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Astor drew the dagger from his hip. “I need a lock of your hair.” Did he always seem so stiff and emotionless around her sister? For the life of her, she couldn’t believe Hana, who was full of smiles, would fall for someone who didn’t seem to know how to laugh.
“For what?” She frowned. “I’m not a fool. I know you and the King of Sin are doing something to me. I can feel it each day.”
“I’m going to take it regardless of your feelings, but if you give it willingly, I’ll tell you about Hana.”
Even though it could be lies, she had to risk it, no matter what it was. “Is she safe?” she whispered, her voice pleading.
He closed the distance between them and lifted a few strands of her hair, then sliced through them with his dagger. “She’s fine, but she’s been different since you came here. Distant. Doesn’t talk as much.”
She knows. If Hana trusted him, she would’ve confessed what was going on inside her head, even if she was worried or melancholic that Aura had been taken. It wouldn’t have mattered. “How else would she act knowing her sister was stolen away on her wedding day without so much as a goodbye?” Aura said, smoothing out her tone so it didn’t sound like a lie. “And why are you still seeing her?” He didn’t answer, so she continued, “She’ll find out when I go home. I’ll tell her the truth.”
Astor remained silent as he tucked the dagger back into its sheath. “I never meant to deceive Hana for so long.”
“I’m certain all will be forgiven when she hears thatgraciousnews.” If anything, that would only infuriate Hana more.
He released a sigh before leaving the room, and the sound of the lock turning never clicked. Aura blinked, her heart racing, not knowing if he’d meant to keep it unlocked. When she’d first come into her room not long ago, the guard had locked it immediately. But the king had mentioned to her if she behaved…
This time it might be simpler since she could attempt an escape straight from the gardens instead of inside the palace. Shoes would be nice at the moment, but not a necessity. Each day Aura had been here, she’d been given a new dress to wear but no shoes. As if only having one shoe would halt her from trying to escape. She wasn’t going to behave for the king when she needed to return to Hana and Pax.
As she pushed open the door, she glanced down the hallway and spotted one of the guards who’d first brought her to her room as she writhed. Laird.
Aura slowly walked down the hall, the pads of her feet cool from the onyx floor.
“My lady,” Laird said and bowed his head.
She arched a brow—he hadn’t said a word to her every time he’d escorted her to the bathing chambers. “Do you need to accompany me?”
“Per the king, as long as you stay on the palace grounds, venture wherever you like, save for the cellar and the king’s quarters when he’s not there.”
No escort? This might be simpler than she thought. Guards would most likely be outside the palace doors, but perhaps she could reach the gate without them following. She didn’t have a shifter ability as Rush had, but she could run like the wind and hide like the moon during daylight.
Aura cast a hesitant glance over her shoulder, not truly believing him as she started down the hallway. But he didn’t come after her, so she descended the black staircase when two female voices drifted through the air.
“The king’s quite the lover, isn’t he?” a woman asked.
“Quite.” The other giggled. “Perhaps tonight we can have a gathering of eight. It’s been over a week since he’s had an orgy.”
“I miss it being nightly.”
Orgies were truly every day? Did the king even perform any royal duties?
The servants glanced her way as she hit the bottom step. Neither were women that she’d seen before, but they were both pretty with curvy bodies and delicate features.
“We’ll see if she can join us,” the redheaded servant whispered.
Aura’s eyes widened and she increased her pace. She didn’t care who wanted to tumble who, but she would not be participating in any of that.
Her feet padded across the black floor. The décor mainly consisted of the same dark shade—walls, sculpted art pieces, and a set of velvet chaises. Black was everywhere besides for a few splashes of red here and there. Paintings of Rush’s ancestors lined the walls, yet she wasn’t certain who was who. She knew Rush’s parents and sister had died within a handful of years. There wasn’t pity for him, but for the ones who’d lost their lives.
Aura opened the door to the front gardens, finding two guards standing on either side. They bowed their heads as she wandered away from them out into the bright daylight. The air was calm and a few spotted butterflies fluttered above the red roses. Besides those flowers, the gardens mostly held green bushes that were as tall as her waist and formed a labyrinth of swirling designs. Farther out, steam wafted up from a small pond. The only guards she could see were the two at the door.
Up ahead, she caught sight of a man tending to a white horse outside the barn. Blond hair fell to the young man’s shoulders on one side, the other was shorn to the scalp. Rush’s words came to her about not caring who she tumbled.
“Good afternoon, my lady,” the man said as he glanced up, the sun’s light catching on his handsome bone structure.
“Hello,” she said. “And you are?”
“I’m the stable hand, Brix.”
