I nodded to Indigo as I entered the hall.

Allera had marched so far ahead of me, she was already out of sight. By the time I reached the Throne Room, she was pleading my case, standing before Caulder, where he sat on the throne next to a seething Soren.

When Soren spotted me in the entrance, he surged to his feet, pointing.

“You! You stay away from my wife, you monster.”

“Oh, that’s a rich demand,” Allera laughed scornfully. “I mean, seriously, have you ever seen him actually ~talk~ to her? Even once?”

Soren narrowed his eyes and opened his mouth, but Brentley rushed into the room after me, quite winded. “What’s this I hear about a trial for Urban? ~Right now~? Seriously, Caulder.” He hurried past me and up the steps to stand beside Allera. “You didn’t even tell me about this first.”

“Because you’re not his top adviser,” Soren sneered, only to turn back to me and demand, “I’m serious. If you go near her, I’ll have you hanged from the highest—”

“You know what,” Allera spoke over him, stepping into his path so he would lose eye contact with me. “You are ~so~ welcome that he saved your wife’s life only hours ago… After you ~killed~ her with that huge child you put in her.”

“Don’t you dare talk to me like that! I’m—”

“Enough!” Caulder roared, lifting a single hand and causing the room to fall silent. “The fact of the matter remains that you lied to us, Prince Urban.” He looked directly at me. “You kept something like this a secret.”

“Because ~I~ asked him to,” Allera cut in. “We’re here to make peace between our two nations and form an alliance. He had no idea he would discover his one true love was here when he arrived or that she’d already be married. And he’s remained respectful of that, keeping his distance, not interfering with her life at all. We didn’t want to cause a scene like this very one that’s taking place right now when there was no reason for it. So I asked him to keep this to himself.”

“It wasn’t an irrational worry, Caulder,” Brentley said, nodding. “Since we’re behaving exactly the same way she feared we would.”

Soren glanced at Caulder. “How would you react if he’d put his mouth on ~your~ wife?”

Caulder started to reply only for Allera to whirl toward Soren. “Why are you so mad? ~Really~? He brought her back from the dead? ~From the dead~, sir! But from the way you’re going on about it, it sounds as if you’d rather she hadn’t survived at all.”

“Watch your mouth, woman. You know not what you say.”

Her smirk was pure evil. “Oh, but ~don’t~ I? I may have only been here a few weeks, but it didn’t take long to catch up. You got your valuable first heir of the great Mandalay-Donnelly family line. What more do you need of a wife you so obviously don’t appreciate?”

Cracking off a sharp laugh, Soren lifted his hands and addressed the room at large. “Would someone shut this bitch up already?”

“Watch it, dickhead,” I warned, pointing at him.

Allera chuckled in Soren’s face. “Oh, I’m so sorry; is my truth too ~offensive~ for you, Sir Soren?”

He spun to her and took two steps forward to snarl right in her face. “Females are meant to open their legs, ~not~ their mouths. If that’s too difficult a concept for you to understand, I’ll gladly demonstrate your ~true~ role in this world.”

Red clouded my vision. “Fucker, you don’t speak to my sister that way.” I started up the dais toward the bastard who’d just threatened to rape Allera if she didn’t stop back-talking him.

Someone was going to lose their life tonight. I could taste it.

But I didn’t get a chance to exact any vengeance, because Brentley swung out with his fist and cracked Soren right across the jaw before I could reach him.

Stumbling to a halt, I gaped at my sister’s betrothed, frankly startled he’d had it in him.

Pointing a finger in Soren’s face, he growled, “She is to be my ~wife~, Cousin. So you will never speak that way to her or ~of~ her again. Is that understood?”

When Soren merely glared at him and wiped a trickle of blood from his nose, Brentley roared, “~Is it~?”

I lifted my eyebrows, impressed.

But Soren didn’t know when to back down. “She’s leading you around by the cock. ~That’s~ what I understand.”

“Wrong answer,” I murmured and started forward again to blacken his other eye, but Allera stepped in front of me, catching two hands full of my shirt.

“No,” she breathed, shaking her head insistently. “You’re already in enough hot water right now. Let Brentley handle this one.” When I merely narrowed my eyes at Soren over her shoulder, she hissed, “~Urban~! Look at me. Do not engage.”

I flashed my teeth at her for such a demand, but then I whispered, “I have a very bad feeling I’m going to kill that man before my life is over.”

She only grinned. “No, you’re not.”

I snorted. “And how do you think to stop me?”

She lifted a single eyebrow. “Because I’m going to kill him first.”

When I cracked a smile, she snorted out a quick laugh, and before we knew it, we were both full-on grinning at each other.

“~What~ is so funny?” Soren demanded, breaking into our moment.

When we turned his way, the king lifted his hand again, calling for silence so he could speak.

“Prince Urban,” he bit out, his voice hard and stern. “I called you into this room to question you, and I believe you’re the only one here who ~hasn’t~ spoken about your actions tonight. So… What do you have to say about this situation?”

“I’ve no idea, Your Majesty.” Letting out a small, self-deprecating laugh, I shook my head, feeling defeated, even as I lifted my arms to show him I had nothing to hide. “What would you ~have~ me say?”

He narrowed his eyes, clearly not amused. “I’d have you tell me you have no designs upon my sister-in-law, upon my ~cousin’s~ wife.”

“Designs?” I tilted my head to the side as I repeated the curious term.

He made it sound as if I was ruthlessly pursuing her for my own selfish gain, as if I wanted to exploit her miserable, arranged union with the jackass in front of me and take advantage of her.

“Designs,” I repeated yet again, my voice growing harsher.

Allera was the only one who sensed I was about to blow. Eyes widening, she reached for my arm, hissing, “Urban,” in a cautionary voice.

But I was past caution.

Shrugging her off, I stepped toward the king sitting so pompously on his throne. His brother and cousin both stepped forward, trying to come between us, but I shoved them out of my way. Guards who’d been positioned against the walls rushed closer, but my glare set them back on their heels. Nothing was going to stop me until I said what I needed to say.

“You think this is some kind of ~game~ to me?” I growled, pointing at Caulder until his eyes bulged with worry and he darted fearful glances to the others around us, silently pleading for help. “You think I kept my silence to ~trick~ you? That I stayed away and avoided all contact with her for weeks because it was somehow ~pleasurable~ for me? Well, let me tell you something, little king. I have died every fucking day because I couldn’t say anything about this, because I couldn’t ~do~ anything about this damn need that feels as if it’s ripping my insides apart. So, no, I have no ~designs~ on her. If I did, I would’ve stolen her away that first night. Or hell, I would’ve slit her miserable husband’s throat while he slept so I could have her for myself.” I cast Soren a deadly glare before sneering, “You would’ve been dead before the first drop of blood hit the floor. And I wouldn’t have regretted a single second of it.”

Turning back, I explained, “But I refrained. For ~her~. I kept my distance because I knew she would prefer that. I kept my silence as not to distress her while she was pregnant. I sweated and toiled, training ~your~ soldiers every day so ~her~ kingdom could be better protected. I did absolutely every honorable and loyal action in regard to her and her people, and yet you have the audacity to sit there and look me straight in the eye, accusing ~me~ of betrayal? Well, fuck you.”

Panting, I took a step back before casting a glare to everyone else around me. “Fuck all of you.”

Whirling around, I stormed toward the exit.

“Urban!” Allera called after me, her voice panicked and high. “What’re you doing? Where are you going?”

“I don’t know,” I growled. “Don’t follow me.”

“No!” She hurried after me, clutching my arms. Tears appeared in her eyes. “You can’t leave me. Don’t go.”

“God…dammit,” I roared, making her yelp and jump away from me. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m just taking a fucking walk. I need to clear my head.”

“Guards,” Caulder said in a bored tone. “Stop him.”

Just as I reached the exit, the two guards who’d shied from me before crossed their pikes together, barring my path. I glanced at them, but the anger that had fueled me into having my tirade had drained, so I merely sighed over their interference and turned back toward the king, sending him a jaded stare.

“What?” I muttered.

“I wish to speak to the prince alone,” the king announced, his gaze pointedly roving over Soren, Brentley, and Allera. “With no interference from you three.”

“But—” Soren started, only for Caulder to snarl, “Go! Now.” His gaze slid over Allera and landed on Brentley. “All of you.”

Brentley rushed to clasp Allera’s arm and urge her toward the exit. She cast a worried glance my way, but I nodded to her, trying to give her a measure of reassurance. Except that only seemed to upset her more. Tears filled her eyes, and she mouthed my name before she was tugged completely from the room.

“Now,” Caulder started once it was only me and him and a handful of his personal guards.

Before he could deliver his final verdict, however, a small voice spoke from a different entrance to our right.

“Caulder?” it queried hesitantly.