Chapter 435: Priorities

Chapter 435: Chapter 435: Priorities

The balcony door opened just as Gerard’s knees finally gave out.

Rex stepped through first.

He stopped.

Cold air moved around the hem of his dark formal coat while warm ballroom light spilled across the stone behind him, catching on the smear of blood left across one of the pale columns.

His gaze moved from the stain to Gerard and to Arik.

Gerard was half collapsed against the base of the column, one hand pressed weakly against the stone as though he had forgotten what he intended to do with it. Blood ran steadily from his hairline into the side of his face and disappeared beneath the embroidered collar of his burgundy coat.

Arik still stood over him.

Rex closed the balcony door.

For several seconds, neither man spoke.

Then Arik looked toward the blood on the marble.

"I apologize."

Rex stared at him.

Arik maintained something resembling sincerity for perhaps two seconds.

"Don’t."

Arik raised an eyebrow.

"You do not mean it."

"I was attempting manners."

"You were wasting both our time."

Arik glanced toward the column.

"It should clean."

"I am not angry about the marble."

That was fortunate.

Gerard made a rough sound from the floor.

He tried to draw himself upright, but one arm folded beneath him almost immediately and sent him back against the stone.

Rex’s attention sharpened.

"He looks bad."

"He insulted Liam."

Rex looked at Arik.

That apparently explained enough.

His eyes moved back to Gerard, and whatever concern had surfaced disappeared almost immediately.

"What did he say?"

Arik folded his arms, coat pulling at his shoulders and elbows.

"Enough."

Rex nodded once.

He knew Arik well enough not to require a transcript.

Gerard managed to lift his head.

His eyes struggled to focus properly on either of them.

"You..." he rasped.

The word barely carried through the cold air.

Rex stepped closer, though not close enough to touch him.

Gerard swallowed with visible difficulty.

"You let..."

His breathing hitched. Whatever accusation he intended never formed.

Arik looked down at him without sympathy.

"He spent the last ten minutes explaining that Liam is decorative, unintelligent, and should have no authority beyond producing heirs."

Rex’s expression became very still.

"He said that to you?"

Arik nodded. "Repeatedly."

Rex looked back at Gerard.

There was a long silence for a few minutes until he sighed.

"You really did choose the worst possible person for that argument."

Gerard’s fingers twitched against the floor.

His mouth moved again.

Nothing coherent came out.

Blood had begun matting the hair near the back of his head now, darker than the thin line at his temple.

Rex frowned.

"He needs a physician."

Arik glanced down.

"He needed judgment."

"Those are not mutually exclusive."

Rex crossed toward the balcony door and opened it enough to call for the nearest royal physician without allowing the ballroom beyond to see the scene clearly.

When he turned back, Gerard had slumped farther sideways.

Arik crouched briefly.

Gerard’s eyes moved toward him.

For once, there was no arrogance left in them.

Only confusion.

Perhaps fear.

Arik considered that fair.

"You would have lived several more days if you had kept your mouth shut."

Gerard’s lips moved.

Arik leaned slightly closer.

Nothing understandable came.

A tremor passed through Gerard’s body.

Then stopped.

Rex stared.

Arik straightened.

The physician arrived less than a minute later with two guards and immediately dropped beside Gerard, checking his pulse before moving one hand carefully behind his neck.

The man’s expression changed.

He tried again.

Then looked toward Rex.

"Your Majesty..."

Rex already understood.

"Dead?"

"Yes."

The physician glanced toward the bloodied column.

"Likely catastrophic intracranial trauma."

Silence settled over the balcony.

Rex slowly turned toward Arik.

Arik looked at Gerard’s body.

"Hm."

Rex stared.

"That is your reaction?"

Arik considered the dead king for another second.

"He survived much longer than expected."

"You hit his head against stone."

"No, I mean generally."

Rex’s eyebrows rose.

Arik gestured vaguely toward Gerard.

"He survived decades while barely using his brain. Perhaps he did not notice when there was none left."

Rex closed his eyes.

One of the guards abruptly looked away.

The physician became intensely interested in repacking his medical case.

"Arik."

"What?"

"That is a corpse."

"It was Gerard before that."

Rex looked toward the ballroom doors.

Inside, the reception continued.

Music played.

Guests laughed.

Mara was somewhere beyond the glass, probably wondering why her new husband had disappeared from their own wedding.

Rex rubbed one hand over his face.

"I told you no bodies."

"I did not intend this."

"You smashed his head into my palace."

"He insulted Liam."

"Yes, I gathered that."

Arik looked mildly offended that this was still being discussed.

Rex sighed as another realization arrived.

"Lucien."

Arik’s expression changed slightly.

The anger disappeared, replaced by calculation.

"He takes the throne sooner than expected."

"Which means there will be a coronation."

Arik’s face went blank.

Rex almost smiled.

"You will need to attend."

"No."

"You prepared the man for two years."

"I can send Kamal."

Rex stared.

"You cannot send Kamal to the coronation of the king you personally trained to replace Gerard."

"Kamal is excellent at ceremonies."

"That is not the point."

Arik folded his arms.

"I will be busy."

"With what?"

Arik looked toward the ballroom.

Liam was visible beyond the glass, speaking with Enia while periodically glancing toward the balcony.

Then Arik looked back at Rex.

"Making children."

Rex froze.

Arik remained perfectly serious.

For several seconds, Rex processed that statement beside Gerard’s dead body.

Then he lost control.

The laugh came out abruptly, forcing him to turn away and grip the balustrade.

Arik frowned.

"I do not see what is funny."

"You are refusing a coronation because you intend to stay home and impregnate Liam."

"When you say it like that—"

"How else am I supposed to say it?"

Arik looked irritated.

"It is a private matter."

"You announced it beside a dead king."

"He cannot repeat it."

That only made Rex laugh harder.

The balcony door opened again.

Liam stepped outside.

He looked first at Arik. At Rex, who was barely managing to breathe. Then Gerard’s body.

His crimson eyes returned very slowly to his husband.

"What happened?"

Arik opened his mouth.

Rex started laughing again.

Liam’s eyes narrowed.

Arik sighed.

This was going to require explanation.