Page 5 of A Fate of Wings
“I suspected as much when I saw the twitch in your hand. Fate chose the damn Siren Queen for my little brother. What are the odds she’ll keep you?”
I picked up my chair and considered hurling it at the wall for two seconds before putting the chair legs back on the floor and sitting down.
“This is chaotic.”
“In the best way possible.” He waggled his eyebrows as his lips tilted at the edges.
I contemplated scrubbing the smirk off his face the way I had when we were young demon spawn.
His smirk grew like he understood what I was thinking.
“Temper, temper.” He tsked like our mother used to do to us.
I growled.
He chuckled deep in his throat.
I narrowed my eyes. Tempting, so tempting to remind him we were brothers first, but I eased back in the chair, pushing the rage to the back of my mind. As a rage demon, we found that harder than other demons.
“I know you have it in you to make this work.” He leaned back in his chair and placed his leg on his knee.
“I have little choice, don’t I?”
“Not if what the seer Saltine says is true.” He tapped his chin.
“I believe her. She’s never steered us wrong.”
He lifted his heavy crown from his head and set it on the small table. It was like the slight action brought him back to being simply my big brother.
“Rexan?” I muttered.
“Yeah?” he murmured.
There was so much I wanted to say. Thank you for being a good big brother. After someone murdered our parents, you looked out for me. Thank you for everything.
He tipped his chin at me. I tipped mine back. He picked up the crown and placed it back on his head. Our moment of being only brothers was over.
“The siren queen sure is a looker.” He grinned in a devilishly handsome and teasing way. We’d always be brothers, even with the crown on his head.
“You’ll keep those thoughts to yourself about my fated mate if you want to keep your eyes.” I snarled.
He chuckled and stretched back in the seat as though my words did not perturb him. But I meant every one of them. Brother or not. My fated mate was mine, and at last, it was time for me to claim the siren queen.
Chapter three
Thea
The Autumn Court
Ashadow passed acrossthe doorway of my chancellery. Pinpricks of unease skittered up my arms. I raised my head from the papers on my desk and the disquiet settled at the sight of my personal bodyguard. I placed the white quill in the pot of black ink and inclined my head for the siren to speak.
“Your majesty,” Ailine said. “The preparations for tomorrow’s trials are ready. Would you like to inspect the colosseum?”
“Yes.” I rose from the chair and walked around the large timber desk.
Ailine led the way and Raefa, my other personal guard, had my back.
As the siren queen, my enemies were considerable. Sirens couldn’t help the alluring power of our singing. Perhaps weexploited our power too much, but we were beautiful creatures. All the Sirens were female. To some, we were the inferior of the sexes. It was the reason we fought so hard to show our harsh side, so no man would ever see us for just our gorgeous faces and luscious, curvaceous bodies. They would always comprehend we could kill them if we so desired.