"It is her King who had made this match for her, and with an honourable man at that. Who is she to complain?" The King was being for real right now, and Cass wanted to stomp up those stairs and smack him.
He resisted, for now, because that wouldn’t make for as satisfying of an end for him. Cass heard the soft, panicked intake of Lady Ava behind him. Fiona made a soft, soothing noise in turn, and Cass let out a sigh.
"Who is she to complain? She has every right to complain. She isn’t just ’some’ woman, my King. She’s our Saintess. You are saying you want to marry off our Saintess to some random man? Without her consent? Did you consider what that would do to not just your Kingdom, but to the common folk? Did you not consider how the gods would react to that?" Another round of gasps as the King, dismissively, waved his hand.
Cass was no god lover, but that made him pissed on several accounts. He easily dismissed what Lady Ava represented to the people, to the common folk. He easily dismissed her position of power.
It was not lost on him, or anyone else that Lady Ava probably interfered with his image. Cass had a feeling that had a role to play in why he was so willing to sell her off.
"The gods can find another." He said it so casually. Cass felt a wave of rage fill him.
Yeah. He was sure that the gods could find another. After all, they had found another hero. It could be that simple for an asshole like him.
But what about the person who was needlessly dragged into someone else’s mess against their will? What about them? He was so fucking heartless, and careless.
Cass clenched his fist tightly, before he released it. He slid his gaze towards Duke Ridgewood, just to make sure he was still hanging there. It brought him some comfort to see the man attempting to grasp onto the invisible hand that was holding him up, his legs kicking. Cass took a deep breath in, and out.
"It is not easy to find someone who is able to communicate with the gods the way that Lady Ava can. Otherwise, Duke Vespertine wouldn’t have adopted someone into his family to take his place. I understand that you have a lot of responsibilities on your plate, but even someone like me, who never went to a temple, knows that much." Cass said coolly, and watched as the man’s face flushed red.
"I had to scour the whole Kingdom, almost had to start looking outside of the Kingdom for another heir after my eldest died. Remember, my King?" Duke Vespertine added. Loudly, at that. He wasn’t holding back either.
His gaze was sharp, pointed, and the King flinched. He had hoped to avoid this confrontation. Dismiss him as an old man or some bullshit like that. All the while, Duke Blackburn stood there, cane in hand. Quiet, watching. Observing.
Cass hated that more.
The King clearly didn’t like being challenged, and it was floundering. So, the future husband stepped in.
"While I can understand that this is a tense situation, I would like to speak up." The man said, and Cass didn’t want to hear a damn word out of the man’s mouth. He also didn’t hide his disgust.
The man had to have 20 years on Lady Ava. Fucking creep. It also didn’t help that he was just as smug as the King, even as he watched the King struggle to control the situation. When Cass felt his gaze scan the hero party and the way it lingered on both girls, Cass could feel every bone in his body tense.
Abso-fucking-lutely not. That man was never going to get within five feet of her. Of them. It was his hero party, his people.
They weren’t going to touch them.
"While I understand that it would be viewed as a loss on your part, since Ava would be taken from the hero party," it’s Lady Ava, you piece of shit. You don’t know her. "She would still be allowed to attend to things in her Saintess capacity. Of course, if she isn’t with child." He laughed.
The fucker had the gall to laugh.
Fiona made a sound behind him as if all of her patience had snapped and Cass didn’t stop her.
That was disgusting.
"Pardon me, but who the fuck are you to speak to her, about her, like that? I’ve never met you, I don’t know who you are, and I can’t imagine anything that would make it worth joining hands with your slimy ass." Cass let himself speak through Lord Blackburn’s body, and he could feel how Lord Blackburn, while muted, agreed with him. The older man didn’t flinch, clearly anticipating Cass’ hostility.
That was to be expected, given how Cass had come out of the gates swinging at his own King. Hell, they didn’t even know the half of it.
"I am a fellow Duke, but of a Kingdom to the east. We have plentiful fields, with good yields. We are hoping to form an alliance with the bountiful Kingdom, and what better way than through marriage?" He scanned Lady Ava and Fiona again and Cass snarled.
"Stop looking at my wife like that." Cass told him, and watched as the man smirked.
"Oh, my apologies." He sneered and Cass could feel how every man behind him tensed.
"Cass." Lucian warned, but it was Fiona’s hand on his shoulder that really told Cass how she felt.
"I’m going to strangle him if you don’t do something soon." She warned. "Plan or no plan." That was fair. Honestly, Cass was surprised that everyone was letting him handle this. Cass glanced up at the man, blinked, before he recalled some of Lord Blackburn’s memories. Kingdom to the east. Kingdom to the east...
There was only one Kingdom to the east, and if Cass could recall it correctly, they were small, and were facing a monster problem right now. They had several issues with the demons that the demon King was sending out. Cass and co had gone there several times. That was probably how he had caught sight of Lady Ava.
Cass shook his head slowly, deliberately.
"There is no way I am allowing this. Neither her father, nor I, agree to this." Cass stated firmly, not giving a fuck as the King trembled. He met the other man’s eyes dead on. Watched the man smirk.
"You aren’t even her adoptive brother. Who are you to protest?" The man was cocky. Cass wondered how quickly that could change.
"I am the man who is in charge of who goes and saves your kingdom’s ass, aren’t I? Tell me, did you disclose to the King that you have several dungeons in your kingdom and that your ’plentiful bounties’ can’t be harvested because of that?" Cass asked, and watched as the man twitched. He clearly didn’t expect Cass to remember.
Fucking idiot.
Granted, Cass might not have had that information if it wasn’t for Lord Blackburn’s memory and his ability to scan through them like a rolodex. They didn’t need to know that.
"With Ava there, that won’t be a problem will it?" He was a fucking idiot. He was so sure, so cocky, and Cass just tossed his head back and laughed. He was aware that it sounded...bad. It sounded evil, honestly, and Cass let that energy flow through him.
"You have no clue how the hero party works, do you? Lady Ava can’t do shit without a hero at her side, and Fiona will not be following your ass anywhere, because Lady Ava isn’t getting married to you." Cass wasn’t budging. He could tell that the guards in the room were getting antsy.
Too bad they didn’t know he had two dragons on his side.
"Lord Blackburn, you have no right-"
"Oh yes I do." Cass stated. "I have every right. Do you not understand that I hold the Kingdom by the balls, my King?" Cass said casually. "I didn’t want to have this conversation in public, but you’ve left me no choice. How much do you owe the Blackburn Estate, my King?" Cass asked, fully prepared for the pushback.
It came almost instantaneously.
"That can easily be forgiven. We are but loyal subjects, Cassian." Hearing the older man say his name, push against his plans nearly shattered Cass’-Lord Blackburn’s resolve. Cass clenched his teeth.
"Okay. So you forgive his debts, but that doesn’t mean I forgive mine." Cass said. "How much do you think you owe me, my King?" Cass asked, and watched as his grandfather turned to him, a little smirk on his lips.
"That’s impossible. All of your wealth is tied up in the Blackburn Estate." His grandfather sounded so sure, and that made his next words taste so sweet.
"That’s just simply not true, grandfather. Or should I say, Duke Blackburn. You told me with all of your actions that I was a Blackburn, but I was only a Blackburn in name. So, I did what you told me to do. I did what any Blackburn would do, and made a secret hoard of my own." Cass let out a dry laugh. "A hoard big enough to attract a dragon, actually." Lucian rumbled behind him, and Cass smirked.
The suspicious, but not shocked look on his grandfather’s face told him that he had known something like this was going on. Cass was a little pissed that he wasn’t shocked, but that was okay.
"Every Blackburn has a secret stash, Cassian. That doesn’t mean you can threaten the King with it." His grandfather was trying to scold him in this situation, but Cass did have an upper hand. He shifted, glancing between the King and his grandfather, who was defending him.
"How much do you think the King relies on the Blackburn family’s money?" Cass asked, and watched his grandfather’s hand tighten on the top of his cane. Cass knew the truth. Knew that the King had been pulling back in the last little bit. He also knew the reason why. "It’s dropped to a third of what it used to be, hasn’t it? He has less trust in the Blackburn family. And why wouldn’t he? The rumours that I’m a demon have spread far and wide, and despite your best efforts, they haven’t faded in the years I’ve been alive." Cass hit the rumour head on.
His grandfather snapped his eyes towards him, and he didn’t hide the hatred there that well.
"You do not know what you speak of." He snarled and Cass let out a laugh.
"Do not know what I speak of? I think, out of everyone here, I would know the best about what it feels like to be told that I’m the reason everything has gone wrong with the family, isn’t that right, grandfather?" Airing dirty laundry that wasn’t his? Perfect. Spectacular.
Cass loved watching the older man’s jaw tighten. The skin on his wrinkly face tightening. Cass was gentle when he spoke next, only because he wanted it to take a second for the man to register what he was saying.
"The reason why the King has been pulling back from the Blackburn family is because he found a better deal. With a commoner. Who had an unlimited amount of money, and a shitty interest rate. Almost like he didn’t know how to manage his money." The King took the shortest amount of time to realise what Cass was saying, what Cass, no, Lord Blackburn had done.
He inhaled shakily, taking a step back, but the trap had already been sprung.
Cass turned to face the man as the dots connected for his grandfather and his face twisted with rage.
"You little-"
"How much have you borrowed, my King?" Cass asked quietly. "If you are afraid to answer, I can tell you." Cass said, and the room held its breath. Cass glanced around the ballroom. He made a point of taking his time, being careful. "How much did all of this cost? How much did the Queen’s new wardrobe cost? Who did you buy it from? Are you even aware that the throne you sit on is paid for with my money?" Cass spoke softly, but that didn’t lessen the blow.
The Queen reacted, rage and hatred spilling out of her.
"You demon! You vile, hateful creature! Guards! Seize him!" Cass let out a soft laugh. Well, she wasn’t wrong. Too bad it was too late for that kind of action.