Adrienne (24 page)

Adrienne decided to feed Malik, since he wouldn’t stop rubbing her feet to feed himself. He insisted she use her hands instead of the utensils provided. Every piece of food she offered allowed him the opportunity to suck on her fingers.

Feyr cleared his throat and asked, “
You two do remember there is a child present, do you not?
”

“I do,” Adrienne answered. “But I think Malik doesn’t care.”

Malik winked at her.

“
Birds,
” Mischief yelled. He ran after a flock of birds that had taken flight from a nearby tree top.

Feyr watched him go with a shake of his head. He turned back to comment to Adrienne on his son’s tendency of being easily distracted but the words didn’t come. He witnessed another’s tendency of being easily distracted. He cleared his throat again and asked, “
You do remember
I
am present?
”

Malik said against the swell of Adrienne’s breasts, “You can leave.” He slipped the sleeve of Adrienne’s dress down so he could have better access.

“
And your guards?
”

“Oh,” Adrienne exclaimed with dismay. She pulled away from Malik and straightened her dress quickly. The hidden guards had slipped her mind once Malik started kissing her. She pulled her feet from Malik’s lap and slid slightly to the side, putting some distance between them.

Malik grumbled. “Thank you, my friend. Remind me to repay you in kind when your mate returns.”

“
You know I will do no such thing,
” Feyr said. He looked up. “
It would seem my son has caught something.
”

Mischief ran back to the group with a bird in his mouth. He jumped over food platters and presented Adrienne with his catch.

Adrienne stared down at the bird in Mischief’s mouth and tried to smile for the cub’s sake. He looked so proud of himself. The poor bird squirmed in Mischief’s mouth, screaming in pain for Mischief to let her go.

Adrienne held out her hands for the bird. “Thank you, Mischief. How sweet.”

Mischief opened his mouth and the bird dropped into her hands. It cried out in pain and tried to fly, only to scream louder. Adrienne couldn’t show how much the gift upset her. Mischief thought he had done something good and she couldn’t punish him for hunting. Adrienne had promised Mischief’s mother he wouldn’t be weak.

Malik took the bird from her gingerly, pretending to look the bird over, and praising Mischief for his hunting abilities. In truth, he had started healing the bird’s injuries.

Adrienne smiled at him for his consideration to the cub and his kindness to the bird. She turned her attention back to Mischief. In an exaggerated manner she looked all around then back at him. She asked, “Where’s your father’s present?”

Mischief stared up at her with a confused look. “
Papa?
”

Feyr gave an affected sigh. “
I must not rate, for my son to forget me so easily,
” he stated in a dejected voice.

Mischief ran back towards the trees. He yelled, “
Present for Papa.
”

Adrienne sat next to Feyr. A flash of color caught her eye and she looked up in time to see her present from Mischief flying away as fast as it could. She smiled at Malik in thanks.

Malik pointed out, “He will notice the bird’s absence.”

She shook her head. “No, he won’t.”

“But if he does?”

“I’ll tell him the truth and the reasons behind it. He’s a baby but he’ll understand,” she said. She scratched Feyr’s head absently and leaned into his side. His purring made her relax.

“
Back,
” Mischief yelled as he emerged from the woods.

Adrienne’s welcoming smile faltered, then turned into a horrified gasp. She screamed, “Mischief.”

She scrambled to her feet and ran to the cub.

Malik caught her and pulled her to a stop. “No, Adrienne, it might still be alive.”

Mischief didn’t seem to notice everyone’s unease. He came forward happily with his prize in his mouth: an awez, a very poisonous snake, possibly one of the most poisonous on all of Bron.

Feyr went to his cub slowly, ready to kill the awez if his son hadn’t done the job. He took in how Mischief held the snake behind the neck and how the snake didn’t move.

He scented the air, then pronounced for Malik’s benefit, “
It’s dead. Mischief killed it. Though not without injuries of his own.
”

Malik released Adrienne and she rushed over to Mischief. She wanted to take him in her arms but blood covered his body—his blood and the snake’s. She didn’t want to hurt him since it seemed he didn’t feel any pain. He had a particularly nasty-looking gash over his right eye.

Mischief dropped the snake at Feyr’s feet in triumph. “
Present for Papa.
”

Feyr nodded. “
Thank you,
” he whispered. He didn’t take his eyes off his son as he said, “
Malik.
”

Malik had reached for Mischief before Feyr said anything. “You know you do not have to ask,” he said softly. His magicks surrounded Mischief as his hands surrounded the cub’s body, and he said with wonder, “He has no poison in his body.”

Feyr looked at his son in surprise. He looked back at the snake and remembered the way his son had carried it. He gave an amused chuckle. “
He has good instincts, it would seem,
” he said in a proud, relieved voice.

Adrienne placed her hand on top of Malik’s when she noticed his magicks had started healing the wound over Mischief’s eye. “Wait, Malik. Can you heal him so he keeps the scar, and his ability to see?” She looked at Feyr to see if he understood what she asked.

Feyr nodded in agreement. “
He’s earned his badge. Let him keep it, Malik.
”

“As my Adrienne wishes,” Malik agreed.

Once Malik finished healing him, Adrienne grabbed Mischief in one hand and the awez in the other. She took them both back to the royal chambers through one of Malik’s portals.

She congratulated Mushira for not screaming about the blood covering her clothing.

Adrienne held out the awez to Mushira, who took it hesitantly.

“Could you have someone make this into a collar for Mischief? Have them make it big enough so he won’t grow out of it. I want the fangs to hang from it, as well.”

Mushira looked at the snake, then back at Mischief. “The little cub killed this awez?”

Adrienne gave a proud affirmative, then carried Mischief into the bathroom. Fully clothed, she walked with him into the tub. Her dress would have to be soaked anyway, might as well start the process. Undoubtedly, Mushira had prepared a bath so Adrienne could clean up before she changed for lunch. Adrienne liked to be clean as much as the next person but a bath before every clothing change was a bit excessive.

“
No, no, no, no,
” Mischief screamed as soon as the water hit his fur.

Adrienne gripped him as tight as she could without hurting him. She warned, “Scratch me and I’ll have you declawed.” An empty threat, but it worked.

Mischief stopped fighting and started crying as she rubbed soap into his fur. He cried through the whole ordeal and wouldn’t even let up when Feyr entered the bath to show it wasn’t as bad as Mischief made it out to be.

The little cub didn’t stop crying until Adrienne dried him with a towel. Mischief took several sniffling breaths. “
Mischief bad. Got punished,
” he whined.

Adrienne gathered him close and kissed him. “I didn’t punish you, silly. I just wanted you clean. I can’t cuddle you if you’re covered in blood.”

“
Mischief not bad?
”

“No, Mischief very good,” she complimented. She put him on the ground and gave him a push towards the door. “Off you go,” she urged in a warm voice.

Mischief recovered quickly, as was a child’s wont. He ran out of the room with Feyr walking slowly after him. Adrienne sagged visibly. Her legs stopped supporting her and she dropped to her knees.

Malik crouched behind her, gathering her close. “Your heart is beating so fast, my Adrienne. Were you truly that scared for him?”

Adrienne rested her hands on his arm where it circled her chest. She said, “I saw the blood… He’s just a baby. I don’t want to coddle him too much and make him weak like Feyr’s mate feared, but I might be letting him do too much too soon. She won’t forgive me if I get him killed.”

“You are doing fine,” Malik soothed in a soft voice. “Will you be this frantic over our own children?”

“No, I’ll probably be worse,” she admitted. “I may know the facts but I don’t know this world. I can never relax. And they’ll use magicks. What happens if the baby starts crying and blows up the throne room?”

Malik kissed her neck. “We will have the construction mages fix it.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that,” Malik agreed. “If the people of the palace could put up with me, a parentless tyrant, putting up with children with two parents should be easy.” He gave her a squeeze as he added, “You and I will live to see our great-great-grandchildren; that I promise you, Adrienne.”

Adrienne pulled away from him. She got to her feet and faced Malik with a sad expression. He stood with his own look of concern. She said softly, “You know what I said about promising something that—”

Malik placed a finger over her lips to stop her words. He vowed, “I will tear open the gates of the afterlife and bring you back if I have to, my Adrienne. But I will keep my promise.”

Chapter Sixteen

After fretting over it for the last half hour and finding no way around it, Adrienne stood. All conversation in the throne room stopped and all eyes turned to her. She had known this would happen. She couldn’t urge them to keep going as she snuck out of the room. She couldn’t
sneak
out of the room.

“Adrienne?” Malik asked with concern. He stood and went to her side. Once there, he wrapped his arms around her waist and brought her close.

She leaned into him and whispered, “I’m going for a walk.”

“I can go with you,” he said. He turned to the crowd, but Adrienne stopped him.

“You’re needed here.”

“Do I not deserve a break also?” he asked with a smile. He didn’t wait for her answer. Instead, he laid a kiss on her cheek, then opened a portal to their rooms.

Adrienne thanked him and left. She didn’t know what everyone thought of her departure, but she needed a break before she fell asleep. As embarrassing as it was to simply walk out in the middle of royal proceedings, it would be even more embarrassing to fall asleep in front of everyone.

She had no problem sitting for long periods of time and listening to people speak. Being a senior in college meant sitting and listening to lectures for hours on end. She tended to zone out and eventually fall asleep if her hands weren’t busy. Whether she took notes or crocheted an ever-growing scarf, her hands had to be busy in order for her to stay awake. Her college days had ended so she didn’t need to take notes any longer. And she didn’t own materials to make a scarf, ever-growing or otherwise.

She’d ask Mushira about that later: Where could Adrienne get something that resembled a crocheting needle and thread? If Bron was a parallel Earth, they had to have crocheting. At least Adrienne thought Bron had to.

She wandered around the palace with no destination in mind. Movement out of the corner of her eye revealed Khursid and Qamar a few paces behind her. She didn’t bother telling them to catch up with her since she had nothing to say to them.

Her wanderings took her to the High Chancellor’s wing, located on the fourth floor like the royal wing. The other chancellors had rooms on the third floor, but High Chancellor Travers had earned the right to be near his monarchs.

Most of the chancellors were in the throne room with Malik, but not all of them. Specifically, Travers was absent. Adrienne found that strange. Out of all of the chancellors, she would think the High Chancellor would always be present at Malik’s side.

On a whim, she decided to drop by Travers’s room. Adrienne rounded the corner and noticed his door open.

“High Chancellor Travers?” she asked. She poked her head around his chamber door and smiled when he looked at her.

Travers jumped out of his seat and gave a deep bow. He stumbled out, “Majesty! I didn’t know… How good of you… Come in, please.” He pulled out a chair for her. “I didn’t know you wished to see me. I would have gladly met you in the throne room or…”

Adrienne took the chair he offered. She waved him back down to his own seat. “It’s okay. I didn’t know my destination until I arrived. I mean, it’s just me being a busybody. So I didn’t need to make it an official visit.” She looked around the room. Papers and books and random glass containers of varying shapes, contents and sizes were scattered everywhere. “I’m not interrupting,” she started, then trailed off.

“Never, Majesty. My time is always yours to do with as you see fit,” he said quickly.

“You can sit down, High Chancellor Travers. As I said, I’m just being nosy.”

Travers lowered himself into his chair. “Nosy about what, exactly, Majesty?”

“Your son. Khursid.”

Travers’s expression instantly turned dark. “He hasn’t done anything to endanger—”

She rushed out, “No, no, no. I…I wanted to talk to you about him. He’s done nothing that would cause alarm.” She glanced over her shoulder at the door. Khursid and Qamar had stopped at the end of the hallway and couldn’t hear the conversation.

That was a good thing because she’d approached it all wrong. She looked around the room again. She had seen Khursid’s room: It was immaculate. She didn’t even think the palace vermin would dare set foot there. In contrast, Travers would break his neck walking from his door to his bed if he didn’t watch his step. These men really had nothing in common.

“Khursid feels you…disapprove of his choice in lovers. He knows you want him to carry on your family lineage and that he can’t do that if he’s with a man.”

Travers leaned back in his chair and stared at her for a long moment. He blinked several times and laughed, then slapped his hand over his mouth with a look of apology. “Forgive me, Majesty. I don’t laugh at you. I laugh at my son’s stupidity.”