Page 179 of The Incendiary

She looked too young for him—not older than sixteen or seventeen—and I was well acquainted with what lust looked like in Elias Winterton’s eyes. When he looked at her, there was no lust, only warmth and affection.

She rolled her eyes. “I was out with the hunters until this morning. And I’ve been this tall since I was thirteen.”

Elias laughed. “Don’t remind me, Lou Lou.”

“Don’t call me that, you prick!” she laughed, shoving at his shoulder.

My eyes shot wide in surprise. Not many people had the gall to speak to the commander that way, much less shove him. My attention darted between them while I grappled with their dynamic. Siblings, perhaps? But his sisters were gone, so who was this?

Elias’s shoulders shook with quiet amusement as he dragged her into a hug. “I missed you, too.”

Confusion must have read plainly on my face. Elias turned the young woman to face me, saying, “Lou, this is your queen. Your Highness, this is Lou.”

I nodded in greeting. “Lovely to meet you.”

She dipped her head and lowered herself into an awkward bow that made me wildly uncomfortable. Submission didn’t suit her well.

“You two seem close,” I observed curiously, immediately regretting my words when Elias cocked his head in question.

Lou rasped out a rueful laugh. “Well, the Butcher killed my parents when I was little. The Wintertons became my family. And then that fucker killed most of them, too.” I felt compassion for the pain in her warm brown eyes. But even more powerful than her pain was her rage, so ruthless and cutting it made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. “Willa Winterton was my best friend.”

I swallowed thickly. “I’m so sorry.”

She peered back, and gods, for a moment I swore she could see right through me. “Thank you, Your Highness, but you know just as well as we do how it feels to have that monster take everything from you.”

I stiffened and clamped my jaw shut, desperate to hide my emotions. Thankfully, Elias noticed, squeezed Lou’s shoulder, and recaptured her attention.

“We got him, Lou,” he assured her. “He’s gone.”

Lou looked up at Elias like he was the brightest light in her world. “Thank the gods,” she whispered back. When she buried her face in his shoulder, I had to turn away.

Each smile in response to his death was salt in an open sore. Each shout of joy was a blade digging deeper into my flesh. Each laugh at his demise ripped the wound open wider. The happier his death made my people, the further I sank.

I had to keep silent. I couldn’t scream at them to stop, because then they would suspect the truth of my heart, and trust in me would be lost.

But I had to draw the line somewhere. Although I could pretend to be indifferent about his death, I could never pretend to be happy.

“I was taking her to Simeon.” Elias ruffled Lou’s hair. She swatted his hand away, drawing another chuckle from him. “But let’s talk later, all right?”

Lou’s intense gaze pierced straight through me as we pulled away.

Before we could get too far, we were stopped by Alistair and Ophelia Winterton. They were a lot like their grandson. Well-spoken, poised and prideful. They looked exactly as I expected grandparents to look. White hair, rosy cheeks, warm smiles.

“I can’t tell you how relieved we are, Your Highness.” Ophelia took my hand in hers and bowed her head. “Thinking we lost you was…” She trailed off. Alistair rubbed her back. “It was unfathomable.”

I forced a smile. “I’m relieved to be here. And I’m honored to have trained beneath your grandson.”

“Yes.” Alistair’s grin faltered. His eyes darted to my silver hair, then back to my face. “Even if the circumstances were less than ideal.” Before I could defend myself, he turned to his grandson. “There will be a meeting of the Elders in an hour, Elias. Please be on time.”

“Always am,” Elias muttered. After barking commands at a few eager bystanders, Elias placed a hand on the small of my back and led me back into the tunnels and up some stairs. “You’ll attend the Elder meetings soon, as well. For now, Simeon feels this is far more important.”

I didn’t object, because sitting in a room full of powerful people I didn’t know sounded even worse than dealing with my uncle.

“You don’t have to stay in your current quarters,” he went on as we walked. “I wanted you there initially so you had a moment to breathe in peace, unsuspected, but up here on the third floor, the rooms are much bigger, more luxurious, and should be more to your liking.”

I winced. He didn’t know what I liked.

“What about Gemma and Finn?” I asked. “Caz and Marin Sinclair? Will they move?”