Fantasyland 01 Wildest Dreams (40 page)

Drakkar’s eyes went to Annar who was
standing, hands on hips, in the corner. “Get to Ravenscroft,
Lazarus, Njord and Sinclair. They’re all here. I’ll need to speak
to them before I go.”

Annar lifted a chin and left the room.

Drakkar looked to Aurora.

“And you?” he queried.

“I’ve never heard of him before,” she
replied instantly, her eyes blank but active, though not, Drakkar
sensed, from an attempt to hide something.

Drakkar turned his head to Franka. “And
you?”

She lifted a fluttering hand to her wide,
garish expanse of cleavage. “Me?” she drawled.

Drakkar turned his whole body to face his
cousin.

Then he said softly, “I know you fancy
yourself a cat who isn’t content unless she’s got herself a mouse
to play with but do not mistake me for a mouse, Franka. A mouse
cannot yank a cat’s throat out with his fist.”

He knew she knew his threat was not idle
when she lost some color in her face.

“What do you know of Hernod Grieg?” Drakkar
pressed.

“
I live in Fleuridia, Frey, as you know.
And even there, I don’t consort with
merchants,
” she said her last with disdain and not a small
amount of folly for she was speaking to one.

Drakkar moved to stand two feet in front of
her.

“You called the maid to you, Franka, I noted
it. There were two glasses of champagne on that tray, I noted that
too. You took your glass first,” Drakkar remarked.”

“It’s touching to see how much attention you
pay your new bride, Drakkar,” she purred.

Frey didn’t allow his expression to change
but he lifted his hand and touched his index finger lightly on her
throat, watching her body tense as she pulled in a breath.

“You cannot forget mere seconds ago, Franka,
when I told you I was no mouse,” he whispered, she looked deep in
his eyes, read them correctly and swallowed.

Drakkar dropped his hand.

Franka she spoke.

“I cannot say I recall how the tray was
offered, Frey, but I simply took the glass closest to me. And your
unfortunate wench,” she waved a hand low to where Viola had been
lying, “left quickly therefore did not wait to see if her endeavors
were successful. What I can say was that the girl was hovering,
that I noted prior to arriving at your fair princess. But that is
all I can say.”

“Is it possible for you to assure me in a
way that would actually convince me you’ve had no hand in tonight’s
events?” Drakkar asked and Franka’s eyes narrowed.

“Now why, my brawny, handsome cousin, would
I, Franka Drakkar of the House of Drakkar, poison our beautiful
Winter Princess when she’d just been telling me how happy she was
with you, and all your nuptial activities, activities which would
seat a Drakkar on the throne of Lunwyn for the first time in seven
hundred and fifty years?” Franka asked back.

“Why does a Drakkar do anything?” Drakkar
returned.

“
Indeed,” she replied, slightly inclining
her head to accede the point, “however,
this
Drakkar quite likes the idea of the House being
restored to its former glory. So
this
Drakkar would do naught to stop that from happening.
Further
this
Drakkar
would not be so stupid as to stand next to her victim whilst she
was being poisoned. And lastly,
this
Drakkar, unfortunately, has to rely on her House to keep
herself in her apartments in Fleuridia that she greatly enjoys, her
Fleuridian gowns she also enjoys and if she would participate in
such foolhardiness, other Drakkars, of which there are many, my
cousin, including
you
, who wish to
see our House again rule Lunwyn, would not be too happy if she were
to scheme against that future event. Therefore,
this
Drakkar is not likely to do something so foolhardy
as to lose her the lifestyle she enjoys, not to mention,” she
paused and held his eyes, “a throat she likes perfectly well right
where it is.”

Drakkar returned her gaze and also sensed
she was not hiding anything.

“This is good,” Drakkar said quietly, “But I
suggest you guard that throat, Franka.”

“I always do,” she returned smoothly.

Drakkar wasn’t finished. “And, if you enjoy
your lifestyle, as you advance through Lunwyn or Fleuridia in your
constant play, you’ll be certain to inform me should you hear
anything I may wish to learn.”

Her face grew smug before she asked, “Are
you suggesting you can sway my brother into severing my funds?”

When the gods dispensed attributes between
Franka and her brother Kristian, unfortunately, Franka received
more than her fair share of them including looks and wits. That
said, Kristian, being the male child, inherited their dead father’s
fortune so he held the family purse.

Nevertheless, Kristian was Franka’s favorite
mouse and she played with him often.

“I’m not suggesting anything, Franka. If I
discover you know something you didn’t share, Kristian will be
given his own choice about the state of his throat. He may be a
puppet on your strings, cousin, but one thing I’m certain he was
born with and that is a sense of self-preservation.” Her mouth got
tight but Drakkar wasn’t finished. “And something else he has born,
a son who would inherit his purse should something befall him, a
son whose age would mean his mother would control his funds for
some years. In your vicious play, have you been clever enough to
spare his wife?”

He knew the answer to that as well because
she lost her poise and glared at her cousin.

Then, instead of answering his question, she
asked sharply, “Am I free to leave or will I be treated to some of
the same I witnessed your man meting out to that poor woman?”

“
That poor woman was a traitor and nearly
murdered my wife, Franka, so she’s lucky to leave here breathing,
if not fully intact. But
you
will not be treated to the same for
you
would enjoy it,” Drakkar retorted.

Her glare melted away, her eyes heated and
she smiled languorously at the thought.

“Too true,” she murmured.

Drakkar stared at his cousin with disgust
wondering if he
did
actually
have Drakkar blood in his veins or if he was a
changeling.

“You may leave,” he muttered, dismissing her
by turning away and back to Atticus and Aurora who both had been
watching.

Atticus again didn’t hide his reaction to
Franka and stared after her with distaste as she exited. Aurora
didn’t move her eyes from Drakkar.

Max walked in and Drakkar’s looked to his
man.

“The princess,” Max said and Drakkar lifted
his chin.

“Find Thad, send him to her. Have him tell
her she needs to change. Then have Tyr brought around. Finnie and I
leave for Sudvic tonight,” Drakkar commanded, Max nodded and
left.

“Tonight?” Aurora asked and Drakkar looked
at her.

“Immediately after I speak with Ravenscroft,
Njord, Sinclair and Lazarus,” Drakkar answered.

“But it’s late, it’s night –” Aurora
started.

“She’s slept on Tyr with me before, she can
do it again,” Drakkar returned.

“She must be in a state,” Atticus put in and
turned to Aurora. “We’ll be away to her now, see to it she’s all
right and –”

“You’ll get nowhere near my wife,” Drakkar
cut in to say and both Atticus and Aurora looked to him.

“I beg your pardon?” Atticus asked
softly.

“I’m certain you heard me,” Drakkar
replied.

“But…” Atticus began, faltered, his eyes
uncomprehending then he finished incredulously, “by the gods,
why?”

“Because Finnie was nearly poisoned
tonight,” Drakkar explained shortly.

“We know, we were both there,” Atticus shot
back. “And our daughter was there too. She saw that woman collapse,
I saw her face right after it happened. She was in a state. You
can’t toss her up on a horse and –”

Drakkar cut him off. “I can and this is what
I’m going to do, Atticus.”

Atticus opened his mouth to protest but
Aurora got there before him.

“Drakkar, I understand your wish to be away
but my husband and I would like a moment with our daughter to
ascertain that she is well after the events of tonight.”

“And your daughter is in another world and
has no idea that her selfish actions have put my Finnie in such
peril,” Drakkar retorted and was mildly surprised to see Aurora
rear slightly back.

Then he was far more than mildly surprised
to hear her whisper, “That peril, Drakkar, came at the hands of a
woman you tossed aside.”

This was exactly what he didn’t need and
precisely what he was attempting not to think about.

Therefore Drakkar clenched his teeth before
he returned, “A woman who was paid by a conspirator.”

“A woman who was open to payment because
she’d been bedded by you, she liked it, she wanted it to repeat
when you returned and you gave her hope by requesting she attend
the table where your new wife sat. Then you dashed those hopes
because you were enjoying yourself elsewhere,” Aurora shot back. “I
know women, Drakkar, being one, and that woman acted out of
jealousy.”

Drakkar felt his temper fray as her words
made the guilt he’d been controlling rise and he leaned slightly
toward his queen before he replied, “That may be but she also acted
out the paid request of a conspirator I can assure you I
have
not
bedded.”

“I think you understand my point,” she said
softly.

“No, actually, I think I’d like you to make
it more clear,” Drakkar retorted also softly but his was
deadly.

Aurora crossed her arms on her chest and
bravely ignored his tone. “Atticus told me your man kept him from
our daughter.”

“Again, she is not your daughter,” Drakkar
gritted through his teeth and Aurora’s back went straight.

“
No, you are right. And, perhaps, not being
in my head, or Atticus’s, you cannot know that we have found you
were right about something else. So as you stand there, certain in
nothing but the fact that no one can be trusted, I’ll explain
something important to you before you whisk
our daughter
into the night,” Aurora stated, Drakkar
crossed his arms on his chest and scowled at her.

She lifted her chin and continued.

“
You were right, we grieve the loss of our
Sjofn but we have both come to know why
you
came to care about Finnie in such a short
time.”

Drakkar’s body got tight but she wasn’t
finished.

“
As for me,” she said quietly, “I would
give my crown to see my daughter again. She vexed me, everyone
knows, but I loved her straight to my soul and I’d hand over my
crown without that first thought for the chance to see her again.
What I
wouldn’t
do is
harm Finnie.” She pulled in a breath and kept her eyes on Drakkar
likely so she would not see her husband’s response to her next
words. “It pains me to say but Finnie is the daughter I didn’t
have. My husband, I am pleased to know, had the daughter he wanted,
one who enjoyed his pursuits. For thirty years, I did not have that
but for the last two weeks, I did.”

With years borne of practice, Drakkar
managed to keep his reaction in check and didn’t show his
surprise.

Queen Aurora would likely not have seen it.
She was focused on her message and kept speaking.

“
As you have said, my Sjofn is not here and
I do not go a day without thinking dozens of times of what she has
done. I think of what she’s done to my king and my country but I
also think of me. She left
me
behind, Drakkar, and her father. And it does not escape
either of us that your Finnie,
our
Finnie, did the exact opposite. She did not escape her
parents. She risked a great deal to
find
them again. And you are not a parent yet so you cannot know
but I will tell you, knowing the difference of their two motives
twists a knife already imbedded deep even deeper. At the same time,
knowing Finnie and seeing her joy at being with those who remind
her of the parents she loved soothes a considerable balm over that
wound.”

Drakkar held her eyes, heard her words, knew
they were not false but sensed she was not quite finished.

He was not wrong.

Aurora continued. “I cannot say at this
moment that I would drink that poison for her or give my crown for
her return as I would my own daughter. I can say that I would do
nothing to harm her and, to those who already have tried, I do not
recoil that they find justice.”

She inclined her head to where Viola had
lain to make her point but didn’t take her eyes from Drakkar.

She also didn’t stop talking.

But she said her next quietly with
astonishing emotion trembling in her voice and her eyes were not
blank, they were alight with passion.

“
You soon talk to the heads of the two
Houses whose blood flows in my veins. I am a Ravenscroft, I am a
Lazarus and those two Houses, if they are anything, they are
Lunwynians.
They would no sooner betray
their king, their country, their niece,” she leaned forward,
“
or
me
than they would fly
to a dragon’s cave and invite his fire.” She straightened again and
kept speaking quietly. “You are The Drakkar, The Frey and Finnie is
your destiny. Legend tells that all the Houses were touched by the
elves that have frosted our country to such beauty yet have
provided abundance and they did so that the Houses would lead
Lunwyn to prosperity. The Frey and The Drakkar have been born in
one man, which means the gods have called upon you and our
cherished elves leave their realm at long last to serve you.
Although the heads of those Houses do not hold the knowledge of
Finnie being your destiny, they, like me, would do nothing to stand
in the way of the decisions you make, the commands you give or the
actions you take for Lunwyn because you have been chosen by the
gods and Finnie has been chosen by them for you. And with respect,
I ask you to remember that, Drakkar, in your fire to avenge what’s
happened tonight under your nose, a glass delivered to your new
bride by the hand of a woman who warmed your bed, when you speak to
them.”