Page 112 of The Barbarian King's Assassin (Magic and Kings 1)

He had. Jrijori might not have been the coddling type, but he cared for me. “Why?” A question that encompassed too many things.

His craggy features softened. “Because no matter how you came to be in my life, you are my daughter.”

I held the swords and trembled.

“Don’t kill him. You’ll regret it!” Big hands grabbed my wrists and kept me from slicing off Jrijori’s head.

“I wasn’t going to.” While hurt at the deception, I hadn’t forgotten he’d chosen to save me. A child he didn’t know. A girl he truly cared for as a daughter. I turned a glance on the Barbarian at my back. “Took you long enough.”

He glanced at the carnage. “Doesn’t appear you needed me.”

“Where were you?” I huffed.

“Riding as fast as I could.”

“I mean in the temple. I went to the dungeon to save you, but you weren’t there.”

“Because I was looking for you.” His lips captured mine with that admission, a hard mash of his mouth against mine that softened me like nothing else.

When I sighed into his mouth, he loosened his grip enough to say, “Are you hurt? Who can I kill?”

“She didn’t leave us anyone,” Jrijori complained. “By the time I got on the wall, all that was left was that fool, Marell.”

Konstantin glanced toward the palace. “Might as well get it over with. Where’s the emperor?”

“Dead, too.”

“Did you leave me anyone to kill?” My barbarian appeared a tad put out.

I shrugged. “Sorry. I guess you brought your army for nothing.”

“I wouldn’t say nothing. I told you once before I’d go to war for you.” He set me down and stroked the hair from my face.

“You might still get your wish. How did you make it here so fast?” I’d been here barely a day.

“As if the emperor’s puny horses compare to mine. It helped my parents thought there might be trouble and had the army amassed nearby. Although Marell blowing up the pass did delay us. We needed to barge the steeds across the lake. We almost lost two loads to the monster that lives in it.”

Rather than focus on the monster part, I asked, “Did you say your parents are here?” I peeked over the wall and saw Seela astride a massive white horse, holding a mace of all things.

Movement had me whirling to see Jrijori holding his blade to Majya’s throat. “I found one you missed,” he hissed. “This is the emperor’s oldest daughter.”

“I know who she is. Don’t you dare hurt my sister.”

“Sister?” Konstantin’s repeated with surprise.

“It’s complicated,” I grumbled as Jrijori released Majya.

She eyed us all with pursed lips then Konstantin for a long moment. “This is the Barbarian King?”

“Zariina.” Konstantin offered her a polite nod but kept his grip on me.

She chose to remark on it. “There was a time I thanked my luck for this scar because it saved me from marrying a savage. But perhaps that wasn’t so lucky after all. You’re not as expected.”

I might have been jealous if he’d not just broken treaties coming here to get me.

His next words helped, too. “It would seem the fates had a different sister in mind for me.”

A hard glint entered Majya’s gaze, and she lifted her chin. “I’m aware of the rumors you made my sister your mistress.”