Betrayed by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #5)(23)

“Welcome, Lord Iannis.” Another receptionist sat behind another glossy desk. This one had pale blonde hair pulled back from her face into an elegant updo, and she wore mage robes of moss green. “And Miss Baine,” she added, her grey eyes narrowing ever so slightly as she acknowledged me. “The Minister is expecting you both.”

Ar’Mengis nodded to her and led us down a long hallway. Portraits of previous Federation politicians graced the papered walls. They looked down at me scornfully, as if to suggest I didn’t belong there. I ignored their judgmental stares and kept my head high as the aide rapped lightly on the heavy wooden door at the end of the hall.

“Come in,” a firm, commanding voice called from the other side, and the aide pushed it open.

Iannis and I were ushered into a large office decorated in red, white, and gold—the Northia Federation’s colors. It was a grand space, with a well-appointed sitting area on one side of the room, and a large desk, shelving, and chairs on the other. At the desk sat the Minister, who looked to have been in the middle of reading a report. Behind him, a trio of large glass windows provided a gorgeous view of the glittering city.

“Good evening, Minister,” Iannis said, bowing. I did the same, though I stayed silent and studied the Minister through my lowered lashes. His long, yellow hair was tied back at the nape of his neck, leaving his austere features unframed. He was dressed in red-and-gold robes that I knew would help him cut a fine figure standing. It was those robes, and his commanding presence, that made others sit up and take notice—his facial features themselves were rather ordinary, nothing in comparison to Iannis’s masculine beauty.

“Good evening, Lord Iannis, Miss Baine.” The Minister gestured to the glossy, hand-carved visitors’ chairs that perched on the red-and-gold rug in front of his desk. “Have a seat, please. There is much to discuss.”

As Iannis and I obeyed, the Minister gave me a good, long look, eyes traveling up and down my body. I tensed slightly—it wasn’t a sexual gaze, but a clinical one, as though he was measuring my worth based on his ocular examination.

“I appreciate you coming on short notice,” he told Iannis, flicking his chocolate-brown gaze away from me.

“Of course. You said the matter was urgent.”

“It is indeed.” The Minister paused, his gaze turning back to me. “I have not yet had the chance to congratulate you on your engagement, Miss Baine.”

I blinked, surprised he wasn’t launching into the mission details immediately. “Thank you, Minister.”

“You realize, of course, that a union between a man of Lord Iannis’s status and yourself is a highly unusual affair, if not outright taboo,” the Minister continued, his voice growing stern.

I lifted my chin a little. “A number of mages have already informed me of that.”

“I imagine they would have.” A faint smile crossed the Minister’s face. “I have decided not to oppose the union, because shifter-mage relations are strained right now. Coming between the two of you would only make things worse.” The Minister leaned forward now, his eyes narrowing dangerously on me. “But make no mistake, Miss Baine, if you fail to publicly conduct yourself in a manner befitting your new station, and embarrass the mage community in any way, I will have you exiled from this country.”

“Would you? I would leave with my fiancée, in that case,” Iannis said, his voice as cold as I’d ever heard it. “We came here to fight against the Resistance, not to listen to pointless threats.” His eyes bored into the Minister’s, who averted his own gaze after a moment.

I kept my back ramrod stiff in my chair, my hands splayed comfortably in my lap. I wouldn’t give the Minister the satisfaction of shouting at him, or clenching the fabric of my skirts. After all, he was just waiting for any sign that I was an uncouth shifter girl, slave to my animalistic instincts and unfit to sit at the table with the important mages.

Well, f*ck him. I would show them all that I was good enough to sit at the table with the big kids, despite the fact that I was half-shifter. Hell, I would show them I was more than good enough because of my heritage as a half-shifter.

You are not merely the sum of your parts, Sunaya Baine, Resinah had said to me once. Whole, you have the potential to be stronger than both your shifter and mage ancestors.

“Are you ready to tell us why you needed our assistance?” Iannis asked. His expression was calm, but I could sense the fury thrumming under his rigid control.

“Yes, it might be best to move on,” the Minister said with a slightly nervous glance at Iannis. He initialed the report he’d been reading and tucked it away before giving us his full attention. “As you know, I have recently expended a great deal of time and effort to thoroughly purge my office of anyone untrustworthy.”

“Yes, I remember.” The anger in Iannis’s eyes died away, replaced by intensity as he focused on the subject that had brought us three thousand miles away from home. “Have you discovered something useful during said purging?”

“Indeed I have.” The Minister scowled. “I managed to identify the human staff member who administered the drug which made me so ill—according to her confession, it was put into the milk I use with my coffee. I have taken to drinking it black now. Thank the Creator that you were able to cure me. It seems the conspirators were confident that no mage would be able to do so.”