Page 25 of Infernal Bonds

Ash spooned the mashed potato-style dish onto his plate. “How’d things go with your mom?”

“As well as I expected. She briefed me on Raelynn’s meeting with the council this morning.” His gaze slid to me. “It seems Mother found your performance amusing.”

Zeke stopped with his fork halfway to his mouth. “Performance?”

“She tested Father’s patience.”

Cyn put his fork down and turned his attention to me at the same time Zeke shot me a look of concern.

Ash’s voice was a low growl. “Did he do something to you?”

“Relax,” Ezra said. “He allowed her to speak freely, but Mother was concerned for her well-being more than once.”

Zeke set his fork down. “Why?”

“Probably running her mouth like always,” Cyn said, taking a bite of salad.

I rolled my eyes, ignoring the obvious bait.

“Father made his expectations clear, to which she took offense. Though I don’t blame her for her protest.” Ezra took a sip of his water. “We don’t need another servant, so it isn’t a discussion worth having.”

I didn’t know what I expected, but him agreeing with me wasn’t it. He didn’t seem like the type to want a servant for his every whim, but I also didn’t think he’d snub what his father wanted.

The rest of the meal went without incident, and I absorbed all I could from the guys as they explained their strict schedules.

Several times per week, they trained on the palace grounds with the Elyrdin Guard to stay in top form and defend their home against threats beyond the walls. When not training, they sometimes patrolled those very walls.

I wondered how big Elyrdin was that they needed a full defense force and giant walls to keep out the outside world.

When not performing their duties as princes, they were often left to their own devices unless their parents demanded their attention.

Ezra placed his utensils on his empty plate. “Mother has requested that you join her at the palace twice weekly for education.”

“Huh?”

“Mother has—”

“No, no. I heard you. I just don’t understand.”

“What’s not to understand?”

“I already graduated. I don’t need to go to school.”

“School here is a little different from Earth,” Zeke said, scooping another helping of salad into a small bowl.

Ezra glanced at him. “She’s not required to attend school.”

“What does Amra want with her then?” Ash asked.

“Mother wishes her to become well-versed in the council and Elyrdin’s customs and the expectations of living on the infernal plane.”

That didn’t sound so bad. I didn’t know anything about this world, and if I needed to stay here, I needed to know what to expect. I also wanted to know more about what being non-human meant for me.

Like, could I do some cool spell and not have a period again? If so, totally signing up for that one.

“It’s not about that,” Ezra said, looking at Cyn. I’d missed something they said. “If Raelynn is to be our mate, she needs to not embarrass us in front of the Elyrdin people.”

Ash’s brow crinkled. “Amra said that?”