Kachka and her comrades sipped their tepid wine and coldly eyed the royals of the household.
“What do you want to do?” Marina asked in their own language, voice very low.
“Siblings, you take first watch.”
“I’ll take second,” Marina offered. “Tatyana, you’ll take third?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” Kachka glanced over to make sure none of the others were paying them any attention. And like true royals, they weren’t. “Everyone stays with weapons close at hand.”
“What do you think they will do?” Zoya asked. “These”—she looked them over, lip curling in disgust—“royals?”
“I don’t know. But I don’t trust them and neither does Branwen. She has very good sense of things. So, we will be ready. I will stay with the king tonight to ensure his protection.”
Tatyana snorted while the others smirked at Kachka.
“What?” she asked. “What does that mean?”
“Yes, Kachka Shestakova,” Nina suddenly said. “Protect the king—with your very strong *.”
“I like it better when you do not talk, witch.”
“If anyone can protect a royal with her *, it’s Kachka Shestakova,” Ivan laughed.
“All of you, shut up.”
“It’s all right if you like him,” Zoya explained. “I’ve liked several of my husbands.”
“I know that was hard for you,” Ivan muttered.
“Shut up, hysterical male.”
“Are you all done?” Kachka asked.
“At least we don’t have to worry about getting drunk from this weak wine,” Marina complained. “It’s like drinking water with some flavor thrown in.”
“You know, Kachka Shestakova,” Zoya suddenly said, “I’m thinking of trying a dragon male myself. You seem so happy with the dragon king’s cock.”
“It is effective.”
“And that’s all a Daughter of the Steppes wants,” she said, sagely. “An effective cock.”
Brannie dropped down in a chair next to Aidan’s sister, Orla.
“You couldn’t look more uncomfortable if you were covered in acid,” Brannie noted.
“I only came out to see Aidan.”
“I understand. I’m close to my brother Celyn. We’re only twenty years apart, so we might as well be twins.”
“Did he ever leave you behind?”
“All the time! It drove me crazy. He got to do such fun things and I was left back at the cave. Always with a ‘you’re only forty, you’re too young to go.’ It drove me mad. But I always had aunts, uncles, and cousins around that I liked. They taught me how to fight, how to grill my meat properly, and how to destroy an entire village without killing absolutely everyone. Things every She-dragon needs to learn.” She patted Orla’s hand. “But you can shift now, which will make it easier for you to get around.”
“Aidan says it’s still not safe for me to go with him. Especially with the war coming. He thinks I’ll be safer here.”
“He does?” Brannie asked.
“It’s hard to destroy the Stone Castle walls. They were built to withstand pretty much everything.”
Brannie was forced to shrug. “Well, he’s not wrong. . . .”
“But you wouldn’t leave me here.”
“As miserable as you look? No. But brothers focus on how safe their sisters will be. That’s all they care about.”
“I guess.”
“Don’t be sad. He does love you. Very much.”
“How do you know that?”
“You’re the only one here he hasn’t purposely tried to destroy emotionally.”
Gaius stood by the stairs as Aidan made his way over to him.
“How are you holding up?” Gaius asked.
“Fine. Sorry about my father. I know he’s—”
“A prat?”
“Basically.”
“I do have to say he didn’t seem insane. Paranoid perhaps, but then so am I.”
“I’ll work on him.”
“We don’t have tons of time here, Aidan.”
“I know.”
“And we can only get the Riders to wait for so long before they’ll decide to move on their own.”
“I’m also aware of that. Just leave it to me.”
“And you should also know . . . that Brannie complained to her mum about your father.”
Aidan let out a breath. “So we have less than twenty-four hours now?”
“Pretty much.”
“Got it.”
“King Gaius,” Cinnie trilled as Aidan’s two sisters walked over to him. “My sister and I have a little dispute we need you to settle.”
“Who’s going to fuck him first?”
A question that got Aidan backslapped across the face.
Aidan snarled, his hand going to his jaw.
Gaius quickly stepped between the siblings, sure Aidan was about to punch his sister back. Not that he would blame the dragon. The backhanding was a rude, disdainful act, born of obvious contempt.
“I’d love to help, Lady Cinnie,” Gaius said in his most royal-soothing tones.