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Jasira laughed as the crowd parted and she and Thea approached the stall.

Marise’s eyes widened at the sight of Thea. ‘And another honoured patron! What a delight to see you, Guardian Zoltaire.’

Thea gave him a stiff nod. It was all she could do with thoughts of Wilder flooding her mind. She just had to get through the first hour of the ball, then she’d be back in her armour, seeing him freed.

‘At long last you have come for a tasting!’ Marise continued, then lowered his voice. ‘I expected you some time ago, with a certain Warsword we do not speak of…’

‘I’ve been on the road,’ Thea murmured, with an awkward glance at the princess, who seemed not to hear.

‘But of course.’ He bowed his head before clapping his hands together enthusiastically. ‘Today we will taste three of my best wines.’

The merchant busied himself with setting six small glasses on the table before them. All the while, Thea scanned the ballroom, which was growing more crowded by the minute.That was good. The more people in the room, the more chaotic things would become when Cal and Kipp triggered the diversion. Thankfully, she spotted them at the ballroom’s edge, both holding goblets but not drinking, not even Kipp. She suppressed a sigh of relief. They were exactly where they were meant to be.

Marise pressed a glass into her hand. ‘This first, my intense friend. It’s a lighter red from the provinces of Valia, beyond the Veil.’

Thea didn’t know which information to absorb first: the fact that Marise had called herintenseagain, just as he had the first time they’d met, or that the wine she now held was from a place beyond the Veil. The same place that was home to the women warriors after whom she styled her hair.

Thea was distracted, so much so that she only heard every few words from the master wine merchant. Something about hints of blackberry and cassis, something else about a barnyard aroma and spice on the nose, whatever that meant. She dutifully sampled the wine, nodding appreciatively at Princess Jasira’s observations. The young royal seemed to have an impressive grasp on the niche vocabulary needed for such things.

Before Thea knew it, the third and final drop was being pushed towards her and she sipped it self-consciously, noting that Marise’s gaze was fixed on her this time.

The moment the wine hit her tongue, she closed her eyes.Deliciousdidn’t cover it. It was otherworldly, elegant and complex all at once.

Marise was looking at her strangely.

‘It’s lovely,’ she admitted.

‘Curious that you should like that one the best…’ He smiled faintly.

Princess Jasira had been drawn into a conversation with a nearby nobleman, and Thea frowned at the wine merchant. ‘Why do you say that?’

He shrugged. ‘It’s nothing. Perhaps it’s just that all you Warswords have the same taste.’

‘I’m not a Warsword.’

‘No?’

‘Not yet.’

‘You could have fooled me.’

Thea slid the glass back across the table. ‘Thank you for the tasting.’

‘May the Moonfire Eclipse bring you all the light you may need.’

Thea hesitated, just for a moment, before allowing the words to tumble from her mouth, the wine having loosened her lips. ‘This doesn’t seem strange to you, then… All this celebration while darkness creeps towards us?’

Marise offered her a broad smile. ‘Let me tell you something, Althea Zoltaire. A fine wine is just like this event… It’s all about the finish.’

Then he winked at her, before turning to a fresh crowd of patrons.

Baffled, Thea left his stall, gesturing to Jasira that she would catch up with her later. She went to Cal and Kipp, who were still stationed on the opposite side of the ballroom. Both men had been fitted with brand new tunics and jackets.

‘You two scrub up alright,’ she told them, taking her place next to Kipp.

‘You’re not so bad yourself, Highness,’ Kipp replied. ‘Everything is in place. We just need to wait for the royals to make their entrance… Then the diversion will be underway, as will we.’

Thea nodded. ‘Good… That’s good.’