Allegiance (35 page)

Ayana, Leif discovered, was in Monaco, and after a short stop in the Kingdom of Balor while we waited for the sunpath to open, we arrived there after travelling with the sun to Mont Blanc, Jack and Hilary clinging to their escorts for warmth the whole way. Seeing the guards’ exhaustion, King Telophy ordered them home with instructions to send replacements immediately. He couldn’t be away from his kingdom for a whole night and the window for sun travel was small.

I can’t imagine how we must have looked when we all converged on the hotel—King Telophy, oozing power; his splendid son, gorgeous as usual; the four members of the King’s
Most High; and Jack, Hilary and I tagging along. Eyes followed us through the lobby to reception, where, at King Telophy’s request, a stunned hotel clerk put a call through to a guest by the name of Ayana Darra Denar.

Ayana joined us in the lobby and, after thanking Leif for accompanying his father, turned to King Telophy and said, ‘My husband past is expecting you, Grandson—though perhaps not so soon. Be sure to remember your vow when you see him.’

King Telophy inclined his head to his many times great grandmother.

‘Good,’ she said before telling us where Mirren could be found. After first embracing me, then each of her grandsons, she left to return home.

A few minutes later, we were strolling through a casino, a mosaic of bright lights, vibrant colours and beautifully dressed people all mixed up with music and bells and the explosive sounds of winners and losers. It was just after sunrise in Monaco and I didn’t know whether the place was still going from the night before or starting up for the new day. Either way, I was shocked—surely there were rules about gambling hours. I wondered if the ex-King Mirren had anything to do with the place being open. The casino’s security people kept approaching us—probably to tell us to put shoes and more appropriate clothes on—only to suddenly look dazed and wander away again.

Mirren was sitting at a roulette table—the centre of attention—draped in twinkling girls and glittering jewels. Lost in the game, he didn’t notice our arrival and, following King Telophy’s lead, we didn’t call attention to ourselves—just stopped and waited for him to catch on.

And while I waited I watched him. Immortal Fae appeared to be in their early twenties at most, but Mirren looked more than thirty. I recalled Leif saying something about Earth slowly aging the immortal Fae if they stayed too long. Mirren’s royal body seemed to have turned soft—like all the muscle had drooped from lack of use. There were diamonds on his fingers, rubies at his wrists and the slinky hands of the women in his entourage sliding across his broad shoulders. Painted fingers dipped between his shirt buttons to get at the skin underneath, or tangled in his dark hair while tongues licked at his ears as he gave out chips right and left to the giggling females.

Leif was agog, his eyes peeled wide; King Telophy looked disgusted, every feature of his face narrowing and curling; and my friends were stunned. All four of the King’s Most High kept their expressions blank. I didn’t believe for a moment they were
really
so indifferent. It had to be an act of supreme self-control just like the guards outside of Buckingham Palace. I just felt sick. This man was a king and his betrothed was alive. Exactly what did that say about the Fae royal family? They were no different to humans, that’s what. In fact, given their power and opportunities, they were probably a whole lot worse.

Eventually Mirren looked up and saw King Telophy. He shot to his feet, his jovial mood dissolving in an instant. Girls fell off him, stumbling on their heels, clutching at his arms, re-gluing themselves to his sides. He brushed them away with whispers and flapping hands then came to meet us.

‘Grandson,’ he said, inclining his head quickly to King Telophy. ‘I did not expect you today.’

‘Obviously,’ King Telophy replied.

Mirren ignored the sarcasm and turned to the exit. ‘Come, we will go to my suite—it’s more comfortable there.’

His suite was the penthouse. I looked around the sumptuous rooms full of antique furniture and embroidered silk, wondering
what percentage of the human population got to enjoy such luxury—what percentage of Fae kings for that matter. The thought made me feel sick again. Mirren was once a young prince just like Leif and Ayana had loved and trusted him. I swallowed as I watched Leif take in the lush room, trying to stare down the years to see the king he would become. The truth was, it was impossible. I had no way of knowing what kind of king he would turn out to be. It struck me what a risk I was taking being with someone in his position.

We seated ourselves around an enormous table, the Most High taking their places either side of King Telophy. While Mirren was getting changed, there was a knock on the door. Leif answered it. Four girls stood on the other side clutching bottles of champagne. They wore rainbow glitter dresses and skyscraper heels and giggled as they said they were here to entertain
His Majesty
. Jack and Hilary exchanged looks as Leif told the girls Mirren was busy and wouldn’t be available anytime soon, before closing the door. Mirren appeared shortly after. He wore a blue polo shirt, beige chinos, a pair of leather loafers and a gold watch. He looked like he’d just stepped off a yacht. Never had I seen a faery look less a faery, let alone a king less a king.

He joined us at the table.

King Telophy glanced around at everyone and said, ‘This is Mirren, former king, deserter of his subjects and responsible for the loss of a multitude of lives.’

‘Now, wait a minute,’ Mirren began, flushing red, as we all looked at each other.

‘What?’ King Telophy said, opening his hands. ‘Do I not speak truth?’

Mirren neither confirmed nor denied the accusation—just started mumbling something about the need for good manners and agreeing to meet with his grandson out of the goodness of his heart.

Over the top of him, King Telophy said, ‘Let us dispense with this, Grandfather. You are well aware of your guilt or you would not have been hiding in the human world these past years. However, I will not insist you be brought before the next assembly
if
you agree to tell your story—completely—beginning with the fall of my kingdom to the Shadow Fae thirty-five years ago. Does that sound just?’

Mirren mumbled that it did.

‘Then begin and leave out nothing.’

King Telophy sat back, linking his fingers across his chest as he gave his many times great grandfather his attention.

‘Ah, where to begin?’ Mirren said to himself.

‘At the beginning, as requested,’ King Telophy said, unable to keep the bitterness from his voice.

‘Of course, Grandson.’ Mirren paused for a moment watching his fingers strum the table. ‘I suppose it began when I lost my focus. I’d been king for so many years—not with the same vigour as yourself, Telophy, I’ll admit. It’s a large kingdom and losses are of course expected.’

King Telophy scowled, his eyes becoming dark. ‘I do not understand how your attitude can be so cavalier, Mirren. The loss of any one of my subjects is a tragedy that might have been prevented.’

‘Ah, well,’ Mirren said on a sigh, ‘I do admire your passion. You love your subjects deeply, I see that. And so did I. Let us just agree I did not possess your gift for vigilance. Anyway we digress, it’s a long story, so please, allow me to tell it.’

King Telophy inclined his head, but he wasn’t happy.

‘Like you, I had my Most High, my most favoured, three in particular who were utterly devoted to me and always to be relied upon. One I see in this very company.’

King Telophy’s eyes slid past Briony—the only female member of his Most High—and went directly to the males,
shifting between the three. But whomever Mirren spoke of was disciplined, because no one showed any sign of being
the
one.

‘Well?’ King Telophy asked finally when he couldn’t decide for himself.

‘It is I,’ one said.

‘Ah yes,’ King Telophy murmured, ‘Sefton.’

A silent exchange must have passed between them because a moment later Sefton was kneeling before his king, head bowed and jaw tight as every muscle in his body tensed. The king leaned forward in his seat and placed one big hand over the insignia on Sefton’s chest, the other over the emblem on his bicep. I saw a muscle twitch in King Telophy’s face, then with twin flashes and a sound like a lightning strike, he blasted power from his palms. Sefton cried out and fell to the floor, hand-shaped wounds seared into his smouldering flesh where the insignia and emblem once were. ‘Leave us,’ King Telophy said quietly. The former member of the King’s Most High picked himself up slowly—pale and trembling—before stumbling out the door, leaving behind a room full of silence, wisps of smoke and the smell of burnt flesh.

King Telophy returned his attention to his grandfather. ‘Continue, Mirren.’

I watched my king, stomach clawing the back of my throat as I wondered how I could feel so much… love for such a despicable man. I cursed the bond that made it so. I turned to Hilary to see how she was coping with the horror she’d just witnessed. She was watching King Telophy and, instead of the outrage I was expecting, her forehead was furrowed and there was sorrow in her eyes.

I didn’t have time to consider what it meant because Mirren was shaking himself and saying, ‘Now
that
, I do not miss… Anyway, they were dedicated those three—so available and so at my whim. I enjoyed rewarding them often, allowed them to choose their own rewards in fact. On one such occasion, the
three decided what they most desired was a month’s vacation to the human world—time alone to relax without family or commitment. One was without a wife and I am certain it was he who convinced the other two. I was taken aback at their choice. It was not what I had been expecting. I’d been envisioning holidays with loved ones, better accommodations—other such luxuries. And I admit I wasn’t wholly comfortable with the request.’

‘Foolish!’ King Telophy raged, slamming his fist on the table in a sudden violent eruption. ‘Asking for trouble! Outrageous to allow them a month in this world with no means of restraint!’

Everyone but Leif shrank back a little in their seats.

‘I had an inkling it was unwise,’ Mirren said, unfazed by King Telophy’s reaction. ‘But I considered them trustworthy and honourable men. However, the stories they told upon their return soon made me realise my mistake. They’d been to Italy, Greece and the south of France. They spoke of days spent on Earth’s beaches and nights given over to the flesh. They told of parties and dancing and gambling, great smorgasbords of food and dazzling varieties of liquor.’ King Mirren leaned forward in his seat and lowered his voice a little, glancing at Hilary and me before turning back to the king and adding, ‘They told of places one could go to watch beautiful women dance for the pleasure of men. And in these places, the women sought them out, boldly offered their flesh, would do whatever was requested of them only for a bit of human currency! They played games in the casinos and drank champagne while they were entertained by human women until the sun came up. I was fascinated. It was so completely different to our world. In the human world one gave oneself over to greed and lust with no thought to cost and consequence. I had to go. I was tired of the relentless task of protecting my subjects, my sleep constantly interrupted with their pleas. I needed some
time away. And so, I began to take that time away on Earth in the company of my three men.

‘To begin with I would steal away only for the day but soon—jealous of the freedoms enjoyed by my Most High—the night. And as I became more accustomed to this life, I would stay for two nights or three. All four of us quickly became addicted. We did things we would never have dreamed of doing in Faera—dishonoured our wives time and time again. The deeper we became entrenched in this sordid way of living, the more we craved it and the more selfish and lost to our former selves we became. People were dying in Mirren, slowly at first. But soon my subjects were perishing in great numbers and living in terror. Before long, the Shadow Fae became daring and strong. They were so full of sun it was difficult to tell them apart from the Fae. And I justified my behaviour. Hadn’t I been working hard for the people of Mirren? Didn’t I deserve this time with my Most High—my
friends
? In any case, neither I nor they could resist. We had beautiful human females—great numbers of them—falling at our feet, begging for our company, as addicted to us as we were to them. And I tell you, Telophy, it’s not the same as when Fae women adore us. Fae women are captivating—yes, and tempting—without question. Fae women sing to our hearts and souls. But as you know yourself, Grandson, one feels a great respect for one’s subjects, a great love. Each female is a most treasured daughter. But, there are no such feelings for human females, and once you give in to those male urges, it’s almost impossible not to do it again.’

‘Deplorably weak,’ King Telophy interrupted with passion. ‘There is a human female sitting at this very table. But I would no sooner take advantage of her than any of my subjects.’