Rebel's Honor(53)

"Yes," Felix said. "Who else but a man who would help himself to the crown prince's betrothed?"

"Precisely," Mott said, with a smugness that made Felix want to hit him.  "I intend to give Axel a chance to prove if his balls are merely  itching for a beautiful girl or if they are indeed loaded with the stuff  that makes a Lord of the Conquest great."

Felix cursed Axel's stupidity and life-threatening arrogance under his  breath. Not to mention the sudden lucidity of his brother's mind. "And  the attack on Lapis will prove that to you?"

"Of course not. That's a mere diversion. I have no doubt Axel will crush Lapis without breaking a sweat."

"Then what?"

"Telling Lynx about the ice crystals was an affront I'm struggling to  come to terms with-even from Axel," his brother said. "He has to make up  for that by rendering me a service. It's the only way I can trust his  loyalty."

"What kind of service?" Felix asked warily. This conversation had taken a turn he had not foreseen and did not appreciate.

"Before leaving for Lapis, he will kill Lukan and Raklus. He will then  finish the job after Tao's first son is born. Until then, he is under  probation."

Felix's icy blood chilled. "You plan to make my son complicit in  murdering the crown prince and his brother? So-so you can blackmail and  control him all his life? The Fifteen will never condone those murders.  The minute they hear of them, they will howl for Axel's blood."

"That will teach him to go chasing whores." Mott grinned.

"Never!" Felix stood, pulling his body as straight as possible. "I will not permit it."

"Shut up, Felix," his brother said, dragging him back down onto his  seat. "Axel isn't a child. He's a man with an appetite for power and  beautiful women. He can have both-if he does what I command. If he  fails, then, as valuable as he is on the battlefield, I'll know he  cannot be trusted, and I will hand him over to the Fifteen to do with  him as they please."

Felix knew very well that any trial would be a farce. The Fifteen would  be commanded to execute Axel, and they dared not disobey. His pale face  flushed. "And you expect me to support this . . . this abomination?"

Mott slammed his dagger into Felix's dangling sleeve, trapping his hand  to the arm of the chair. "Yes, I do. If you wish to live, because, as  you yourself said, I'm in the mood for purges." His brother pulled the  knife free. "Now go and break the good news to your son."

Felix sat motionless. "Axel will never agree to this."

"Oh yes, he will, when you tell him to clear a space in his bed for  Lynx. She can be his first prize. And when he's tired of her, he can  throw her to the wolves for all I care."

Mott flung the dagger at the chenna-stained portrait of the two of them  hanging on the wall. The knife sliced a perfect gash in Felix's throat.

"Now go, before I finish you off and break the news to him myself."





Chapter 34





Lynx shook her head, refusing to believe that she had been so wrong  about Axel. Why would he betray her? What did he have to gain? It didn't  make sense to her.

There had to be more cameras in her room, ones Axel hadn't known about last night. Cameras he'd discovered today.

So what was Mott playing at?

Cursing herself for not joining Axel for breakfast, she ran to the door,  intent on finding him. As she reached for the handle, the door flung  open, and Kestrel burst into the room.

"Aren't you excited?" Kestrel yipped, waving a diamond and emerald encrusted egg in the air. "It's such an honor."

Lynx's jaw sagged.

"The raid. Didn't anyone tell you?" Kestrel asked.

Lynx shook her head to shake her sense of surrealism. The only raid she  knew concerned their parents' heads, but not even Kestrel could be that  callous. Not trusting her voice, she prized the egg from Kestrel's hand  and opened it. No light burst forth. Instead, cushioned on a bed of  gold, sat a miniature ostrich egg. She looked at Kestrel.

Kestrel's eyes gleamed back at her. "Everyone got an egg like this at  breakfast. At least all us young high-born did. Oh, and Lukan wasn't  there. Although everyone was whispering about what happened last night.  What were you thinking?"                       
       
           



       

"All the wrong things. Trust me, Kestrel, if I could undo that punch, I  would. But I can't. Now I just have to do my best to save the situation  for both of us."

"Both of us?" Kestrel took a step back. "I'm not involved in your  problems, Lynx. I've been the model princess. No one can criticize me."

"Of course you are." Lynx sighed. "Okay, tell me about this egg."

"We're having a treasure hunt today," Kestrel breathed, all concern  forgotten. "In a labyrinth, here in the palace. But," she gave a mock  bow and then squealed, "in our honor, the main prize is a golden ostrich  egg covered in jewels. It goes to the person who finds it first."  Kestrel spun around, making her skirt twirl.

Since when did Kestrel care about egg raids?

"At last, I get a chance to raid an egg without the risk of killing myself."

"A mock raid?" Lynx demanded, biting back bile. "Can't you see it? They're insulting us, Kestrel. Norin culture. Our culture."

"Lynx, I've always believed in embracing the good from both cultures-and  this is as good as an egg raid gets." Kestrel snatched her enameled egg  back from Lynx. "We are not savages living in Norin anymore. This is  the Heartland, where they do things with class and style-and without  unnecessary bloodshed. And at the end, one gets something of value-not  just your stupid honor." She rolled her eyes. "And with Tao so willing  to give away everything he has, this is about the only way I'll get any  riches."

Regardless-or maybe in spite-of the cameras, it was time to educate her  sister. Lynx grabbed her egg informa off the table and sat on the bed.  "I have something to show you that may change your mind about how  civilized they are."

"Make it quick because the raid is about to start, and I plan to be  first off the line. I came to you because I didn't want you to miss  out."

"This won't take long, I promise." Lynx waited until Kestrel sat before opening the lid on her egg.

Nothing but a miniature ostrich egg glinted back at her. Lynx swore,  prodding it with her finger, but no light or voice beamed forth. Mott's  presence had obviously been a onetime wonder.

"The damn thing stopped working." She flung the egg onto the table,  hoping the impact would inspire Mott to appear, but the informa remained  stubbornly silent.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." Kestrel grabbed Lynx's hand and leaped to her feet. "But come, or we'll be late."

Lynx resisted, pulling her sister back down onto the bed. "Wait. Just  because I can't show you Mott's message doesn't mean I don't have  something to tell you."

"The only message the emperor has for us is to go and have fun raiding  some treasure," Kestrel said. "And I would have thought you'd be happy  for me. Aren't you the one always extolling egg raids?"

"No. Yes. Not like this." Lynx sighed, knowing she wasn't winning any  friends here. "Look, Kestrel, I know it's a lot to take in, but Mott  sent me a hidden message in my egg, telling me that unless I sleep with  Lukan on our wedding night, he'll send Axel to Norin to behead our  parents." Even as she spoke, Lynx knew how unlikely that sounded. She  didn't need Kestrel's incredulous expression to guess her sister thought  her crazy.

"A hidden message? To you? From the Emperor of All Chenaya and the  Conquered Territories? Come on, Lynx, you might have been someone  special in Norin, but it doesn't count here."

"It's not like that, Kestrel," Lynx pleaded.

"Then where's my hidden message?" Kestrel demanded.

This wasn't the time to get into a debate with Kestrel, so Lynx picked  up her egg again. "Mott and Felix watch everyone all the time. They have  something called electricity. I don't know how it works because it  predates the Burning, but it powers these insane devices-like this  egg-that show moving pictures of people. They even come with sound so-"

"Predates the Burning?" Kestrel interrupted. "Really, Lynx, do you think  I'm that stupid? And of course the emperor wants you to sleep with  Lukan. You are marrying him."

"Kestrel, please listen, for once."

Kestrel jumped to her feet. "No, Lynx, you listen to me. For once. I  want that golden egg, and this is your chance to prove your love by  sponsoring me. So, either you come with me now, or our sisterhood is  over."

Lynx let out a long, slow breath, thinking it wasn't much of a  sisterhood to begin with. She was about to refuse to go when it occurred  to her that Axel would probably be at the raid. She could speak with  him while Kestrel played at being a Norin.