Page 15 of The Kingdom of Flames and Ash

To my surprise, more Unseelie dropped their swords, and I glanced around to find that Struan and the other two guards had confiscated the weapons of the nineteen Unseelie who had launched the attack.

The Seelie guards managed to position themselves so that if my people started to fight once more, it would be futile between their weapons and strong magic. Lira hadn’t intended it, but the Unseelie, who still had their weapons, glared at her and the guards with distrust and hate.

Lira’s parents strolled out of the castle and joined us on the other side of Lira. King Erdan expanded his brown wings and commanded, “Take their weapons now. They can’t be trusted.”

“Father,” Lira gasped. Her shock and frustration slammed into me. “They just stopped fighting.”

“Because of the noise you made. If it hadn’t been for that, they’d still be at it, and we can’t take more losses. Not with the threat of war with the dragons. I need every guard we have.” The king gestured to the twenty dead Seelie at the bottom of the stairs, and his shoulders sagged. His voice broke as he said, “This should’veneverhappened. These were needless deaths on both sides, and I refuse to let this happen once more.”

Despite not wanting to hand our weapons over to the Seelie, I couldn’t be sure this wouldn’t happen again if my people kept them. There was too much loss of life on both ends, and I hated that my hatred might have helped prompt the attack. More deaths I was responsible for, and I refused to allow my people to act recklessly once more. “I’ll give the command and agree as long as my guards are able to retain their weapons.”

“Absolutely not.” The king scowled. “They—”

“Helped end the fight,” Lira cut in. “That counts for something, Father. You did command them to come to a place where seven thousand Unseelie perished because of the lack of food and living space.”

King Erdan’s eyes bulged, but Queen Sylphia looped her arm through his and said, “Our daughter is right. King Tavish agreed to have most of his weapons confiscated. We must begin rebuilding together somehow.”

The king’s eyes turned steely as if he were about to argue when the queen said, “Remember what we talked about. Besides, we need to focus on how to get Eiric back.”

“Fine. The Unseelie guards may retain their weapons, but all other weapons must be confiscated and placed under guard.” The king huffed and folded his wings behind his back. His jaw clenched, indicating he wasn’t thrilled with the decision.

Neither was I, but both groups were unsettled, and I needed to process what I’d learned about my parents. Now wasn’t the time; we had too much at stake, and Lira needed to rest so she could help herself, Lorne, and Finnian.

Discomfort and concern swirled from Lira as she turned toward me and linked,If you aren’t comfortable—

I didn’t want her to feel more responsible for burdens that weren’t hers to carry. She had a knack for that.I’m not thrilled, but if your parents want to try to create some sort of harmony, then I won’t fight it, especially since I don’t know who I can trust. Eldrin still has loyalists who will do anything to see me fail, and taking the weapons allows me to reduce the potential threats while I try to determine who is and isn’t loyal to me.I squeezed her hand reassuringly.As long as you trust that your parents are being sincere.

She swallowed, contemplating the question.They are people of their word.

The fact that she’d considered it instead of immediately defending them reinforced how lucky I was to have her.Then that’s enough for me.I kissed her forehead then turned my attention back to the masses, expecting their dissent. “Since wedid attack the Seelie, I’m in agreement that any person who isn’t a guard must hand over their weapons to be locked in the castle.”

The armed village people sneered and booed. I noted each one because we needed to keep them under more scrutiny.

“This will be temporary, but with the stress everyone is under, it’s best for everyone here. Our guards will keep an eye on the weapons as well as the perimeter of the island.” I took a step forward and lifted the sword in my right hand, black blood still on the blade. “Anyone who goes against my wishes again will meet the same fate as the person who launched the attack.”

The insinuation was clear. I sheathed my blade.

The four of us stood side by side as the Seelie guards began confiscating weapons. The stares between the groups were strained, but no one started fighting again. After perhaps thirty minutes, the weapons had been gathered, and Struan supervised placing them in the castle armory.

Brenin and Hestia separated from the others and rejoined us in the large room.

Brenin cleared his throat. “Your Majesty, I understand that we have a lot to handle, but the longer Eiric stays with the dragons, the greater her chances of being harmed. We need to develop a strategy for retrieving her.”

Even though I agreed because my mate needed to save her sister, I didn’t want to rush into anything. “If we attack now, the dragons will demand that Lira is handed over in her place.” I shook my head. “That’s not an acceptable risk. We must find a way to recover her without risking my mate.”

“Lira will eventually be handed over to the dragons,” King Erdan rasped. “We gave them our vow. If we do not uphold it, all of the Seelie will lose their magic.”

“Over my dead body,” I snarled. The thought of Lira with Prince Pyralis had the edges of my vision turning black again.

Lira stepped between us. “Calm down. Father, you said I wasn’t even supposed to be handed over until I was twenty-five, so why argue about this now? And Tavish, there is someone who swears there’s a way to get me out of the contract without the Seelie losing their magic. If we learn what that is, then there won’t be a reason not to leave and get E right now.”

Blast. She was right. What were we doing standing here sniping over it? I had a cousin to torture to finally get some answers.

“Then the interrogation begins now.” I turned, heading into the castle.

However, when I stepped inside, I froze.

6

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