Page 31 of Of Masks and Fury

Trew and I walked in silence through the corridors, but I could feel the strain radiating off him in waves, barely leashed fury that matched my own.

We reached my suite, and I unlocked the door with shaking hands. The moment we’d stepped inside and the panel had closed, Trew warded it, layers of magic snapping into place.

Pherin launched from my shoulder, flying to the window where Gavelle perched on a branch outside, partly masked by leaves. The two of them soared away, streaks of color against the gray sky.

I moved to the window, watching them disappear, envying their freedom.

“Fuck.” Trew’s voice came out low and vicious.

I turned to find him pacing like a caged animal, his hands flexing at his sides.

“Four guards,” he said. “Four witnesses to every move we make tomorrow.”

I paced along with him. “We can’t search Thorne’s house properly with them watching.”

Trew stopped, taking both of my hands and weaving our fingers together. “Your father suspects something. The way he looked at you when you asked about Thorne?—”

“He may, but what choice do we have? We need to get to that house.”

“Do you have any idea how hard it was to stand there while your father treated you like property? While he planned fates know what for tonight’s dinner with ‘special guests’?”

The way he said it made my throat close off.

“Suitors,” I said quietly. “I’m sure that’s who the special guests are.”

His hands tightened on mine almost painfully. “No.”

“He’s been planning this for months.” I met his eyes. “He wants me married. Controlled. Locked into an alliance that benefits him.”

“Absolutely not.”

I cupped his face, feeling the tightness in his jaw. “If you react tonight, he’ll send you away.”

“I won’t.” But his eyes promised violence. “I’ll stand there like a good little guard and watch men court my woman. I’ll do nothing but stare at the wall while they touch you. I’ll hate every fucking bit of it, but I’ll do it.” He pulled me against him, his arms banding around me. “Because keeping you safe is more important than my pride.”

I pressed my face into his chest, breathing him in. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. Just survive tonight.” He stroked down my back. “We both will. And tomorrow we’ll find a way to search Thorne’s house.”

A knock on the outer door made us spring apart.

“Your Highness?” Mae called through the panel. “We’re here to help you dress for dinner.”

The performance I’d have to give while Trew watched.

I found my own dread reflected in his eyes.

CHAPTER NINE

ISI

The dining room had been turned into a masterpiece of oppressive elegance. Crystal chandeliers cast light across the long table, making the silver and china gleam. Elaborate floral arrangements punctuated each section, their perfume cloying and heavy. Servants moved like ghosts along the edges of the room, pouring wine and bringing course after course of food that tasted like dirt.

Father sat at the head of the table, elevated on an ornate throne that allowed him to observe every expression, gesture, and moment of the performance he’d orchestrated.

I sat between two of my suitors, positioned for their attention. Lord Crestin, my third suitor, sat across from us, glowering at the distance between him and me when compared to the other two.

Trew stood against the wall with the other guards, forced to watch. His shoulders held the rigidity of a man who’d turned himself to stone, but his eyes followed my every move, burning through the pretense. Each time Lord Alfred leaned too close on my right, a muscle in Trew’s jaw ticked. Each time the gaze of Lord Finley on my left wandered below my neckline, Trew’s fingers twitched toward his blade. The air around him shimmered with heat, magicdancing beneath his skin, restrained only by threads of control growing thinner by the second.