Page 127

I looked away as another sob burst out of me. Though I was glad Roar and I had been convincing, the better I got to know Clem, the more I hated lying to her.

“Are we to return to the west?”

“The king wishes for me to continue in the Courting Festival.”

My lady-in-waiting stilled. “I mean no offense, my lady Neve, but that is quite odd. You are an elevated lady, not one of blood. Why would the king want such a thing?”

“Noble fae have taken an interest in me.” I huffed out a breath and wiped another stray tear from my cheek. “And the king said I might become a part of his harem.”

Shock rippled across her delicate features. “He would not . . .” She trailed off, possibly recalling all the tales of what the king had done before. By comparison, taking an unwilling common fae into his harem was nothing.

“We must not let him!” The resolve in her tone stunned me.

“Clem, he’s the king. We have no power over him.” What in all the nine kingdoms did she expect me to do, us to do? The only person who could get us out of this–and even that was a huge maybe–was Roar.

And after what Roar had done and speaking with Gervais, I wasn’t sure I trusted the Warden of the West anymore.

Clemencia stared at me for a moment, stood, and ran into her bedroom. I watched her door, puzzled, until she emerged a minute later with a vial in her hand. “I should have thought of this earlier. It’s a calming potion. Althea gave me a few before we left Guldtown. Just in case the festival got to be too much.”

I took the vial, downed it, and thanked Clemencia. Immediately, a sense of ease washed over me, calming my racing heart a touch.

She sat back down. “My lady, I know you’re distraught, but there are fae the king might listen to. One of whom likes you.” Clemencia gripped my hand. “You must call Princess Saga. She can plead with her father on your behalf. At the very least, you will not become a part of the king’s harem, though . . .”

She closed her eyes and shook her head, unable to finish her sentence. She didn’t need to. Clem must have thought it atrocious that I might be married to another noble when I was so very in love with Roar.

I inhaled, considering her idea. In truth, it seemed like a good one. “You’re right. Clem, can you send a messenger to bring the princess here? I would go to her, but . . .” I placed a hand on my stomach, feigning illness.

“Of course! The princess will understand, I’m sure!” She leapt up and left the room.

The moment she left, I set to cleaning myself up. Saga may or may not be able to do something, but I didn’t need her to see me like this. Something about the princess instilled strength in me, and though I was in a bad place, I wanted to meet Saga on a more level field.

I washed my face and applied makeup. As Saga still had not arrived, I went to the basket in which I kept the vial of Roar’s blood. I pulled it out, hands trembling as I did so.

Should I drink it? The idea disgusted me. Though I would be within my rights by our contract, a part of me wanted to believe that Roar left for a good reason. But what could that reason be?

Then, holding my vial, another thought struck. If Roar hadn’t been back to our room since he went to the ball, perhaps he’d left his vial containing my blood. I hadn’t seen it since the day we’d made our deal.

I rushed from my room into Roar’s chambers to find the space immaculate. Where would he hide it? Going with my first guess, I opened the bedside tables. Nothing. A sweep of the drawers in the bathroom proved equally fruitless. A sense of frenzy built inside me and I searched faster, beneath the mattress, under the bed and rug, even feeling the hemlines of the thick curtains. After that, I was sweating and still empty-handed.

I huffed and, determined to leave no stone unturned, took a step back, scanning the room again. That time my gaze landed on the bedside table. A book lay there.

Roar once told me he and his brother hid messages in books. Would he . . .

I strode to the table again and snatched up the book, opened it carefully and turned the pages. Near the end, a gasp ripped out of me.

There it was, a small cut out in the pages. And inside it, the vial of my blood gleamed. I wasn’t sure what made me do so, but I took the vial out, shoved it in my pocket and replaced the book before returning to my room, hands trembling.

So whatever state Roar had left in, he hadn’t dared return for the vial of my blood. Had he expected me to look for it? If so, why? What was his motive?

I let out a groan of frustration. None of this made sense.

And what about what Gervais had said? Gold was the currency of all the nine kingdoms, the one thing that could buy power and safety. What was more valuable? Precious jewels perhaps?

A knock came at my door, and Clem poked her head inside. “The princess is here, my lady.”

“Thank you.” I swept over to meet Saga, who already waited in the sitting area. “Saga, thank you so much for coming.”

“Of course!” Saga beamed. That morning, her pink hair looked more vibrant than normal. Or perhaps it only looked that way because I felt so low. “Your lady-in-waiting made it seem quite urgent. And you disappeared so quickly last night that I wondered about you. Are you well?”