Xiang Yi looked over a garden of lush blooms. Fruiting trees swayed over the advisor's head, their crowns heavy with colorful flowers and cooing songbirds. The advisor closed his tired eyes, as if to savor the peaceful sight.
"Why," Xiang Yi asked, voice as dry as Hel's deserts, "could we not hold this meeting indoors?"
"Oh, come, Xiang-ah, have some fun," Mari said. She did not bother to look up from her book as she did, the charms of nature scorned in favor of whatever story occupied the text's yellowed pages.
Xiang Yi leveled a glare at the demoness. That proving ineffective, he turned flinty eyes on Rae, who looked right at home amid the turquoise grass and flowers the size of small sheep. Carmen reclined against her, his head pillowed in Rae's lap. The queen carded clawed fingers through her husband's hair, an adoring smile on her lips.
"I thought we could all use a break," Rae said.
"That, and the Great Hall is currently flooded," Mari added offhandedly.
Rae cast Mari an accusing look while Carmen laughed, tucked against her stomach.
Xiang Yi drew to his full length. "What happened?" he demanded.
"There may have been a minor misunderstanding involving a diplomatic party from T'ala," Rae said.
"So minor so as to warrant a flood?" Xiang Yi asked dryly.
"We may have served some less than appropriate dishes at the welcoming dinner," Rae allowed.
"Seafood hors d'oeuvre," Mari offered.
Rae cut her another glare. "Thank you, Mari."
"Sea–" Xiang Yi took a breath to steady himself. The gods worshipped in T'ala were all sea-born deities. Their descendants ruled T'ala, and wielded the powers of tempest. They did not take slights to their heritage lightly.
That said, it was hardly Rae's responsibility to check the kitchens' menu for potential faux pas. "Was the individual responsible punished appropriately?" Xiang Yi asked. This was obviously a purposeful mistake.
"Composting as we speak," Crow said.
The man sat perched in a tree, watching the gathered party with hawk eyes. The honor of hosting a meeting of the Queen's inner court escaped him entirely. If anyone was to step even a foot outside of their designated seating area, the grumpy gardener would be on them in a snap. The only reason Crow had allowed this trespassing in the first place was because the royal gardens were an insulated space, protected from curious ears by Crow's magic and the many lifeforms Crow had cultivated for the sake of the gardens' defense.
Herein, Xiang Yi supposed, lay the purpose of the meeting.
"I shall return to my duties in six days' time," Xiang Yi said.
Rae looked at him with her brows raised. "The House of Todd was that easy to manage?"
"Hardly," Xiang Yi snorted. A headache bloomed behind his eyes just at the thought of all that awaited his attention. Gabriel did not care for order, including that of his own household. Had it not been for Laurent Duvall's faithful service, the House of Todd would have long collapsed due to disrepair and insidious plots carried out by its own servants.
"Anything to report?" Rae asked.
"Nothing of note," Xiang Yi dismissed.
"Dominus Todd's besieging the property does not warrant mentioning?" Rae pressed, eyes smiling.
Xiang Yi's expression soured. "Do not remind me. He has attempted entry no less than four times over the last two days."
"Do you need assistance?" Carmen offered.
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Queen's Shadow || Kingdom at the End of the World - Book II
ParanormalSir Valeir Beaufort, vampire nobility, is on the run. His only companion? A woman trained to hunt and kill his kind. The betrayal that forced Valeri to flee for his life is only a small part of a much larger conspiracy. The tentative peace between...
