Page 54 of The Mercy of Dawn (Fires of Carinae #1)

Chapter 53

M ikael wasn’t a man who often found himself with regrets, but he barely lasted an hour after Cyril left before he was slipping back out into the hall. He didn’t even care Kaia seemed to have abandoned her post when he found Ari and Gunner pacing for their patrols outside the ballroom.

They looked at him expectantly, like they were just waiting for this to happen.

“Go find Cyril. I—” He drew his lips into a tight line. “I made an error in my judgment and…I fucked up. She should not be alone out there.”

Gunner nodded, ready as always, but Ari gave the ballroom doors an uneasy glance and said, “Should we find someone to—”

“There are forty men in that fucking room, mostly fae, and at least half are magic wielders of some variety. If they can’t take care of themselves, there is no hope for any of us.” Mikael pointed down the hall. “Go. Find Cyril, and wait for me at the city station. I’ll get out of here as soon as I can and meet you there.”

Gunner took off running down the hall without another word, leaving the captain to scramble after him, swearing.

Mikael took a slow, deep breath before he stepped back into the ballroom.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d made a terrible mistake.