Chapter 16: North

Chapter 16: Chapter 16: North

"What actually happened?" Irena asked while following Sebastian across the tarmac toward the jet. "You do not look like someone in rut, and I know for a fact that you take suppressants like candy."

"Irena, if you do not want to come now, you can stay, enjoy the wedding celebration, and return a few days later."

Sebastian said it perfectly calmly.

He had left the palace half an hour earlier, and the cold night air of the capital now moved through his open coat and pushed loose strands of dark hair across his face. Floodlights illuminated the private military terminal in pale pools, reflecting from the damp concrete and the black fuselage of the Fitzgeralt aircraft waiting ahead.

He loved the cold.

It reminded him of home.

Fitzgeralt occupied the northern part of the empire, where winter lasted longer than anyone elsewhere considered reasonable and even summer mornings frequently carried enough chill to justify a coat. Most of the year existed somewhere between actual winter and an extended, gray-green autumn.

Sebastian had always preferred it.

Irena scoffed. "And leave your security in Timi’s hands? Never."

Timi was an alpha under Sebastian who handled most of his personal security coordination when military command and estate obligations overlapped.

He and Irena also despised each other with a level of precision Sebastian found suspicious.

He was relatively certain they had slept together at some point.

He was equally certain whatever followed had ended badly.

Neither had told him, and Sebastian had never asked because their work remained impeccable. As far as he was concerned, his officers could ruin each other’s personal lives recreationally as long as they continued submitting reports on time.

A black SUV stopped near the aircraft stairs.

Timi stepped out before the driver had fully killed the engine.

He wore a dark security coat over formal trousers, an earpiece still hooked behind one ear from the wedding detail. His eyes moved immediately over Sebastian, then toward Irena.

His expression worsened.

Irena’s did the same.

Sebastian kept walking.

"Good. You’re both here. Try not to murder each other before takeoff."

"I wasn’t planning to," Timi said.

"I was," Irena replied.

Sebastian glanced between them.

Definitely slept together.

He had neither the energy nor the curiosity to investigate further.

Timi fell into step on Sebastian’s other side. "The aircraft is cleared. Four security personnel onboard, two pilots, and one attendant. Fitzgeralt’s private field has been notified, and the residence detail will meet us on arrival."

"Good."

"Melanie said you’re entering rut."

"I am."

Timi looked at him.

Sebastian looked back.

The alpha wisely decided his continued employment mattered.

"Understood."

They reached the stairs.

Sebastian placed one foot on the first step and felt a dull pulse move behind his eyes.

He stopped for less than a second.

The sensation had been returning gradually since he left his suite, faint enough that he might have dismissed it before this week.

Now he noticed every change.

His fingers tightened around the rail.

Cold air moved beneath his coat and cooled the sweat gathering at the back of his neck.

Irena had already climbed two steps before realizing he was no longer directly behind her.

She turned.

"Sebastian?"

He continued upward.

"Nothing."

Her eyes narrowed.

She did not believe him.

That was becoming a recurring problem.

The cabin was warm, softly lit, and considerably quieter than the reception they had abandoned. Cream leather seats faced each other around dark tables, while the rear of the aircraft contained a private bedroom and small office Sebastian normally used during longer flights.

His bag had already been placed beside the bedroom door.

Sebastian removed his coat and handed it to the attendant.

Irena watched him.

"What?"

"You’re pale."

"I have been informed."

"By whom?"

"Nero."

That escaped before Sebastian decided whether he wanted to say it.

Irena’s expression sharpened.

Timi, halfway through checking something with one of the security officers, looked over.

Sebastian immediately regretted both of them possessing ears.

Irena crossed her arms.

"And there it is?"

"There what is?"

"The part you weren’t telling us."

Sebastian took one of the forward seats and loosened the first button of his shirt.

"There is no part."

"You left your cousin’s wedding reception without saying goodbye to half your family, claimed an early rut despite suppressants strong enough to tranquilize an ordinary alpha, and now you casually mention Nero."

"I said he called me pale."

"At the wedding?"

"Yes."

"Where?"

Sebastian looked at her.

Irena smiled without warmth.

"Exactly."

Timi sat opposite him.

"I’m suddenly interested too."

"You should both cultivate hobbies."

"I have hobbies," Irena said.

Timi muttered, "Ruining other people’s evenings."

She turned toward him. "You would know."

Sebastian closed his eyes.

Definitely slept together.

The aircraft doors sealed.

A low vibration moved through the floor as the engines began cycling, and the cabin lights dimmed slightly in preparation for departure.

Sebastian opened his tablet.

"I am going home because I need controlled medical readings somewhere no one from Saha has occupied."

That silenced them.

Irena sat across the aisle.

Timi’s expression changed first.

"Pheromonal exposure?"

"Possibly."

"From Nero?"

Sebastian did not answer immediately.

The aircraft began moving toward the runway.

Outside, terminal lights slid slowly past the windows while the capital glowed beyond the perimeter fencing in layers of gold and white.

"I don’t know," Sebastian said eventually. "That is why I’m leaving."

Irena studied him more carefully now.

"What do you think he did?"

"Stabilized me."

Her brows drew together.

"Without telling you?"

"Yes."

"And you only realized tonight?"

Sebastian looked toward the window.

"He made sure I realized tonight."

The admission tasted worse aloud.

Neither officer spoke for several seconds.

The jet turned onto the runway.

Sebastian felt the engines deepen beneath his feet.

Timi leaned forward, forearms against his knees. "Do you think he harmed you?"

"That is what I intend to find out."

The aircraft accelerated.

Sebastian’s body pressed back into the seat as the runway lights blurred into parallel lines and then dropped away beneath them.

Palatine’s capital unfolded below in illuminated grids before clouds swallowed most of it.

He watched until the palace district disappeared.

"My residence in Fitzgeralt has never hosted Nero or anyone from his household. I was stable there before coming south. If my readings normalize once I’m back, then I want to know why."

"And if they don’t?" Irena asked.

Sebastian’s gaze remained on the dark window.

Then Nero had been telling the truth.

He disliked that possibility enough not to say it.

Instead, he opened the notes he had started in his suite.

Irena leaned slightly toward the screen but did not attempt to read it.

"You’re building a case."

"I’m building a timeline."

"For what?"

Sebastian scrolled to breakfast.

The first moment he had mistaken Nero’s pheromones for medication.

"If I can prove deliberate interference, I want a medical non-contact order in place before Nero decides to become creative again."

Timi exhaled slowly.

"Against the Crown Prince of Saha?"

"Yes."

"That will be politically ugly."

"So is going berserk."

No one argued with that.

The cabin settled into cruising altitude.

Sebastian reached into his bag and removed the compact monitoring unit he kept for deployments. He clipped the sensor against the inside of his wrist and watched the first readings populate his tablet.

He had elevated but stable readings; he recorded the time.

Irena watched him for another moment before standing.

"I’m getting coffee."

"Bring me one."

"You’re supposed to be resting."

"I’m also supposed to be in rut. Apparently tonight is full of disappointments."

She gave him a long look but continued toward the galley.

Timi remained opposite him.

"You know she’s going to tell Melanie."

"I know."

"She’s also going to tell your physician."

"I know."

"And probably your parents."

Sebastian finally looked up.

"Do you want to join her?"

Timi stood immediately.

"Coffee sounds excellent."

Sebastian waited until both disappeared toward the rear of the cabin.

Then he leaned his head against the seat and closed his eyes.

The warmth he had felt in the palace was fading.

Slowly enough that he could measure it now.

The pressure behind his eyes was returning with it.

Sebastian opened his eyes and looked down at the monitor.

The numbers had shifted. He entered another timestamp.

Fitzgeralt was less than three hours away.

For the first time that night, Sebastian found himself impatient to see what his own walls would tell him.