Cedric quickly schooled his eyes as Cecil turned back to him.
It would be bad if his brother caught him looking as if he would tear Cecil into shreds for touching his woman, especially since she wasn't his woman yet.
"There is one other thing I need to discuss with you." Cecil was saying. "It's been over a year that you've come to this backwater place to look for Viviene. I need you back in Faria."
Cedric put down his drink.
"No can do, Brother. I can't give up on trying to find Viviene."
"Cedric, Viviene is my sister too. I want her found just as much as you do, which is why when you told me you would go look for her, I didn't say anything. I even sent as many people as I could to help you find her."
He shook his head. "But it's been fourteen months, Brother. The longer you do this, the more dangerous it becomes, not just for you but also for the rest of our kind."
Cecil sighed. "Plus, I need you back in Faria. You have a job to do there."
"Viviene is alone out there somewhere."
"She is a werewolf, she can take care of herself. She knows how to get home if she wants to. The fact that she's still out there somewhere is only because she's not ready to go home yet."
"I am just afraid she may have been kept somewhere against her will. If she truly has been captured, we have to find her and rescue her."
"But we don't have any leads, and we don't know where to look."
Cecil threw up his hands. "Even this location is a best guesstimate. You aren't even sure she's around this area, and yet, you've moved your people and yourself here for the better part of a year."
"I don't have any other choice." Cedric scowled. "I cannot search for her if I return to Faria. At least, if I'm here in New Orleans, I'm on the right side of the veil."
"Listen. Vivene is a werewolf. She's also very smart. If anyone can come through this unscathed, it would be Viv."
Cecil shrugged. "Besides, she knows she has a son to care for, which brings me to the other part of this."
He stood up and threw the last of his wine into his mouth.
"The boy needs to be raised by werewolves so he knows how to change appropriately and when to do it. I saw him transform within Talia's arms."
"Within her arms?" Cedric's eyes widened with shock.
"Yes. He just pops back and forth between wolf form and human form whenever he feels like it. He hasn't learned to be careful and furtive and that will kill him if he is careless and someone sees it." Cecil frowned.
Cedric nodded. He had known that it wasn't the best environment for him and Devin to be in, all alone in New Orleans without the pack's support and protection.
He didn't think it would have taken this long. He'd been hoping against hope that he could find Viviene, but it was looking less and less likely as the weeks rolled by without any news from her.
And besides, Devin truly needed wolf care.
"I will send the child back with you." Cedric acceded.
"And what of Talia?"
"I will release her from her position here and she can go back to doing what she wishes."
=============
"Wait. Say that again?" Cecil held up a finger.
"Your Majesty?"
Cecil slapped the attendant on the shoulder with an impatient hand.
"I said repeat what you just said. Go slow so I can understand."
The attendant bowed his head.
"Your Majesty. The Countess Talia lives in New Orleans alone and without any family. She was in medical school but then quit to go into veterinary medicine."
"Any known reason why she quit medical school?" Cecil raised an eyebrow.
"Your Majesty, it seems as if she preferred working with animals. They are both quite challenging fields of medicine."
Cecil nodded. "Continue."
"Lady Talia was working in the Animal Hospital as surgical nurse but is currently working for the Grand Duke as full time nanny for the young Lord Devin."
"Keep going." Cecil prodded.
"She is unmarried and has no known partners, male or female. She has no pets and few friends."
"Wait. She told me she has a boyfriend." Cecil tapped his lips.
The attendant shook his head.
"She is single, Your Majesty, and has been single for her entire adult life."
"Is it because she doesn't like men?" Cecil wanted to know.
"There is no evidence of that, Your Majesty. It seems as if she is simply very busy with school and work."
"So she lied to me." Cecil began to chuckle. "She's playing hard to get. That little minx!"
The attendant wisely kept his mouth shut.
"Hmmm. Looks like I need to seek her out and play this game at her level. Let's see if she can still keep up her pretense at having a boyfriend once I tease that lie out of her."
"Your Majesty. Perhaps it's best to just let her be."
"Why? This woman is quite a juicy female. I want to collect her for my harem."
"Perhaps she told you that she has a boyfriend to dissuade your advances."
"That's preposterous. All women fight tooth and claw to be one of my consorts. She just doesn't understand what being a Consort really means."
Cecil laughed. "I bet she thinks it's like being in a harem, where she's nothing but a toy for me to play with."
He scratched his jaw. "I think she truly doesn't understand that a Consort is like a secondary wife and is only below the Queen. Even her children, when she has them, will all be legitimate Princes and Princesses."
He snapped his fingers. "I bet I know what she's angling for. She probably thinks being the Seventh Consort is low on the totem pole and is wrangling for a higher numeric ranking."
He laughed and shook his head.
"Truth is, they're all the same to me. First or seventh makes no difference at all. I treat them all equally well, but if she is truly that hung up on the Consort order, that's an easy fix."
"I can just give her the First Consort title if that will make her happy."
"Your Majesty," the attendant's face looked less than happy. "I don't think that will work with the Lady Talia."
"Nonsense. Set up a meeting time with the Lady Talia. I want to have a conversation with her."
The attendant bowed.
"Yes, Your Majesty."