"Lover At Last" - читать интересную книгу автора (Ward, J.R.)

The question was, of what? He did not know as of yet whether the king lived or had died, and neither did the Council, from what he understood. In fact, the glymera knew not that the attempt had even occurred.

Had Wrath survived? Or had he been killed and the Brotherhood was at the moment busy trying to fill the vacancy? The Old Law was very clear about the rules of successionтАФprovided the king had offspring, which he did not. So it would be his next nearest kinтАФassuming there were any.

Xcor wanted to know, but he made no inquiries. All he could do was wait until word presented itselfтАФand in the meantime, he and his soldiers kept killing lessers, and he continued to shore up his power base within the glymera. At least both of those endeavors were going well. Every night, they stabbed slayers back to the Omega. And his limp-wristed contact on the Council, the not-particularly-venerable Elan, son of Larex, was proving quite naive and malleableтАФtwo characteristics very useful in a disposable tool.

Xcor was, however, growing tired of the information void. And indeed, this business with that female Throe had found was necessary but fraught with danger. A female capable of selling her veins and her sex to multiple users was certainly able to trade information for cashтАФand though Throe had kept their identities quiet, the number of them had been given. The Brotherhood must have appropriately guessed that none of the Band of Bastards were mated, and that sooner or later, in this new land, they would require what they had had a sufficiency of in the Old Country.

Mayhap this female was put up by the king and his private guard.

Well, they would find out on the morrow. Ambushes were easily set, and there was nary a more vulnerable moment than when a hungry male was at the throat and between the legs of a female. Yet it was time. His soldiers were willing to fight, but their faces were drawn, their eyes sunken, their skin stretched too tightly across their cheeks. Human blood, that weak substitute, was not providing enough strength, and his bastards had been living off of it for too long. Back in the Old Country, there had been enough females to be of service when needs must. But eтАЩer since they had come to the New World, they had had to make do.

If this was a trap, he was willing to fight the Brothers. Then again, he had been properly servicedтАФ

Dearest Virgin Scribe, he could not think of that.

Xcor cleared his throat as pain in his chest made it hard to swallow. тАЬTell the female, first darkness is too early. We shall come instead at midnight unto her. And arrange for human feedings as soon as the night falls. If the Brothers are there, we shall engage with them from a position of relative strength.тАЭ

ThroeтАЩs eyebrows rose as if he were impressed with XcorтАЩs thinking. тАЬAye. I shall do just that.тАЭ

Xcor nodded and looked away.

In the silence, the events of the autumn crowded in between them, cooling the frigid December air even further.

That sacred Chosen was always with them both.

тАЬThe daylight is coming fast upon us,тАЭ Throe said in his perfect accent. тАЬIt is time to depart.тАЭ

Xcor glanced over to the east. The predawn glow had yet to arrive, but his second in command was correct. SoonтАжvery soonтАжthe deadly light of the sun would rain down, and no matter that it was at its weakest, with the winter solstice so recently passed.

тАЬCall the soldiers off the field,тАЭ Xcor said. тАЬAnd meet them at base.тАЭ

Throe typed in some combination of letters into a message that Xcor would not have been able to read. And then the soldier put his phone away with a frown.

тАЬAre you not coming back?тАЭ Throe asked.

тАЬGo.тАЭ

There was a long pause. And then the other soldier said softly, тАЬWither thou goest?тАЭ

In that moment, Xcor thought of each of his fighters. Zypher, the sexual conqueror. Balthazar, the thief. Syphon, the assassin. And the other one who had no name, and too many sins to count. So he was referred to as Syn.

Then he considered fair, loyal Throe, his second in command.

Perfectly reared, impeccably blooded Throe.

Handsome, comely Throe.

тАЬGo now,тАЭ he told the male.