The throne room above ground had been made in one of the many hollowed-out trees that existed in the goblin's tree city, or rather, tree fortress. The small space was made to accommodate a dozen goblins, but it felt too tight and confined with only four besides Theo, who sat atop the throne in a special alcove made for his father's former reign. Maybe his severe discomfort, growing by the minute, just spoke to how done he was with this conversation. It was a pointless, petty argument that Theo had long decided the answer to long ago. They were only acting so small-minded because, for some reason, they believed he could be swayed.
Snarl snarled, a wicked, raspy sound that made everyone fall silent. "Yer all acting like damn monkeys, not goblins! Think with your brains ye damn noodles!" He leaned closer to the fire, making eye contact with everyone except for Theo before continuing. "There's gonna be rebellion. That's unavoidable. But by aligning with the wolves, we'll be stronger. We can stop them before they strike."
"I don't see why that plan needs a wolf bitch at all," Bite sniffed. "Theo would make a better alliance with one of the other goblin clans. That'd show those rebellious traitors and make 'em think twice."
Theo pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to quell the throbbing pain behind his eyes. As their leader, it was his job to mediate these disputes—but at this rate, he was going to lose his temper and start flinging them all into next week.
"They'll think twice if they get their throats ripped out by wolves."
"But then we'd be inviting the wolves to kill more of our kind!" Bite whined. "Haven't we suffered enough? Show any weakness to those damn dogs and they'll sniff out the blood and finish what we started. If Prince Theo marries one of their bitches, and he lets them go hunting our kin, traitors or not, the wolves'll start thinking they have power here. We can't let that happen!"
There was a murmur of assent from the goblins gathered around the fire, and a dangerous undertone had arisen in the conversation. Theo knew he had to speak up, because creating an alliance with the wolves through marriage had been his plan, and only he could truly defend it, but his headache was putting him in a foul mood, and when he was in a foul mood, everyone and the mountains beyond always paid for his wrath.
"Goblins die either way," Snarl grumbled. "Unless we can stop 'em without a fight at all, but things are escalating. There was a bombing in the Undertunnels last week, Sire. Not the first."
"It's not natural! Goblins shouldn't mate with wolves!"
"Bite, Snarl," Theo said, his voice carrying easily throughout the room. "I understand that you are both passionate about this issue. But I must ask you to remember that we are all on the same side here."
The two goblins still glared at each other with barely contained hostility.
"Prince Theo, what do you think?" Snarl asked, finally looking up at him. All the other goblins followed suit, their eyes expectant. "You can't kill the wolf. You swore an oath! That'll look just as bad for us if you break it!"
Theo sighed. "I think," he said slowly, enunciating each word as though they were idiots, "that we need to find a middle ground."
"A middle ground?" Bite screeched. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"It means," Theo said through gritted teeth, slamming his fist down on the arm of his throne. The bark and leaves making up the armrest rattled, and the goblins fell silent immediately, their large eyes fixed on him in fear. "So long as the wolves follow through with their end of the agreement and the wedding goes on, the plan to unite with the Kaldron pack and usher in an era of peace between wolves and goblins will go forth as planned. That is final. If you disagree, then you can leave my court."
The goblins all fell silent, but he could feel their resentment simmering just below the surface. This was supposed to be his court, filled with his supporters, but here he was faced with the reality that his choices, as well-intended as they were, left him on thin ice with his goblin brethren. The goblins in this room trusted and relied on him, and though they might not agree with him, they'd all proven themselves loyal.
But if he failed them, if he showed weakness, it wouldn't be long before they started plotting against him. He needed to find a way to cement Lily's place in their society ... but how?
The only way seemed to be by marrying her and using the wolves to quell the rebellion as planned. Show that they could truly be peaceful after all. But that did nothing for them in the short term to deal with the dissent.
This wasn't how his reign was supposed to happen.
He kneaded the spikes of pain shooting through his temples, and Theo's eyebrows furrowed as he took another swig of the Goblin liquor—a concoction so strong it could strip paint—and tried to make sense of the gibberish coming out of the goblin's mouth.
"What was that?" Theo said, looking up, now, to focus on the face of a goblin who had been silent until now.
His cousin, Kaleus, folded his little green hands in front of him. His long, yellow fingernails were more like claws, and his face was warped into a permanent ugly snarl that the other goblins thought was quite ferocious. If that was one thing Theo loathed about his heritage, it was that his drastically different appearance from the goblins was a point of tension between him and them. It was a permanent barrier that prevented him from being truly one with those he was supposed to rule. To protect.
"I said," Kaleus repeated, louder this time, "that for this to truly be a middle ground, then it must also mean that should the wolves fail to hold to their end of the bargain, then you will agree to launch the massacre."
Theo stared at his cousin, unable to believe what he was hearing with his own two ears. That hadn't been the compromise Theo was thinking, not at all.
"Or do you mean to tell us that your mixed blood would mean you would hesitate to act on your oath if it meant killing the wolves, who are also your kin?" Kaleus pressed. "Do you hold sentiment for them after all, sire?"
It was a trick question. A trap. Count on Kaleus to shove Theo into a corner and test him when Theo had a migraine powerful enough to split boulders. Usually Theo appreciated his cousin's oppositional thinking because it provided Theo opportunities to think outside the box and recognize the flaws in his plans. And then use that knowledge, in turn, to make his plans flawless.
He and Kaleus were a good team.
But right now, he was just pissing Theo off.
"No," Theo snapped. "The wolves mean nothing to me. My mother might have been a wolf shifter, but I was raised by goblins.Youare my family, not them. I merely aim to use my heritage to our advantage, for what a mighty advantage it could be for us goblins. But if the wolves prove difficult ... if they make any move to betray us ... we will be swift. We will be merciless. That is the goblin way."
"That is the goblin way," Kaleus echoed. He wore a satisfied smile, as though Theo had passed his test, but there was still a dangerous glint in his eyes. "What are your orders for the meantime, then, Prince Theo?"