Meryn snorted. "Yeah, so you could make Brie," she said flippantly. Everyone around them paused at her words.
Ari pulled her close. "I don't care how or why, she's here and she's mine."
"Ryuu, can I have more meat, please?" Meryn asked.
Ryuu moved to add more slices to her plate from the platter. "Thank the gods Leo cooked so much. Meryn, I think you've eaten a cows' worth."
Meryn pouted, then looked up at Leo. "Am I eating too much?"
Leo practically tripped over himself to take the platter from Ryuu. He generously loaded up her plate. "Of course not. Here, take some more. Oh, and some onions."
Ryuu eyed his charge who was smiling up at the other squire shamelessly. He shook his head, smiling. "Simply adorable."
Brie got the feeling he was referring to her manipulation and not the smile.
"She's totally playing you, Leo," Declan pointed out, trying to spear pieces of meat off the platter.
Leo blinked. "Of course she is." He pointed down. "Look at that devious little smile. How could I say no to that?"
Jedrek looked from Meryn to Leo and then to his mate. "Thank you for having boys. They're so much simpler."
Catherine raised a brow. "You have two daughters now, remember."
Brie flashed him a peace sign, and Kari smiled sweetly. Jedrek reached for his drink again.
"So, if we follow the trickle down path of bullshit concerns, then we really need to start with the people, not the council, right?" Meryn asked. She now held a fork in each hand, with beef on each fork.
Kendrick snapped his fingers. "Exactly. Meryn, as usual, you're a genius."
"I knooow," she said with a mouth full of food.
"If we do something similar to what we did in Lycaonia, it may work," Kendrick continued. "I know a journalist that submits to the Chronicle."
Jedrek sat back. "That's impressive. They like to keep their names secret to avoid outside pressure. It lends credibility to their neutrality. You contacting them is exactly what they try to avoid."
Kendrick gave a half shrug. "I won't tell them what to write. I'll just give them all of the facts as I know them and let them decided what to do. The Chronicle is the only newspaper that is distributed to all four pillar cities. It would be the fastest way to sway public sentiment."
"It could backfire. They could reveal that you tried to color what would be written," Rex pointed out.
"It may be a chance we have to take," Kendrick said. He tapped his lips with his finger. "Storm Keep will be the hardest sell. Meryn and Aiden have almost no ties to the city."
"Her uncle is an Elder there," Anne pointed out.
Kendrick shook his head. "That doesn't carry much weight in Storm Keep. The Witches' Council runs the city."
"Yeah, and I may be responsible for a murder there soon," Meryn admitted casually.
Nearly everyone choked.
Aiden and Kendrick whirled on her. "What!"
Meryn's eyes darted to the twins then down to her plate. "The guy that runs the orphanage may be expiring due to unforeseen circumstances." She grabbed her forehead. "It must be a premonition."
Kendrick sputtered, laughed, sputtered again, then finally he shook his head and sat back. "Is there any way this premonition could possibly be from a much more distant future? Like much, much more distant future?"
Meryn shrugged with one shoulder. "Maybe."
"Meryn," Aiden growled.