Page 7 of Henrikk’s Masquerade

Asher finally tore his eyes away from the dance floor and met Nathaniel’s gaze wearily. “You know about the game.”

“The king has encouraged the court to take bets on whether you’ll succeed. The household staff, too.”

Of course he did.

“Do you think you have what it takes to follow through?” Nathaniel’s piercing gaze had a strange intensity that perplexed Asher.

“I don’t know,” Asher replied honestly. What else could he say? ‘Yes, I’m prepared to kill your father’? He could hardly think those words to himself, let alone speak them out loud to Henrikk’s son. There had to be another way.

But…

He slipped a finger into his pocket, feeling the cool glass against his fingertip. He had the means to kill Henrikk. The other weapons were little more than a distraction, but this… this was the real weapon.

Death in a tiny glass bottle.

He withdrew his hand from his pocket.

“And if he forces your hand?” Nathaniel prompted. “Would you do it then?”

Asher shook his head helplessly. “I don’t know.”

If it comes down to Henrikk and me, am I capable of following through? If he comes at me with a knife, will I have the strength of will to sink my blade into his chest?

What would it take to push him over that threshold?

Asher knew that Henrikk was wondering that very same question. It was the reason behind the visits to his suite. The reason why he took him from behind, degrading and humiliating him.

But that cannot be the sole reason. There has to be more to it.

Nathaniel’s blank composure had slipped, and he was staring at Asher incredulously. “Are you telling me that after everything he’s done to you, you would hesitate to kill him?”

“I don’t know.” It was not the dutiful answer of a soldier prepared to follow orders without question. Instead, it was the honest answer from his heart.

“You don’t know,” Nathaniel said slowly, searching his face as if looking for…something.

His scrutiny made Asher shift uncomfortably, and he changed the topic. “What do you think about your father’s games?”

Nathaniel stared at him for a moment longer before something like disappointment dulled his eyes. He shrugged his shoulders and looked away. “I don’t have an opinion on it either way.”

The prince was holding his cards closer to his chest than ever. He gave nothing away, but Asher could read people well, and two things became obvious to him: one, that Nathaniel pitied him enough to help him escape Henrikk’s clutches; and two…

“You don’t trust me,” Asher observed, dropping his voice low. “Which is wise, given my current captivity. But I want you to know that I never told your father—nor will I ever tell him—that it was you who took Barbara.”

“I know.”

Asher craned his neck, trying to get a glimpse of Henrikk on the far side of the dance floor as he twirled his partner, her skirts flaring. More jealousy bloomed in his chest.

“Hmm.” Nathaniel made a disapproving sound that was masterful in the way it made Asher feel small. Then again, Nathaniel had learnt from the best. The prince sipped his drink—a glass of wine that Asher hadn’t noticed until now. “I’m offering you a way out, Asher. You should take it.”

Asher bit his lip distractedly. He couldn’t convince himself to leave. Even through the horrors that Henrikk had put him through, there were too many memories entrenched in their past for him to simply walk away.

“He saved my life, you know.” The words slipped out before he could stop them. Nathaniel tensed beside him. Asher continued, his tone low as he remembered back. “We were battling another vampire clan in the Bauvak Woods. It was dark, raining, and muddy. It was a bloody battle, where one could hardly tell friend from foe. An enemy soldier ripped my throat open. I grabbed him but lost my footing, and we fell down a cliffside.”

Nathaniel listened intently, his lips pressed together. It must have been his first time hearing the story. It was no surprise—Henrikk was not one to boast. Not about his good deeds, anyway.

“I was in a bad state. The cliff was steep, and we tumbled a long way. My ribs were bruised. Everything hurt. And I was losing a lot of blood. The other vampire tried to finish me off, but I got the better of him.” He gave Nathaniel a weak grin. “I drank his blood, all of it. It was enough to keep me alive.”

“Until my father found you,” Nathaniel breathed.