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“You heard Ilias. He doesn’t think I should be on the council, and I agree. I have no idea what I’m doing.”

“You’ll learn. I don’t think Killian chose you because you already know how to be a council member.”

“Why do you think he chose me, then? Because I’ve been thinking about it and I can’t come up with anything. It just doesn’t make sense.”

“You offer a different point of view from the other council members. I was given a rundown of all of them when I first arrived, so I’d know who was who, and I remember them. Every council member has always been close to the throne, including under Killian’s father. Killian can’t change the entire council in one go, but he can start putting people he trusts in place. Clearly, he trusts you. I also think that, unlike most council members, you can give Killian a point of view he needs—the point of view of the normal dragons here at the castle. Your mother’s a maid, isn’t she?”

“She’s a cleaner, yes.”

That was how she and Twig’s father had met. Taylor remembered being told the gossip. It had also been useful to know. His superiors had wanted him to understand what things had been like before Killian became king, and what they might have to deal with when it came to the old king’s supporters. The dragon might be dead, but that didn’t mean the people who’d supported him while he was alive were gone.

“And she raised you alone.”

Twig nodded again. “She did. My father never helped raise any of his children. Killian’s different because he was the heir, but I don’t think he was ever happy or treated well, either. I’m actually glad my mother is just a maid, because it means the king didn’t pay much attention to me, especially once he realized I’d be of no use to him.”

There was a sadness in Twig that Taylor suspected even Twig didn’t fully realize. Killian had, too, which was no doubt why he’d asked Twig, of all people, to become a council member. He also had to trust his brother, which meant a lot, considering what had happened with several of Killian’s half-siblings recently. A lot of them wanted the throne, and they were willing to do pretty much anything to get it.

But not Twig. Twig was just happy to be there, sitting on the council and supporting his brother. He didn’t want to be king. Frankly, he probably wouldn’t make a good one, although people tended to change when they had to rise to the occasion.

Twig didn’t have to be king, and he certainly didn’t want to be one. He just wanted to be there for his brother, which told Taylor that Killian had chosen the right person. Twig could learn how to be a council member, but it would be harder for him to learn how to be a good brother. It was a good thing he didn’t have to, because he already was one.

Yes, that was a good reason for Killian to choose Twig to be a council member. It meant he trusted Twig, even though Twig was puzzled by that. Taylor wasn’t. The little he knew about Twig told him that he was a trustworthy person.

He just wished Twig could see himself the way Killian did.

* * * *

TAYLOR LEFT TWIG’S room before Twig’s mother came back, which was a good thing, but it still left Twig a little sad. He’d had fun asking Taylor about his life before he’d moved to the palace. Twig had only seen the human world through TV shows and the internet, and he was intrigued. He wanted to get to know more, and at the same time, he wasn’t planning on ever leaving the palace. That meant that his only way to get information was through people who’d lived in the human world, which meant Taylor and Palmer.

And maybe Hedley, his brother’s consort. It was intimidating to think of asking him about the human world, but after all, they were kind of brothers now. Of course, Twig couldn’t say he was close to Hedley—he couldn’t even say he was close to Killian—but maybe that was going to change. Killian had even come to visit him, something he wouldn’t have done a few years ago. Things were changing at the palace, and as far as Twig was concerned, it was for the better.

He eyed his mother, who was sitting in her chair, watching him. He knew she wanted to say something, but she hadn’t yet, which meant she was trying to find the best way to do so. That meant she knew Twig wouldn’t be happy with whatever came out of her mouth, which in turn made him wary. He kind of wished she would just get it out of the way. The anticipation was killing him.

“I know you’re intrigued by humans,” she finally started, pulling Twig’s thoughts completely away from Killian and his consort.

“I’m sorry?”

She waved a hand. “We all are. They’re new here, and we all want to know more about them. I don’t blame you for that.”

Twig blinked. “There’s nothing to blame me for. I haven’t done anything.”

“Exactly. You’re just fascinated by people you wouldn’t have met normally. I understand that. But humans are different. They can’t understand us, no matter how much they might want to. You’ve seen how much Palmer has struggled to find a solution to your problem, too.”

“What does that have to do with him being human?” Twig knew where his mother was going with this, and he didn’t like it. He knew that she knew he didn’t like it, too, but that clearly wasn’t going to stop her. She thought she was doing what was best for him, probably saving him from himself and the bad humans. It was ridiculous, and while Twig understood she was doing it out of love, it also made him angry.

He was his mother’s only child. Considering how he’d come to be, he knew he was lucky she’d been as loving as she had been while he grew up. She’d also been overprotective, though, and that still hadn’t changed, even though he was an adult. The poisoning hadn’t made that any easier to deal with. It was like she thought everyone was out to get him now, even though he was recuperating.

And for some reason, she blamed Palmer for what happened. The poor man had been doing everything he could to help Twig ever since Twig had stumbled into the infirmary. He’d also helped the other two who’d been poisoned. Luckily for them, they hadn’t been hit as badly as Twig, so they’d already left, but here he was, stuck in this room with his mother.

Actually, it wasn’t that bad. If he was allowed to leave the infirmary, he’d find himself at home with his mother, which would be even worse. By now, he’d managed to convince her to take some breaks and leave him be for a few hours every day, something he wouldn’t get once he went home. There, she’d always be present, hovering around him, making sure he ate and got enough rest and everything else. She’d mother him even more, and Twig wasn’t sure he could withstand that.

What he also didn’t think he could withstand was his mother talking badly of the people who’d helped him.

“I’m just saying he struggled with the poisoning because he’s not a dragon,” Twig’s mother continued.

“He consulted with healers, and even they didn’t know what the poison was,” Twig pointed out. “You can’t blame this on Palmer. He did everything he could to help.”

“It almost wasn’t enough, Twig.”