“Men speak to animals?” Serena queried.

“Yes,” Finnie replied.

“Sorcerers,” Serena deduced.

“No, all men and all women speak to different species,” Maddie told her.

How marvelous!

“How strange,” Serena muttered.

“Back to the matter at hand,” Frey interrupted. “We’ve received communications that Lahn and Tor are a day’s sail away. Lahn will come with us. He and his warriors are unbeatable. In fact, I would not be surprised if in ancient times, they came from your land,” he told Mars, then nodded as well to Cassius. “You will see many similarities in your peoples.” He finished on a mutter, “Though Korwahkians are larger.”

“Interesting,” Mars murmured.

I agreed, for I could not imagine men larger than the Firenz or Airenzian.

“Tor will remain here,” Frey went on. “With his experience, he could be useful in covert situations.”

True inclined his head to Frey.

“Where will Chu go?” Serena asked my husband.

“He will come home,” Mars answered.

Serena accepted this answer readily.

Elena and Cassius studied her closely as she did.

As if raised by her mention of him, the man himself, Chu, prowled in.

“Oh balls,” I whispered at one glance at his face.

“What now?” Mars asked his Trusted.

Chu, to my surprise, looked not to his king, but to Serena.

“Two nights past, The Enchantments were attacked.”

“This happens often, Chu,” Serena dismissed on a shrug.

Chu, already looking grim, now appeared dour.

I would understand why when he shared, “They used a unicorn horn and had kidnapped a Nadirii in order to bring down the veil.”

There were gasps, including one from myself, but before I’d recovered from my shock, I sensed an emotion much more intense had saturated the room.

Wrath.

And it was emanating from Cassius.

“What is this you say?” he hissed at Chu.

“I am sorry for the news,” Chu said to Cassius but looked to Elena and his expression changed to one that made the skin at the back of my neck itch. “I am sorry for the news,” he repeated softly. “The Nadirii who was abducted was your mentor.”

The blood drained from Elena’s face.

“She is alive, though gravely wounded,” Chu went on. “The Nadirii received a warning prior to the attack, thus they prepared and easily defeated the aggressors. No other Nadirii warriors were mortally or critically wounded.”

“We must go immediately to Mother,” Serena declared.

“I must go immediately to Melisse,” Elena whispered.

“Lamb,” Cassius murmured, and Elena’s head tipped back to look at her betrothed.

“Cassius,” she said, but her voice broke pitifully in the middle of his name in such a way I felt a small break in my heart.

We all then watched as Cassius took hold of Elena, muttering, “Excuse us,” and then he guided her out of the room.

I would not suspect that of Cassius, that thoughtfulness, that attention to Elena’s needs and seeing to them without her being in a state to share them.

But I liked it very much.