"What is this about, Tiberius?" questioned a groggy Cloven, who'd arrived at the castle but an hour ago.
He sat slumped against the table, his wife, a shy and timid maid, at his side. His newborn son snuggled into the woman's chest, fast asleep. Glancing at Tiberius with tired scarlet eyes, his arms folded over his head with absolutely no regard for anything, Cloven waited for an answer.
Some deep-seated sadness could be seen in the man's eyes, but Tiberius elected to ignore it.
"Well," Tiberius began, "There are two things."
Cloven groaned. "Do not ask me about Draven."
"One thing."
Again, Cloven groaned, flopping an arm against the table.
Tiberius sighed.
Teenagers.
"I just thought you might be interested to hear that I've selected a wife," Tiberius said.
Cloven perked up. Lifting his head, a brow raised, he waited for his cousin to explain.
"She's half demon, fourth fae, fourth werewolf, and I'm pretty sure she's a princess," Tiberius said.
Cloven frowned. "Pretty sure?"
"Indeed. She refuses to tell me, but I know she's hiding something from me," Tiberius said.
"She's a fae. Can't you just force it out if her?" he questioned.
"She's a fourth fae," Tiberius corrected, "She isn't compelled to answer anything, but she can not lie."
"Intriguing," Cloven said, "Why do I need to know this? Why did I have to travel here to know this? Why was a letter not enough?"
"Because I need you to do something for me," Tiberius replied, adding, "And you can talk about Draven here. You know we won't tell."
Cloven rolled his eyes. "Uh-hu. And then when Nat finds out, she can castrate me."
"She would truly do that?" Tiberius questioned.
"She'd turn me inside out if she found out I put her Draven in danger," Cloven replied.
"Cloven," his wife, Lila, whispered.
His eyes siftened, and he pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I'm sorry, love. I'll stop."
She leaned against him, looking a little queasy. Again, he kissed her forehead, an arm sliding around her waist.
"I'm not quite sure why you think a human could, but okay," Tiberius said.
Cloven frowned. "You don't know her, Toby. I do. She trained daily with Draven. She killed three vampires the last blood moon. She's a lot more capable than you think."
He shifted his wife into his lap, wrapping her and their son up in a loving embrace.
"She trained with him daily, and no one suspected that they might be involved?" Tiberius questioned.
"Oh, we knew," Cloven said, dropping his volume, "I knew, especially. Dad even knew that they were sleeping together. But he didn't know that they were in love, nor that she had stopped taking her birth control pills."
"He knew they were sleeping together, and he did nothing about it?"
Cloven sighed. "Look, you know Draven. Nat kept him happy. Dad was willing to let him do whatever he wanted with her if it meant he'd put off ending himself for a little longer."
Right. Draven, the depressed little brother, always left in his older brother's shadow, forgotten and unwanted, even by himself.
Honestly, Tiberius didn't blame him. Finally being loved by someone after a lifetime of being tossed aside would push anyone to dangerous lengths.
A flicker of regret went through Tiberius's chest. Quickly, he pushed it aside.
He'd spared his brother. He hadn't thrown him away. Gavrynn knew he was loved.
It was a lie, and Tiberius knew it was a lie, but it made him feel just a little better about how he treated his brother.
"So, what's your next course of action?" Tiberius asked, hoping for some distraction.
Cloven shrugged. "Convince my dad not to kill my brother and his mate."
Tiberius blinked.
"Why?"
"He's my brother. Do I need any other excuse?" Cloven questioned.
"No," Tiberius replied. "No, I fully understand."
Indeed. After all, he'd done the same.
"Besides," Cloven went on, "I'm the one that married them. I'd be a shame to have to kill the couple I married."
"Cloven," Lila again warned, this time more for him than her.
"Love, my father can't do anything. I've already been named heir," Cloven said.
"That doesn't mean he can't punish you," she said.
Cloven pressed a kiss to her hair. "You know I won't let anything happen to you, or to our little Rexius."
It brought a smile to his wife's lips, a smile that Cloven then kissed.
Tiberius rolled his eyes.
When Cloven drew away, he asked, "So, what do you need me to do?"
"I need you to convince my betrothed to trust the vampires. Maybe get the name of her father out of her. Learn as much as you can from her," Tiberius replied.
"And why can't you do it yourself?" Cloven questioned.
"Because I am going to be spending my time seducing her," Tiberius said, "I can't do both at once."
Cloven frowned. Tiberius grinned.
Cloven sighed. "Oh, fine. I'll try. But I am only staying two weeks, if that."
"Of course," Tiberius dipped his head, "Thank you, dear cousin."
"You're very welcome," Cloven replied, "And if you don't mind me asking, why exactly did you pick this female?"
Tiberius replied. "She doesn't seem to know it, but she's my mate."
Cloven frowned. "She's fae, demon, and werewolf. I think she'd know. The bond would have snapped into place the moment you two met."
A grin slid onto Tiberius's lips. "Yes, but she was half starved and delirious when we met. She even bit me."
Cloven blinked. Plucking the glove from his hand, Tiberius wiggled his fingers, showing off the crescent of teeth marks on his wrist. Cloven cringed. "Ow."
"Oh, it hurt like hell," Tiberius agreed.
Lila whimpered. Cloven's attention shot to his wife, and he spent the next few minutes calming her down.
How Cloven fell in love with such a queasy female, Tiberius didn't know.
When she calmed, Cloven looked to his cousin.
"Can I go now? Lila's tired," Cloven asked.
Tiberius nodded. "Of course. And if you want someone to watch Rex for you, I can arrange that."
"Thanks, but I am not letting my son out of my sight," Cloven said. "It's nothing against you, I just don't trust anyone here."
Tiberius put a hand on his chest.
"Don't give me that," Cloven snorted, lifting his wife and child into his arms, readying to leave.
"Goodnight, dear cousin," Tiberius called.
"Goodnight," Cloven replied, "Say hello to Gavvy for me."
"Oh, I will," Tiberius replied, a wide grin on his lips.
Cloven left without another word. Tiberius waited for his cousin's footsteps to fade before he rose to return to mate.