Page 139 of Feralheart

“She’s angry.”

“That’s an understatement.”

She laid her hand on my arm. “I’m sorry.”

“She’s…threatening everything. My future rule. My team. And Aristus.”

Her grip tightened. “Can she do that?”

“She’s the queen. She can do whatever she wants to anyone, even to me.” And that was the true danger here. I could handle whatever she dealt me, but she wouldn’t come after me.

She’d hurt those I cared for.

Aristus. Eradin.

“You need to stay away from me,” I said, my voice gutted. “It’s not safe to be near me.”

Her chin lifted, and her steely gaze met mine. “What if I want to be near you?”

“You can’t.”

“Who says that? You or your mother?”

I tipped my head back and glared at the top of the cavern.

“Let me know when you decide.” She turned and strode over to Lyndie, who was checking her dragon’s wing. Eradin’s hands moved over the beast’s scales with the same attention she gave Selira.

The ashes remained on the ground in front of me. I dragged my boot through them before grinding them into the sand.

When I’d helped Eradin pack supplies in the kitchen, she hadn’t looked at me like I’d done something generous. She’d seen a part of me I hadn’t realized existed.

I wanted to be that person for her now.

Four servants worked on my tent, spelled poles extending automatically when they touched the ground. Royal blue canvas emblazoned with House Lancifer’s crest. The tent appeared large enough to sleep six and had a space partitioned off for gear storage.

Another servant spread bedding inside.

Two more had lit a cooking fire, and food simmered over the flames.

Eradin, Lyndie, and Reece didn’t have tents or bedding beyond what they’d carried. Servants had tindered fires for us, but they ignored their fellow commons.

The contrast carved a sick feeling into the walls of my belly.

A servant with gray hair directed two younger servants toward a listing tent pole. She stumbled with the weight, and an older man caught the load. He didn’t reprimand her or show impatience. Just competence from doing the same thing ten thousand times while people like me never learned his name.

A dull ache spread under my skin. I’d ordered Aristus through the same motions for the entire time I’d known him. I’d expected the best performance at all times but had never asked if what I demanded hurt.

“Excuse me,” I said as the older man passed.

He came to a stop and peered around. His eyes widened when he realized I was speaking to him.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

His eyes widened even further before he directed his gaze at the ground. “Boren, Your Highness.”

“How long have you worked for House Lancifer?”

“Nineteen years, Sire.”