Chapter 80

FELIX

I stalked through the halls of the castle, Albert and Joseph behind me.

“Gather the men I listed for the war council,” I said grimly. “It’s time to meet.”

“They’ve all been partying all night,” Joseph said, his voice tinged with concern.

“Then pour some black coffee in them and slap them back to sobriety,” I snapped.

Joseph startled at my tone. I sighed.

“I’m sorry, Joseph,” I said. “That was rude of me. I was unprepared to call the war council this evening, and I realize that I am very tense.”

Joseph smiled. “You’re allowed to be tense after an assassination attempt, Your Highness.”

I gave him a grateful squeeze on the shoulder.

His eyes turned cloudy. ”Sir, we need to send word to Mila’s security–”

“Let them know that there’s been an incident, but don’t give any details. I want to control the spread of information, and there is no need for her to panic. See if they can keep her away from the castle for the night,” I said firmly. “If no one knows where she is, she might be kept safe.”

Joseph nodded and scurried away.

“Where are we going?” Albert asked as we pressed onward.

“My father has a stone chamber below the castle,” I said. “Only a trusted few are allowed in, or to even know its existence. Inside it has all the information a Fresonian ruler needs to go to war.”

Albert nodded solemnly. “Ah, I see. Our castle has a room that is quite similar. I pray that you never need to see its walls.”

“Let us all pray,” I responded. I had been, perhaps, too hesitant in declaring war on my brother. Charles was either cocky or desperate if he was now outright trying to kill me.

One by one, the other men trickled into the war room. I had been clear in my instructions to Joseph: the council was to consist of the Crown Princes from each of our ally kingdoms. After all, as the heirs to the throne, we were who Charles’ army was really after.

Prince Marcello of Sagrada. Prince Lukas of Wisteria. Prince Prince Albert of the South Smyth Islands. Prince Orlando of Prazole. Prince Nicholas of the Whitelands.

Some still smelled of rum and smoke, but all at least had the decency to put on clean shirts and carry mugs of coffee and water bottles.

There was nothing like a war council to sober you up.

I sat at the head of the table, Joseph taking a stance by the door. I looked around at my fellow future kings, my heart aching at their serious faces. We had all been so full of joy earlier tonight. Now, it was time to fulfill our duty.

“Thank you all for coming on such short notice,” I said finally. “I assume that it is not news to any of you that my brother, Charles, is gathering an army of second sons. It is my understanding that some of your brothers have also joined this cause. And for that, I am sorry.”

Albert lowered his eyes, clearly lost in thought about Anton.

“I will admit that I was concerned about officially declaring war on my brother,” I continued. “But tonight was a breaking point. That stripper was sent by him to poison and kill me with hemlock. Now, she has escaped, and I can only assume she is warning Charles to flee from wherever his current position is.”

Lukas gasped. Nicholas looked like he might be sick.

“An assassination attempt at the castle itself?” Marcello asked. “That is bold, even for a man in Charles’ position.”

“What’s more is that this is not his first attempt at murder,” I said. “A few weeks ago, Charles abducted Mila and tried to use her as a hostage to seize the throne. When that did not work, he tried to kill her. It was a terribly frightening time. As my fellow Crown Princes and practitioners of magic, I now need your help to stop this mutiny.”

“What do you need, Felix?” Orlando asked. “You have the full backing of Prazole, now and forever.”

I smiled at him gratefully. “Thank you, Orlando.”

The other princes jumped in to declare and affirm their own allegiance to Fresonia and me, which made me breathe a little easier. There was no doubt that these men could party with the best of them, but when it came to loyalty to the crown, they were unwavering.

“As soon as our wedding celebrations are over, I urge you to return home and talk with your own generals. We must come up with a good offense. As it turns out, ignoring the Charles problem does not make it go away,” I declared.

They all nodded.

“Do you know how many dragons Charles has on his side?” Lukas asked tentatively. The Wisterian royal family did not have the Dragon Knight lineage, although they were well aware of it. That particular royal family had the gift of shapeshifting, and Lukas could take on the form of any animal or creature he wished. It was an impressive gift, and one that might come in handy to our cause.

“I know he has Hades, his beast,” I said.

Albert sighed heavily before saying, “Anton has unfortunately joined his side as well. So add Anton and his dragon, Brimstone, to the list.”

Marcello interjected. “He has recruited Rico to his army, which means that he has Fuego. I’ll check with the other Dragon Knights in Sagrada to see if Charles has gotten to any of them. Most are dukes, with a very distant claim to the throne or even land. I could see a world where Charles’ argument would be convincing to them.”

“As far as Fresonia, the only other member of the Dragon Knights line that Charles has managed to persuade is the Lady Isabella,” I said. “She does not ride a dragon, but can speak with them and withstand dragonfire thanks to her heritage.”

“He has managed to recruit a lady?” Prince Nicholas looked horrified. “Shall we warn our sisters as well?”

“She was all too willing to join his cause,” I said through gritted teeth. “But that is no matter. Speak with your sisters, make sure their loyalty is to your crown first and foremost.”

“Personal ambition shall be the death of monarchy,” Albert recited, almost robotically. It was a phrase that had been drilled into all our heads during boarding school.

“What I need now, from all of you, is your secrecy. I am to be married in two days’ time,” I said. “Give my wife and me our wedding night, and then the next morning, I shall make the declaration of war.”

“What will Mila say?” Joseph asked.

I looked down at the table. My stomach twisted. I hated the words as they came out of my mouth, but I knew they were necessary. “Mila cannot know of this plan. As far she is concerned, the only thing she needs to worry about is our wedding. I will tell her shortly before the announcement that we are going to war, but she cannot know anything before then. I assume that I can rely on your discretion.”

The princes nodded solemnly.

And there it was. There would be one last secret between us.

One that could destroy the entire kingdom.