Page 4 of Suspicions on the Stage
“Aw, bro, we’ve got a great competition for that role between all your sibs. None of us want you to stay—at least, not for that reason. We want the crown and we know you don’t.” Tracer claps his hand on the smaller shifter’s shoulder, but his forehead is creased with worry. He believes what he’s saying, but he doesn’t trust their family, either.
Ignatius harrumphs, moving closer to Slade’s side. “I’ve kept him from working his bullshit on you before and I will again.”
Morgana stops, turning to look at all of us. “What bullshit, Iggy? What do we need to be ready for?”
“His relatives,” the professor says with a grimace. “His mother, Azul, is a siren/mermaid hybrid. She’s no fan of Axel because of his adultery, but she also misses her eldest and favorite son. She’d happily fuck over his chance to live outside of this world, just to have him back in the fold. Last time, she tried every trick in her magical repertoire to get him to agree to marry some other Old Lady’s kid so he’d have to stay,”
Our woman looks horrified, and within seconds, she’s hauled Slade into her arms to hug him tightly. “It will never happen. Her charms don’t work on my kind—either of them—and I’ll take her head if she even tries.”
Hot. As. Fuck.
Clearing my throat, I give the others an amused look before turning to Morgana. “Maybe be careful how enthusiastically youdiscuss killing people to defend us. Going into this mess with a giant hard-on probably isn’t the best condition for negotiations.”
Her face flushes red, making me smile in delight. I adore that we can make someone as old as her do that. “Stop it, Li. Now I’m inappropriately armed for battle.”
“Take note, folks. No squishy stuff for Lady M and no murder for us or we’re all going to have distracted brains,” Lucas smirks. “We all have our foibles.”
“How about we allfocusand none of that will be a goddamned problem.” Kaspar scowls at every single one of us, even Tracer. “Tell me about the rest of these people; who else is important to watch?”
The kraken shrugs. “My sisters—Coral, Isla, and Roxy—are triplets. They’re all hybrids and have various powers from selkie to mermaid to siren to shifter. Their parentage has always been in question and they’re gunning for the head of the class hard because they always feel like the bastard children.”
Great. Triplets with huge chips on their shoulders.
“Don’t forget the twins. I trust them the least of all,” Slade mutters. “They don’t have magic, but they’ve got brute strength and are dumb enough to do shit no one else would risk.”
Iggy snickers. “Duke and Beck are both hammerhead shifters like their dad. Parentage very clear, and they know it. Theyhatethat the softer, smarter, legitimate child is the heir apparent. The two of them function as Axel’s seconds, and they’re ruthless in their defense of the gang because they think it will earn them the spot all the kids are after. That is, except for Slade.”
“Holy fuck, that’s a lot of land mines.” Lucas rubs the back of his neck. “I could handle the sharks because I’m better on land and fabulous in water, but…”
“Iggy and I will be able to deal with the magical aquatic family members. I’m much stronger and older, and Ignatius is from one of the most powerful families in the country. They won’t be able to withstand our power, should we be forced to use it.”
A low, dark laugh escapes Morgana’s lips and she arches a brow. “If I get close enough, this statue garden will have more displays. Stone sinks very quickly, and I’ll drop their ass in the middle of the fucking ocean one by one.”
Damn, she’s so fucking self-assured when it comes to her powers and strength.
“I suppose if you defeated an elder dragon like Magnus… I shouldn’t worry. Right?”
She looks down at Slade, her expression soft as she murmurs, “No, you should not. Magnus had the power of a centuries old dragon behind him. He also had a lot of… enhancements I don’t think most people knew about. I sure as hell didn’t until I was cornered, and some of that is why I… Well, that’s not a discussion for public places.”
Kaspar tilts his head, his gazeverycurious now. Dragon politics interest him as much as Fae politics, as he still keeps in line with what the dragons demand. His expression smooths back out to uncaring quickly, but I know he’s going to demand she share what the fuckface did later on. “Alright, enough soft shit. Move it. I’d like to get back to our home turf before this party gets out of hand. And I’m certain it will, given the beings in attendance.”
The snort Slade’s brother lets out tells me my guard is absolutely correct, so I nod. “Let’s enter the lair of the fish men. We’ll see just how stupid these gear heads are.”
“Very,” Tracer mutters as he opens the doors to the building. “Don’t underestimateanythingwhile you're here. It would be dangerous as hell.”
Luckily, danger is something I’ve been in every day of my life as a Fae royal; I’ll be just fine.
kings & queens
MORGANA
Tracer leads us up to this ridiculous tent set-up on what must be a spell to make a sandy beachside. There are a fucktonof fish folk milling around in the offensively themed home base for theSonsMC gang. I have no idea why this douchebag decorated their territory like something out of theArabian Nights, but it’s weird as hell. As we get closer, I notice that the scantily dressed shifters serving the leadership aren’t only females, but males and non-binary as well.
At least they’re equal opportunity in their bullshit subjugation roles.
“Chill, Lady M. We can’t stomp on their stupid aqua shoes the minute we arrive,” Lucas says as he moves to my side. “I know this is pissing you off; hell, it’s pissing off the ancient grumpy balls back there, but we have to play it cool.”
Kaspar snorts, muttering, “Smarter than he looks every time.”
