Page 28 of The Curse of Gods (The Curse of Saints #3)

“Are you going to sit there and brood all night?”

Aidon glanced up from the book in his hands to see Dauphine standing on the stairs, her skin dewy from her bath. Thin cotton shorts showed off long, tanned legs, her top large and sagging where she’d tucked it in.

A man’s shirt, if Aidon had to guess.

He snapped his book closed, settling further into the couch cushions. “Is reading brooding?”

Dauphine fixed him with an exaggerated pout. “You don’t want to keep me company.”

He hardly had a choice. There wasn’t much to do in the safe house besides bathe and eat, and he’d already done both. He glanced down at his own attire—light linen pants and a loose linen vest.

If nothing else, Dauphine was a gracious host.

Gracious, and beautiful, and probably deadly.

“Rather bad form for a king to associate with a mercenary, is it not?” he asked lightly.

Dauphine smirked. “Depends on the king.”

So it does.

What sort of deal had his uncle made with her? He doubted Dauphine was providing weapons to Kakos during the embargo, not with the ire he’d detected in the brothel when she spoke of Kakos’s decimation of Sitya.

But he couldn’t be sure. He didn’t suspect Dominic was willing to partner with the Southern Kingdom either. Not until it was too late.

“Have a drink with me,” Dauphine said, her bare feet padding toward the kitchen.

He watched her go, her hair curling as it dried. It was a darker red now, still wet from her bath, and it reminded him of his mother’s favorite wine.

Aidon pushed himself up with a sigh. It would not do to be distracted with thoughts of his family. Not tonight.

He followed Dauphine into the kitchen, where she was gazing up at a shelf lined with liquor bottles, her lips pursed in contemplation. “I’m thinking gin.”

She pushed herself up onto her toes and grabbed the clear bottle off the shelf before swiping two glasses from the one below it. There was an ease to her movements that spoke to an intimate familiarity with this place.

Not just a well-worn safe house, then.

Before he could press the matter, a knock sounded on the door. For a split second, Aidon froze, his gaze locking with Dauphine’s.

Fucking hells. Will was right.

Aidon flung himself across the space. The glasses in her hand shattered as he pinned the mercenary to the wall, his grip tight on her wrists, waist snug against hers to keep her from throwing him off.

“ Traitorous bitch ,” he bit out. “I am not the least bit surprised.”

The air around him swirled, but Aidon pulled his shield close, creating a buffer against her magic. A surge of pride ripped through him.

He’d gotten better.

It lasted less than three seconds before his shield was buckling under Dauphine’s gust of wind. Aidon fell back against the kitchen sink, a frustrated growl bursting from him as he called his fire forward, danger be damned.

But Dauphine extended her hands and twisted, yanking her arms back toward her. The ball of fire in his palm extinguished, suffocated by the air Dauphine took with it.

“You’re better with the weapons you know, General.”

Perhaps he was.

Aidon snatched a knife from the block on the counter and flung it as hard as he could across the kitchen. It slammed into the wall with a resounding thud right next to Dauphine’s head. She pulled away from the blade slowly, her finger touching the skin of her ear. It came away red with blood.

“Or not,” she smirked.

“If you think that was an accident,” Aidon said, reaching for another knife, “you underestimate me. That was a warning.”

Another knock sounded at the door, this one riddled with impatience. “I know you’re in there!” A young man’s voice called out.

Aidon paused. The words themselves could easily be a threat, but the tone was more irritated than anything else. He watched as Dauphine’s face softened.

She pushed herself off the wall, nodding at the knife in his hands.

“Bring the knife if it’ll make you feel better. But if you stab my little brother, I will suffocate you so slowly, you’ll beg for death.”

She left Aidon standing there, a confused frown on his face as he watched her stride through the living room.

He followed, but he kept a healthy distance as Dauphine opened the door. A man with messy red hair stood on the threshold, his aquiline nose scrunching in annoyance as he took in Dauphine. He was a head shorter than her, but it was easy to see their shared features.

Their curly hair. Their oval eyes. Their proud chins.

“You have a key,” Dauphine said by way of greeting.

“Lost it,” the boy grumbled as he shouldered past her. His gaze skipped across the room to Aidon, darkening as he registered the knife in his hand.

“To what do I owe the pleasure, dear brother of mine?” Dauphine asked, drawing her brother’s attention back to her.

“I’m not here to see you,” he bit out.

“Oh?”

“This is still my house, isn’t it?” He looked between Dauphine and Aidon, a sneer pulling at his young face as he glanced at his sister’s shirt. “Or has it become another one of your many illicit businesses?” To Aidon, he said, “Did she at least pay you for the pleasure of your company?”

“Luc,” Dauphine scolded. But Aidon’s brows rose, amusement pulling at the corners of his mouth.

“You know,” he remarked, placing the knife down on the credenza beside him, “that’s the second time today someone has mistaken me for a courtesan.” He winked at Dauphine. “I’m flattered.”

Her brother scoffed, his eyes rolling toward the Beyond as he turned and stomped up the stairs. Aidon quirked a brow at Dauphine, but she was already following Luc.

“Of course it’s still your house,” she called after him.

Aidon fell into step behind her. The boy may not be a threat, but he would be damned if he left Dauphine unmonitored with someone he did not know.

But with the way Luc was throwing open drawers in one of the bedrooms, his movements thunderous, Aidon was willing to bet he had no idea that this was a safe house.

Aidon paused in the doorway, watching as he rifled through clothes. He held up a shirt to inspect it with a critical eye. Deeming it acceptable, he balled it up and shoved it into the satchel Aidon hadn’t noticed at his shoulder.

“Do you need money?” Dauphine asked as she hovered just inside the room. There was a small furrow between her brows as she watched him pick up a worn pair of trousers and stuff them in the bag as well.

The boy’s shoulders tensed, a muscle in his jaw working as he kept his gaze averted from his sister. “No.”

Dauphine took another step closer to her brother. “You’re still getting what I send to the—”

“I’ve told you before,” he snapped as he whirled to face her, “I don’t want your blood money!”

Dauphine bristled. “But the clothes are fine, are they? You do realize they were bought with the same—”

“They’re not for me!” he cut her off as he slammed one of the drawers shut so hard, it rattled the vase of flowers on top of it. “Not everyone’s sole care is for themselves.”

Aidon watched as Dauphine flinched.

“Luc…”

He ignored her, shoving past them both and jogging down the stairs. Dauphine didn’t spare Aidon a glance as she followed him, her voice rising as she called after him.

Aidon had known Dauphine only for a handful of hours, yet it was strange to see her beholden to someone else. He wondered if Luc knew just how rare for his sister this was.

“I may be leaving town for a few weeks,” Dauphine was saying as Aidon stepped back into the living room. Her brother had his back to her, one hand on the brass handle of the door. “If you need anything—”

“I won’t.”

“But if you do—”

“I won’t.” Luc straightened his spine, spite carving grooves in the youthful smoothness of his face. “Enjoy your gold,” he spat as he wrenched open the door. It slammed behind him, plunging the room into a ringing silence.

Dauphine didn’t move from her spot near the door, her hands loose at her sides as she simply stared at the wood for several long moments. Aidon made his way to her slowly.

He nudged her with his shoulder. “Come have a drink with me.”

Dauphine blinked up at him. It was a long moment before her lips tugged at the corners.

“You broke my favorite glasses, you asshole.”

Aidon rolled his eyes as he jerked his head toward the kitchen. “Add it to my tab.”