Page 162 of Shadow Queen
“I’ll write them again.”
“We’re supposed to be allies,” he bellowed, his anger now raging. “This is why I wed you. This is what an alliance is!”
Norah stopped. Even though his words were true, they still hurt her. “So, what would you have me do?” she asked coldly. “Will you have me let Mercia fall, to give you more forces in Kharav?”
“Your kingdom won’t fall to drifters. You don’t face a real enemy.”
Her own fury grew with his words. “I don’t face a real enemy? You know the attacks on our villages aren’t from drifters. I have an enemy not only at my door, but in my home as well. Have you forgotten the attempt on my life? Do you forget someone wants me dead, wants my lord justice dead?”
“I want your justice dead!” he thundered.
Silence fell between them.
Norah couldn’t think through her anger. “I’m sorry our alliance is failing you. I’m sorry ourmarriageis failing you.” She turned and headed toward her sanctuary.
“Salara,” he called.
But she didn’t turn back.
Alexander walked down the main hall of the Mercian castle toward his study, lost in his mind. He didn’t see the servant until the man appeared abruptly in front of him.
“A letter, my lord,” the servant said with a small bow.
Alexander took it and turned it over, and his own seal looked back at him. The image of the bear had been his father’s seal. Now it was synonymous with the seal of the lord justice—the seal Beurnat the Bear had used when he was justice, the seal Alexander now used. But really, the seal meant family.Adrian.He smiled.
He waited until the servant disappeared around a corner before opening it. And when the words found him, he stopped. He read them again to be sure and leaned against the wall.
A child.
Adrian was expecting a child.
A sudden wave of emotion hit him, and he wiped his face. He’d never thought about children in the family. He’d always pictured himself and Adrian as the only two of their name. But now… now there would be a child. He’d be an uncle. His eyes welled, and he smiled.
He was going to be an uncle.
His lip trembled through his smile.
He was going to be an uncle.
He gave himself the moment of joy, then turned back the way he’d come. As he stepped into the courtyard, he spotted Katya walking toward him. He couldn’t help the grin that came to his lips before he reached her.
Her brows drew together. “This can’t be good. What are you grinning about?”
He handed her the letter but couldn’t wait for her to read the words. “I’m going to be an uncle.”
He couldn’t see her face, but he knew her mouth dropped open underneath her wrap, and her eyes smiled back at him. “Congratulations, that’s beautiful news. So much to be happy about.”
He nodded, still smiling as she handed the letter back to him. But there was something in her eyes—something not right. “Are you all right?” he asked.
She nodded. “Of course.”
They stood for a moment, a long pause between them. Katya reached up and pulled down her wrap, and she held out her own letter. “I’m to return to Kharav.”
What?She was being called back? But she couldn’t be called back. “You can’t return, I still need the Shadowmen. I still need…”
He needed her. To stay.
“Kharav needs me. We depart tomorrow.” Her words were firm, and he understood. Where duty called, one went. There was no other decision to be considered, despite racking his mind for one. Her eyes were on him, and he swallowed. Did she see how much it bothered him?
