He almost told the youngster there was nothing he could do for him. Then he thought about Saetan’s rules for anyone staying at the Hall. “This is an order, puppy, so pay attention.” He waited until the youngster straightened up and stared at him. “Until I tell you otherwise, you may not have sex with a girl without my permission. That means both of you coming before me and telling me you want each other. I’ll let you make the choice about kissing and petting above the waist. You go any further than that without coming to me first, I will beat the shit out of you. And I’ll beat the shit out of her, just so it’s clear that the penalty to her will be equally harsh if she pushes after you decline. You understand me?”

“Yes, sir. Thank you.”

“Get yourself back home. No man with any sense is going to want to be anywhere near this street today.”

A restrained smile. “Yes, Prince.”

Lucivar watched the young man move down the street and turn the corner, not quite running as he headed back to his own part of the village, but moving with speed. An example he intended to follow.

Spreading his wings, he launched himself toward the clean spring sky, then hovered for a moment before catching the Red Wind and heading for the Keep.

Lucivar watched Saetan sort through books stacked on the large blackwood table in the Keep’s library. He wasn’t sure why his father needed so many reference books, but if it had anything to do with Jaenelle, it wasn’t something he really wanted to know. “Did I do the right thing?”

“Who are you asking?” Saetan replied.

“The Warlord Prince of Dhemlan.”

Saetan set aside the books and looked at him. “You did the right thing. You didn’t have sufficient reason to order an execution or to break Roxie and deprive her of the power she might have used to . . . persuade . . . a lighter-Jeweled male to have sex with her. I imagine some harsh things will be said about you by the aristo families in Doun—”

Lucivar snorted. “As if I give a damn.”

Saetan nodded, as if he had expected that answer. “I also imagine, when word of this spreads, the Queens who rule the Blood villages in Ebon Rih are going to think long and hard about this. So are the Warlord Princes who live in the valley. You’ve drawn the line, Lucivar, and they’re the ones who will be expected to help you enforce it.” He paused. “I suggest you stay close to home for the next day or two.”

“I’m not going to hide because I made a decision some of the Blood won’t like,” Lucivar snarled.