Page 12 of The King is Dead
He looked down at me, his brows pinching over his nose, his lips pursed. But then he clicked his heels and dropped his chin in a quick bow.
“Of course,Your Majesty,”he said through his teeth.
I sighed, but when he’d yanked the door open and stood aside at attention like a common footman, he wouldn’t meet my eyes.
“Thank you,” I murmured as I passed him. “And the formalities aren’t necessary.”
He didn’t respond, which was childish, but I didn’t have the time or energy to soothe him. I had to go to Gall soon.
Melek was lying on the bed when I entered, his large body sprawled, one leg dangling off the side and swinging loose. I scanned him with my eyes, wishing it was my hands tracing those ripples of muscle along his ribs, touching that puckered scar on his side.
Melek looked as if he didn’t even know I was there, his body slack and eyes on the ceiling. But I could feel his tension in the bond. And it twisted tighter when he looked down and saw me.
There was a small, pocket-door in the bars, a way to pass things in and out of the cell without offering enough room for the massive man to get free. I opened it and placed the large platter of food on the box underneath it. “Lunch,” I said quietly.
He didn’t move immediately. I relocked the pocket-door and walked as calmly as I could back to a small table and chairs on theedge of the room, pulling them into the center, right next to the bars. Then I sat down to eat.
By that time, Melek was sitting up, watching me with dark eyes. He still hadn’t said anything.
“I told you Gall is here,” I said casually, as if this were nothing more than an easy meal between friends. Or perhaps colleagues.
Melek grunted. He got off the bed and started over to where the platter lay on that box. He lifted it and sniffed it like he thought it might be tainted.
I ignored that dig and spoke while he carried it back to a table not far from where I sat.
“I’ve kept him asleep until now because I needed to see you and talk to you first. But I don’t want to keep him under any longer. I’m going to wake him after I leave you. I have a friend here. A servant who has helped with Istral for years. She’s amazing. But every person is different. If you have any… advice about ways to handle Gall when he’s confused, or disoriented, or how you’d like me to answer the questions he’ll inevitably have, I’m here so you can tell me. And if you have a message to pass along, I’ll do that.”
I took two mouthfuls—he took four—before he answered.
“I should be there. He needs to see a friendly face.”
The relief that sang through my body at the sound of his voice almost brought tears to my eyes.
“Normally, I would agree with you. But he still more-than-half believes you raped me,” I said bluntly. Wearily.
Melek stopped eating for a moment. He didn’t respond. Then he went back to his chewing, but much more slowly.
“I’m planning to tell him the truth,” I said. “All of it… since he knows the most important part already.Ifhe remembers.”
Melek startled and looked up at me quickly. I saw the moment it occurred to him that it didn’t matter if Gall knew the truth about the rape because we were no longer in Nephilim hands.
But the matebond?
“What if he says something?” he asked quietly, his voice a low gravel that made my heart sing.
I shrugged as if I’d thrown caution to the wind, but my adrenaline spiked. “That’s the other reason I’m here. I wanted to warn you… I do not plan to take this decision from your hands. But it’s possible he will, by accident. Of course, others might write it off as his… limitations. Still. The risk remains. I didn’t want you to think I was trying to trap you. I believe we made a mistake not being open with him earlier. It’s an error I don’t want to repeat.”
“But you saidno onecould know that we’re mates,” he growled, stabbing his fork at the meat on his plate.
“That is only true as long as you refuse me and the crown.”
He stayed silent, chewing. Thinking.
Brooding.
I cleared my throat. “Unless… have you made a decision?”
He huffed. “I’m still trying to figure out what your angle is.”
