Right in front of his father's throne in the throne room, Nikolai manifested himself. He frowned at Alexander who fixed him with a glum look on his face. He stood on a stairway going up to the throne, his arms folded across his chest, oblivious to the group of elders behind him.
"General Baryshnikov is second in command to Yakim, thus killing him wasn't required, Nikolai." In an effort to divert attention from Nikolai's irritation, Alexander said gently. His lips slightly lifted as he took in his son's appearance. It had been some time since he had seen the dark marks on his arms and the tattoo of a snake around his neck. Like his mother had taught him, Nikolai was accustomed to carefully concealing them. It seemed as though he was always insecure about them, but his appearance at the moment contradicted that.
