32
Anger
William was seething, his anger bubbling below the surface. He knew Kyle was sending calming thoughts at him, trying to calm him, and he let him. An analytical part of his mind recognised that he was overreacting. It had been rude of them to show up uninvited when they’d been expressly told not to, yet he could recognise the political play for what it was. The princess showing up was the Emperor’s way to send a message: as far as Sylanna was concerned, the negotiations held with his father still stood. Or rather, held with Lord Strafford as the go-between, or so he’d discovered. His father hadn’t trusted the details to anyone else.
Even after becoming king, William still felt like he was being boxed into a corner.
That they had one of the Kin with them—not just one of them, bu
