Page 175 of Blood Curse

“How much space does the key buy you?”

“Two drawers.”

I looked at his broad shoulders and the shirts Harrowmere made to fit them. “Fine. Two.”

“And what happens when Harrowmere needs you?”

“I come back.”

“Then what?”

“I deal with the problem, and I return to you.”

“Even when the court is difficult?”

“Especially then. Home needs to be more than one place.”

Every door in the King’s rooms opened at once.

The bedroom door struck the wall. The outer doors flew wide. Red light filled the corridor beyond them, bright as fresh blood, laying a single path towards the Night Hall.

Stellan was out of bed before the last door stopped moving.

Pressure closed around my scalp.

32

STELLAN

Bryony stopped breathing.

I reached for her as the Crown’s black points filled with red light. Her heart struck once against my hearing, shaking her body, then settled into a fast human rhythm.

“Bryony.”

Her eyes opened.

The green had gone flat. Her face held none of the warmth from seconds earlier.

“Can you hear me?”

She sat up.

I caught her wrist before she could leave the bed. The two small bites remained closed. Her pulse raced under my thumb.

“Move two fingers.”

Nothing.

The Crown turned her head towards me. Its attention pressed from behind her eyes, cold and satisfied.

Fuck.

I released her before the points could drive any deeper into her scalp. Bryony stood and collected her clothes from the floor. She pulled on her underwear, trousers and shirt with quick, exact movements that belonged to neither sleep nor modesty.

At least the bastard intended to dress her for its court.

I fastened my trousers, dragged on my shirt and pulled the coat over it. Bryony was already walking towards the open bedroom door.