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“I saw the dragons overhead. What happened?”
“He spotted your ship. Accused me of doing exactly what I’m doing—betraying him. It’s been a long time since I’ve spoken to him. I’d forgotten about his intelligence and paranoia.”
“It’s not paranoia if it’s true.”
He gave a shrug. “It matters not now. He’s powerless to change what’s been done.”
“If you kill her, you’ll have no proof.”
“I can send her clothes, a lock of hair, all sorts of proof. Make her write a letter and kill her… The possibilities are endless.”
The numbness turned to sickness. When I betrayed a man who didn’t have my loyalty, I felt no guilt because he was a stranger. Kings died, and new ones were crowned every day. Her father knew the risks when he took on the role of sovereign. But his daughter…that was a different story. “You said you would only use her as leverage. You said nothing of killing her.”
He eyed me, that smile still there. “Is that affection I detect?”
“I’m only repeating the terms of the deal—which you changed.”
“And like I said, King Rolfe’s visit changed everything.”
“You don’t have to kill her—”
“I’ll kill her. And then when he shows up, I’ll kill him. Then the only one standing in my way is his queen—and I’ll force myself between her legs before I slit her throat.”
I felt affection for no one except my father and brothers, so I didn’t care about Harlow and the members of her family, but I was disturbed, nonetheless. To be responsible for the bloodshed about to ensue left a bad taste in my mouth. “All I needed was snake venom, making this a very uneven trade.”
“Then what else do you want, Aurelias? A bite before you go?”
I hadn’t craved her blood, not once. Everything had been set in motion, and now there was nothing I could do to stop it. Even if I returned to Delacroix to tell her father the truth, she would be dead long before I even got there. What was done could never be undone now. “Tell me where my ship is, and I’ll be on my way.”
His smile disappeared, and he shifted his gaze away. “King Rolfe and Steward Rolfe are watching the coast from the north to the south. There’s no way I can get you on a ship without exposing my neck.”
“But you’re about to expose your neck anyway.”
“The coast is being watched. My connections won’t be able to fulfill my requests.”
I stepped forward, my anger getting the best of me. “We made a deal, Rancor. I bring you the princess, and you get me home on a ship.”
“It’ll have to wait.”
“To wait?” I asked incredulously. “Even if King Rolfe hands himself over, you still have to defeat all the Kingdoms. This was a suicide mission to begin with, and I’m not going to wait around in the hope you’ll prevail so I can get home. Now, get me a damn ship.”
Rancor stepped back, his hands moving to his sides, one hand close to the hilt of his sword. “I’m sure you could travel to the port city and pay for a ship. I can give you gold to pay off the sailors in your employ.”
I had to control my voice. Had to control my hand before I did something violent. “I risk my life to bring you this girl, and you desert me?”
“It was never my intention to desert you, Aurelias. It’s unfortunate that King Rolfe has grown suspicious of us. That was an outcome I didn’t anticipate. And you can’t blame me for that because it wasyourship that he spotted. It wasyournegligence that compromised my plan. You’re welcome to our hospitality until you’re ready to leave, but you’ll need to find your own arrangements for traveling back home.”
16
HARLOW
“Don’t touch me!” I tried to run away, but the room was small and I had nowhere to go. When one came at me, I slammed down with both of my hands in the binding and knocked him out. Two of them converged on me at once, and then I was flipped onto my back and dragged by my ankles.
I tried to grab on to anything I could to pull myself free, but it was just roots from weeds and plants. When I found a rock, I threw it at one of the Teeth, but all it did was make him kick me.
I was dragged into a prison cell in one of the buildings, a room with bars over the windows and a mattress in the corner. They dropped my feet, but before I could get up, they grabbed my boots and tugged them off.
“What the fuck are you doing?” I pushed away, feeling them grab my pants and start to tug them down. “I’ll fucking kill you!” Another Teeth joined the attack, holding me down so they could pull off my clothes. My pants came down and then they took my underwear. “No!” My anger was so potent it erupted as tears, refusing to let this horrible thing happen to me.
