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“I-I don’t know.” She was shaking again. “I was only told to bring you here.”

He grimaced and took the key. “Tell your master you’ve completed your task.” Her heart thundered in her chest. “And know that your queen will protect you should you ever need her help.”

She clenched her fists and lingered a moment too long. “There’s nothing she can do.” Then she was gone, bounding down the stairs before Rion could say otherwise.

Rion stared at the door then the crevice underneath. Light flickered inside, candlelight from the way it moved. He paused to listen, refusing to step closer.

No movement.

Using his magic, Rion inserted the key in the lock and twisted. It clicked and he waited again, straining to listen in the tense silence.

Nothing.

He slid his magic beneath the door this time and knelt, using the particles to feel around the floor of the room. No one screamed, no increased heart rates or heavy breathing.

His sand wrapped around the doorknob and twisted.

Vanilla and jasmine leaked from the room, masking any scent within. He pushed the door open fully. Dozens of candles sat atop tables and the mantle, casting an eerie glow across the floor.

Rion eyed the fireplace that sat directly across from the door. Embers flickered within.

Not a footstep or breath.

Rion palmed a dagger he’d hidden at his waist, reined in his magic, and stepped just over the threshold. He studied the shadows. One door stood closed to the right of the fireplace. Likely a closet, but could someone be hiding inside? Surely they wouldn’t be so obvious.

He scented the air again. A female. There was definitely a female in the room.

Rion quickly scanned the space from top to bottom. A few well-placed chairs, a plush rug, and a bed with dark silken—her scent hit him first and Rion’s stomach twisted with revulsion.

She stood slowly, letting the sheets drift to the floor. She should have balked at his presence, but she did nothing to conceal her naked body.

The female tilted her head and leaned against the bedpost with a seductive smile.

“Do come in.”

“You’re in the wrong room,” Rion said, keeping his gaze firmly locked on her face. He would have turned away were he not worried about her shoving a knife in his back. Naked female assassin was a first, but he wasn’t taking any chances.

“I’m not,” she corrected. “I’m your gift.”

Nausea rolled through him again. He’d expected a trap, for the room to explode, or an assassin to leap out with weapons poised. But this—

“I don’t need your . . . services.”

Her hand roamed over her exposed breast and down her stomach. He refused to let his eyes follow. “I’ve not been touched before. I’m told that’s what you like.”

Rion growled and the female had enough sense to step back. Her eyes widened a fraction. Gods above the people in this city knew no bounds. They were certifiably insane. He knew what this was. The game they were hoping to catch him on. He just—

“Rion?”

Too late. He’d realized too late. His heart could have stopped and it would have hurt less. He wished it would. Maybe it would leave him on the floor a broken mess. Anything. Anything but this—

Slowly, ever so slowly, Rion turned to face Arianna. She stood in the doorway, one hand lightly on the frame. Talon flanked her, breathing heavily as if he’d been running.

Rion couldn’t form words, could hardly breathe or think as Arianna took in the naked female’s body then turned back to stare at him with wide eyes. How could he explain?

Arianna scented the air and that one moment bred more fear than every horrible thing he’d ever experienced.

If she believed any of this—