Page 31

She’d lost her temper, and it had cost her.

All the careful planning of the last few weeks went right out the door when she’d locked eyes with the king. His smug-looking face coupled with the ache of losing Ream had overwhelmed Mer until all she could think of was revenge.

It was as if the last six months had not passed. The guilt and loss and rage had all rushed back in a fierce cocktail of pain. One she couldn’t break out of.

Ream’s betrayal hadn’t mattered in the moment when she’d dove off the ship, or when she’d hunted the king from the sea, or when she’d pulled her shell blade and slit his throat.

All she could see was the light leaving Ream’s eyes and the heaviness of his still form in her arms.

A shiver wracked her body as the bloody rain began again. It dripped down her cheeks but not down her back. She glanced over her shoulder, noticing a black cloak thrown over her. It held the scent of pine, smoke, and something spicy. Who’d given their cloak to her?

Her lips thinned as she observed the group. The king only wore a soaking wet linen shirt and a leather harness on top with various weapons strapped to it. Immediately, she wanted the cloak off. Childish, yes, but necessary. Mer managed to unclip the cloak, her manacles clinking together. She smiled with satisfaction when it slipped from her back and onto the muddy ground.

Mazie sighed, slowing the horse. “You are troublesome.”

“You have no idea.” She shrugged. “If you try to put that cloak back on me, I will only remove it again.”

“Leave it then,” the dowager queen snapped at the female warrior. “If she wants to suffer in the cold, so be it.”

“Yes, my lady,” Mazie replied.

The commotion had caught the king’s attention, and he’d slowed directly across from Mer but not close enough for anything dangerous to occur. She felt his gaze on her, butshe refused to give him any attention. Instead, she studied the horses and humans alike, even as her skin crawled due to his staring.

Methians were large.

In general, the nation boasted tall, strong humans. Even the women.

Over the course of the Warlord’s War, Mer had observed that Methians had a wide variety of skin tones varying from tan to bronze. The assembly around her was no different. It was an enjoyable change to the sea kingdom where her people had a collection of silver, lavender, pale peach, and seafoam skin tones.

The mud squelched beneath the hooves of the horses, and the prickling at the back of her neck intensified. She gritted her teeth.

Enough. Just look at him.

Another chill ran down her spine as it continued to rain. Her hair hung in her eyes as she glanced across the short span, locking cool gazes with the Methian king. The longer she stared into his cold eyes, the more likely it seemed that they glowed like smelted silver. Her new husband now loathed her.

The feeling is mutual.

Mer forced the sneering expression on her face into a placid one. “Do you like what you see, my lord?”

He didn’t answer but continued to stare over the edge of his black kerchief.

She was here for the long game. The lives of Ream’s family depended on it. She’d had a moment of weakness, but now that the shock had worn off, she needed to be strategic. Gaining the king’s trust would be difficult now but not impossible. All men had their faults, and this one, well he was proud. She could see it in every line and angle of his body. He thought himself better than she was.

A dark chuckle sounded in her chest, and she smiled at him, baring her teeth. “I think you do. I think you like the fact that I’m a little vicious. Just like you.”

Her smile dropped when he stroked her shell knife that he’d stolen. The king had boldly placed it in the sheath at his chest.

Don’t let him rile you. He’s just testing the waters.

If she were a betting woman, Mer would hazard a guess that he didn’t like to be challenged.

What fun it would be to toy with him.

“Keep it,” she murmured, batting her lashes. “As a loving keepsake from your new queen.”

His fingers spasmed against her blade, and she swallowed down her glee. She’d ruffled him, even if he was trying to hide it from her.

How delicious.