Chapter 34

We made plans for Rachel to meet with Caleb, Joseph and I at the palace the next day.

The three of us waited for her to arrive in Caleb’s offices, and Joseph paced nervously across the carpeted floors. “And you’re sure we can trust her?” He asked, looking at me.

I nodded firmly. “She has been incredibly hurt by Lucas, besides the people in this room, no one wants to take him down more than she does.”

“I agree. I’ve seen the files Ruby has pulled on her, and I think we’ve found a useful ally.” Caleb met my eyes, but quickly averted his gaze. I couldn’t help but feel a pang in my stomach. We had barely spoken recently since our last argument, and sitting next to him was uncomfortable to say the least.

Joseph grunted in agreement as the guest bell rang. “I’ll get it,” he said, waving on his way out to collect Rachel.

I looked at Caleb, whose focus was carefully trained on his phone. I knew he was ignoring me, and I was getting close to being done with it. I had determined to myself to avoid him except for business matters, but that didn’t mean we had to be rude to each other.

“You can be civil you know,” I said, smoothing my hair.

He glanced up, startled. “What?”

“You don’t have to be an asshole. I know that’s your persona, but if this arrangement is going to work out we have to be able to work together.”

His brow scrunched in confusion, but as he opened his mouth Joseph returned with Rachel in tow. “Here she is,” he said.

“Rachel!” I said, bouncing up to give her a welcoming hug.

She accepted it graciously, but when I pulled back to take a closer look at her face I realized the cool, unafraid exterior was back.

Rachel, I’m Caleb, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Caleb said, extending a hand to shake hers.

She took it slowly, like she didn’t particularly like touching men. “And you.” She said.

“Well,” Joseph clapped his hands together, and switched on the projection screen. “Time to get to work. I know Ruby explained our basic ideas to you, but what we need help with now is determining how to get the Bear to trust us instead of Lucas.”

“What foods are you planning to present them with?” Rachel interrupted, scanning the plans for the Ball up on the screen.

Joseph raised a curious eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

Rachel sat up straighter, “Bears view two things as acts of hospitality.” She counted them on her fingers. “First, is food, and second, is pine wine.”

Caleb nodded approvingly, I could tell he was already impressed with Rachel’s knowledge of Bear culture. “So, what do we have to do to please them? Offer them food?”

Rachel shook her head vigorously. “They’ll see that as an act of aggression,” she warned. “Their society is much more focused on hunting than ours, and they believe that directly offering food is a sign that you think they are weak and unable to get it for themselves.”

“So what should we do instead?” Caleb asked.

Rachel leaned forward. “Tell your waiters and servers not to directly go up to the Bears. They will get their own food from the buffet, and only if it isn’t served to them by the caterers.”

I smiled, watching her strength improve as she spoke. She was a brilliant woman, and it was horrible to see how much damage Lucas’s cruelty had done to her.

Joseph raised his hand, “And the pine wine?” He asked. “What did you mean by that.”

“Pine wine is one of the primary liquors in the Bear kingdom.” She said, looking between all of us. “It is made from the fir trees in their northern forests, and it is incredibly pungent. If you can show your goodwill and concern for their culture by providing it for them, they’ll realize how much more you care about their alliance than Lucas does.”

She leaned back, “He might have been working with them for longer, but I know for a fact he has never treated them with even that much kindness. The Bears value honor above everything, and if you can prove you have more than Lucas, they’ll be willing to work with you.”

Caleb leaned his head to the side. “That’s all we need to do?”

Rachel shrugged, “They’re a simple country. They know Lucas is using them for his own personal gain, and if your alliance comes with more respect, they’ll be happy to switch sides.”

Joseph was scribbling furiously on his notepad to take everything down. “We’ll have these implemented immediately.” He said. “Do you know where to get pine wine?”

Rachel tensed, “There’s a brewer I’ve slept with before, his cousin runs a shop just past the border. That’s probably the easiest place to get it in time.”

The room fell quiet as we realized the price Rachel had paid for all of this information.

Caleb laid a hand on her shoulder, speaking gently. “Thank you for this. I know my brother is an ass—“

Rachel burst out laughing uncontrollably. “An ass?” She cackled like it was the funniest thing she had ever heard. “Calling him an ass doesn’t begin to cover it.”

She looked straight into Caleb’s skull, speaking harshly and tonelessly. “I would be sent into their rooms after the evening of a party, once they were drunk enough to need help to get to their beds. There, I would undress them, play with their cocks, let them take me however they wanted.”

I flinched as she recounted the story. “Groups of them sometimes, tossed me around like a rag doll.”

“Usually Lucas just wanted me to fuck them so they would be more approving of him and his hospitality.” She spit the last word. “But sometimes I would be given instructions to collect things from them, like flashdrives, papers, keys, information.”

Her voice dropped, the look in her eyes was scarlet with quiet rage. “I paid for this information with my blood, my sweat and my body. I want that beast to lose.”

Caleb nodded solemnly, the weight of her words making the air in the room heavy. “You have no idea how thankful we are for your help,” he said.

She nodded, and stood to leave. “Just make sure you don’t fail.”

“I’ll walk you out,” Joseph said, gesturing for Rachel to follow him to the exit.

I turned to face Caleb after they were gone, grinning. “I think we have a real chance. With the list of names she offered me and the information on how to run the Ball with the Bears in attendance, I think we can do this.”

Caleb agreed, crossing his arms over his chest. “I would definitely call that meeting a success.”

“You have to trust me more,” I said, watching his expression. “I know Lucas as well as you do, but I’ve been closer to him than you.”

“After this, I think I’ll be taking your advice more often.” He said, smirking. “She’s pretty, cute butt. Any advice on how to talk to her?”

“You’re impossible,” I said, flustered and annoyed.