It didn't take a genius to guess she'd be irritated and Vai was well prepared. He made sure a warm bath was readied and he changed from the more uniform attire he was wearing to something more...appealing.

When she stormed in, he immediately began to help her into the bath. He massaged her temples and watched for the storm clouds he'd learned to identify over the years.

His fingers moved down to her neck but she batted them away, dunking her head and then emerging, waving a hand for her towel. Not good. Vai gave her the towel and she sat naked on the bed, drying her hair irritably. She eyed him, looking at him with a calculating look rather than lust. Definitely not good. Consigned to a rough night, he waited.

"Someone tried to poison Fiona today," she said. There was slight accusation in her voice but he knew that if she really blamed him, he would not be standing right now.

"I heard. Is there something I should change about her schedule?"

Fiona was a good girl, but Vai had not enjoyed being her nurse. It wasn't what he trained for. Even now with Lyra in a wicked mood, Vai felt more alive with the queen.

The world now saw his mistress the way he did, saw her power, but it had come at a cost—he had to share. She had hundreds of servants waiting on her. The best Valhym had to offer. He could not help but feel cast aside. The only thing that helped his bruised ego was knowing he was the only one she trusted with her daughter.

"No, nothing for now but in a few days she's leaving."

He raised a golden eyebrow and she tossed the towel to the floor. He moved forward and began brushing her damp hair as she continued, "I'm sending her to stay with Fenrin until it's safe."

His pause was only a microsecond, but he could feel her satisfied smirk. Vai had never liked Fenrin. Her pleasure at his discomfort was a giant stormcloud moving quickly across the horizon.

After Vai brushed out the last tangle, Lyra turned, her hand grasping his chin. "And at the king's request, you are going with her."

Vai made no change in expression, but Lyra saw his heart sink. Her grip loosened and she caressed his cheek. "Ah, poor thing. So hard to serve two masters."

"I serve one," he said, a bit quickly.

She grinned wider. "Good answer."

Then she kissed him. It was hungry and lustful and he quickly removed his clothes. She clawed at his back as he kissed her, knowing exactly where to go and what to do. Despite his perfect performance, he was bruised and battered by morning.

Vai lay awake despite exhaustion and pondered his future. It was already upsetting to be away from his mistress during the day and occasionally loaned out at night. Often Lyra was gone, seeing to her ongoing ambitions and brought him with her less and less. On top of it all, he was leaving his prime.

It was a sad truth for a zhurl. He was nearly thirty-eight and although he did his best to maintain peak performance, Lyra could have the pick of any consort—and she did. In Aryus, he would have either been killed or passed down to someone of less status years ago. Perhaps he should accept his fate of a demotion to nursemaid. It was better than being passed to Eirik, or worse to another owner entirely.

However, it was hard to be optimistic when he knew he was going to be facing Fenrin alone. He closed his eyes suppressing a shudder that might disturb the sleeping queen. Vai almost never dreamed, but when he had nightmares it was of that man.