ESSIE WOULD FORCE her brother King Averett of Escarland, and her elf brother-in-law King Weylind of Tarenhiel to cooperate even if she had to knock their overly hard heads together. She was in no mood to listen to them posturing...which sounded a lot like sibling bickering, to be honest.
“I am not going to step foot in your kingdom, simply trusting that your soldiers will not attack.” King Weylind stood, facing Essie’s brother, in the center of Linder Island, the tiny rock island in the Hydalla River, which formed the border between Tarenhiel and Escarland.
While the rock made a convenient place for diplomatic meetings since it was neutral territory, it wasn’t as comfortable of a place for allies to sit down and plan a war, especially without all the preparation they had done for the previous meeting on the island.
Essie gritted her teeth. That was assuming her brother and brother-in-law didn’t start a war arguing about which side of the border should host the war planning session. Last time, it had taken months to arrange the meeting to everyone’s satisfaction.
Farrendel didn’t have months. Every moment they delayed was another moment he had to spend in the hands of his troll captors.
“If we agree to this alliance, then I’m going to be marching an army across your kingdom. You’re going to have to trust me with a whole lot more than your own safety.” Averett crossed his arms as he glared back at the elven king.
Behind her, Essie’s other two brothers, Julien and Edmund, shifted, as if they were about ready to march over there and help Averett glare at Weylind. Jalissa, Essie’s elf sister-in-law, huffed, though Essie was not sure if it was because of Averett or Weylind.
Essie shifted the gun she had slung across her back, its weight growing heavy against her shoulder. Enough of this. If they wanted to bicker, they could do it once Farrendel was safe. “Really, you two. We’re all family here, more or less. We all want to get Farrendel back, and we all want to defeat the trolls. Averett, Weylind, if the two of you could stop posturing like a pair of peacocks, then maybe we could get somewhere.”
Weylind’s gaze snapped to her, and Essie wasn’t sure if the hardness in his gaze was because of Farrendel’s capture, her tone, or the fact that she’d dared address him as her brother-in-law without his title.
Essie glared right back. She still wore the tatters of the green elven dress she had worn to the ball in Escarland. She was spattered with blood and grime. She’d had to leave her husband behind to escape with vital information about the traitors in both Escarland and Tarenhiel, and in that escape she’d seen one man die and killed another herself. She couldn’t care less what Weylind thought of her at that moment.
Averett shifted, his mouth tipping into a tight, wry smile. “You’re right, of course.” He turned back to Weylind. “Look. We both agree that we need to work together to defeat the trolls. Neither army alone is going to be able to attack Kostaria and rescue Farrendel. It’s going to take cooperation and compromise. Now, I propose that we take this meeting to the deck of your steamboat, which will remain docked here at Linder Island. Is that an acceptable enough compromise?”
Weylind studied Averett, as if searching for whatever treachery Averett might be planning.
Essie resisted the urge to thump Weylind over the head with the butt of her gun. “I know you don’t trust him. But do you at least trust me when I say he isn’t planning anything?”
Weylind tipped his head, the hardness in his expression cracking. “I apologize, isciena. Very well, I will host this meeting on board.”
In that moment, Essie saw the pain in Weylind’s eyes. Yes, Weylind was being all hard and grumpy right now. But that was a sign of his protective worry for Farrendel. He’d been just as grumpy when he’d been worried she would break Farrendel’s heart.
“I know you’re worried about Farrendel. We all are.” Essie refused to let her voice break. Right now, she had to focus on what she could control. “But my brothers aren’t the enemies here. Now, you’re going to be hosting the king of Escarland. Please try to be gracious.”
That made Weylind’s mouth twitch in something that looked suspiciously like a smile before he replaced it with his hard mask once again.
But Essie had been married to Farrendel long enough to recognize the brief flashes of emotions