Royal Affair

by Preston Walker

  Marvin laughed and clapped his hand on Jace’s shoulder. “Really, though. You don’t have to do that. None of us mind spending our time running around and behaving as true wolves. We’ll do it any time you ask.”

  Jace nodded, trying to keep his emotions hidden behind an impassive mask. “Thank you. Now, I think I don’t have any further need of you just now. You and your men can retire for the rest of the day.”

  Marvin hesitated. “Are you certain?”

  “Absolutely. You’ve done more than enough.”

  Just as the Guard was leaving, Don Allen arrived. He was a tall beta wolf with charcoal skin and a bald head, always peering disapprovingly at the world over the rims of wide glasses. “Prince Jace,” Don said, scanning the group of omegas with his customary expression. He opened his mouth again, no doubt to say something unpleasant.

  Jace cut him off with a quick whisper, pulling the man several feet away so they were less likely to be overheard. “Be nice, Don.”

  “As your advisor, I feel obligated to tell you that you cannot continue to try and rescue every stray in the world.” Despite his words, Don reluctantly dropped his voice to mimic Jace. He was a royal advisor and nothing more, a glorified messenger and servant with no true power to give commands unless they were in the form of a message from Jace.

  “You know as well as I do that many of them will not stay long enough to become a drain on resources… of which we have plenty to spare. And those who do stay become valuable members of our castle staff.” Don seemed unconvinced, so Jace sighed and said, “Need I remind you of another stray I brought under my protection?”

  Don scowled but then shrugged, looking suitably chastened. He himself had been a charity case. He was an ordinary servant who often sat in on meetings, took notes, and made a record of events. He became well-known for his fastidious records and that was enough to catch Jace’s interest. “Fine. You might be right, but maybe if you applied yourself to your duties here at the castle, you wouldn’t need to do this so much.”

  Jace ignored the comment because it was something he already knew well enough himself. First things first. He looked up at the sky, at the clouds nipping at its edges. It was so peaceful. The threat of war seemed so far away, standing here.

  “I need you to find jobs for all of these omegas. Speak with them. Find out what skills they might have, what they’re capable of. Arrange…”

  Don held up his hand, asking for permission to interrupt. Jace stared at him moodily, letting him know he wasn’t pleased, before giving his assent. “I know the drill, Jace. I’ll get them situated and begin at once.”

  “Good,” Jace rumbled. “Thank you. Ah, but there’s one in particular. I already have a job for him.”

  Don raised his eyebrows. He was a man of habit and intellect, very much set in his ways once a pattern formed. As this was something that had never happened before, he instinctively didn’t like it. “Oh?”

  “That one.” Jace pointed at Keiran. “The tall blond one next to the annoying fox.”

  Don let out a soft huff of laughter. “Alright then. What job for that one?”

  “I want him.”

  The huffing laughter turned into a strangled choke. Don’s dark cheeks flushed even darker. Jace quickly amended, “I mean that I want him to be my personal servant. That’s all.”

  Don nodded, although the blush didn’t fade. “Very well. That will be his job then. His name?”

  “Keiran.”

  Don nodded again and moved off. Jace watched him go, fought off the urge to linger, and went inside the castle to go visit his father. As he navigated the halls to reach the castle hospital, he wondered if there might be some grain of truth to Don’s suspicion. He did find himself paying an inordinate amount of attention to that omega in particular. And the tingling in his hand when he first touched Keiran on the shoulder… That was a very real feeling. There was something there, although there couldn’t be. Keiran was interesting. Jace would find out all there was to know of the omega and then get bored of him, as he had gotten bored of so many others before him.

  Surely.

  Chapter 7

  Though Keiran knew better than to judge others based on appearance alone, he instinctively disliked Don. There was something in the way that the dark advisor looked at the whole ragged group of them, like they were either garbage or so common that he would merely throw them all away if he had the chance. He had the look of a wealthy man who had seen the same thing too many times, and always saw it while looking down condescendingly through those ugly glasses of his.

  Whoa there, Keiran scolded himself. He could dislike the man, but it wasn’t fair to beat up on him for his station in life.

  “Well then,” Don said, clapping his hands together like they were dogs. “I best see to it that you’re all presentable and fit for starting work tomorrow. How many of you are there?” He scanned them with a scrutinizing gaze. Keiran expected him to start counting out loud, but was surprised when the stuffy advisor merely nodded and said, “Twenty-one? Well, at least it’s less than last time.”

  “Last time?” the fox Ty blurted out, voicing the thoughts of the collective group. “Your prince does this a lot?”

  “Quite a bit,” Don replied, shortly. He clapped his hands again, a habit Keiran knew he was going to find consistently annoying. “If you’ll follow me then, I’ll show you to the servant’s bathhouse.” He turned and trotted off, robes billowing out behind his long strides. Unlike Jace, he didn’t set a pace that the tired omegas could keep up with.

  Maybe he just doesn’t want to feel anything, Keiran thought, a little bitter. That probably makes it easy for him.

  “You guys who are stronger, help those who need it, okay?” Keiran tossed the request over his shoulder while reaching out to do the same himself. He found that the woman he held onto was the first omega he’d helped get a drink of water, all those days ago.

  She gave him a shy, weary smile of admiration. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I wouldn’t have made it here without you.”

  “It’s okay,” Keiran said, surprised at the heat stinging the backs of his eyes. “I don’t think I would have made it here without people to help.”

  “You’re one of a kind, then.” After that, they focused on walking and keeping up with the advisor, who tapped his foot while waiting impatiently a ways down the side of the immense castle. It was hard enough going that speed on his own, but when he supported the weight of another, it was impossible. Keiran just settled for doing his best.

  When they were close enough, Don sped off again. If anything, he moved even faster than the last time.

  Ty came up just behind Keiran, the alley cat omega on his arm. “Hey,” he hissed.

  “Yeah?”

  “I don’t like this guy.”

  You aren’t the only one.

  In due time, they made their way about halfway down the length of the castle. Set deep into the wall, there was a modest door. Don gestured to it. “This is the general servants’ quarters. Maintenance crews and the like. No doubt some of you will end up working here, so don’t forget it.”

  A few of the omegas murmured their assent, so Don shoved his way through and charged off again down the glimpse of a hall beyond.

  “Someone hold the door,” Keiran said. His request was more of a command this time, his tone a bit short, but no one seemed to blame him for his frustration. One omega moved to hold the door, and the others started filing through.

  Whatever Keiran expected, this wasn’t it. When he thought of servant quarters, he thought of a tiny room full of the bare essentials. The room would be so small that it appeared crowded even then, and it would be dusty and dirty. Most of the supplies were broken, usually by displeased masters. Maybe if the servants belonged to a particularly wealthy master, there might be two or three rooms in a cleaner state.

  But this… it was at an entirely different level.

  It was an exact miniature of the grand castle entrance
hall, with the only difference being size and the absence of golden decorations. Despite that, tapestries, carvings, and handcrafted paintings still covered an impressive amount of the stone and wooden surfaces of the walls. Many different rooms branched off the main hall, and conversational chatter echoed around from the rooms so it seemed as if ghosts haunted the empty main hall. Every surface sparkled, which only made sense to Keiran; if he lived in such a great place, he would take pride in keeping it spotless as well.

  “Come along now,” Don called with his customary impatience. “We’re nearly there.”

  As Keiran staggered along under the weight of the woman on his arm, he peeked in the open doorways, catching a glimpse of a supply room stacked with mops and buckets, a gleaming kitchen with something savory-scented bubbling on the stove, and a number of bedrooms with only two or three beds apiece. Only a few times did he chance to see a servant there, and that was when they were asleep in bed. That made sense, as it was the middle of the day and no doubt all the servants were busy working.

  Don waited until the first omegas reached him before gesturing into the open doorway beside him. Unlike many of the other rooms, only this doorway and the bedroom doorways had actual doors in their frames.

  “This is the bathhouse,” he said. “You will cleanse yourselves in there. Women to the left, men to the right. There will be no intermingling of sexes. If I catch word that you have disobeyed this one rule, you will not be allowed a job within these castle walls. Do you understand?”

  This time, every single omega murmured their understanding. No one was fool enough to risk this opportunity.

  For once, Don seemed pleased.

  Of course he’s pleased. He’s being listened to and he likes that.

  “As you finish, find your way to the dining hall and I will have food provided for you. Eat your fill, and I will work on procuring sleeping accommodations for you for the night.” Don hesitated, and Keiran felt his lungs tighten with astonishment that the snobbish man could actually look bashful. “With such short notice, I’m sorry if those accommodations aren’t very comfortable. But, you will be safe and it will only be temporary until I can arrange something better. Now, if you would please?” The advisor gestured to the door.

  As the omegas filed into the empty room just beyond the door, Keiran felt his nose twitch as the damp scent of water reached him. Water and soap. Nearly a month since he’d had a bath or touched soap. A sudden realization came over him of how dreadfully filthy he must be—how filthy they all must be—and he wanted nothing more than to leave everyone else behind and charge down the short hall to the right.

  However, a burning sensation at his back reminded him that he had been setting an example for the others this whole time. He couldn’t give up on that now, not so close to the end.

  Keiran turned to look at all 20 of the others as they looked back at him, ragged, exhausted and leaning on one another for comfort as though they were no longer strangers but had known each other for years. The realization struck Keiran like a fist to the stomach. He was shy by nature, but right here, right now, in front of them, he didn’t feel shy at all. They had all grown too close for that.

  His heart ached. He was going to miss them.

  “I guess this is it,” he said. “I’m so glad all of you made it.”

  “We wouldn’t be here without you,” someone replied, and the other omegas murmured their agreement. From the easy way they spoke, their respect for him was far stronger than their respect toward Don.

  “Maybe, maybe not,” Keiran answered. “You’re all strong. So, from this point on, we start over. Don’t ever forget what we went through.” As if they could. “And if I see you in the halls sometime, don’t forget to say hi.”

  There was nothing else to add. The omegas split into their groups and filed into their respective bathhouses.

  Keiran’s jaw dropped. Joyous tears sprang to his eyes and this time he let them fall, coursing down his cheeks as he took in the sight of what was before him. A short stretch of stone floor led to a gigantic bath that took up the entire length of the floor. It was nearly a swimming pool, filled to waist height with steaming water. Lockers along the wall provided a place for the omegas to stash their clothes, which they did eagerly. Then, as if they were pups and not tired travelers, they all jumped into the bath and splashed around.

  Nothing had ever felt so good. Water on his skin, washing away dirt and sweat, easing the tension of his sore muscles. Water in his hair, freeing clumps. Soap, sliding slick and gentle over his skin. By the time Keiran finally climbed out of the water, everything smelled like roses and the clean bath looked like a mud puddle.

  “I feel bad for whoever’s gonna have to clean this thing,” Ty commented, while pulling on his shirt.

  Keiran flashed a quick look at the fox’s body. His muscles were tight and plentiful, pleasing to the eye, but they didn’t have the same effect on Keiran as looking at Jace’s body. The prince was something else.

  Closing his eyes for a moment, Keiran savored the memory of that powerful touch between them.

  “Hey.” Ty sounded alarmed. “You feeling okay?”

  Keiran’s eyes snapped open again. The image of Jace he held onto—dark eyes and handsome, broad face—drifted away on the steam rising from the sludgy bath. “I’m just tired.”

  “No kidding?” the fox yipped.

  Rolling his eyes, Keiran shoved the other omega and then finished dressing himself. “You ever think that maybe one of us will end up cleaning that out?”

  “Oh, god,” Ty groaned.

  Already this was the longest conversation they’d ever had, and Keiran felt sentimental. While he hated that omega’s weakness, he knew he really would miss the annoying ginger. Ever since that first day, Ty had pulled more than his fair share of their combined weight and his complaints only came as jokes.

  “I never asked what your plans were once we got here.”

  Ty barked a laugh, slashing his fingers through his hair. Water droplets flicked through the air. “I guess that’s because none of us ever thought we’d actually make it here.”

  True enough.

  Ty gave a little shrug and then blinked up at Keiran. The omega wolf started. He hadn’t realized how tall he was in comparison to the other. “Listen, I don’t think I’ll actually be sticking around very long. Enough to get back on my feet, yeah, but I’m a thief. I’m a wanderer. You know?”

  “I know,” Keiran replied. He bit his tongue, hiding his thoughts behind the sharp pain. The fox was a fool, unchanging in his ways even after all this time. Except, there was a glimmer of something deep in Ty’s gaze. Some sort of hesitation. He wasn’t certain of his own conviction. Keiran guessed that none of them were, anymore. Going through what they had all gone through would certainly leave a person with a new impression of life. “Maybe I’ll still see you sometimes though.”

  “Sure!” Ty gave another of his yipping little laughs. “When I creep back in the middle of the night to dig through the treasury.”

  Smiling, Keiran gestured back toward the way they’d come. “I’m starving, aren’t you?”

  Following their noses, they reached the dining hall. Just like the rest of the place, it was large and clean. A handful of rescued omegas were already there, wolfing down what looked to be bowls of some sort of stew. A servant wearing a brown, stained apron wandered around, refilling bowls and occasionally pausing to wipe a tabletop clean.

  “Look.”

  Following Ty’s finger, Keiran spied the tall, stuffy advisor sitting at one of the tables next to a coyote. They both seemed deep in conversation, with the coyote gesturing wildly when not spooning stew into his mouth; Don listened with far more attentiveness than Keiran would have given him credit for, replying with no judgement in his expression at all.

  “I wonder what that’s about?”

  “No idea,” Keiran replied. “And if I’m honest, I barely care. I’m hungry.”

  The stew was quite hones
tly the best thing Keiran had ever tasted. The gravy was thick and rich, filled with hearty chunks of beef and a liberal amount of peas, carrots, and potatoes. After weeks of only eating charred, tough meat, the explosions of taste on his tongue were like tiny raptures. The food alone made two weeks of travel worth it.

  “There he goes again.”

  Ty said that several times as they ate, always commenting on the advisor’s movements as he went from one omega to another and had the same sort of deep conversation with them. In fact, as Ty went to return his empty bowl to the servant in charge of feeding them, Don stopped him and they had their own conversation.

  However, Don never spoke to Keiran. He could only sit and wonder what those talks were about, until a light tap on his shoulder brought his heart jumping up into his throat. Twisting around, he saw another servant.

  “I’m here to lead you to where you’ll be sleeping for the night,” the servant said, cheerfully. “If you’ll follow me?”

  Flicking another glance back over his shoulder at the advisor who was ignoring him, Keiran stood up from his bench and followed the servant down the hall to the storage closet he’d first seen upon entering these quarters. Blankets and pillows covered the empty floor space now; five of each. Two other omegas already slept curled up, dead to the world.

  The servant whispered, “I know it’s not great, but when you get assigned a job tomorrow, you’ll get put in an actual room, so I wouldn’t worry about it.”

  “Thanks.”

  “Sleep well!”

  Keiran didn’t think he would have been able to sleep in a real bed; not so soon after days of huddling on the ground. A blanket on the floor seemed like just the right transition between the two. Rolling up in his, he tucked his back against a row of solid steel buckets and stared into the darkness behind his eyelids. Even though he was no longer running, his thoughts raced now more than ever. He thought of his village and his father, and the omegas who hadn’t come with them. He thought of all the others who had, and what their lives were going to be now… what his own life was going to be.