Page 118 of Conspirators' Kingdom

“Boo! The night is young!” Itet complained.

“Goodnight, Itet,” Mereruka replied as he turned away with Taisiya in his arms.

“Come by to drink again any time, Princess Consort!” Itet called and waved.

Taisiya woke when Mereruka put her down on their bed. Dizziness overwhelmed her. She squinted up, surprised and pleased to find she now had several more husbands, each as handsome and blurry as the last.

“Didn’t the five of you leave here with a pair of earrings?” she asked.

His horrified expression as he reached up to his bare ear was the last thing she saw before sleep took her.

Chapter 45

“Areyourepentingyourexcesses yet, wife?” Mereruka purred in her ear.

“Leisurely,” Taisiya hissed.

Maat’s sun was brighter today, she was certain. Her head was heavy and pounding, her stomach still roiling from the night before. The jubilant cries of the crowd made her eyes water. Yet there would be no reprieve. She and Mereruka sat dressed in all their finery in the ceremonial procession, their spacious palanquin carried on the backs of radiant summoned beasts. Itet and Inkaef shared the palanquin ahead, and while Inkaef appeared worse for wear, Itet was making jokes and waving excitedly to the crowd. Naturally, Khety and Betrest sat in the front of the procession, their conveyance the most ostentatious of the lot. Servants handed out bread and beer to the gathered throngs while soldiers guarded the tribute and royalty alike.

“Did everything go smoothly last night?” Taisiya asked.

“Mostly. Vasilisa broke a small sculpture, and I seem to have misplaced an earring during the course of the evening,” Mereruka replied.

He was one of the very few fae she’d seen who had his pierced. Most wore jewellery that hooked onto the tops of their ears, or none at all, favouring elaborate headdresses instead. Given how sensitive they were, she imagined piercing them was exceedingly painful.

“Whydidyou pierce your ears?”

“The enchantments, of course. Objects made as a pair have a natural resonance with each other. Perfect for surreptitious tracking, if the spell is already embedded. Like when I followed your family to the graveyard after your sister’s wedding.” He winked.

“Youwhat?!”

“Hush, love. It was simple curiosity.” He smiled and touched a teal finger to her painted lips.

“Iknewyou seemed too blasé when I brought you there to make your oaths,” Taisiya grouched.

“It was all very impressive, I promise.”

Taisiya pinched Mereruka below the ribs.

“Cruel,” he grunted.

“Sneak-thief,” she retorted.

“Drunkard.”

The nerve of this man. She would never have been so immoderate had it not been necessary. He’d earned himself another pinch.

“Royal prick.”

He chuckled.

“You like my royal prick,” he whispered.

“It’s alright.” Taisiya shrugged.

“That sounds like a challenge, wife.”

“If it does, then you’d best rise to meet it.” She grinned.

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