Page 29 of Only in Moonlight (The Moonlit Court #1)

Emmeline

M ore guards than I’d expected stood at the entrance. Not enough to scare me off, but enough to make things interesting.

I took a slow, steadying breath. The cool night air, sweet with the scent of flowers, carried the delicate strains of a harpist’s serenade to the waiting guests.

Valen and I moved slowly forward, stuck in line behind a woman whose twinkling gown had a train ten feet long. I wanted to step on the damn thing.

The Palace of Eternal Moonlight rose around us, its alabaster columns massive yet elegant.

The courtyard we stood in formed a perfect crescent, embracing the ballroom’s dome like a silver chalice holding a pearl.

Princess Regula was in there somewhere, wearing the jewel that had brought us here, the prize that would either make my fortune or end my life before the night was through.

Above us, Earth hung heavy and blue in the black velvet sky, three-quarters full and casting enough light to paint everything in soft azure shadows.

The courtyard’s flagstones—polished stone decorated with astronomical charts—reflected the light, creating the uncanny sensation of walking across the sky.

We finally reached the pearly white steps, and I lifted the skirts of my gown.

The soft blue fabric clung to my hips and thighs before flaring out below my knees in wavy layers.

The neckline would have gotten me arrested in Thallence, plunging between my breasts down to my stomach.

Only the rigid bodice—inlaid with silver and gemstones—kept my nipples from spilling out in front of the entire palace.

Valen’s blue surcoat reached his shins, trimmed with silver and bearing the crescent moon emblem of the Moonlit Court on his chest. Swirling designs decorated his leather boots and arm bracers, and his sword hung sheathed from a belt with silver chains and charms like jewelry.

I hoped he wouldn’t need to use the sword tonight.

I’d burgled big manor homes and even a castle once, but this palace… it was on a whole different level.

Finally, we reached the top of the steps. A guard took our invitations.

“Your hand, please,” the guard said.

Valen held out his hand over a waiting table, where a second guard had placed a white paper.

The first guard pricked Valen’s finger with an engraved silver needle that had a tiny crimson gem at its base.

A drop of blood spilled onto the paper below, and words appeared as if written by an invisible hand—presumably Valen’s name.

“Next,” said the guard.

I stepped forward, and he repeated the same process.

As my blood dropped onto the paper, I felt a quiver in my stomach.

Would my shapeshifting somehow interfere with the magic?

Letters appeared on the paper again, and I couldn’t even tell if they formed my name.

Maybe I would take up Valen’s offer to teach me how to read after tonight.

“You can pass,” said the guard. “Enjoy your evening.”

Valen handed me a handkerchief, and I dabbed at my finger, but the bleeding had already stopped.

“Ready?” He put away the handkerchief and offered me his arm.

“Always,” I said.

We strode through the arched doorway and entered the vast ballroom.

The domed ceiling far, far above was a fantastical depiction of the night sky complete with twinkling stars and shifting auroras.

The massive, polished stone dance floor shone so brightly that the dancers seemed to glide across a mirror-bright lake, their reflections shimmering below.

It was a dizzying sight, and that wasn’t even mentioning the attendees.

The outrageous fashions would have looked ridiculous if the fey weren’t all devastatingly beautiful.

One woman wore a dress of clouds—not white, fluffy fabric but actual clouds swirling around her body.

A man walked by with a massive cape like billowing moth wings, and another seemed naked except for shimmering silver paint and glittery gemstones affixed to his skin.

“I thought Nin was kidding when she said my gown was understated,” I muttered.

Valen smirked. “It’s the biggest party of the year. Everyone tries to outshine one another.” His smirk faded as he scanned the room. “Drudon is over there with Aristoph.”

God and Goddess damn it. What had happened? Did they catch the servant trying to poison him? Or had she taken the money and then ratted us out? I guess it didn’t matter. Drudon was here, and we would have to deal with him.

Valen’s sharp eyes continued their search. “I see Prince Cael on the dance floor. It doesn’t look as if the queen has made an appearance yet, but there’s—”

“Sir Valen! And Emmeline! How fare ye?”

The man who’d hosted that awful hunt came up to us, and we endured his pompous chatter for several minutes before he moved on.

“Let’s get some refreshments.” Valen led me around the edge of the room toward the tables of food and drink. Partway there, he leaned down and whispered in my ear. “Princess Regula is in the middle of that large group near the column. She’s the one wearing feathers.”

I pretended to gaze casually around the ballroom.

Sure enough, I spotted her surrounded by a posse of courtiers and wearing an elaborate gown of soft white feathers.

A gigantic winged headdress covered her hair and ears, leaving only her pinched face visible.

She probably wanted to evoke an elegant swan but looked more like an ornery goose.

And hanging around her neck on a smooth silver collar necklace was our target: the Selenian Jewel.

I’d been expecting something flashy, a gaudy bauble that screamed, “Look at me! I’m expensive.

” What I wasn’t prepared for was the way it seemed to hold an entire galaxy prisoner within its crystalline depths.

It seemed almost alive, pulsing with an inner radiance that shamed the shoddy replica necklace I'd practiced unlocking. Its faceted surface caught the ballroom’s light and fractured it into a thousand blues, each one deeper than the last, as if someone had crystallized the ocean at midnight and hung it around the princess’s throat.

Just my luck that the prettiest thing I’d ever seen would probably be the death of me.

Having gone over the plan five hundred times with Valen, I hadn’t forgotten that it was too soon to steal it. We’d only just arrived. We had hours to kill before we could leave the ball without drawing suspicion.

I stopped looking at the jewel, knowing better than to stare, and my thoughts turned to the princess.

So that was the woman who wanted to invade Earth.

She didn’t look like the type of royal who would lead troops to war herself.

The thought of her marching into battle in that ridiculous dress almost made me snort.

But I could be wrong. Valen had said the royal family wielded dangerously powerful magic.

Maybe Regula would summon lightning from the sky to destroy Earth’s armies.

“Here.”

Valen handed me a flute of sparkling wine, a glowing golden crescent moon decorating the glass. I raised it to my lips but didn’t drink. I needed to be at my best tonight, not tipsy.

Then he passed me some kind of puffy baked cheese appetizer. Crispy on the outside, soft and gooey on the inside, it delighted my taste buds.

“Now that’s more like it,” I said.

“Shall I search the table for every dish that includes cheese?”

“I know you’re teasing me, but yes. Do that now.”

His shoulders shook as he repressed a chuckle. But then his gaze landed on something behind me, and the color drained from his face.

Had guards come to arrest us? Had Drudon finally snapped? What—?

“Sir Cordus, Polla…” His voice cracked. “Aurea.”

I spun around, barely noticing the older couple. My attention focused completely on the young woman next to them: Aurea, Valen’s former fiancée.

She was beautiful, of course. With plump, rosy lips, fair skin that seemed to glow, and bright eyes framed by long lashes, her face was all soft innocence. She wore a gown of pale pink that hung off her round shoulders—God and Goddess, even her shoulders were attractive.

I belatedly realized Valen was speaking with her parents and had introduced me. I quickly curtsied. They asked polite questions about my life on Earth, and I answered numbly with the lies Valen and I had fabricated what felt like so long ago.

“You were talking about cheese.” Aurea gave me a hesitant look, her voice soft. “There’s some wonderful dip at the other table. I could show you…?”

Valen looked distinctly uncomfortable but said nothing to get me out of it, so I had to smile and agree.

I struggled to think of something to say to Aurea as we walked to the next table and spooned dip onto small glass plates.

I scooped some up with a piece of crusty bread and took a small bite.

It must have been delicious, but I barely tasted it.

Why had Aurea pulled me away from Valen and her parents?

She was staring down at her plate, not even looking at me.

“You’re right,” I said with false cheer. “This tastes wonderful.”

“I’m glad you like it.” Then she looked up, eyes wide with urgency, and whispered, “Please be careful. Valen isn’t what he seems. He’s dangerous, and you can’t trust him.”

My breath got caught partway down my throat. I couldn’t speak, but I had no idea what to say in response anyway. My mouth felt dry, my tongue thick and clumsy. The plate of dip trembled slightly in my hand, betraying the turmoil of disbelief and dread inside me.

“Come along, Aurea, dear. I want to speak to Ambassador Neevun.”

Her parents and Valen rejoined us. Her mother gave a sharp nod in Valen’s direction.

“Good to see you again, Valen,” Aurea said softly.

His voice was just as low. “And you, Aurea.”

They walked off, and Valen stared after Aurea with a pained expression.

I wished I’d pushed harder to find out what had happened between them.

Was Aurea the spiteful type? Did she want to ruin our relationship with her warning?

Or was she honestly trying to help me? The real Valen was nothing like the empty-headed charmer he played at parties, after all.

He acted the part so well that I doubted anyone but Drudon could suspect he’d come here tonight to steal the Selenian Jewel. Was that what Aurea meant?

Or did she know something I didn’t?

Valen turned to me, but the sadness didn’t leave his eyes. If anything, it seemed even more pronounced as he looked me over.

“Shall we dance?” he asked.