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Part of him hoped people would give him the benefit of the doubt because of what had happened to him, while another part of him felt that might not be for the best. He’d take what he could get, though. If people felt sorry for him and decided to be nice to him, at least this once, he’d be relieved, especially since he knew some of the council members didn’t want him there.

Ilias came to mind, but he wasn’t the only one. A lot of people didn’t believe Twig could do this, and unfortunately, he wasn’t the first to feel that way. He’d tried telling his mother that maybe he should ask Killian to choose someone else, but the look she’d given him made it clear what she thought of that suggestion. She was proud of him for being a council member. Neither of them had ever expected something like that would happen to him, yet here he was.

He looked around the room. People were starting to come in, but he’d arrived way too early. He’d been terrified of getting there late, and while he’d considered going back to his rooms and taking a walk instead, he decided that since he was already there, he might as well stay.

He’d chosen a seat at the end of the long table, as far away from Killian as possible. He hoped people would ignore him since he was tucked away, but from here, he’d be able to see Killian very well. If he was doing this, it was for his brother, not for himself. Hell, if it was up to Twig, he wouldn’t be here today. He’d be back in his room, eating snacks and watching his favorite TV show. He’d already watched it several times, but it never got old.

He tensed when Ilias came in. He expected the dragon to say something—Ilias definitely wasn’t the only one who didn’t want him here, but he seemed to be the most vocal about it, and that made sense. He was one of the oldest council members. He’d been chosen by Twig’s father back in the day, and apparently, he was good enough at his job that Killian had decided to keep him on.

Twig wondered if what Taylor had said was true. Was Killian hoping to gain more support by choosing Twig? Was he hoping to bring the council into a more modern era? Twig wasn’t sure he’d be any good for either of those things, but that wouldn’t stop him from trying. No matter how scared and doubtful he was, Killian had chosen him for a reason, and he wanted to make his brother proud.

Thankfully, Ilias and the other council members mostly ignored Twig. Twig decided to do the same, smiling back at the dragons who smiled at him first, waving when one of them tilted their head toward him. He smiled wider when Taylor came in and went to stand by the window. They weren’t close enough to talk, and this wasn’t the right place for that anyway, but his presence made Twig feel better.

Everyone had been talking, but as soon as the doors at the back of the room opened, the room fell silent. Killian strode in, his personal assistant behind him. “Good morning, everyone,” he said in a strong voice. “I want to get straight to the point. A decision needs to be made regarding what happened to Twig.”

Twig blinked. He hadn’t expected that, but maybe he should have. Everyone knew what had happened to him. Everyone knew who was likely responsible.

Killian’s smile was gentle. “Twig, why don’t you tell us about your experience?”

Everyone’s attention was on him now. He didn’t want to talk about it, but Killian wouldn’t take no for an answer, and maybe he shouldn’t. As unpleasant as this was, people needed to know. Twig just wished he hadn’t been the one to live through it.

“Not much to say,” he explained after licking his lips. “I was poisoned. For a while there, I thought I wouldn’t survive. I wouldn’t wish that on anyone, not even my worst enemy.” Yet it was his own sister who’d done it to him. He didn’t have any proof, and of course he and Pearl had never been close, but his other siblings had never tried to poison him. Even the ones who probably didn’t like him much just kept their distance.

They didn’t try to kill him.

“Well, if you were so bad off, maybe you shouldn’t be here today,” Ilias said in a smooth voice. He made it sound like he cared about Twig, which Twig knew was a lie.

Killian narrowed his eyes. He was smart enough to understand the same thing Twig had.

“Twig was released from the infirmary several days ago,” he said. “Besides, I don’t expect him to run laps around the room. His mind works just as well now as it did when I asked him to become a council member.”

Ilias inclined his head. “Of course, Your Majesty. I only meant that his illness, coupled with his inexperience, might not make him the best council member right now. He’ll have time to learn, of course, but in the meantime, perhaps you could look at the names I put together for you. All of the dragons I mentioned would make excellent council members.”

Twig swallowed, wondering if this was it. He should have known better. Even though he didn’t know Killian very well yet, he knew him well enough by now.

“There’s no need for me to see your list,” Killian told Ilias. “I won’t be choosing other council members at the moment, and if I do, I’ll choose them myself. I don’t need suggestions, especially not from people who might have been linked to my father.”

“Some people would think I was linked to your father as well,” Ilias said with a tight smile.

“So you were. I’ve had a few people asking me how I can trust you.”

That was all Killian said. He didn’t explain why he trusted Ilias or even confirm that he actually did. He just kept staring at the council member until Ilias looked away, a tight expression on his face. He was obviously unhappy, but what could he do? Ilias was a council member, but Killian was king. Whatever he wanted went, and apparently, what he wanted was Twig as a council member. Twig might not fully understand why, but that wouldn’t stop him from doing everything he could to help his brother.

* * * *

TAYLOR WAS PROUD OF the way Twig had handled himself during the council meeting. He didn’t think anyone had made any real decisions, but it had been important for all of them to hear what Twig had gone through. Of course, that had led some of the council members to decide Twig was too weak or unqualified to be one of them, but Killian hadn’t cared. He’d basically told Ilias to go fuck himself, and Taylor had silently cheered. He really liked the king, and he didn’t think that was going to change anytime soon—or at least it wouldn’t, as long as Killian kept treating Twig right.

Taylor wished he could have walked Twig back to his rooms after the meeting, but unfortunately his workday wasn’t over. His superiors had cut him some slack and let him head back to his rooms early, considering everything that had just happened, but Taylor had wanted to check in on Twig first. It wasn’t exactly work, anyway. He was checking on Twig as much for himself as he was for Twig.

After listening to what everyone had to say, Killian had made his decision. Taylor had been involved in carrying some of them out, though not with Pearl. He was almost glad for that. He wasn’t sure he would have been able to restrain himself after what she’d done to Twig. No, it was best he hadn’t been involved in arresting her, but rather in arresting some of her supporters, including another one of Killian’s half-brothers.

Taylor really needed to look into all of the king’s siblings. Some of them were delightful, like Twig, but it seemed like too many of them wanted Killian dead, and that wouldn’t do. Taylor wasn’t Killian’s bodyguard—Killian had dragon bodyguards, and they were great—but he liked the king, and he liked Twig even more. Twig would be devastated if anything happened to his brother.

The palace was silent, but Taylor knew it wouldn’t stay that way. As soon as the news got out, everyone would have something to say about what had just happened, and he wasn’t looking forward to it. Hopefully he’d get a good night’s sleep before he had to deal with any of that. Hell, if he was lucky, he wouldn’t have to deal with it at all. It wasn’t like anyone would mention his name when they talked about what had happened.

He finally reached Twig’s door. He’d planned on just walking past and listening to make sure everything was okay, but he could still see light under the door, and he paused. Was it his mother? It was a possibility, but there was also the chance it was Twig himself, awake, and Taylor didn’t want to waste it. If it was Willa, he’d apologize and tell her he was just checking on Twig. If it was Twig, well, he wasn’t sure what he’d say, but he’d feel better knowing Twig was okay.

He knocked softly, not wanting to bother whoever was awake if they were busy. He couldn’t hear much until there were footsteps, and he took a step back, just in case.