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In exchange for my temporary freedom, we were all required to attend this name day celebration, but I didn’t want to go. I had a task to complete, and parading around in front of the court, pretending to be a wealthy lord’s daughter, sounded torturous.
I wondered how much Nero had decided to tell his brother about me. Would I look like a fool introducing myself as some simpering female looking for a husband all the while he knew my secret?
The sun was nearly setting as I made it back to my room at the tavern. After a tense breakfast across the table from both Remus and Caldor in which neither man spoke a single word, I’d spent the day carefully avoiding the men that Nero had tasked with following me, making sure I had no ideas of fleeing the city. I wouldn’t lie and say I hadn’t considered it. I was ready to hide away while I could and not be bothered. Besides, I had a letter to write.
Caldor hadn’t bothered to meet my eyes this morning, and Remus had been busy glaring at Caldor, while Rijjat glanced between the three of us with a devious smirk that made me grind my teeth in irritation. So, I avoided each of them, instructing them to meet in my room before tonight’s… festivities. Whether or not they would follow my instructions remained a mystery.
I stared at the door to my room, blinking at it in the dark light of the corridor, lit with only one small wall sconce. Sitting in front of it was a wrapped parcel. I snatched it up and hurried inside, locking the door behind me.
I tore at the wrapping, letting it fall to the floor as a long, glittering dress unfurled. It hung from my fingers as I twisted it this way and that, letting the light of the blazing hearth wash over it. I’d never seen a fabric like it. Not quite black, not quite red, but somewhere in between. When the light hit it just right, I even spotted a bit of gold. It was by far the most decadent item I’d ever held in my blood soaked hands.
There was no note to go along with it, but I already knew it was Nero who’d sent it. My lips thinned as I realized his intent, giving me a dress that changed colors the same as that magical hair of his. He clearly thought he was clever… and maybe he was.
What I should have done was toss the dress out the nearest window and donned one of my black cloaks and a full belt of potions. But I doubted I’d make it very far into the castle gates like that. The mental image, though, was enough to make me grin. But barely.
I spent the next hour drafting a letter, which I rolled and tied off with a belt of leather. Opening the window, I tipped my head out, eyeing the rooftops. I whistled a familiar tune, and soon the fluttering of wings hit my ears as a black shape swirled overhead before landing on the windowsill. The raven’s beady black eyes stared at me, its mouth slightly open and ready.
This raven was trained to wait and listen for that specific tune and would bring my letter directly to Avedin, letting my Ravens know where I was and that I was indeed still alive. We had messenger ravens in every kingdom, every continent, ready and waiting to serve us when needed, and it was a lucky thing too; otherwise, someone would come to investigate, and I couldn’t risk that with Nero watching us so closely.
I placed the letter into its waiting mouth, and it wasted no time shooting off of the windowsill and into the fading light of the day. I watched it go with a pit of longing in my stomach. Sometimes I wished I could be like a real raven and just fly away and disappear.
It took another hour for me to wash up and slip into the dress. I stood before an old worn and cracked mirror, turning and twisting, letting the firelight bounce off the fabric. It was lighter than silk and soft against my skin, cooling to the touch. I didn’t have any shoes that were suitable to match it, so I dug out a pair of my nicer boots from my riding bag. They were black but daintier than the ones I usually wore, and the dress was more than long enough to cover them.
There was a knock at the door, and I froze, my head snapping to the knob that didn’t turn and the footsteps in the distance that faded away quickly. Cracking open the door, I stuck my head into the corridor, looking this way and that, but nobody was there; instead, there was yet another parcel at my feet.
Locking the door behind me, I tore into the parcel, revealing a pair of crystalline silver slippers. They were just as delicate and unique as the dress, but staring at them in the palms of my hand had my blood running ice cold. I tossed them on the bed and rushed to the window, throwing it open and scanning the rooftops and shadows for prying eyes.
Was he here? Was the prince watching me somehow? My skin prickled with unease as I slammed the window shut, stripping the bedding off of the bed and tossing it over the shutters. It hung off at an angle, but it blocked the nearby rooftops enough that nobody would be able to spy on me from the outside.
A thought occurred to me that had nausea rolling in my stomach. My eyes flitted to the spot where Caldor had me pinned on the wall. Had someone been watching us? Was there someone out there who knew? I thought of Prince Nero having that sort of emotional leverage over us, and rage flooded me. I wasn’t being careful enough in this enemy kingdom.
I stared at the slippers with a frown. They appeared to be my exact size. Had Nero simply forgotten them and sent a courier to fetch them for me? Had it been a coincidence that I was thinking too deeply about? I wasn’t so sure that anything was a coincidence anymore.
* * *
“I’m not goingto help you with whatever scheme you’ve concocted tonight,” Rijjat said. He stood against the far wall of my room with his arms crossed, dressed in finer clothing than some kings. His thick brows were drawn tight as he shook his head. “Prince Nero knows you’re here now, so it’s pointless, whatever it is.”
I glanced at Remus, who was peering out the window. He let the bedding drop from his two fingers as he met my eyes. They were greener than I’d ever seen them and filled with mischief as usual.
I tugged my riding cloak tighter around me as the room chilled, the fire in the hearth still flickering but slowly dying out. “And just how do you know we’re up to anything?” I asked innocently. “I was invited to a ball. Who am I to turn down a direct summons from a prince?”
Rijjat snorted, looking me up and down with suspicion. “You’re the leader of the largest underground spy ring this side of the realm. Your very presence in this city falls under scrutiny, and rightfully so.” He stepped away from the wall, taking several slow steps my way. From the corner of my eye, I noticed Remus stiffening as if prepared to leap between us. Rijjat tilted his head, his long dark curls falling over his shoulder. “You’re here to spy on my king. That much is obvious, but what I want to know is why. Why now, after all these years of peace between our countries, does King Animus feel so threatened?”
I blinked at the cunning man, still innocent as can be. I was under no obligation to confess anything to a man I’d only just met and under curious circumstances as well. My lips stretched into a bland smile. “Why indeed, Rijjat.”
His dark eyes sparkled in the firelight as he held my stare. The closer he got to me, the more my skin heated and my breath stalled in my chest. There was something about this man that stumped me. Something that set my teeth on edge and my heart racing. My mind flashed back to the moment he’d reached for my hand as the prince’s men hauled me away. That spark between us, the crackle of something fierce that flowed from him into me. The invisible runes I could feel under my skin. What was it? Who was this man?
“Why did you come after me?” I asked as I stood from my place on the bed, meeting him nearly eye to eye. “You could have run, but you didn’t, and you nearly died because of it. Why?” It was a question that had been plaguing me since the moment he’d run after that horse to get to me. The fear in his eyes had been real.
Remus huffed from beside us. “I’d say it was less of a choice than the fact that we’d been dragged straight to your captor’s doorstep.”
I cast him a wry look, taking my eyes off Rijjat for a split second. “I don’t believe I asked you. Why don’t you make yourself useful and prepare my…” Remus coughed, cutting me off, his eyes bouncing to Rijjat. “My satchel…”
Rijjat shook his head, clicking his tongue. “You think I don’t know what you hide away in your satchel, X? You’re not fooling anyone, least of all me.” He stepped closer. “You asked why I came after you? I’ll tell you why, but you won’t believe me.”
We were so close I could feel his breath on my face and see each fleck of amber in his dark eyes. He smelled like spices and something sweet, with a hint of morning dew, and it was an effort not to breathe in deeply.
I angled my head with a subdued smile. “I’m very versatile in my beliefs.”
