Abaddon's Call

Chapter Eleven

It was quite late when Theon left the library, even later when he realized Luk hadn't slept in his own bed again. This time, the lord had found his way to Gray's room, he was certain.

After outing Kal to Alena, Theon thought the woman would have wept her way out of the classroom and never returned. He couldn't even say why he had done it, only upon the presence of an unfamiliar woman in his class that morning. His instinct had been to scare her off.

He had come to his senses by lunch, but the damage had been done by then.

When he had met Naena in the library, he passed on a warning about the incident. Seven women had some hierarchy among their numbers, and Alena would view Naena among that hierarchy. It was his understanding that when a woman took issue with a man, she took that issue to the man's female relatives.

Naena had launched immediately into Graydon's betrothal. She felt betrayed by her reaction to the news and had grown furiously agitated.

It was only after Naena returned to the table and they'd had a good, long talk, that Theon realized how the Kaulu woman may have received his response. He had immediately gone in search of Luk before Lord Pan was advised of his possible mood.

Luk's room was empty. Theon's rooms contained the babe, sleeping cozily with Lanella watching over him as she stitched something.

That left Gray's room, for the man was dorming at the school due to everything that happened the year before.

He knocked three times on the door, and Luk granted him entrance. The brothers were shirtless, meaning they didn't plan to leave again. Neither expected to be found.

While Luk spent the nights at the university for the first week, Gray was to be off campus. As far as the staff were aware, Gray's room was empty.

"I may have impulsively outed Trild," Theon said with a desperately apologetic hand motion before him.

"Yes, I heard," Luk said as he sighed and turned to Gray, who was already in the process of dressing. "My dear, don't take this the wrong way, but why are you being such a catty bitch? Swords tell their wives in time. A Seven wife must be prepared for that sort of thing rather than having it dropped on her. The poor thing is probably at a loss for words."

Theon knew he was being chastised, but he bristled at the implication that he had been catty. Luk had called him a catty bitch on several occasions. Women were catty.

Theon outing a man cheating on his new wife when his vows swore commitment and loyalty from the moment of consummation was not him being catty. He was looking out for the wife's best interests. Best she knew up front what kind of a man she had married.

He would have protested that to Luk, but he felt it would somehow be used to prove Luk's point.

"She just came up to Naena and me in the library and demanded that Naena bring his body back if she kills him on the job."

Gray hesitated as he reached past Luk for a paper on the desk. The brothers shared a look. Then Gray took his leave. Theon waited until the door closed and heard the lock slip into place.

Theon didn't have to name the body Naena was to bring back. Lord Pan would understand and do what was necessary.

"Why are you sleeping everywhere except your own bed?" Theon asked.

"Do you know how often I sleep alone?" Luk countered. "Normally, if it's not Elena, it's with you. And if not with you, then the dogs or the boy I'm mentoring or with the men in the field. Alone is not something I do well when sleep is involved."