Heir of Beasts

Ch 1.3- All That is Dead and Holy

Sorry this chapter took so long. Health issues and writer's block conspired to delay this chapter. BUT it is finally finished. There is strong language and innuendo abound, so be warned.

- S.

Irei and I ensconce ourselves in his office, sipping steaming mugs of Y'xala as we work. As the minutes creep languidly into hours, he adds some liquor to our drinks. Not enough to impair us, just enough to warm us up and keep us moving.

There's a loud thud, then a bang, then footsteps. Tyro knocks on the door, poking his head in before waiting for our reply. "Sorry, she wouldn't listen to me!" he says ominously. "Whatever you've done, you've unleashed the kraken. Good fucking luck."

"If I die, you're out of a job!" Irei calls after him, unconcerned, as Taís Nara tears into the room. On a good day, Irei's sister is intense. Her dark eyes sparkle with interest and something a little sharper, maybe even a little cruel. That black hair hangs like a storm cloud around her regal face as eyes the deepest brown before black blaze beneath strong brows. I can almost taste the sulfurous bite of brimstone as her eyes rake over me, assessing me.

When Irei looks me up and down, the desire clearly written on his face heats my blood. All I feel from Taís is revulsion, strong and pungent as the liar's wine I drank the night before.

"Tell me it isn't true!" she fumes, marching over to Irei and glaring. There are daggers in her eyes, and I find myself cowed, even as he looms over her, a full foot taller. What the Grand Councilor lacks in height, she makes up for in pure venom.

And right here, right now, she's as poisonous as an asp.

"For the love of all that is dead and holy, tell me you didn't take Somitu's son to the Kaldanza and screw him in the fucking penthouse! Tell me you aren't that stupid and reckless and ruled by your prick!"

"I'm not ruled by my prick. I merely take its preferences under advisement when making important decisions."

"Oh, aren't you droll?" she laughs humorlessly. "Do you think this is funny, brother? Do you think that this is a joke?"

"Shira is the farthest thing from a joke for me, Taís," he replies evenly. "But I do find it funny that you thought you could barge in here and tell me how to live my life beneath my own damn roof. That I find fucking hilarious."

"Well, you won't be laughing when the Grand Council finds out about the lies we've told on his behalf, the forged papers! You'll lose your position and maybe your life, and I will lose my council seat and my reputation."

"Calm down. They won't find out."

"Don't you dare tell me to calm down!" she seethes. "You can't know that for sure. People are already wondering who the pretty stranger you made such a scene over is. They're saying you beat a Friassi actor half to death for flirting with him!"

"I threatened to have his travel permits revoked," Irei snorts, waving his hand dismissively. "Pay no mind to idle talk."

"Idle talk and idle hands spell disaster for us! You've just given them a reason to look at him closer, and when they do, they'll also look at you. At me. At Azmun and my sons. We will lose everything, Irei, just so you can get your dick wet with some Shikkan slut!"

Irei's eyes darken, unafraid of her storm, braving her lightning with his own. "Amshira is not some Shikkan slut," he says, low voice. "He is my guest, my responsibility, and my lover. He is a choice I made, and you don't have to like that or approve, but you damn well better let me make it. I'm not a baby toddling after you anymore, Taís. I'm a grown man who makes his own decisions and takes his own risks. Truthfully, I would risk much more than your ire and my ambassadorship for Shira's sake."