A Beast's Tale

Chapter 53

"Surprised you didn't bring your new little maid with you. I heard you bring her everywhere you go."

I took a sip of rose liqueur. "Then you should check your sources."

Silvio laughed. His rings clinked against the crystal of a wine glass he snatched from a passing tray. "Yeah, rumors can get wild, can't they? I even heard that a prince of Rhodolite was the leader of the anti-monarchy faction." He tipped his head back to down the liqueur in one swallow, the fringes of his silver-blue hair brushing against the black-and-white spotted ruff of fur lining his cloak as he did. "But if there were any truth to that one, your country would be in a rotten state, wouldn't it?"

I met his sea-blue eyes and cocky grin with a smirk of my own. "Perhaps if its noble beasts were incompetent fools. Fortunately, that is not the case. Your investments here are safe and will remain so as long as our nations' alliance endures."

"Glad to hear it. I'd hate to think you noble beasts are goin' soft." He signaled a servant with a jangling of his copious jewelry. "If we're gonna drink to the alliance, we're gonna need somethin' stronger than this stuff. Bring out a bottle of that fine ale I brought along," he barked at the slight young man who answered his call.

"Yes, Your Highness, right away."

I took another sip to hide my smile as I watched the timid man scurry away. Silvio was in for a surprise when he met Ivetta. His tall, imposing figure wouldn't intimidate her, and if he attempted to buy her good behavior, she'd throw his money back in his face.

"I gotta say, I wasn't expectin' to see you tonight. I thought I'd be dealin' with Foxface and that pleasure lovin' idiot while you kept the place from blowin' up. Guess it's a good sign you got nothin' better to do than talk to me, huh?" Silvio smirked. "Although you're crap at conversation."

"But I'm a better drinking partner."

Silvio laughed again. "Yeah, if either of them touched this ale, they'd be out for the rest of the night. Ah, here it is. It's the first batch from a new business venture I'm backing. Drink it slow."

I finished the liqueur with another swallow while he poured the ale, sloshing the rich red liquid into two glasses and then handing me one. His dutiful servant took my empty glass while I sniffed the ale. It was much stronger than the rose liqueur, but this wasn't a poor attempt at inebriating me. Silvio knew better than that. As for his veiled comments and inquiries, it was difficult to tell how much he knew and how much he guessed. He was perceptive. He was also in a good mood, which was rare for him, and I wanted information, too.

I took a sip of ale. It had a full-bodied flavor that went down smoothly. "You've been in Rhodolite for almost a week now. Business dealings, or errands for the king?"

His grimace had nothing to do with the ale's taste or texture. "A bit of both. The old man's decided it's time to choose who'll inherit the throne, so he's puttin' Emidio and me through our paces. What about you? Another one of those rumors goin' around says the king of Rhodolite is dead."

"He's been ill and out of the public eye for some time, but I can assure you Rhodolite is at no disadvantage. Nothing has changed for us."

"Then I can forget about the other part of that rumor, which says the Devil of the Court killed him."

"The Four-Eyed Fiend killing the king?" Clavis asked, inserting himself into the conversation with a laugh. "Now, that would be entertaining. Too bad there's no truth to it."

There was no tension in his easy smile or his carefree laugh, which told me Gilbert hadn't been here in person. He'd used a messenger—or Clavis wasn't the person he wanted to see.