Page 82 of Of Masks and Fury

“Then you’ll move faster than he expects.”

Footsteps echoed in the corridor, and he stepped back, putting proper distance between us as a servant entered to move the plates from the table to a cart. She lingered a moment, glancing between Trew and me, before finally departing.

“We need to tell the others,” he said after the door had closed. “They need to know what he’s looking for.”

I nodded.

“I’ll send a coded message back to Syllavar with Gavelle,” he said. “I’ll not only inform Grayson and my aunt about the army’s timeframe, but I’ll also have them ask them to scour the archives for pre-wasteland maps of the southern territories and put the maps in my office. If your mother owned property there, a record might exist. We’ll know where to look before we even leave for that area.”

Before I could respond, a knock rang out on the door.

A guard entered, bowing. “Your Highness, Lord Alfred left a message for you. He asked me to deliver it personally.”

My stomach sank as the guard handed me a folded piece of paper sealed with Alfred’s crest. How had he found time to prepare this so fast?

Unless he’d already had it ready.

After the guard left, I broke the seal and unfolded it, reading the elegant script.

Your Highness,

Thank you for an enlightening lunch. I hope you find what you’re looking for before certain barriers can no longer be repaired.

Your devoted suitor,

Lord Alfred

My hands shook as I stared at the words.

Barriers can no longer be repaired.

He knew about the veil. He had to.

And he’d just told me, in the politest possible terms, that time was running out.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

TREW

Istudied the note in Isi’s trembling hands, reading Alfred’s elegant script for the third time. Lord Alfred had wrapped his knowledge in polite language and courtly flourishes, but the threat was clear.

“He’s too dangerous to leave breathing,” I said.

Isi’s eyes met mine, and I saw the same cold calculation I felt settling in my bones.

“If two suitors die within days of each other,” she said quietly, “my father will blame me. He’ll lock down the castle completely. We’ll never get to the dungeons or the west tower.”

“I don’t care.” The words came out flat. Alfred had spent the entire meal circling Isi like a predator, testing her defenses, searching for weaknesses to exploit. Men like that didn’t stop until they got what they wanted or someone took care of the matter permanently. “I’ll kill your father too if necessary.”

She sucked in a breath.

“I’m serious, Minx.” I moved closer, lowering my voice though my wards held strong. “Alfred’s smart enough to put together pieces we can’t afford him to have. We have to assume he’s studied the veil, that he knows about doorways between realms. He appears to haveinformation only a few are privy to. How long before he suspects what you might be capable of?”

She pressed her lips together, the note crinkling in her grip. “Killing him now creates more problems than it solves.”

I clenched my jaw.

She was right, and I hated it. Two mysterious deaths, especially high lords of neighboring courts, would draw attention and bring on investigations we couldn’t afford. We needed time to free the prisoners, search the west tower, and find the answers hidden south of Syllavar.