I was sure the king would insist they speak now, and he surprised me when he conceded. He did not strike me as someone whose authority was challenged often. But then, neither did Lukas, so they were evenly matched in that respect.
“I will see you at breakfast,” he said to Lukas. His smile back in place, he looked at me. “I am glad you are safely home, Jesse.”
My awe of him had subsided enough to hear the sincerity in his voice. I relaxed a little more.
Maurelle gave me a motherly smile. “I ordered a hot meal for you. It will be here soon.”
“Thank you.”
Lukas walked his mother and father to the door, and they stopped for a moment to speak in lowered voices. It felt rude to watch them, so I retreated to the balcony to wait for him. Kaia followed me, and I rubbed her head as I stared at the distant ocean and hoped there were no more surprises in store for me today. I’d reached my limit, mentally and physically.
I was so lost in thought that I didn’t register Lukas’s presence until he came to lean on the balustrade beside me. He was close enough for our arms to touch, and I leaned toward him to rest my head against his shoulder.
He slipped his arm around me. “I’m sorry about that, Jesse. The last thing you needed tonight was to meet my parents.”
He said it so casually as if he wasn’t referring to the Unseelie king and his consort. I tried to sound nonchalant when I said, “It’s okay. They were nice.”
“They were, but they had no idea what condition you’d be in after what happened to you, and they should have waited for a more appropriate time to introduce themselves.” Lukas dropped his arm and turned toward me. “You would tell me if you were injured.”
I faced him and laid a hand against his chest. “I promise Gus didn’t hurt me. Aside from nearly giving me a heart attack, that is.”
“Gus?”
I grinned, feeling suddenly lighter. “You remember the drakkan I rescued back home? Well, he’s not so little anymore.”
Lukas stared at me. “That was your drakkan? And he remembers you?”
“Yes.” I laughed at his stunned expression. “Trust me; I couldn’t believe it either, and I was there.”
“You need to tell me exactly what happened today.” Lukas took my hand and led me inside to one of the couches. Kicking off my shoes, I sat with my back to the arm and my legs pulled up, but he moved them so my feet rested on his lap. When we were both settled, he said, “Talk.”
I told him about our flight to the cliffs and then to the island, omitting my encounter with the goddess. That wasn’t hard to do because she had done something to me so I couldn’t speak of my time with her. I didn’t like being controlled, but her hold over me lessened the guilt I felt over keeping something so important from Lukas.
Lukas’s brows furrowed. “He flew you straight to the location of the ke’tain?”
“Maybe he’s drawn to it since he had it inside of him for a few months,” I suggested, hoping it would sound feasible enough to satisfy him.
He mulled it over. “That is possible. The island is in the middle of the Ellyon Sea. Drakkans don’t go there because hunting is better close to the mainland.”
“Speaking of the island, how do the guards get there?” I asked. “Do they live in the temple until someone goes to relieve them?”
“There are dedicated portals in Unseelie and Seelie that allow travel to and from the island. The guards use those to change shifts once a day.”
I mulled over that bit of information. “Can anyone use the portals?”
He nodded. “Yes and no. Anyone from Unseelie can use our portals, but the portals won’t work for someone from Seelie. The same applies to their portals.”
“That makes sense.”
We were interrupted by a bell chime. Lukas lifted my legs off him and went to answer the door. A liveried elf entered carrying a large covered tray, which Lukas directed him to set on the small table near the couch. The elf left, and Lukas lifted the cover of the tray to reveal a bowl of seasoned grains topped with meat in a thick cream sauce. The meat was raha, the Fae version of chicken, and it was one of the foods I liked most so far. There was also a salad of leafy greens, a piece of crusty bread, and a glass of juice.
Lukas lifted the tray and settled it on my lap. My mouth watered, and my stomach growled at the sight of the first food I’d seen since the market, which felt like days ago.
I picked up the fork, touched by Maurelle’s kindness. “What about you? You’re not hungry?”
He sat. “Faolin and the others made sure I ate while we were searching for you. Can’t have the crown prince fainting from hunger and falling off his mount.”
A laugh burst from me at the image. “Definitely not.” I ate a few pieces of meat to silence my noisy stomach. “I saw a group of people with torches on tarrans when Gus brought me back. Were you with them?”
“It’s possible. We had people searching the whole valley for you.”
My meal lost all of its flavor, and I set down my fork.
“Do not apologize.” He fixed me with a stern look. “Did you call that drakkan and order him to take you away?”
“No, but you have more important things to do than worrying about me. First, I get sick and then carried off by a drakkan. Maybe it would have been better if I had gone to your island with my family.”
His jaw hardened. “Jesse, you didn’t get sick; you were poisoned, and Faolin will find the person who did it. And do you honestly think I wouldn’t worry about you if you had gone with your parents? Having you here where Davian can’t possibly get to you is the only reason I can focus on the other things.”
My heart squeezed at his admission, and I gave him a small smile. “Remember you said that the next time something happens.”
“Next time?” He let out a pained laugh. “Were you this much trouble in New York?”
I grinned at him. “Wow, you have a short memory.”
Lukas shook his head, laughing. “Eat your food before it gets cold.”
I obeyed happily. This wasn’t exactly what he’d meant when he had asked me to have dinner with him tonight. It was better. I wanted to meet his brother and sister, but I’d take time alone with him whenever I could get it.
“You like it?”
“It’s delicious,” I said around a mouthful of bread. I looked up and caught him watching me with a thoughtful expression. “What?”
“I asked that question in Fae. When did the language come to you?”
Swallowing the food, I said, “You spoke in Fae? Say something else.”
“You have cream sauce on your chin,” he said and grinned when I swiped at it with my finger.
I gaped at him, and then I squealed. “I can understand Fae!”
“You speak it, too. It occurred to me that we spoke Fae the whole time my parents were here. I was too preoccupied to realize it then.”
“Is that how it works? I just start speaking the language without even realizing it?” I frowned, trying to remember exactly when it had started.
Lukas seemed to be trying to work that out, too. “From what I’ve heard, it happens gradually over a week or two. You couldn’t understand a word of Fae at the market. Did anything happen on the island that you forgot to tell me about?”