Ah.
That wouldn’t do at all.
Evan considered questioning the man further, but the ambassador started struggling anew, with more purpose this time, and he decided that on the whole, he’d prefer to save his skin now and look for answers later. He spun the man back around and looked him in the eye as he wrapped both hands around his skinny neck. “I think we both know how this ends, yes?”
The ambassador’s eyes widened like he hadn’t considered the possibility that this might go badly for him. His mouth opened and closed but no sound came out, which was for the best, really.Evan didn’t gain any pleasure from disposing of his victims, and he preferred to get the whole thing over with quickly. It was so tiresome when they started crying and begging and dragging the process out.
He tightened his grip.
The ambassador tried to push Evan away and when that didn’t work, he cried out desperately, “Let me go or I’ll tell everyone the truth about you!”
Which was a foolish thing to say because the old adage that dead men tell no tales was nothing if not accurate. Evan debated explaining to the ambassador why his threat made no sense but decided that since he’d be educating a corpse, it would be a waste of everyone’s time. He sighed and said, “I do so hate incompetence.” Then he adjusted his grip on the ambassador’s neck and with one brutal twist, dispatched him to the next life.
The body hit the floor with a thud.
Evan turned to Thomas and opened his mouth to reassure him that he was fine, but before he had a chance, two firm, muscled arms were enveloping him and dragging him forward until his face was pressed against the bulk of Thomas’s chest. He took several deep breaths, pressing his ear against the wall of muscle he was currently plastered to and taking comfort in the steady beat of Thomas’s heart as he let himself be held. Truth be told, it was rather nice having someone care about him.
Warmth bloomed in his belly at the knowledge that Thomas had been there to save him.
Not that he’d needed saving exactly, but still. It was the thought that counted.
Thomas let out a shuddery sigh and his voice rumbled deep in his chest as he murmured, “I was afraid I’d be too late. I thought I might lose you.”
Evan pulled back and tipped his head up, only to find Thomas gazing down at him, eyes suspiciously shiny.
“Careful,” he said quietly, “or I might think you care for me.”
Thomas’s expression did something complicated, his brows pinching together. “I do care for you, Evan. More than is good for me perhaps.” Evan wanted to ask what he meant by that but then Thomas was kissing him, soft and gentle.
Evan leaned into the kiss and let it wash over him like a soothing balm. He drew back, lips still tingling, and cupped Thomas’s cheek in one palm. “Your timing is impeccable by the way.”
“I’m glad,” Thomas said quietly. He pulled Evan close again, and they stayed like that as the minutes ticked by.
When Thomas finally relaxed his hold, he shook his head ruefully. “I can’t believe it didn’t occur to either of us that you might be the royal family member at risk.” He gave Evan a shaky smile. “You’ve done such a good job of making yourself invisible that evenyouforgot you were an heir to the throne.”
“That was a closer call than I’d like,” Evan admitted. “Nobody’s discovered who I am before now.”
The enormity of the situation started to sink in. Somehow the ambassador had discovered his identity, and Evan had no idea how or when it might have happened. He prided himself on being careful—but apparently, he hadn’t been careful enough.
He settled his head against Thomas’s chest again and sighed when Thomas ran a hand down his bare back.
“Who do you think sent him?” Thomas asked, his broad palm sweeping up and down Evan’s spine in a soothing motion he suspected was for Thomas’s benefit as much as his.
Evan considered the question. The ambassador hadn’t been the only one who was trying to kill him, but it was possible that it had simply been a case of ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend’—with Evan being the common enemy.
“The thing about people in my line of work,” he said at last, “is that often the left hand makes certain that the righthand doesn’t know what it’s doing. We’re sent out to deal with situations as we see fit. Sometimes that’s passing on information, and sometimes it’s saying nothing and making a problem go away. I think that I was a problem that several someones wanted to make go away, so they joined forces.”
Thomas pulled back from their embrace, brow furrowed. “So you don’t think the King of Falsmark was behind this?”
“I doubt it. He tends not to involve himself in politics if he can help it. I do know that Marchesi and Calthrope were close, so if one of them found out who I was, it wouldn’t surprise me if they came up with a scheme to get rid of me. And I’ve likely thwarted quite a lot of their plans over the years, so it makes sense they’d want me gone.”
Thomas made a low growling noise in his throat that warmed the very cockles of Evan’s lying, murderous little heart and made him want to drag Thomas to bed and celebrate the fact that he was alive.
Sadly, he had other priorities right now.
He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. He needed to work out how he’d been identified. He was confident he hadn’t let his facade drop—acting the fool was like slipping into a second skin. But clearly he’d made an error in judgment somewhere along the line, and now he had a dead ambassador to deal with.
Thomas was obviously thinking along similar lines. “I think we can still assume that somebody knows who you are,” he said, pacing around the room. He came to a halt in front of the fireplace, his back to Evan as he stared into the embers. “You heard about the threat after you came back for the trade talks, so it must be somebody local. And they’ve sold you out.”
