My Second Chance Mate is a Barbarian (Sera and Fenris) novel Chapter 429

Sera

"Fine," Mina said at last. "Take the damn thing."

"Thank you."

It landed flat between us and changed nothing.

"So when do you plan on getting that letter from," Mina said, and stopped.

"Bram," I finished for her.

She fixed me with a hard stare, her mouth tight and her jaw clenched.

"When do you plan on getting it from him, so we can actually read the thing?"

I sighed. "It's still morning. I'll send for him soon, and have him bring it over. We can look at it together."

Mina nodded slowly, her eyes never leaving mine. After a long moment, she turned away, and said nothing more.

"I need to speak with Vane," I said, the idea solidifying as I voiced it. "Fenris is not here, and he is the only other chief I can reason with right now."

Mina tilted her head, frowning. "You sure about that?"

I shook my head, meeting her gaze. "No, but he owes me."

"Owes you? That makes no sense." Mina's brow crinkled. "He's the one who saved you from that duel. He did you the favor, not the other way around."

I shrugged. "Weren't we both in the room when he came begging me to let him call it off? It was not a request. He begged me out of it."

Mina sighed, her lips pressing into a thin line.

On the bed, Amara had curled her fingers into the thick fur and was working it slowly, watching the way it moved under her hand. She yawned. She did not look up at either of us.

"How do you mean to get anything out of Vane without him catching on?" Mina asked, crossing her arms over her chest.

I frowned, chewing on the inside of my lip. "I'm not sure yet. I have to ask him without making him think there's a problem."

"Well, you can't just march up to him and say, what's the story with Kael's brother." Mina snorted.

"Clearly not," I said dryly. "What if I told him I wanted to welcome the man properly? Asked him what Fenris would have wanted done?"

Mina shook her head. "He'll still think that's strange. An elder's brother nobody's laid eyes on, and you're suddenly worrying about how to seat him? No."

I sighed, scrubbing a hand through my hair. "You're right. What about asking after Kael himself? His people, where they come from."

"That's worse," Mina scoffed. "Kael's been sat at that table since before you got here and you've never once asked after his family. Why now?"

I made a sound in my throat. Every road I started down, she closed.

"Wait," I said. "I'll invite him to lunch."

Mina tilted her head. "Lunch?"

"I already told the kitchen I was hosting a luncheon for him and his family. I may as well make it real. I'll put on a feast."

Mina shook her head. "No, that's the opposite of not making a big deal of it. You're talking about a whole damned feast just to ask him one question. It's far too much."

"You're right. It would be too much." I held her eyes. "If I were the one asking."

Mina frowned at me. "I don't understand."

I closed the distance between us and laid it out. "A feast. A large one. Every high-ranking member of Ironmaw invited, not one man in particular. Vane along with the rest, the same as everybody else." I let that sit. "And while it's going on, you're the one who gets it out of him."

Mina's eyes went wide. Neither of us spoke for a moment.

"What in the name of hell are you talking about?" she asked. "Have you finally lost your mind?"

I shook my head. "Listen. It's straightforward." I took a breath. "I can't go to Vane with that question, however I phrase it. Feast or no feast, he'll know something's wrong, and it's over. But if you ask, out of curiosity, with a real occasion around you, he won't suspect a thing. And we get what we need."

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