AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He looked away sheepishly. Oh dear gods. He had.
“Ark.” She glared. “I don’t want to take a bath in this place—much less go out there without underwear.”
“Let it be. It will send a message.”
She gaped at him. “Arkimedes! Did you ravage me in this dirty room just so you could leave a mark on me like some sort of animal?”
A smile tugged at the corners of his lips, and at his shrug, her face warmed. “I never claimed not to be. The fae in me demands things from me humans don’t do. But make no mistake, you are mine, and I intend for anyone out there to know.”
Nava crossed her arms, flaring her nostrils. “And you are mine.”
“Yes, and now when I go to that awful place, I’ll get to smell you.”
Thankfully, a tiny washroom adjoined their chamber. Arkimedes left to gather some items for the night while she cleaned up a bit. By the time she was ready, he’d returned and was standing by the window. He’d opened the thick green curtains, allowing daylight to pour into the room.
“I got you a new dress,” he said and pointed at the garment lying over the bed. He was wearing different clothes, too. Black and a hooded tunic that hugged his wide shoulders.
Nava joined him, glancing outside. The play had ended, and the crowds were dispersing, leaving rubbish strewn across the wide courtyard.
Who’d dared to spy on the prince of the Copper Kingdom that night? They clearly had been an eyewitness. The costumes were too accurate for anything else.
She dragged her fingers through the messy waves of her hair before braiding the sides tight to her scalp and tying it all behind her neck into a low bun.
“When do you think you’ll leave?” she asked, hating how worried she sounded—and felt. Her nervousness wouldn’t help with their task.
“When Devon gets here and tells us what he’s found.” His eyes moved up to the sky. It had darkened considerably. “If he isn’t here by sunset, we will both leave together and make sure he hasn’t got himself in trouble.”
Nava rose on her tiptoes, trying to get a better view of the square below. “How can Devon mingle with the fae and gather information when they all seem to hate humans?”
“Not all do. Although I’m sure meeting Devon won’t help their views on humankind.” Arkimedes smirked. The playful expression made her stomach flutter, and the need that should be satiated began anew. He arched a brow, and his smile grew. “Are you all right? You seem flustered.”
“Oh, hush.”
He huffed a laugh with a shake of his head. “To answer your previous question, Devon is good at intimidating people, and he uses as many tactics as he needs to make them believe he is someone to fear.”
True. Nava still remembered the afternoon Devon Black the Crow had walked into her potion shop in Willowbrook. He’d put the fear of the gods into her and sent her into a frenzy to escape the threat of imprisonment and protect Cameron. He’d set all of this into motion.
Damn him, but she loved him for it.
“I remember him doing that… He did it to me,” she said. And to think it was all a mask Devon wore to get the job done. Much like the indifference Arkimedes hid behind. It was all to show the world that he didn’t care about their judgment of him.
“Most fae out there possess little magic. Having someone like Devon ask them questions will force them to answer if he displays just a small fraction of his power.”
“Do you think he’s going to get in trouble?” And if so, with whom? The royal guards, the Society of Crows, or the pirates?
“If he isn’t indulging in frivolities and is, in fact, scoping out information as he’s supposed to, then no.” His growing frown did little to calm Nava’s dread.
“How often does he indulge?”
“Enough for me to be concerned.”
Great.
Arkimedes cleared his throat. “In the meantime, I need to get some things to prepare for tonight. You should call upon your daggers.”
“Which one? The one I left on Grey Island or the one your father’s guards took from me?”
It had been a year since Nava had learned to use her magic and to accept it. She hadn’t used the spell to portal the things she owned often enough. It took a lot of energy, especially if the items were far away.
