I was so angry the last time we ate in the dining room, I barely paid attention to any of thesecharmingdetails. Maybe if I would have looked around more while trying to set Magnus up, I would have leaned into finding him a nice goth girl to settle down with, but we’re past the point of doing each other favors.
Magnus leads on with no apologies for the state of things, which leads me to believe he must be used to this. I get the whole spooky haunted castle vibe, but there’s theming but he probably has enough money to invest in a Roomba.
I wipe the dust off on a fold of my dress and take in the sight of an equally disheveled landing. Despite its worn appearance, there’s a warm glowing light flickering down the hallway, accompanied by music and the clinking of cutlery. Each step forward feels like I’m walking toward a haunting—not a celebration.
“Don’t worry,” Magnus assures me by placing a hand on my shoulder. “It is a less favorable group than last, but I’m sure they will hate you just as much as you intend.”
“By ‘less favorable’ do you mean stabby?” I ask. “Or are they just going to make fun of my outfit behind my back?”
“With me on your arm, they wouldn’t dare.” The answer doesn’t give me the clarity I was hoping for. Reaching into the pocket of his red velvet jacket, he produces a small keychain, part of it at least.
“Oh my God!” I squeal, jumping up to snatch the ridiculous thing from him and hold it tight to my chest. Moth will totally laugh when I tell him how much of a silly comfort this thing was while I was gone, but damn, I’m glad to have it back—even if it’s still snapped in half.
“It was found on a staircase; I couldn’t have thought of anyone else it might belong to.” He laughs, shaking his head. “You really do love him, don’t you?”
“With everything I have.”
He sighs, offering me his arm. Against my better judgment, I take it, allowing him to lead me into my last night in the vampire’s domain.
“Now,” he straightens himself as we reach the doorway, “time to break our fake engagement, I suppose.”
“Why is this dinner so important to you anyway?” I ask. The last one seemed like a nonevent, and I don’t think anyone in his court will be sad to see me go.
“Ah—” Magnus flushes a little. “This was meant to be our wedding rehearsal.”
It has been another uneventful, albeit fancy, dinner with annoying nobles. I’m grateful—but startled—when the cellphone I hid using a garter on my thigh begins to vibrate. Magnusfigured the thing was too water-logged after falling into the spring at Gil’s, and honestly, so did I. But when I asked him to bring me two cups of dry rice as a snack after we returned to the castle, he didn’t question my human diet. And though it’s been glitchy at best, it is kind of … almost working. As the phone sends another round of vibration up my leg, I jump, and all eyes drift toward Magnus and me. Someone smirks knowingly as if they’ve discovered us in the midst of an act of voyeurism and—
Ew, as if.
“Will you excuse me for just a moment?” I ask, and no one objects this time. If anything, I think I hear a sigh of relief from the far side of the table.
I’ve continued to be as annoying as possible, now more to soften the blow of our breakup than anything else—and it’s absolutely working. Magnus trusts me now. We’re almost done with this weird week, and strangely enough, I kind of like him—after our dinner together last night, at least. Something about the honesty, banter, and the way we joked made me feel like, in another life, I think we’d be friends. However, today is the last day of him as my kidnapper, and I’m not going to risk losing my chance at communicating with the outside world just because I’m warming up to him.
Slipping away, I head toward the corridor, in search of a few bars of cell service—because obviously I can’t take the call in the dining room, and I don’t want to head all the way back up to the tower. The phone continues to vibrate as I head down the hall, concealing myself behind a large staircase. The screen isn’t showing a preview and, with the persistence of the caller, it’s either Moth or someone calling about my car’s extended warranty.
“Babe!” I quietly squeal into the phone, assuming it’s him. “Oh my god, I have so much to tell you.”
“Where are you?” I guess it makes sense that we don’t have time for pleasantries. “I am in thepshhhhhhlookingshhhhh—”
“You’re breaking up.”
“We arewhat?” His voice is panicked, and I can only imagine what he heard.
“No, oh my God!” I practically scream into the phone, holding it for dear life. “The call!The call is breaking up!”
“pshhh pshhhmortal realm—restaurant.”
“I’ll be back tonight! Magnus said he’s breaking the deal between us.”
“Pshhhhhh shhhh.” The static overtakes whatever he’s trying to say—and damnit, can’t we just get one more minute?
“Babe. Babe? The call is not working. I love you, okay? I love you—love, love you. I’ll be back tonight. I promise,” I say into the phone, wondering if I should risk hanging up and dialing him again.
“What are you doing?” Magnus suddenly asks from the doorway. The phone falls from my hands. “Is that—” His mouth creases into a frown.
“Oh Heather…” He strides forward, picking up the stolen phone. “You didn’t need to hide this from me. Did you speak to your lover?”
“Yeah, the signal was choppy, but I was able to tell him you’re letting me go,” I say. “And thanks, with everything that’s gone on, I was sure you’d be pissed.”
