Crown of Moonlight (Court of Midnight and Deception #2) - K.M. Shea Page 0,65

at me and turned his back to me, so I was surprised when Consort Flora gave me a small curtsy.

“Good day, Queen Leila,” she said in a soft but pleasant voice.

King Birch whipped around to stare at her.

I was half prepared to throw my helmet at him if he yelled at her or something, but all he did was stare at her. I smiled. “Good day, Consort Flora. Are you joining the hunt today?”

Consort Flora shook her head. “My presence is not required.”

“Huh.” I rested my hand on my hip and glanced at Skye. “Did we tell Rigel that? I just assumed he had to come.”

“Consort Rigel is aware,” Skye said. “He opted himself to ride with you.”

Very briefly, King Birch’s ruddy complexion turned pale.

Ah, I thought with satisfaction. Maybe I don’t have to worry about wearing armor. Having Rigel riding around me should be a good deterrent!

“Ahh yes, where is Consort Rigel?” King Fell asked with a bit of a sneer as he finally deigned to look in my direction.

“Here,” Rigel said, stepping out of the shadows behind Fell with my seven shades—Kevin, Steve, Bob, Larry, Barbra, Mary, and Tom—whom he’d taken off for a quick bathroom break since they seemed to make Queen Rime’s servants upset.

Fell managed to keep his expression calm, but he revealed his touch of fear based on how fast he swung around to face Rigel.

Surrounded by flickering shades and wearing his assassin coat, Rigel looked exceedingly deadly today.

Larry and Bob peeled their lips back, baring their stained teeth at Fell and Birch as they obediently followed after Rigel, who slipped between the two rulers on his way back to me.

“You’re going to use those monsters in the hunt?” King Birch sputtered.

I frowned. “Yeah. They’re dogs.”

“You won’t be able to control them!”

“Sure I can. We’ve been working on obedience ever since they came to live in the mansion. Watch.” I snapped my fingers, and my shades all looked to me. “Sit.”

Obediently, they sat.

A few of the over exuberant shades—Tom and Barbra specifically—couldn’t help but enthusiastically wag their tails as they watched me.

“Down,” I said.

The shades dropped to their bellies.

“You’re so good! Who are good puppies—you are!” I went down the line, petting each shade so none of them would feel left out.

King Fell watched in disgust. “Wild creatures such as shades cannot be trained. They are almost certainly biding their time so they can turn on you.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re just jealous.”

“You cannot possibly think you can control them when they scent the prey,” King Fell said.

I sighed deep in my throat, which made my shades all peer at King Fell. Their eyes were slightly narrowed and their ears were flicked to the side in what I thought of as their “judgy” pose, because they were usually hardcore judging whoever they were looking at. But when I thought about it, they probably looked pretty scary to those who didn’t know them, because Consort Flora backed up and hid behind King Birch.

“If you insist on using them, I will not be held culpable if one gets injured because it goes mad in the hunt,” King Birch said.

“What creatures are you using that are oh-so-superior, then?” I asked.

“We honor the ancient tradition of the hunt and use hounds,” King Fell said.

“This hunt is not an ancient tradition.” Queen Rime turned a page in her book. “You were the one who founded it.”

“Yes, because we’re following the traditions of our ancestors, who were known for their hunts,” King Fell snarled.

“Ooh, someone’s defensive,” I told Mary as I scratched her throat for her.

King Solis finally left the adoration of his horses and joined us in the meadow. “Well met, King Fell, King Birch, and Consort Flora.”

The usual round of unnecessarily wordy greetings were exchanged between the Day King and the other monarchs.

“Hey, Solis, what animals are you using in the hunt?” I asked when it was all over.

“Hounds,” Solis supplied. “And my sun stallions, of course. Most of us will ride sun stallions—they’re best suited for this sort of thing.”

“Makes sense,” I said.

King Birch sputtered. “You dare refer to King Solis without his title?”

“Because he’s my friend, yeah,” I said.

King Fell narrowed his eyes. “Do not ever endeavor to refer to me without the respect of my title.”

“No problems there,” I assured him. “I would never mistake you for a friend.”

King Solis made a hacking sound that seemed suspiciously musical like his laugh. “Queen Verdant hasn’t arrived, yet, has she?”

“She’ll be here,” King Fell declared. “The hunt cannot