The Lion Soul by Amy Sumida
Chapter Nineteen
“Oh, fuck,” Kaelen whispered against my chest.
“Again?” I teased.
“Fuck,” he cursed again and levered himself up on his forearms. “I forgot about the Queen. Get up!” He pushed himself away and rolled off the bed to run for his dressing room. “I heard the servants bring your trunks into the sitting room. Go change!”
I chuckled, admiring the view of him running naked, then slid out of bed and stretched.
“Rieyu, hurry! We've wasted too much time.”
I shook my head, still smiling as I headed into the sitting room. How odd that after having sex with him, Kaelen's home seemed more comfortable. The sitting room wasn't nearly as imposing now and seeing the trunks of my new clothes there made it feel even more welcoming. I tossed open a lid and searched for one of the more ornate tunics.
I was braiding my hair when Kaelen came striding out of the bedroom at a fast clip. He was dressed in a deep blue tunic embroidered with gold and a beige and gold jacket that emphasized the breadth of his shoulders. His normally wild hair was brushed back, held in place by a gold circlet with a single jewel set center-front, the same color as his soul stone. I grinned, letting my gaze wander down his brown leather pants, molded to his legs.
“No,” Kaelen said in a clipped tone as he pointed at me. “Do not start looking at me like that. We have to go.” He frowned at my face. “I wanted to have you adorned to show your status, but we don't have the time for that now. Come on.”
Kaelen grabbed my hand and rushed out into the garden with me. He navigated the winding paths through the thick foliage in seconds and then we were in the elevator, heading down.
He looked me over. “You look very handsome. Nice choice of outfit.”
“Thank you. So do you.”
Kae exhaled and grinned. “Thank you.”
“Is your queen so terrible that we must fear her wrath?”
“No, I'm just new to this post, and I don't want to disappoint her.”
“By being a little late?” I lifted a brow. “It will be fine, Kae.”
He ran a hand over my braid and it seemed to soothe him. “Yes, of course, it will. She's going to love you.” Then he blinked as if something had just occurred to him and frowned. “The Lion Court can be a little—”
The door panel slid open, and Kaelen pulled me out, rushing me across the massive entry room. I didn't see his guards, but Liana waited near the front door. I suppose the likelihood of Kae being attacked in Varalorre was low, so he didn't need an escort.
“I've had the carriage prepared for you, my lord,” Liana said as she opened the door for us.
“Thank you, Liana.” Kae ushered me through.
Sure enough, the carriage was waiting at the bottom of the stairs, the door hanging open.
“Go!” Kaelen shouted as soon as we were inside.
The carriage sped off, rolling down the driveway and then into the street. Traffic was light, and we didn't have far to go, so it wasn't long before a palace far grander than Kaelen's came into view. Its square towers soared hundreds of feet into the air, lights shining from their tops like beacons. More lanterns illuminated the rest of the palace, bringing to life statues of lions that prowled, roared, and clawed the air from atop their pedestals. Plants flowed around these stone felines, dripping over the palace walls like verdant frosting. And, from a spire on the central keep, a flag emblazoned with a rampant lion flew.
The gate was guarded by knights in tabards with the same lion embroidered on them. They saluted our carriage as we passed, and when we stopped at the base of a grand set of stairs, a man ran down them to open our door. The poor footman was startled when Kaelen came bursting out of the carriage before he could reach us. He recovered enough to bow as Kaelen reached back in to grab my hand and yank me out. We rushed up the steps together, passing another wide-eyed servant who hurriedly opened the gilded front door for us. I had a brief glimpse of the lion head atop the crest of the door arch, then the lights of the entry hall blinded me.
I blinked, adjusting even as I let Kaelen lead me forward, and then gaped at the grandeur of the Lion Palace. Had I thought Kaelen's home was too luxurious? This place far exceeded it. With tapestries and paintings larger than a carriage, life-size sculptures of Lion Faeries, and so much gilding that, had it been scraped off, would have supplied enough gold to pay for the feeding of a small country, the entry hall alone would have put the Emperor's Palace in Nazaka to shame.
Faeries scurried about everywhere, bowing to us as they smoothly stepped out of our way. Kaelen barely noticed them, he was too focused on dragging me through the vast hallways, across rugs that were pieces of art in their own right, and past so many damn potted plants that we were practically outdoors. Most of the people we passed were in uniforms, only a few were dressed in grand clothing like ours. Those faeries who weren't servants seemed too shocked by our mad dash to offer any sort of greeting; they simply drew back and gawked at us.
Finally, we reached a set of double doors attended by a pair of uniformed men. They bowed as they opened the doors for us simultaneously. With the opening, laughter and music flowed out, along with the scent of roasting meat, flowers, and lion musk.
Kaelen took a breath, composed himself, and stepped forward with me to pause on the threshold. He removed his coat, took mine, then handed them both to an attendant. Yet another uniformed man stood near the door and at his inquiring look, Kaelen said, “Kaelen and Rieyu Brimara, the Lion Lord and Valorian.”
The man's eyes widened as he bowed to both of us. “Welcome home, my lords.” Then he turned toward the room and in a booming voice he announced, “Kaelen Brimara, the Lion Lord, and Rieyu Brimara, the Lion Valorian!”
The conversations came to a stop as everyone turned to stare at us.
I stared back as Kaelen led me forward, straight down the center of the vast room. The courtiers made an aisle for us, silk skirts swishing along with lion tails. Yes, there were Sidhe in their lion forms prowling the vast space, their heads at nearly the same height as those in Sidhe form. Pixies flew overhead, some seated on the arms of fantastical chandeliers, and Glastigs clicked by on gilded hooves. I had expected something similar to the entertainment rooms of Emperor Hensaki—an empty space in which courtiers mingled, all of them standing—but long couches spotted this room, with faeries sprawled across them, many petting each other like cats even though they were in Sidhe form.
Then I caught a glimpse of a pale thigh.
I blinked and peered through the shifting bodies. Near the edge of the room, lengths of crystal beads hung, their faceted edges sparkling. They formed curtains that both concealed and revealed the little nooks beyond. What they revealed was subtle, mostly shadows of bodies moving in erotic ways, but then the beads would swing or the light would shift and a clearer glimpse of what was happening beyond the curtains was given. And one glimpse was all I needed.
I turned to look at Kaelen with wide eyes, and he gave me a pleading look. This must be what he'd been about to warn me of in the elevator. Before I could say anything, we came to the base of a dais, and I realized that the semi-public sex was just one of things Kae had failed to prepare me for.
On the dais was a woman who could only be the Queen. I recognized her by her crown—a band of gold points, each one holding a jewel in the same shape and color as the one Kaelen wore around his neck. She was lovely, with a wealth of dark hair undulating down her curvy body. Her lips were full, her features strong, and her eyes golden. She was every inch the Queen, dressed in lengths of crimson silk and velvet. But she didn't have a throne. Instead, the Lion Queen sprawled across a wide, deep couch covered in pillows, its arched back crowned with a rampant lioness. That curving back swirled forward to create a roughly oval shape, its high sides confining a wealth of pillows . . . and men.
Half-naked men were draped around, beneath, and behind the Queen while Lions sprawled at the foot of her couch in a hedonistic display of luxury and power. My throat went dry to see the expanse of male flesh on offer and the way the Queen idly caressed whatever body part was within her reach. When she spotted us, she sat up with a broad smile, pushing away some of her more ambitious admirers as she leaned closer to the end of her couch-throne.
“Kaelen,” she purred, “you naughty boy. You've been back for hours and you've only now come to see me?” She looked me over and grinned wickedly. “Ah, I understand now.”
“I beg your forgiveness, Your Majesty.” Kaelen bowed. “We've had a long journey, and I'm afraid we fell asleep.”
“Asleep, eh?” She chuckled. “Somehow I don't think you were sleeping, though I'm certain you were in bed.”
The courtiers nearby laughed right on cue, but the men beside the Queen stared at us with wary ferocity, ready to fight for their queen's attention.
“Very well, Lion Lord,” the Queen said breezily, completely unaware of, or possibly ignoring, the tension in her companions. “I'll let you get away with that since you have pleased me so greatly by bringing me our valorian—something your predecessor failed to do, and yet you managed it in a matter of a few months. Well done, Kaelen.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Kaelen drew me closer to the dais and whispered, “Kneel.”
I knelt.
“Your Majesty, I present to you your valorian, Rieyu Brimara. Rieyu, this is Her Majesty Queen Vervain of the Lion Kingdom.”
“Your Majesty.” I bowed from the waist. “It's a great honor to meet you.”
Queen Vervain slid over the edge of her throne and onto her bare feet to pad down to the first step. I kept my gaze lowered until her painted toes entered my line of sight, then I glanced up to find her grinning at me.
“Rise, Lion Valorian.”
I stood up. With her on the bottom step of her dais, she still had a few inches on me, though she didn't need them. Power wafted off her like an expensive perfume.
Queen Vervain reached out and stroked my cheek with her long nails, her stare wandering over my face. “The valorians I've seen have retained a trace of their human features, but you have none.”
“I am from Nazaka originally, Your Majesty,” I said. “My features are different from the humans from Stalana.”
“Nazaka?” she whispered. “How exotic. I've heard that Nazaka produces great warriors.”
“It does indeed, Your Majesty, and Rieyu is one of their finest,” Kaelen said. “He saved me from capture by Farungals. I witnessed him cripple over twenty of them in less than two minutes.”
The Queen's golden eyes widened even as the courtiers made sounds of shock. “Crippled?”
“He cut off the barbs from their tails so we could safely fight them,” Kaelen said proudly. “The Lion Guard and I were greatly outnumbered, but he was all we needed to turn the tables in our favor. And upon seeing him fight—a thing of absolute beauty—I knew he was our valorian.”
“You won us a prize indeed, Kaelen.” She leaned forward and tapped his chin. “How clever of you.”
“It was all the Goddess's doing, Your Majesty,” he protested. “And I feel blessed to have been given such a gift.”
“As you should,” the Queen said with a lift of her chin. “Speaking of gifts, I must not be outdone by my fellow monarchs. For your success, I grant you an estate in Ivenne.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Kaelen bowed. “You are most generous.”
“And for you, my valorian.” She turned her intense attention back on me, trailing her nails down from my cheek to my throat. That touch said plainly that it could suddenly shift from a caress to an attack. “You shall have an estate here, just outside my palace, so that I may have you nearby.” She leaned down and kissed my cheek. “My great warrior. I know you will do me and the Goddess proud, Rieyu Brimara.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.” I stepped back so I could give her my most deferential bow, deep and straight.
She stroked my hair as I straightened. “Lovely, just lovely.” Then she turned and went back to her throne and her waiting lovers. “Enjoy the party, my brave boys. It's in your honor.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty,” Kaelen bowed again. “I have some things to go over with you at your earliest convenience.”
“Lunch tomorrow, darling,” she drawled. “Bring our valorian with you.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.” Kaelen nodded to her, then took my hand and led me back into the crowd, expelling a relieved breath as he did.
