Page 14 of War Queen
She smiled as he winked and slipped out the door. Then she rose and straightened the furs and linens. She didn’t want Soren knowingshe’dlain on his bed either. Norah gave the room a final check, ensuring everything looked in its place, and then stepped back out into the hall. Bhastian acted like nothing was unusual, and she was appreciative. He missed the lord commander too.
Her stomach grumbled. She supposed she should get something to eat.
The sound of birds chirping gave the morning a song, but her spirit fell as they reminded her ofhim. Her unknown enemy. The man who wanted her dead. Was he watching her? What if he was? She tried not to dwell on it. She couldn’t be paranoid. And surely a possessed bird wouldn’t be singing. She glanced back at Bhastian, who followed at a respectful distance, and he nodded to her.
As she turned the corner into the mainway, she caught sight of Mikael at the end of the hall leading to the throne room. He was talking to a man—not a soldier or an adviser—a man in working clothes, uncommon around the castle. He nodded to the man, who bowed back and departed. Mikael held a smile on his lips as she approached, so whatever he was tending hadn’t added to his burdens. That was good.
“Where are you headed?” he asked her.
“Just going to get some breakfast.”
His brow dipped. “You haven’t eaten yet?”
She shook her head. “I wasn’t very hungry.”
“I haven’t had anything either. I’ll eat with you.” He held out his hand, and a light gleamed in the darks of his eyes. “But first, walk with me.”
He seemed to be in a good mood, and she smiled. “All right.” She put her hand in his, and he led her down the hall, toward the throne room. “Where are we going?” she asked.
“I just feel like walking with my wife.”
Very suspicious. “Hmm,” she said through a pursed smile as she looked up at him out of the corners of her eyes.
When they reached the throne room, he stopped. And waited.
She looked at him quizzically, then glanced around. The room was empty. No one was there…
Then she saw it. Her mouth fell open.
“What have you done?” she whispered.
Norah stared at the ornately carved thrones that had been cut from their foundations and placed side by side. While the old bases had been sanded down to be even with the stone floor, the remnants still showed where the chairs had spent many generations.
“What… Why… Mikael…” She stood, speechless.
“Now, perhaps you won’t hate this room so much.”
“I was joking!”Kind of. “I didn’t think you’d rip up your throne room.”
He smiled as he pulled her closer. “I didn’t rip it up. I made improvements.”
As much as she absolutely loved him right now, she shook her head. “Mikael, people are going to be upset by this. Those chairs were beautiful.”
He shrugged. “They still are.”
“But you’ve changed something that’s been a certain way for generations. Like it was nothing.”
“It wasn’t nothing. It was a problem—a problem I’ve solved.”
She tried to purse back her smile. “Your mother’s going to die.”
“Well, she’s selected where she means to be buried, so I feel prepared.”
She shouldn’t have, but she laughed. “I’m serious! When she finds out…” Norah covered her mouth and then glanced at her hand. “I’ll tell you what she’s going to do, she’s going to rip this ring back off my finger. She was just starting tolikeme.”
He clasped her chin and forced her to look up at him. “Stop,” he said softly. “I’m the first salar to have a salara that loves him so much that even the distance between our thrones is too great. Having to… resolve this issue… makes me proud. And anyone who objects, well…” He tilted his head in indifference.
She shook her head, grinning. “I love you.”
