Page 54 of The King of Koraha
“Shyla,” he rumbled. “You promised. Unless you’d rather not—”
“Can’t talk. I’m sleeping.”
After first meal at angle zero, Shyla and Rendor headed down to the Water Princess’s level. Except it wasn’t quite a full level, more like a…bowl. It was in a dip at the bottom of one of those oversized caverns. She guessed it was the lowest point in Nintri as the sound of rushing water vibrated the ground underneath their boots.
“How did you know where this is?” Shyla asked Rendor.
He shrugged. “I’ve a good sense of direction. And one of the sellers at the market gave me an idea of where the princess is located.”
“I’m buying maps of all the cities in Koraha later,” she grumbled.
“Does that mean you’re not an expert in everything, sunbeam?” He pressed a hand to his chest in mock horror.
“Shut up.” She tried really hard to ignore his sexy chuckle, but the desire to punch him transformed into another.
Of course it wouldn’t do to stop and kiss him breathless in public. They didn’t want to attract any attention. Right now no one followed them, but that was sure to change once they arrived at the Water Princess’s quarters. One of the mercs would be nearby keeping an eye on the entrance.
The princess’s extensive suite was guarded by four soldiers. However, the doors stood open and just inside was a reception room. The armed guards tensed when they approached and eyed Rendor warily but didn’t move to stop them as they entered. Four more guards blocked another entrance on the other side of the spacious area. In the middle, a woman sat behind a massive desk, talking to a man who twisted the fabric of his sleeves.
“…has to be injured or lost…” He sniffed back tears.
“We have search teams out looking for her. If they find her, we’ll let you know,” the woman said in a soothing voice. “I know it’s hard to wait, but that’s all you can do at this point. You don’t want to get lost as well.”
He swallowed a sob, nodded, and shuffled away.
When he was far enough away, the woman shook her head. “Poor man. I don’t have the heart to tell him his wife probably ran off with another guy.”
Curious, Shyla asked, “Do you get that often?”
“No, thank the goddess. How can I help you?”
“We’d like to schedule an appointment with the Water Princess.”
The receptionist raised a slender brown eyebrow. “As you can well imagine, the Water Princess is busy running the city. Perhaps I can—”
Shyla exposed the King’s sigil.
“Well now, why didn’t you lead with that?” The woman’s voice remained pleasant despite her frown.
“I wanted to see how accessible the princess was.”
“To strangers who just walk in, not very. But for the King’s emissary, she’ll make adjustments to her schedule.” The woman scanned a sheet of velbloud skin. “Do you need to see her now? She’s in a meeting, but I can interrupt her.” The receptionist’s pained expression said she’d rather do anything but that.
Shyla didn’t wish to upset the princess, but she’d rather not wait. The mercs would try to prevent them from coming back. “How about after her meeting is finished?”
“That will be fine. May I tell her your names?”
“Yes, I’m Shyla, and this is Rendor.”
She scanned him from head to toe. “Your bodyguard?”
“No,” Shyla said the same time Rendor said, “Yes.”
The woman smiled. “Which is it?”
“He’s my partner,” she said.
“I’m both,” Rendor said.
