“BECAUSE HE GOT HURT AND HE SHOULDN’T HAVE!” Jaenelle’s eyes suddenly filled with tears. “I’m mad at him because he got hurt. Don’t you think I know how ecstatic and terrified he’s been since Kalush got pregnant? How much she and Arianna mean to him? How vulnerable he feels about another woman showing interest in him?” She swiped at a tear that rolled down her face. “But you all hid it so well, we weren’t picking up anything but the edginess the boyos have felt since those…people…came to the Hall. If we’d known, the coven would have done something before now.”

Hearing something underneath the words, Daemon narrowed his gold eyes. “What else?”

Jaenelle hesitated. “Alexandra is my grandmother.”

He advanced on her so fast, she took a quick step back and tripped on the train of her gown. Catching her by the arms, he pulled her up against him. “You are not going to wallow in guilt, Jaenelle,” he said fiercely. “Do you hear me? You’re not going to do it. She’s your grandmother. A grown woman. As an adult, she’s responsible for her own actions. As a Queen, she’s responsible for controlling her own court. If anyone should share the blame with Vania, it’s Alexandra. She was warned about this and did nothing.” When she started to argue, he gave her enough of a shake to make her bare her teeth and snarl at him. “If you want to shoulder guilt and blame because they’re here, then Wilhelmina is equally guilty and equally to blame.”

Oh, the protective fierceness in those eyes.

Daemon ran his hands soothingly up and down her arms. “If one granddaughter shouldn’t be blamed for Vania’s actions or Alexandra’s lack of action, how can you, in all fairness, blame the other?”

“Because I’m the Queen, and a Queen not only controls her court, she protects it.”

Daemon snarled in frustration and muttered a few uncomplimentary things about female stubbornness.

“It’s not stubbornness when you’re right,” Jaenelle snapped.

He couldn’t win this fight if that was the stand she was going to take, so he tried to shift them to different ground. “All right. We should have reported it.” Or taken care of it themselves better than they had.

She stared at him suspiciously. “Why are you agreeing with me all of a sudden?”

Daemon raised one eyebrow. “I would think you would prefer having males agree with you,” he said mildly. “Should I keep arguing?”

“When any of you gives up this quickly, it’s only because another of you has gotten into position to continue the argument from another angle.”

“You make the First Circle sound like a hunting pack,” Daemon said, trying hard to suppress a chuckle.

“I think they learned that tactic from the wolves,” Jaenelle replied sourly.

Daemon began massaging her neck and shoulders.