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“And they would have revoked our engagement if they thought that?”
He puzzled that for a moment. “It’s hard to say. They certainly could have, but either way, you and Sie would have gotten in a lot of trouble. It’s good you left without doing anything.”
I blushed harder. I wished I’d left without doing anything. I was thankful I hadn’t seen Sie since it happened. How far would we have gone if my nerves didn’t ruin the moment? Would Sie have stopped it?
“Does Sie know about the rule?” I asked.
Peter nodded his head, his shaggy, blonde hair landing over his green eyes. “Yes, everyone in the castle knows about it, except clearly you. It goes against Pylemo’s blessing to do so.”
“Why would Reagan do that then?”
“Reagan has always had a crush on Sie. She believed that he was going to pick her as his Queen. As you can imagine, she was livid when he didn’t. She probably thought that if she could take you out of the picture, Sie would finally choose her.”
“And finding me in Sie’s room would be enough to end everything?” I questioned, wanting to know if I heard him right.
Peter looked at me. “Scottie, have you still not read through the rules? I know for a fact that you got them in your folder at graduation.”
I bit my bottom lip, then stopped when my teeth scraped against my almost healed scab. It probably would have been fully healed by now if I hadn’t aggravated it by kissing Sie last night. If it wasn’t for the throbbing on my lower lip, I would have thought I imagined the whole encounter.
“I um… skimmed some of it,” I admitted, remembering that I barely retained anything I read on the monorail. And even when Peter reminded me yesterday to familiarize myself with it, I just couldn’t be bothered.
“Whether they would actually call off the engagement is hard to say, but you would definitely be punished.”
“Oh,” I said flatly. “And if that happened, if our engagement ended, I mean, could I try out for the guard again?”
The words vomited out of my mouth as soon as the idea popped in my head. I knew I shouldn’t admit those thoughts to Peter, but the idea of being able to get out of this was overwhelming. All I would have to do was spend one night with Sie, then I could be free. I could go back to my regular life.
“If that happened, Scottie, it wouldn’t end well for you. No one can try out for Trials a second time. As for Sie, they would just select a different female for him to marry, which I think is what Reagan was hoping for. But you have to be careful. They won’t hold you to the same standards as everyone else. You would be lucky if they made you a servant after an incident like that.”
I swallow hard, taking in his warning. I was replaceable. Expendable. Nothing. I was a nix.
Peter took a step closer to me, leaning in to whisper in my ear, “I’ll make you a deal.”
My eyes snapped to his gaze, startled by the way he was speaking so softly. I could barely make out what he was saying.
“I’ll train you.”
“Really?” My voice spiked.
“Shh,” he hushed. “Before your classes. I know how to hold back punches, so I’ll be careful not to bruise your delicate skin.”
I crossed my arms. “I’m not delicate.”
He chuckled. “I guess you aren’t. Okay then, I’ll be careful not to bruise anywhere noticeable, but no one can know about it. We could get in a lot of trouble.”
“Why would you do that for me?” I asked.
“Because you are in danger, more than Sie is letting on. I want to give you any fighting chance you can get.”
“Thank you,” I smiled.
He smiled back, noting my excitement. “I won’t go easy on you. I don’t think you will be thanking me afterward.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” I said as he started to walk away.
He grinned. “Tomorrow, then.”
TWENTY
