Page 93 of Bloom
“I’d rather fight to defend our Kingdom if needed.”
“I’d rather you stay safe here with me. I’m not going. Still, I’d rather we not tell Regis now. Why don’t we wait a bit and see where things go?”
Aleric looked up at him and smiled. “I thought you wanted to marry me. Then you can put a baby in me.”
Gautier smiled back. “I do, but if war is coming, I don’t want our wedding overshadowed by it. Peace is the best time to marry.”
He had a point. “Fine. Father thinks they might execute the werewolf soon. I hope they do.”
“Why?” Gautier frowned. “Let the rubbish rot in prison for the rest of his life. It’s fitting.”
After the incident in 1687, Gautier and several others had been vocal in their dislike of werewolves. Plenty of fairies disliked them, and wars had been fought between both sides in the distant past. Even though the Goddess Elira had adopted them as their children when she still walked the realm, and they’d supposedly come from Asgard, not everyone felt kind toward them.
“That’s not right,” said Aleric.
Gautier raised an eyebrow as he leaned on the window. “Would you like to tell Prince Remere and Sébastien that it's not right when their Mother and brother lay dead in the family tomb thanks to one of those mutts?”
“No.”
“Or perhaps you’d like to tell King Jean to get over his wife and son’s death. And Prince Corentin. His sister-in-law and nephew are dead, but it’s not right to keep a werewolf imprisoned.”
“You know I don’t mean it like that. I’m not saying to release the werewolf or to get over Queen Margot and Prince Enzo’s death. I mean, keeping him imprisoned for life is wrong. I know that trio came here with the intent to kill and get revenge for those that died in the north, so it’s best to put him to death and get it over with.”
“It’s better to leave him in prison to rot for the rest of his miserable life. Let him sit in a cell and remember the events that brought him there. It’s his own fault. Nobody forced the mutt to get on a ship.”
“They’re not mutts.”
“Are you kidding me right now?” asked Gautier. “Those mutts killed people.”
“I know. When a fairy commits violent murder, we usually hang them.” Enslaving a criminal guilty of a vicious crime might end badly if the slave escaped or decided to kill their owner. Ifthey’d already murdered before, what was another? “Killing the criminal doesn’t bring back the dead or fix anything. Get rid of the killer. Erase them. It’s better.”
“If your Mother hadn’t died of a fever, and someone had killed her, would you feel the same?”
“Yes. I’d rather see her murderer dead. Keeping anyone imprisoned for life is useless cruelty. Father agrees with me on this. It won’t bring back the Queen or the last Crown Prince, but it might help them with closure a little. The one who actually killed them was already dead, and they can’t get revenge through another one. I don’t think anyone should be locked up for life, fairy or werewolf. The one who is keeping them locked up is stooping to cruelty themselves.”
“Even with a werewolf?” Gautier asked incredulously.
“Yes. It’s a being capable of logic, reason, and feeling, just like a fairy, and I-”
“You feel pity for those beasts? For fuck’s sake.”
Aleric squinted. “In general, they’re not bad. I don’t have a problem with them.”
Gautier laughed, but a note of anger crept into his voice. “You better be fucking kidding me.”
Aleric lifted his chin. “No. I’m not. The majority are fine nowadays. They’re rather like fairies. Some are bad, others are good. When we leave them alone, they don’t often bother us.”
“It wasn’t long ago that we had an incident in the north. They killed fairies, and then the dock incident-don’t give me this ridiculous shit. I can’t believe I’m hearing this from you, of all people.”
“I know what happened. The fairies in the north could have walked away. They escalated things.”
Gautier shook his head. “They’re beasts. The realm would be better off if they all died.” He pointed a finger at Aleric.“You better watch what you say, or people will be calling you a werewolf lover and fucker.”
Aleric flushed. The insult had become a popular one to use against Rowland since King Giorgio still refused to control those in his Kingdom or South Sea.
“Those werewolves in the north only killed after they were attacked. The fairies could have walked away. They didn’t, and they started the violence. I’d say they’re at fault even though the murder wasn’t right. They were not completely innocent victims.”
“Just stop,” Gautier snapped. “You sound like an absolute idiot, and you're pissing me off.”
