Page 116 of The Royal Art of Revenge

VALENTINA: Yep. Jasmine definitely knows our plans. And Victoria will keep her distance, don’t worry.

ME: Are you sure we can trust her?

VALENTINA: Yes. With my life.

ME: All right. I’ll see you soon.

I put down my phone and meet my gaze in the reflection in the mirror.

Well, when I say nothing will go wrong, I mean nothing I don’t want to go wrong.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE – HATTIE

Valentina is, weirdly enough, exactly how I remember her.

She was only with us in Sayana’s house for three months before she was tracked and found by—as I know now—the team her father hired to locate her.

Long enough to leave a mark, but short enough that she’s kept the spark that made me smile back then.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” She runs her nail across the stitching on the handle of a leather bag with a price that would have made my eyes bug an hour ago. “I trust Victoria, but that doesn’t mean Jasmine won’t run with her own narrative.”

“Of course, she will. That’s how I know she’ll be here. She’ll try to corner me in a public place to ensure as many witnesses as possible.”

“And you aren’t at all worried about what she’ll do to you?” She drops her hand and fixes her bright blue gaze on me. “Hattie, if this backfires…”

“It won’t,” I say firmly. “She thinks she knows me, but she doesn’t. The only version of me she knows is the one that’s subservient and pushed around by her. Even when I’ve argued with her and deliberately pissed her off, I’ve ultimately always backed down. She won’t be expecting me to bite back like this.”

Valentina presses her lips together. “That’s what you’re counting on.”

I nod, slowly moving over to a rack of coats. “I know where to provoke her, and I know how to do it subtly. Trust me. Even if I am wrong and she’s able to get a little something out of it, I doubt she’ll want to do much.”

“I suppose she is known for her hot temper. If you can use that to your advantage…” Valentina pulls a houndstooth coat from the rack and holds it against herself. “What do you think?”

I tilt my head to the side. “I’m not sure. It might be a bit busy for you. What about the blue one over there?”

“Hmm.” She returns the coat and grabs the blue one instead. “Oh, I do like the colour. You have a good eye.”

Hardly.

I just hate houndstooth.

“Here, hold this.” She shoves her bag at me, and I have no choice but to grab it before it clatters to the ground. She does the same thing with her current coat, shrugging it off and enthusiastically passing it to me, then puts on the new one.

She shimmies over to the nearby mirror and does up the buttons. I can’t help but smile as I watch her.

She reminds me a lot of Finn; a walking ball of sunshine that can brighten any room she walks into. She just emanates joy, although I saw enough of her father at the banquet to know it’s not that simple.

No.

Even the sun has dark spots.

And Valentina has some of her own.

I’d wager they’re simply hidden, just like mine.

Maybe that’s why I feel so comfortable around her. Sure, our shared experience at Sayana’s hands is definitely something, but this connection with her feels natural. Not something to be forced or even something that must be worked for.

Nurtured, sure.