“Hey, now.” Shane shook his finger at Cassie. “Don’t talk about my mother that way.”
It was a play fight two close friends might have. That Cassie was so fond of the people Robin called family eased him somewhat. “You’ll let me know if anything else crops up?” It was clearly a dismissal, as Oberon and Cassie had much to do that day.
Shane stood. “I will, I swear.” He glanced toward the door. “Akane’s waiting for me.” He grinned sheepishly. “She figured out the puzzle faster than I thought she would.”
“Blame Ruby.” Cassie stood as well, giving Shane a hug. “Come visit often, you hear?”
Shane nodded, his grasp on Cassie tight. “I will. Stay safe.”
Cassie nodded against Shane’s shoulder. “If my bondmate has anything to say about it I’ll be the safest fae in the land.”
Shane shot him a look that clearly stated that, no matter what precautions Oberon took, it would not be enough to save his bondmate.
Oberon clenched his fists. Cassie would be safe, or the whole world would pay.
Chapter Thirteen
“Michaela.” Raven lifted Michaela’s hand to his lips. “A pleasure, as always.”
Michaela patted his head. “Call me Mom.”
He sighed. She had that mischievous glint in her eye that had so attracted him when they first met. “I’d rather eat horse dung.”
She pouted. “Aw. That’s mean.”
He rolled his eyes. How did his father ever manage to say no to her? She was adorable. So he lied to her, praying she would accept his words as she hadn’t accepted his feelings. “It would be a dishonor to my birth mother, who sacrificed so much for me.”
In an instant Michaela was cooing at him, her concern for him almost painful. “I’m sorry, I didn’t think…”
“It’s all right.” Sadness had no place on her sweet face. “It was because of her I didn’t turn out like my brothers and sisters.”
Michaela nodded. “I’m just sorry we couldn’t save her.”
He grimaced. He had yet to tell his father that he’d received his mother’s remains. As much as Raven wished Michaela had been his, Robin deserved happiness with his truebond. Raven hadn’t been about to ruin it with confirmation of his mother’s death. Raven had defied the Black Queen, forsaking his vows to her court to join the Gray, and his father, aware that his mother was more than likely already dead. He’d failed the mission she’d sent him on when he refused to try and kill his father.
It was the best, and worst, decision he’d ever made. If his mother had still been alive when he’d given his oath to the Gray, then it was his fault she’d died.
Hell, who was he kidding? Either way, it was his fault. And the only thing he could do about it was make sure Titannia never again succeeded in one of her plots against Oberon or Robin. He’d become Oberon’s Blade for that very reason.
Then the High King had disappeared, and Raven simply hadn’t found it in him to place the burden of his mother’s death on his father as well. Robin had his hands full searching for the king and trying to keep the rest of the court from panicking, or worse, deposing him in favor of someone else.
It would have been amusing to watch them try. His father would only give up the crown to the High King and no one else.
So Raven had arranged for his mother to be buried in a private ceremony on the small piece of property his father had deeded over to him. As Robin’s acknowledged child and, apparently, heir, his father was making sure he was both cared for and kept close.
Raven didn’t mind. Finding Robin actually wanted him had been a shock, but they were becoming much closer than Raven had ever dared hope. His father seemed pleased with him, fond of him even, and Raven treasured that more than Robin could possibly know.
“Raven?”
“It’s all right, truly.” He led her gently to the chair he’d learned was her favorite. Facing the huge fireplace in his father’s library, Michaela often curled up in here, reading or corresponding with family and friends. “Where is my father?”
“Robin left to speak with Oberon about something, I’m not sure what.” Michaela settled down and smiled at him as he took the seat next to her. From the wild scent that clung to the material, it was his father’s favorite.
“Wait, he’s at the palace?” He swore softly. “Damn it, I was just there.”
Warm arms wrapped around him from behind. “And now you are here.”
Raven was proud of himself for not jumping as his father chuckled softly. “Father.”
“Raven.” Robin slid around the chair to stand in front of him, staring at him with one raised brow. “How goes it, my son?”
“You were right. The Dunne family is…interesting.”
“Oh?” Robin’s tone was carefully neutral as he perched on the arm of Michaela’s chair. “Was one in particular more intriguing than the others?”
Raven darted a glance toward Michaela. “Not exactly.” He wasn’t certain why he’d felt such a desire to meet Ruby’s friend, but the voice of Amanda haunted him even now. He scowled, wondering if she’d placed some sort of spell on him. If so, it might be best to inform Robin. Anything that might affect Raven’s judgment, especially now, should be suspect. “Ruby was speaking to someone while I was there.”
“And?” Robin had an odd gleam in his eye.
That expression on his father’s face was alarming. “And nothing. There was something about the woman’s voice that caught my attention, that’s all.”
“In a bad way?” Michaela leaned forward, her concern for him touching.
“No.” For some strange reason, the last thing he wanted was Robin hunting Amanda.
What the fuck was wrong with him? It was a voice, nothing more. He’d heard far more melodic voices, sexier voices, voices that dripped with pure sin. Titannia had a voice that could make a gay man hard. So what was it about Amanda’s voice that had caught his attention so effectively?
“Raven.” His father leaned forward, studying him closely. “Tell me about this woman.”
Shit. He recognized that gleam in his father’s eye. The man was curious, and when the Hob became curious all hell broke loose. “All I know is her name is Amanda Pierson, she’s Ruby Dunne’s friend, and she’ll be going to Nebraska soon.”
Robin nodded thoughtfully. “Then we need to find out more.” He patted Raven’s shoulder. “Leave it to me. I’ll discover if this woman is a threat to you or not.”
He bit back his instinctive response. Robin’s expression dared Raven to contradict him. “Yes, father.”
Good luck, Amanda Pierson. You’re going to need it.
It had been two weeks since the official announcement had gone out to the courts, major and minor, about the bonding between High King Oberon, the Lord of the Gray, and Princess Cassandra Nerice of the Atlantean Court. All were invited to send representatives to the formal bonding ceremony and coronation of Queen Cassandra, Lady of the Gray.
The only one she’d called personally had been Dayton. While he’d been thrilled for her, he’d informed her that the rest of the family had been less so. Still, he expected they would be coming to her bonding ceremony and coronation. Anything less would be a shame upon them rather than Cassie.
She didn’t expect warm fuzzies from them when they got there, but at least she’d get to see Dayton again. She’d made sure he received not an invitation, but a summons, one that her parents could not ignore. One written by her bondmate, at Cassie’s request.
Oberon’s personal assistant had done a marvelous job on the invitations despite the short notice. A tall blonde with sparkling brown eyes and a no-nonsense attitude, Lady Lucy Stowe was one of the few women Oberon had working in an official capacity in his court. Cassie had taken an immediate liking to the woman who ran Oberon’s home along with Harold, his major domo. Harold ran the palace, keepi
ng official functions running smoothly, while Lucy dealt with the day-to-day issues of Oberon’s interests, which were turning out to be widely varied. He owned homes, businesses and invested in several charity organizations around the world, and Lucy kept track of them all with the men and women whom Cassie privately called Lucy’s Army. The Army was about six people, each of whom did the work of ten.
Cassie hoped they all got one hell of a Christmas bonus. If not, she was going to have words with the big boss.
The staccato clacking of heels on marble was becoming a familiar sound. “Cassie? I had a question for you about the bonding ceremony.”
She turned and smiled at Lucy, admiring the woman’s heels for a moment. Lucy favored pale gray business suits with white or dark gray blouses, an obvious bow to her boss. But her shoes…
Gods, the woman’s shoes were always to die for. Today, she wore a pair of royal blue snakeskin pumps with a heel so high Cassie was surprised she didn’t tip forward. She wore a discreet pendant and earrings of the same shade.
Cassie felt dowdy next to her in her blue jeans and tattered sweater. Her feet were bare and up on an ottoman as she lounged in Oberon’s library, waiting for one of his meetings to be over. “What’s up, Luce?”
Lucy grinned. “Your family is due to arrive any day now, and Oberon wants us to be prepared for their part in the ceremony.”
Cassie grimaced. The last thing she wanted to do was deal with her family, but she had no choice. “They won’t want to take part. They’re going to be too pissed about the fact I’m not bonding with the Pacifica prince.” In fact, she had plans to ask Dayton to escort her down the aisle rather than her father.
“That’s too bad.” Luce tapped her nails on the back of the tablet PC she carried everywhere with her. They, too, were the same royal blue as her shoes. “Truebonds invalidate arranged marriages, and they know that. If they can’t deal, that’s their problem.” She flicked her fingers rapidly over the face of the tablet PC. “I’ve put them in the west wing, Pacifica in the east. I thought it best to keep them separated.”
“Probably a good idea. They’ve never really gotten along. It shocked me when my parents tried to arrange a marriage between the two courts.” Cassie put her feet down, making room for Lucy to sit. “Have any of the other court representatives arrived?”
Lucy took her up on the silent invitation, settling with dainty care on the ottoman. A Sidhe lady of some social standing, the fact that she chose to work for the High King rather than marrying another member of the peerage had some turning their noses up at her.
Lucy didn’t care. She did her job, she did it well, and better, she enjoyed it immensely. Cassie couldn’t picture the Sidhe doing anything less demanding.
She also couldn’t picture Lucy doing anything to bring harm to Oberon. The outer edges of her song were pure, buzzing like bees or the wings of hummingbirds. It was distracting, but not unpleasant.
“I believe the representatives of both the Black and the White have arrived, but they are currently avoiding one another. They will be presented tonight at dinner, along with the ambassadors from the Caribbean, Baltic, Southern and Arctic oceanic kingdoms. The others have yet to respond to the invitation, or have sent their regrets.”
“What about the land-based courts?” Cassie was curious why Lucy was only listing the water-based courts. There were far more land-based minor courts than there were oceanic ones.
Lucy flipped through her list. “The Daimyo of Japan, Daichi-sama, is sending one of his sons, and the Maharajah of India, Jagannath, is coming with his consort, Kalyani, and their son, Tarak. Wang Bao-Zhi is sending one of the gōng, or royal dukes, and—”
“Wait.” Cassie would never remember all of this. “Who isn’t sending someone? Have we gotten all the official RSVP’s?”
“Hmm.” Lucy flipped through the list. “Other than the water-based courts, we’ve gotten all of the RSVP’s. All of the land and air based courts are either sending their ambassadors or their monarchs will be present. No absentees.”
“Huh.” She wasn’t that surprised to find that most of the water-based courts had chosen not to respond to Oberon’s invitation. Most of them were isolationist, preferring their own kind. It was why she’d chosen to run to land when she did. Most merfolk believed those who walked or flew were beneath them. Still, it was politically dangerous to ignore a summons by the High King, especially when he had truebonded with a siren. “Let me know if that changes.”
“Will do.” Lucy set aside the tablet. “Any specific instructions for when your family arrives?”
“Toss them in the nearest volcano?”
Behind her, Jaden Blackthorn, her bodyguard for the day, chuckled. “From what you’ve told me, they’re so cold they’d probably put it out.”
Cassie grunted. “Good point.” She blew out a breath. “I am not to meet anyone without a bodyguard or Oberon present. If they insist, inform them that…” She looked over at Jaden for inspiration, but he merely shrugged. “Inform them it’s on the orders of the High King, and that I refused to disobey my bondmate, even for family.”
“Let him be the bad guy?” Lucy frowned thoughtfully. “That might work. Not many want to go against him, after all.”
“What’s the term I’m looking for? You know, when someone is stupid enough to go against the High King?” Jaden swung his foot lazily. He was seated in the window seat, reading a book on Jack the Ripper. “Oh yeah. Corpse.”
Lucy giggled, a strangely girlish sound from the no-nonsense woman. “I’ll remind them of that if they try anything.” Lucy stood and straightened her jacket. “I’ll phone you as soon as they arrive.”
“Thanks.” Cassie couldn’t quite hide her lack of enthusiasm.
“It’s going to be okay, Cassie.” Lucy patted her shoulder. “If you don’t trust me, trust your bondmate.”
“I do.” She just didn’t trust her family, not one little bit.
“That’s good to hear.” Oberon was suddenly there, kissing the top of her head. Just like Robin, it seemed he could come or go at will.
She really wished she could learn to do that. It seemed like a handy little trick to have. It would have saved her a ton in gas and wear on her car, at the very least.
“Sire.” Jaden stood and bowed.
“Lord Blackthorn.” Oberon straightened up, but his hand remained on the back of Cassie’s chair. “How are your bondmates?”
Jaden grinned. “Moira wants to paint our bedroom, and Duncan is busy trying to stop her.”
“Ah.”
“Don’t worry. Duncan has already thought of something to keep her occupied.” Jaden winked, his grin pure sex.
“And you would like to join them, no doubt.”
Jaden’s gaze darted toward Cassie. “Not at all. I can handle it.” He cleared his throat. “I’m strong.” He winced, his expression becoming distant, as if he were seeing something that wasn’t in front of them. “Mostly.”
Oberon chuckled. “Go. I’m with Cassie now. See to your bondmates.”
Jaden gave them both a hurried, absent good-bye and literally ran from the room.
“What’s going on?” She’d never seen Jaden act like that before.
Lucy frowned and walked to one corner of the room, speaking quietly into her in-house Bluetooth. Something must be going on with Lucy’s Army. The woman was constantly on the go.
“Jaden has a unique bond with his husband and wife.” Oberon began stroking her hair, and Cassie wanted to purr, it felt so good. “The three of them can communicate in ways distinctive to vampires, and Duncan’s gift allows them to share images, both real and imaginary.”
Oh. The fabled Sidhe gift, the one that allowed them to weave a fantasy in the minds of others. She’d heard that the fantasies were so realistic you’d swear you were actually there. It was said you could live a hundred years in a m
oment, or a moment in a hundred years, depending on how powerful the Sidhe was.
And apparently Duncan Malmayne-Blackthorn used it to tease his bondmates unmercifully.
“Sire, I’ve just gotten word from Harold.” Lucy was staring at them with concern. “Both Pacifica and Atlantis have arrived, and both monarchs wish to speak with you when you have the chance.”
Cassie began to shake as Oberon took hold of her hand. “Have Harold show them to their rooms, then express our desire to meet with them in my study in one hour.”
An hour?
That might just give Cassie enough time to run away.
Oberon began to drag her from the library. “Don’t even think about it.”
Damn. There went her plan to run for Morocco. “About what?”
“Heading for Tahiti.”
“Would I do that?” She winced at the sound of her mother’s voice in the main hall of the palace.
“In a heartbeat.” Oberon led her the other way, to a little used staircase that led directly to his private quarters. Only Oberon, Lucy, Harold and Oberon’s valet, Javier, used this staircase. “I won’t let them hurt you in any way.”
“You won’t be able to stop it.” Her parents were either going to ignore her, or berate her, and they wouldn’t care who was in the room with them. They’d insult her in front of the High King, claiming that they had the right to discipline their daughter as they saw fit.
Of course Oberon probably wouldn’t see it that way. She was dreading this meeting for more than one reason.
The tension in his arm had her leaning into him. “You could run to Tahiti with me.”
“Tempting.” He shot her a rueful half-smile. “But they’d still be here when we got back.” He sighed. “Besides, I think Lucy and Harold would kill us if we took off for the tropics. They finally got the florist they wanted for the bonding ceremony to agree to work for us on short notice.”
She shuddered. “Harold cooks our food.”
“Lucy runs my businesses.”
“And Javier runs our life.”
Siren's Song: The Gray Court, Book 5 Page 14
