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I swept my gaze around her tent. Weapons and clothes were strewn across the ground. A crossbow sat balanced against her narrow cot. I sat on the edge of that cot. “I like what you’ve done with the place.”
She snorted. “Out.”
“Look, I wanted to thank you.”
Her shoulders tensed. “I’m not interested.”
Gods, she was hard work. I put on my haughtiest voice. The one I’d learned directly from her. “Too bad. I’m the hybrid heir. That means you have to listen to me.”
She lifted her head, teeth bared, and then caught the smirk on my face. “Cute.”
I’d known that would work.
I sighed. “Look, Madinia, one of the reasons I was so desperate to get to this camp was because I wanted to thank you for what you did that night. I wouldn’t have made it to the city gates without you. I wouldn’t have gotten that amulet to Lorian…”
“And that’s a good thing? The fae arethreatsto us, Prisca.” She used that imperious tone that never failed to make me grind my teeth. The tone she’d used so often in the castle when she was implying I was the stupidest person alive.
But I knew enough about wounded animals to know they often lashed out at whoever was closest.
I wouldn’t ask how she was handling her father’s death. Instead, I fought to keep my voice even.
“I made a deal with Lorian when I was at the castle. I had to get him that amulet if the hybrid prisoners were going to stay alive. He trusted me to find it, and in return, I trusted him to get them to the gates.”
She sneered at me. “And then you learned who he was.”
“Yes.” But we weren’t going there. “I know it was the worst night of your life. After what happened with Davis—”
“I don’t want to talk about that,” she hissed.
“And your father,” I continued as if she hadn’t spoken. “Yet you’re still working to keep the hybrids safe and to further our cause. Thank you for exchanging the jewels.”
She stared at me. Emotions danced across her face, too quickly for me to follow. Finally, she swallowed. “You’re welcome.”
“What can I do for you, Madinia?”
She didn’t hesitate. “Get me out. I want out of this fucking place. Send me somewhere else.”
“Done.”
She blinked. “Truly?”
“You’re clever, vicious, and you were one of the queen’s ladies for years. I’d be a fool not to use you.”
She didn’t smile, but some of the tension left the corners of her eyes. “What do you need?”
“The prince. Before Conreth finds him.”
Satisfaction gleamed in her eyes. Clearly, she liked the idea of outmaneuvering the fae king. Something untwisted in my gut. She still had some spark left.
“Why do you let him patronize you?” she demanded.
“We need him to underestimate me. Let him think us weak. I hope we’re both there to see the expression on his face the moment he learns otherwise.”
Madinia smirked, getting to her feet. Some of the color had returned to her face, and those incredible blue eyes were blazing. “Twenty summers,” she murmured, returning her attention to the prince. “Jamic has been away from the castle for a while now. Long enough that people are asking questions. No doubt, they’re forgetting exactly what he looks like.”
“Regner’s hiding him somewhere, Madinia. We have to find him and take him.”
She frowned. “You want to use him too.”
