Page 35 of Winter Queen
The room falls deadly silent.
“Get out,” I say in a quiet, measured voice. Inside I’m seething, but I’m not letting him know that. Who does he think he is? “This is not the way I’m going to rule. I’m not going to put on blinkers and ignore what’s happening outside of this Realm. If someone comes to us for help, we will assist as best as we can. Only if we all stand together will we be able to win against our enemies.”
He shoots me a hateful glance, then slams closed the door behind him.
I sigh deeply. “Tamara, do we have someone else who could take our beloved treasurer’s role?”
I know I have them all shocked. They didn’t expect me to send away one of the Council members, and they certainly didn’t expect me to want to replace him. Well, look again, boys. Once my mother is back on her feet, she can always reinstate him, but for now, he’s to stay out of my sight. I’ve never liked him, and I won’t be able to suffer his racist attitudes.
“His assistant, Leo, is a bright young fellow,” Tamara says slowly. “He doesn’t have Magnus’s experience, but he’s clever and innovative.”
“Have him come to me later,” I order. “Let’s see if we can’t bring some fresh minds into this Council.”
That has them all sit up straight. They’re probably thinking whether I might replace some of them as well. As if I’m planning to do that. Magnus didn’t really leave me a choice. I couldn’t ignore statements like that.
“Shall we proceed? I will talk to Flora later, and maybe Gwain and Storm might want to be present. But first, is there any other business we need to discuss?”
Zephyr lifts his hand, almost shyly. Is he suddenly scared of me?
“Lucifer has sent a message. Your mother gave him the task to find out more about the black dragon poison back when you were almost killed. He said he wasn’t able to enter the Dragon Realm. They’ve barricaded themselves, no one is able to enter or leave.”
“Are they trying to protect themselves from the coming war?” I ask.
“I doubt it,” Gwain says, his fingers playing with his beard as he thinks. “There’s something else going on there. I wish we had the time to figure it out, but for now, I think our priorities need to lie elsewhere.”
“Agreed. It doesn't seem like they will help us, but as long as they don't do anything threatening, let's ignore them."
Zephyr nods and makes a note on one of the many papers he has lying in front of him. I'm still not entirely sure of what exactly his role is in the Council. There are no birds here that he could be keeping, and most messages are sent via mental links or messengers. If a Guardian can fly a lot faster than birds, why use courier pigeons.
He seems to assist others a lot. I've seen him take orders from Tamara and help Algonquin in the library - but that may be just an excuse to spend time with his boyfriend. I don't think everyone is aware that the two of them are a couple, but to me, it's pretty obvious.
If my mother has Zephyr on her Council, there must be a reason for it. He must be helpful somehow, even if it's not obvious at first.
I look around the room. "Anything else we should discuss?"
"I have sent scouts to the Northern Gate," Gwain says, reminding me of our discussion yesterday. "We should hear back from them by tomorrow at the very latest. There's a snowstorm brewing, so their progress is slower than I'd hoped."
"Good, inform me as soon as you hear from them, whether it's good news or bad."
"Several Gods have announced that they're coming to your party tomorrow," Tamara tells me with a gleeful smile. "I've let the Palace staff know to prepare a banquet."
I shudder internally. I thought that now that we were at war, I wouldn't have to go to any more balls and festivities. No such luck. The Gods want to be entertained, and so entertain them we will. Hopefully, it will end up being an effective way of finding out who's supporting us and who isn't.
"Can you prepare a list for me with all who're going to attend?" I ask her, very aware that I will likely not have heard of most of them. Hopefully, I'll have some time tonight to do some research, or get one of the guys to explain who's important and who I can ignore.
"Of course, consider it done. Thor will be there as well, and he's bringing his daughter too. Not sure why but he wanted me to let you know."
Oh no. He wants me to do some girl to girl chat with her. This couldn't come at any worse time, but he's one of our closest allies and I can't afford to upset him.
"Are we all done here?" I get up and look at them with barely hidden impatience. "I have a Spring Goddess to meet. Gwain, Storm, you're with me."
* * *
A Palace guardleads us into one of the gardens. I'm a bit surprised, I'd have thought Flora would have been more comfortable in a room with a fireplace, not out here in the cold. But when I see her sitting amongst the flowers, the snow around them melted and new colour breathed into their petals, I understand why she's here. She's the Goddess of Spring, she's got a connection to nature. I could swear that there are some new flowers among the ones familiar to me. Did she actually make them grow in the few hours she's been our guest?
She seems deep in thought and doesn't even realise that we're here until we're standing right in front of her.
She looks up and I give her a friendly smile.
