“I’d like that,” I said when the others failed to answer her.
“Ya sure, Ryder?” she asked, ignoring me as she looked to Ryder for his agreement.
“They’re my children too,” I said, and didn’t back down. I liked her, even though I didn’t know much about her. She was hidden from most of the Fae at court, and while I understood Ryder’s need to protect her, I also knew she was a little wild at times.
“You shouldn’t be out of your chambers,” Ryder replied quietly as he studied the map.
“But I am, and even I can taste the energy in the air. If Rissy’s in trouble, I’m going to play a part in helping save him, even if it’s a small one.”
Rissy?
“Ciara,” Ryder warned.
“I said it was okay, but I guess I’m mute and invisible,” I offered as I sat back down to stop pacing the floors.
“Synthia, this doesn’t concern you,” Ryder growled.
“Oh stuff it, Fairy. They are my children and my soon-to-be sister in-law, and it’s pretty much in my face, so I think it does concern me. She’s trained in weapons, right?” I asked Zahruk, who nodded with a look of duh on his face. Or maybe it was a please-don’t-make-me-choose-a-side look.
Poor girl had to deal with an entire army of alpha men who thought her some weak-minded sissy. She had fire, I knew it. I could see it in her eyes, and yet I also saw the spark of spunk and the mischief that I’d seen in a lot of the younger Witches, which boiled down to trouble. I knew she’d protect the babies. That wasn’t a worry in my mind.
“Ciara is trained to fight, but should the need to fight arise, we will abort and come home,” Ryder snapped.
I was off the chair and in his face. “Snap at me again, Fairy, and I’ll show you how you how to sing fucking soprano! I’ve had enough of this pissing contest with you and your sister; she’s a grown ass woman trained for war and in my book that alone makes her the best God damned babysitter here!”
“Fine!” Ryder growled.
“Fine,” I smiled and took my little victory over my beast.
“Then let’s gear up and gather in the great hall,” Ryder said.
“If we gather in the great hall, they will know we are leaving to fight,” Zahruk pointed out what everyone else was thinking.
“Yes,” Ryder said. “We’ll also return there, no matter what. They need a fucking reality check, as a very smart woman told me not too long ago.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
We met in the courtyard, instead of the great hall, since many of the lesser Fae were camped there, more than we had expected, even though they had not made a decision to support us yet. I was dressed in the same lightweight armor that the Elite Guard wore, with weapons strapped to every place they’d fit comfortably. I knew the moment they caught sight of us, because a quiet hush fell over the crowd.
We didn’t talk, or even acknowledge them for now. I was so focused on the problem at hand that I barely even noticed the look of awe that spread through the crowd at the sight of me dressed for war. It wasn’t until I looked up and found the Winter Queen looking right at me that I considered what I looked like.