Her eyes flared with pricked pride. “Stop? I’ll-”
“Enough,” Cyrus commanded softly and strode silently towards Romany. Her eyes widened at his approach. “You forget yourself, warrior.”
“I apologize, Princeps,” she whispered, lowering her gaze deferentially.
“Noah is correct. You disobeyed a direct order and while I would like to think it was because you were caught up in your duty, I am beginning to suspect it was something petty and childish that compelled your actions last night.” His face remained expressionless but Noah recognized the bristling in Cyrus’ body. He was angry. And Cyrus very rarely grew angry. Suddenly, Noah felt as if he should throw himself between the Princeps and Romany. “I would hate to think that my reconciliation with my daughter-”
Everyone gasped, cutting him off. “Your daughter?” Alain stepped forward, alarmed. “Cyrus…?”
Cyrus snapped around at him, his eyes flashing, his usual admirable control gone. Noah almost smirked, thinking Eden had a tendency to do that to a man. “Yes. My daughter. That is how I see her. Merrit made me promise to raise Eden as my own. I never had the chance to fulfill that promise, but if it is the last thing I do I will save Merrit’s daughter and care for her as if she were my own for the rest of my eternal life.”
At the grave oath of the Princeps, a little piece of Noah’s concern chipped away and he couldn’t help the small smile that formed on his lips, despite his father’s disapproving frown and Emma’s anxious expression.
Eden would finally be alright.
With a man as powerful as Cyrus protecting her and caring for her, she had the best chance in the world to turn her life around.
Cyrus had shut them up, and like a large panther satisfied at having made his domination known within his jungle, he turned back to Romany. “As I was saying, I would hate to think that my reconciliation with my daughter has been jeopardized by a Neith’s childish petty jealousy.”
Romany paled and threw Noah a beseeching look. When he didn’t come to her aid he saw the realization dawn on her face. She was Neith. He was Ankh. And he would always put the Ankh before her, no matter their friendship or shared duty. It was the way he had been raised. Arrogant? Perhaps. Selfish? Perhaps. But it was a part of him that was obdurate.
He winced inwardly at the flash of disgust in Romany’s eyes as she finally understood that fact. She huffed and straightened her shoulders to face the Princeps like a warrior. “I apologize, Princeps, for my error in killing Eden’s brother. But I can assure you that it was purely done in the heat of the moment. There is nothing between Noah Valois and me anymore. Nothing that would constitute a deliberate breach of your command.”
Noah wasn’t surprised with her publicly breaking up with him. If she hadn’t done it, he would have. He had defended her to Eden to try and calm Eden down, but the truth was he was furious at Romany for killing Stellan. The wail that had erupted out of Eden as she’d watched her brother’s death would haunt him for a long time.
Cyrus nodded stiffly. “Fine. I will be reporting your error to your Councilman and he will deal out an appropriate punishment. You are dismissed.”
Romany responded with a brittle bow to Cyrus and then she strode from the room and the house without looking back.
As always when one of his ‘relationships’ ended, Noah felt the freedom of relief.
Alain exhaled. “So what now?”
Cyrus shook his head, his dark eyes full of more emotion than Noah had seen since Merrit’s death. He knew it had been a shock when Cyrus saw Eden in the dining room. He hadn’t known how to tell him that Eden was the spitting image of Merrit - except for the color of her eyes. It must be hard to be faced with such a reminder of his lost love. “We wait. I do not want to keep her in the basement for long. Just enough to calm her. I am thankful Romany is no longer here.” He cursed. “I was close. Before the Romany incident, I was close.”
“Don’t worry,” Noah reassured him. “Cyrus, you’ll get through to her. I know it.” His father turned on him and he could see the displeasure in Alain’s eyes. His father knew him. Knew what he was feeling and did not like it one iota. Tough shit. He shrugged. “She said no.”
His mother’s eyebrows drew together. “What do you mean, darling?”
Noah smiled at Cyrus. “I mean at the Awakening Ceremony… she said no. She told them she wouldn’t kill me.”
Although the Princeps didn’t smile Noah recognized the lightening of his eyes as pleasure. “She did?”
“Yeah. She was really brave.”
“That may not mean anything,” Alain sighed. “Cyrus, I am concerned. I don’t want you to get your hopes up.”
Cyrus strode towards Noah’s father and placed a gentling hand on his shoulder. “I appreciate your concern, Alain, but you know I can save her.”
“She isn’t Valeria, Cyrus,” Alain disagreed.
“Dad, she’s strong,” Noah insisted. “She can do this.”
“She threatened to kill you,” his father snapped. “How can you defend that?”
He felt his patience thinning. “Because when she had the chance she didn’t.”
“That was before we killed her brother.”