Dean had, in fact, not seen his bed again until almost two in the morning.
The security meeting that should have lasted an hour had expanded considerably once Otto and Henrik entered the room, carrying enough intelligence reports between them to ruin what remained of Dean's evening.
Draxil had been the first problem.
Finding its lost prince without alerting either claimant to the throne was complicated enough. Doing it while Draxil continued accusing Saha's crown prince of interference in its internal affairs was considerably worse.
Saha had responded with increasing hostility.
Or, more accurately, Dax had.
"He wants an excuse," Otto said, looking through the latest diplomatic report. "Draxil has been a nuisance to him for more than twenty years."
"That does not mean he intends to start a war," Arion said.
Henrik looked at him.
Arion amended, "It does not necessarily mean he intends to start a war."
"Better," Dean murmured.
Dax had not openly threatened invasion.
