Page 79 of Heart of the Raven Prince

“As thrilling as this is, if we’re just going to sit here and watch, I think I would rather be in a room with a naked woman I can actually touch,” Bastion says, and is greeted with a round of raucous laughter.

“If you wish to touch her, be my guest, Viscount,” Arawyn says, and Caden takes in a sharp inhale, running his hand through his hair. The movements are jerky; he’s clearly battling to hold himself back. “But you should not think of her as a woman. She’s merely an untrained mongrel. One might say feral. Isn’t that right, Caden?”

“Yes,” Caden agrees between clenched teeth, and I cannot stop myself from flicking my gaze to his. He is furious. His obsidian eyes snare mine, holding them steadfast as he says, “Yes, I agree she is dangerous.”

The smallest hint of a smile tugs at my lips, and I do nothing to stop it. That’s not what Arawyn meant and he knows it. The queen notices my smirk, and for once, her feline grin slides off her face, replaced with a scowl. She has tried all evening to get me to break, to get Caden to snap, and we’ve withstood the onslaught. Setting her goblet down hard enough that the sound resounds throughout the hall, she snaps, “You’re right, Bastion. This is tedious. I suppose the meal is over.”

I don’t move, don’t allow a moment to hope. I know this is anything but over. She narrows her eyes, annoyed that I didn’t walk into her trap.

“She has proved she can follow orders. I’m curious, though, Caden…can you?” She snaps her fingers. Another Vessel walks forward, holding out his father’s bow and arrows. “Shoot the apple off her head, Caden.”

Caden is breathing heavily and shaking his head at me. My knees are beginning to weaken, and I’m sucking in shaky breaths as I fight to remain standing still.

“Prove to me that she is unflinching,” she says, followed by Duvessa’s cackling laugh. I cannot stop. I did not endure the torture of this evening just to fail now. Concentrating, I feel for that shadowy trace of him, the one that flashed in my mind when his thoughts invaded mine. I find it lurking and grasp it, pushing one thought loud and clear through it:

I trust you.

Caden’s eyes widen, and I see him nod. The queen has spent all night forcing him to detail every monstrous thing he has done, and it has only hardened my determination to kill her.

And free him.

He stands, nocking an arrow. I don’t close my eyes; I look directly at him. He does not hesitate before he takes aim and fires. There is a sharp whoosh over my head and the weight of the apple flies off, taking with it the unending pain.

Silence deafens the hall, broken only by the resounding thrum of Caden’s bowstring. It’s done. It’s finally done. I’m breathing heavily, beginning to sway on my feet. Caden tosses his bow aside and leaps over the table. My eyes roll back and right as the world tilts I fall off the pedestal. I expect to hit the ground, but I fall into a pair of strong arms. Even with my eyes closed, I know it’s Caden. I would recognize his scent anywhere. The clove cigarettes really are a disgusting habit, but I think I will miss the smell if he ever stops. He scoops me up and my head lolls against him as he begins carrying me off.

“Don’t you want to hear if she passed?” Arawyn calls as I drift. Exhaustion hits me like a blow to the head, and before I can hear my verdict, I pass out.

Ithink I’m falling in love with her.

It doesn’t matter that I barely know her. It doesn’t matter that I’ve tried to run from it. I think I’ve been doomed to feel this way from the moment Doran deposited her on the floor of my tent. From the first time I got a look at her mossy green eyes and felt my dead heart beating again. Loving her feels inevitable—the bitter conclusion to my cursed story that will play out no matter how I try to deny it. She is my ultimate finale in every way.

My life ends with her, one way or the other.

Her chest rises shallowly, her breathing labored, and my gaze focuses in on the motion. I took her back to my room in the queen’s palace, not even staying long enough to hear if she passed the challenge or not. I didn’t need to. If she had failed, she would be dead.

But she’s not dead.

I have to keep reminding myself that she is still alive. Watching her breathing helps. I was certain the entire dinner that the queen was going to kill her. I thought she would command me to kill her, and I knew that would ultimately break me. The cruel humiliation of the evening was not just a test for Fawn, but a punishment for me. Arawyn is either hurting me on Duvessa’s account, or she’s annoyed that I have been more resistant to her recently. To that demon that tries to control me. I can’t help it; Fawn brings it out in me. Her wildfire spirit reminds me that I want to fight.

The thought of that fire snuffing out, the mere idea of having to spend a moment of the rest of my life knowing she is dead, was enough to nearly shatter me. When my beautiful, defiant Oisín looked me dead in my eyes and told me she trusted me…I knew then beyond a shadow of a doubt that I was falling for her. No matter how that realization damns me.

I expected her to wake after I healed her, repairing her weakened and wounded body, and the longer she sleeps the more unhinged I am becoming. She’s laid out on my bed, the down comforter tucked around her, and has not woken once since the second trial. I bathed her, rinsing the grime and sweat from her body before dressing her in one of my dinner shirts, one that is far too big on her. Her honey-brown hair is stuck to her brow, tangled around her face.

Leaning forward, I swipe a strand from her brow, letting my hand linger on her cheek. I’m sitting in a chair beside the bed, my wings drooping on either side of me, as I continue to watch her sleep. The door opens behind me, and I don’t bother turning. I may be in the queen’s palace, but I am still the second most powerful being that resides within these walls. I have wards in place, only Doran or Yasminda can enter this room, the latter only because Doran berated me into eating.

You can’t fucking heal her if you pass out, don’t be an idiotic twat and drink something.

I snort at the memory. Only Doran would speak to me like that. I had agreed, begrudgingly, and he said he would bring Yasminda to me so I could feed. He promised to ferry her to and from the palace, hidden from the prying eyes of the queen’s court.

“Caden,” Yasminda says, placing her hand on my shoulder. I am starving, and I know Fawn needs help. Help I can’t give her if I’m weak, but…

I don’t know why, but drinking from Yasminda in front of Fawn feels wrong.

I pull Yasminda into my private sitting room, telling myself it is to give Fawn privacy. I know deep down it’s really because I don’t want Fawn to witness this side of me. I want to distance this side of myself from her, especially after describing every moment of bloodshed I rained down on her world. I drink only enough from Yasminda to restore my energy and not a drop more. Gently pulling my fangs from her wrist, I heal the wound and quickly drop her arm. Yasminda’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise, before giving me a confused look. This is not how feeding normally goes between us.

She takes a step toward me, stopping when I instantly retreat. Her confusion turns to annoyance until I see understanding light in her eyes. Her gaze slowly trails from me, until they land on the door leading to my bedroom, where Fawn sleeps. Her gaze softens, a pained, sad look crossing her face. She gives me a miserable smile as she says, “Oh, Caden.”

“It’s not like that,” I quickly say.