Page 5 of Suspicions on the Stage
Glaring at him, I keep Slade in between the tall hockey player and I while the Prince and Iggy follow. The dragon can stay in the back, watching for shenanigans and keep his yap shut, as faras I’m concerned. He’s much more likely to piss these assholes off before I am. “Axel is the one on the throne, yes?”
“Yeah, that’s my dad,” the siren says glumly. “He’s insane, I swear to hell.”
The huge man sitting on the gilded throne in a leather cut and board shorts with flip flops hasn’t even looked our way. I know he saw Tracer come in ahead of us, but his eyes haven’t moved from the nymphs belly dancing to the music played by the surfer-style acoustic band in the corner. I don’t see Slade’s mom—though I have no idea what the hell she looks like. She could be any of the Peg Bundy looking women flitting around the opposite end of the circus-sized tent and I wouldn’t know.
“Why the hell are the male presenting bikers dressed like surfers that bred with biker gangs?” Liam asks as we cross the last bit of distance to the throne area. “And the female presenting shifters are like in… bouffants and heels? This is so fucking strange.”
Iggy chuckles softly. “TheSonsare a Cali gang through and through, though I’m not sure that’s to blame for their egregious fashion sense. Notice how much seaweed and shells are in their hair and beards? They’re Poseidon acolytes, and everyone knows some of their hold on their territory is from his boons.”
Fuuuuuuck. A deity worshipping gang of fashion-challenged gill-lickers—just what I needed.
“I wish you’d mentioned that before we got here.”
Slade looks up at me, his beautiful eyes concerned. “Why?”
“Because Poseidon and Helios are historically big fans of dragons—along with some other deities that have Society ties—and I killed a very old, very powerful fucking dragon in apublicly covered trial?” I grit out as the muscled shark finally cuts his gaze to our group. He sneers immediately, and I keep my features neutral until we stop a respectable distance from their royal dais.
I can feel the unease of the men behind me, but they’ll have to wait until later. Iggy and Slade weren’t hiding the gang’s affiliation, I know. However, it changes how they’ll feel about me and how we’ll respond to whatever bullshit they fling at us. I’m not eager to piss off any other gods or goddesses for a bit; I’m already on a leash because of how the Society trial went.
“Son.”
Slade steps forward a little bit, his shoulders squared as he looks at his dad. The hammerhead shifter is tall like my siren, but that’s where the similarities end. Where Axel is broad and muscled with a ZZ Top-esque platinum beard and deeply tanned skin, Slade looks like he could be part Fae rather than an aquatic shifter. The Prez is decorated with shells, seaweed, scars, and hemp jewelry adorned by shark teeth where Slade looks handsome and elegant in the suit Liam had delivered. It makes me wonder even more what his mother looks like, especially since my musical man told us she only gave birth to him and the twins.
Speaking of which, where the fuck are all these siblings?
“Good evening, Father,” Slade says as he looks from the leader to the various people sitting on each side of him. “Thank you for seeing us.”
A chorus of loud, derisive laughter sounds out from the peanut gallery and my eyes narrow. I open my mouth to snarl at the lazy, weed-scented fucker, but Lucas grabs my armsurreptitiously. His expression tells me to wait, so I press my lips together as I watch the idiot minions snicker and clink beer bottles.
“Good evening, Father,” Axel mimics in a child-like voice as he thumps his fist on the arm of the throne. “How the fuck did I contribute to such a spineless little shit? My first born should be my right hand, my righteous fist of glory, but instead, he’s a singing school teacher.”
What a dick.
“Lay off him, Axel.” Iggy comes forward, his posture deceptively casual as he smirks at the array of motorcycle club members. “Slade is going to have his doctorate in two years, and you’re not getting your slimy hands on him. Tracer and all the rest of your progeny are eager to compete for the seat you’ll never give up until they throw your rotting fins into the deep blue.”
“I thought you said?—”
Lucas cuts off my irritated whisper with a sharp shake of his head and I roll my eyes to the ceiling of the stupid tent. I hate these kinds of games, and I’d rather just rip one of Axel’s stupid lieutenants to pieces with my bare hands to prove my point. When Slade moves to Iggy’s side, Liam takes his spot between the polar bear and me with a tiny smirk.
“Let them handle it until we’re needed,Salaadir,” Liam murmurs as he takes my hand and brings it to his lips. “They know the players better than us and watching will help us learn who is who.”
Lucas grabs his other hand, giving the Prince a happy grin. “That’s why he’s gonna be a King, you know.”
Damn, he’s so adorable now that he’s all in with Liam.
“Ignatius.” The disdain dripping from the single word is palpable. Now I know Axel and the mage have tangled before. Axel’s lip hitches as he looks over at my men with a studied expression, his head barely cocking a bit when he gets to Liam and Kaspar. “I see you’ve brought reinforcements this time. Hoping to avoid getting schooled by my children again?”
Iggy snorts, standing firm as he looks at the jackass with zero fucks to give about our dangerous surroundings. “Finn, I could run all of your kiddos to the bottom of the ocean before they even got a lick in and you know it. Slade’s the most powerful one and it’s why you keep badgering him to return. Otherwise, you would have written him off long ago.”
“He ismine,” the goofy biker seethes as he thumps his fist on the arm of the throne again. “I will do what I wish with those that come from my seed.”
Oh, ew. Fucking disgusting terminology, no matter how accurate.
“I beg to differ.”
A gasp sounds out and I feel every eye on the room turn to us. The groupies, old ladies, minions, and sycophants were pretending not to watch until now, but my single declaration has them all ears. Axel’s gaze lands on me as I join Iggy and Slade at the front, crossing my arms over my chest in my power pose. My exterior is calm and icy, but internally, I beg Des and my gargoyle to keep their shit in check so I can negotiate.
“Just who thefuckare you to question my authority onmyland?”
