Total pages in book: 401
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 390373 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1952(@200wpm)___ 1561(@250wpm)___ 1301(@300wpm)
My eyes narrowed on him as I slowly lifted the fork and took a bite. The fish had been marinated in a blend of spices and citrus and was quite tasty.
Squeezing my knee, Casteel smiled and speared a slice of red pepper.
I ignored that smile. “And the other reason?”
“My father would’ve wanted to speak to you. And, obviously, that wasn’t possible.” He stopped to chew, his gaze sliding to mine. “I wasn’t going to let him see you in that state.”
My breath caught as I stared at him.
“Very few are aware of what really occurred.” Kieran balanced a small heaping of rice on his fork. “We knew you wouldn’t want many to know, especially if…”
Especially if I had no memory of myself.
Or was possessed by a potentially demented Primal of Death.
I took a breath around the swelling in my chest and stared at Casteel’s profile. “Thank you,” I whispered, clearing my throat. I looked at Kieran. “Thank you both.”
“No need to thank us for that.” Casteel glanced at my plate. “You need to eat more.”
“I am.” Because Casteel showed me once again how…freaking perfect he could be. How sweet both of them were and how well they knew me. So, I made a point of shoving several forkfuls of buttery vegetables and roasted beef into my mouth.
Casteel watched me for several moments. “Good girl.”
My hand froze halfway to my mouth. A piece of chicken fell from the fork, hitting the pile of rice with a soft plop. Two very distinct emotions swirled through me. One was disbelief because…did he seriously just say “good girl” to me? The other was more of a sharp throb in an area I refused to acknowledge.
The dimple appeared on his right cheek, and his eyes went from amber to gold. The hand on my knee inched up my leg.
Scooping up the lost piece of chicken and some rice with it, I cleared my throat. “What about the other cities?”
“The ones we took remain under our control.” Kieran finished off the vegetables on his plate and reached for more.
“What about Masadonia?” I asked as the food I’d scarfed down began to weigh heavily in my stomach. “Have we heard from the forces we sent to take the city?”
Casteel chewed and swallowed the piece of beef on his fork. “We have not.” He looked over at Kieran as he picked up a bowl of fruit. “Were scouts sent?”
“They were.”
I frowned as I took a drink of the sweet, slightly citrusy wine. Were the scouts sent so recently that Casteel was just now asking about them? Silence from the regiment I’d sent to Masadonia likely meant things had not gone well. And that made the rice and chicken I’d just swallowed feel like it got stuck in my throat.
My next thoughts went to Kieran’s sister. We’d named her the Crown Regent, giving her the authority to rule in the event that neither Casteel nor I could, and ordered her to remain in Padonia with fifty thousand soldiers. She hadn’t been thrilled about it, but we needed her healthy and whole. “Vonetta’s still in Padonia?”
“She is, but not for long,” Kieran said with a mixture of annoyance and fondness. “Apparently, like Valyn, she was growing restless. She sent word that she will be en route to the capital, quote, ‘whether we like it or not.’”
A wry grin tugged at Casteel’s lips. “She’s flat-out disobeying orders now?”
“Are you surprised?”
“No.”
I grinned. “What about those who remained in Padonia?”
“They’re under the leadership of Commander Centren,” Kieran said. I thought that was a wolven somewhere between Kieran’s age and his father’s, which, well…could be any age. “We need to discuss the generals. They remain in Carsodonia for now, but we need to decide if that should continue.”
It took me a moment to remember where we had placed each general before the battle at the Bone Temple. “General Cyr is still in Oak Ambler?”
“Correct.” Casteel frowned at a strawberry and dropped it back into the bowl. He picked up another. “Keeping them here will be risky, leaving the secured cities vulnerable. While sending them and their regiments back to their posts could potentially leave us vulnerable.”
“The cities are not completely unguarded.” Kieran shifted and stretched out a long leg. “However, they’re still not as protected as they could be.”
They were far more experienced in strategy than I was, so I stayed quiet and watched them. As they discussed the merits and cons of what could be done with the generals, the pressure that had been weighing on my chest since I’d picked up on their unusual behavior started to lift. While Casteel continued to inspect the fruit, they spoke normally with each other, volleying opinions and options back and forth. Perhaps, Kieran had been telling the truth before.
He looked over at me then as he added some grapes to my plate. “What do you think?”