"I am not sure I understand her, Gideon. If anyone would accept a Demon into her society with open arms, it would be her. Just as she welcomed you and Legna."
"We are not a threat to her reign and her sense of independence."
"Elijah couldn't care less about sharing her throne. All he wants is her. And willingly. He wants her to come willingly. Her independence is vital in order for that to happen."
One of Gideon's silver brows lifted in sudden contemplation.
"Perhaps this is an important point," he mused to the King. "Siena values her throne so highly…Noah, I think I may be able to help our Captain after all."
Gideon disappeared with a wink of silver light, leaving the King without explanation.
Give me a moment alone before you join us.
Are you certain? It only took a moment for her to lose her temper last time.
You will know when to come. I trust you, sweet.
Legna settled on that remark with pleasure. She drifted lightly in her husband's thoughts as he approached the throne room.
Siena had welcomed her court back to her outer and inner throne rooms little by little, so there were quite a few people there and the guards let him pass easily. They were not the ones to witness Siena's outburst those few days ago, so they had no reason to hesitate in doing so. Legna was in the room herself, in a distant corner well out of sight of the Queen, talking within a group of Lycanthrope gentlemen who found the gorgeous Demon female a delight for their eyes and their intellects. Unlike Jacob, Gideon was not disturbed in the least by this. Her smiles and her laughter were abundant and beautiful to see and hear. It gave him a remarkable sense of pride to watch her wrap the formerly stubborn members of this species around her pretty fingers. Her pregnant state only magnified their eagerness to cater to any desire she might voice. But he knew that at the end of the night, when dawn came, she would seek his bed and no one else's for the rest of eternity.
He could feel her eyes on him even as several of the women of the court approached him with equal warmth and greeting. He was not as social and diplomatic as his wife was, but this somehow managed to make him even more sought after. He had been puzzled by this unsought attention for months before his wife had deigned to explain it to him. Apparently, they considered him "mysterious." And this, for some reason, was attractive to them.
Gideon was his usual cool and direct self as he moved through his admirers. He felt the Queen's attention the minute she noticed him. Company parted as she stood up from her throne, where she had been in a discussion with her aides, Anya and Syreena.
She looked terribly pale and it was clear she was not sleeping properly. In fact, not at all, he thought as he measured her physiology with sharp senses. She descended the steps to the throne platform and continued from the platform to the main floor. She was dressed in a ceremonial outfit of gold cloth. The jacket was an intricately embroidered bolero vest that left her midriff, sides, and back completely bare. The long, light skirt that matched was settled very low on her h*ps and was made up of about a half dozen panels of fabric that fluttered behind her as she moved toward him.
She reached out to him with both hands, the gold and diamond bands around her upper left arm glinting in the overhead light. He took her offered hands in his and bent his head in an elegant bow to her. She reached to place a rare kiss of public affection on his cheek and whispered to him as the crowd around them murmured with speculation and surprise.
"Can you ever forgive me? I behaved like a child," she said.
"Untrue. You were upset, and I am capable of understanding why."
Her kiss was a distinctive honor in this court. By bestowing it upon him, she had just changed his and, by association, his wife's position in the court. No longer were they to be just a fascination, a curiosity, and foreign ambassadors. They were, from that moment on, to be considered close personal friends to Her Majesty.
"You wish to press your Warrior Captain's suit, I suppose," she said shrewdly, after taking a moment to measure him.
"I believe that you might be interested in what I have come to say. I recommend you hear me out."
"Apparently my advisors agree," she noted, lifting a hand to indicate Syreena and Anya, who had their heads close together in discussion while watching them. Siena linked her arm through Gideon's and he walked with her as her people parted to let them pass. "Did you see Myriad when you were visiting your King?" she asked conversationally, making small talk while still in earshot of others.
"Your ambassador comes to the castle often. I believe she and Noah have formed an antagonistic relationship over the chessboard."
Siena laughed, the sound seeming to brighten her appearance.
"Myriad is a stubborn creature. She will not give up until she defeats him," she informed.
"I beg your pardon," Gideon said smoothly, "but I believe it is Noah who is trying to beat your little half-breed."
"Really?" Siena laughed again, her golden eyes lighting with amusement. "Clever thing. I knew she was the proper choice to send to your court. I can only pray she doesn't get Noah so miffed that he declares war again."
Gideon smiled as she took him away from the populated areas of the throne room and its halls and strolled with him into the more distant reaches of the endless structure. She was the first to break the companionable silence that had formed.
"If you are here to remind me how futile my resistance to this Imprinting is, I can assure you I am already getting the picture. I am not myself, and I know it shows." She paused, and Gideon gave her time to decide what she wished to share with him. "I do not understand how you and your mate enjoy this thing so much. Whenever I see her, she is glowing and beautiful and smiling. Your wit is the first thing I have been able to laugh at since returning to court."
"When Legna and I first Imprinted fully on each other," the medic began, "we were not what one might consider the best of friends. In truth, we had been hostile toward each other for nearly a decade because of an incident that had wounded her pride. One I completely fouled up because of my distorted sense of right and wrong. The moment we Imprinted, however, we always understood it was inevitable that we would become lovers. That we would be mated for the rest of our lives. We understood this because as Demons it is part of our history and physiology, though until recently a very rare occurrence. Fortunately, the one thing we were able to control was the time we took to resolve issues between us, to get to know one another before Beltane forced us to each other. That preparation was vital and precious, Siena. Without it, I am certain that it would have taken much longer for us to find each other's hearts.
"Samhain will force you and Elijah to one another. I will make you this guarantee. I see the compulsion building within you as the time nears. It is mirrored in Elijah as well. Ramifications in both of our societies aside, I assure you that despite your struggles, you will find yourself waking next to him the morning after Samhain."
"You tell me to put my society aside when that is the one thing I cannot do. Anything that affects me affects my people." Siena bit her lips gently. "I am not a Demon female. You have never seen this particular cross in species before. You say it cannot be fought, but I am no ordinary being."
"Nor am I," the Ancient Demon reminded her with a cool, level tone as his mercury-colored gaze fell on her golden one. "Siena, you have learned after a long and arduous acquaintance to trust the truth of my words. Knowing me these twenty-five years, you choose to doubt me now? After you put the fate of your throne and all of your people on my word and my teachings of what your so-called barbarian enemies were truly about?"
He watched as she pressed a palm to her forehead, her pace beside him never changing. He felt her pain, could see the tension of the ache pounding in her head. It disturbed him that he did not yet know how to manipulate Lycanthrope physiology well enough to be much use to her. He had spent those five years of captivity learning and this past half-year reteaching himself the basics about their physicality. But it would take another few years of study before he began to make progress in healing this complex species. Humans and Demons were one thing, but the intricacies of the chemistry of a changeling, the DNA, the alterability of their entire bodies, made the art of healing them the most difficult challenge the highly skilled medic had encountered in all his long life.
The only thing he could offer her was words. Hopefully the right ones that would help her to understand she was making herself sick over something she simply could not change, even with all the power in the world. This was an act of supremacy too far beyond any of them, no matter how powerful they became.
My love…
Yes, sweet? he asked the soft, bright presence in his mind.
You must tell her something she wants to hear, Legna said wisely. It is not like you to be indirect. She does not respond to dictates. She will respond only to possible solutions. Siena cannot separate the woman from the Queen. She has repressed her womanhood savagely out of fear of being forced to share her throne, out of fear of losing control of her surroundings. This is why she is so terrified now.
Gideon knew Legna understood the matter far better than anyone could. As a Mind Demon, Legna had an amazing grasp of psychology that had grown exponentially since they had mated, sharing their power with each other.
"Tell your mate to mind her own business," the Queen remarked dryly. "I feel her presence buzzing around you, Gideon."
Siena had telepathy with other animals, including Lycanthropes in their animal forms, but she was not reading Gideon's mind. She did, however, sense Legna's presence in his mind and had something of a sixth sense that allowed her to have a vague idea of what their thoughts and discussions were tending toward. It was rather like the ability of predator to sense the next move a prey would make.
"She tells me to inform you that your well-being is very much her business," Gideon relayed. "And she reminds you that we are your friends, not your enemies."
"Everyone is my enemy," the Queen said bitterly, her pacing finally slowing as the weight of her saddening emotions weighed on her. "Or they soon will be. What will happen to our peace now, old friend?"