HORNS (BoyXBoy)

Chapter 182

Chapter One Hundred and Eighty-Two

Rahn and Sebastian were quiet on the way back. Not that I really blamed them--to be honest, I was pretty sure my talk with Sylias had, in fact, opened up Pandora's box. It chilled me inside to realize that I was responsible for all the damage that had just been done to the duke's family.

I also caught the scent of fury wafting off the Erlking.

It was strong and not at all subtle. 

Suddenly he stopped, and Bash warily did the same, instinctively stepping in front of me. 

"What is it?" the grumpy Italian rasped, deep and unsettling. "I can smell your fury."

"Oh, I am beyond fury," Rahn quietly laughed, shaking just enough to jingle his jewelry; he didn't turn around, and his fists remained clenched tight. "Not with either of you, though. I am always angry after playing nice with that... that foul..." He snorted and scraped his hoof, tossing his fiery hair with a deep, goatlike bleat before turning around, bearded jaw tense with anger. "I was not expecting Sylias to do what he did, though I am not surprised. He may seem like an arrogant and annoyingly uptight little bastard, and don't get me wrong, he absolutely is... but he's a good soul at his core. He admits it when he's wrong, and he gets very, very angry over such injustices."

"He could have fooled me," Bash snorted, making a sour face. "Demanding that I kneel to his royal ass like some fucking peasant--feh. In his fucking dreams. There are only two men on this planet I have ever willingly bent my knee to, and both of them have more value to me in their hangnails than that oversized prissy beanpole. He has a lot of fucking audacity."

"He does indeed, but if I may ask, please go easy on him," Rahn snorted, face relaxing into something a little less forced. "He is very arrogant and very much as blue-blooded of a prat as a highborn wind sprite can be, but you saw for yourself just now what his true nature is. He is angrier than I have ever seen him. Not once since the day he was born has he acted like that."

"Do you think he meant what he said?" I quietly asked, and both of them looked at me, though I couldn't meet their eyes. "Do you think he's really going to cut ties with his family over what his dad did to Chi? Or do you think he was just speaking in anger?"

"Oh, he absolutely meant it in the moment," Rahn drawled, face twisting into a smirk before his expression turned sad. "Though, realistically, I don't think he will stay true to what he said. At his core, Sylias practically worships his father. He loves his entire family as deeply as one can."

"What will happen from here?" Bash questioned, wriggling his jaw as he eyed the cavernous tunnel around us. "Do you think the start of the trial will be delayed another day or two?"

"No, it won't," the erlking sighed, waving his concerns off. "I can't say for sure what will happen with Sylias since he's never spoken up against his father before, but if I had to guess, he'll eventually make demands and begin to try mending the rift between Chisai and the rest of their house, but when he finally realizes that nothing he tries will work, he'll try to arrange a formal meeting with Chi."

His kaleidoscope eyes twinged with something sad and even a little jealous as he spoke. 

I sighed for what felt like the thousandth time. "Do want me to make a call and try to get him on the phone?" 

"What?" Rahn and Bash simultaneously demanded.  

"Chi," I reiterated, stone-faced. "Do you want me to call around and ask if he can talk? Or would you prefer it if I talked to him about what's going on right now myself?"