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She bowed to me slightly, her green eyes cold and her voice colder. “Your Majesty.”
She wore a black silky shirt and black pants, as if she was mourning someone.
“Sorry to drop on you like this, Rosalinda,” I said. “We haven’t thanked you properly. My mates and I would like to invite you and Elvey to dine at the palace tonight.”
Her face was as hard as the icy marble. “I’m sorry I can’t accept it.”
I blinked.
She hadn’t come to my coronation, either, though I’d sent her an invitation, which included Elvey. I had let the matter drop, thinking that they might not want to be seen with the dragons. But on the Empire Tower’s rooftop when I’d faced off Lysandra, everyone had seen both Elvey and Rosalinda support me.
My mates stared at her, frowning, surprised at her sudden change of attitude toward us when formerly she’d almost given her life defending me.
Now, she didn’t even offer us a seat or a drink.
Where did this hostility and coldness come from?
“Are you all right, Rosalinda?” Adrian asked.
She bit her lip, not looking at any of us.
“What’s wrong, Rosa?” I asked softly. I had a horrible feeling about what she held back.
“Nothing’s wrong,” she snarled and glared at me.
My mates would have snarled back on other occasions, but they had a great deal of respect for this Fae warrior. They’d fought together.
“Where’s Elvey, Rosa?” I prodded.
She didn’t answer, and tears welled in her eyes. The uneasiness grew in me, and wrongness filled my mind.
“Where can I find him?” I asked.
She shook her head again, and I shoved aside a sudden jealousy. I knew she could always get hold of him, yet I’d never been able to know where he’d gone.
“I looked for him when we killed the black witch, but he was already gone,” I said. “I haven’t seen him ever since. I know he has a penchant for the dramatic and likes to disappear on people. But I’d appreciate it if he’ll drop by once in a while to say hello.”
“He can’t,” she hissed, trying to conceal her distress. Tears still welled in her eyes and she fought them back.
“What do you mean he can’t?” Iokul demanded. “When you get to know the Fae mage, he isn’t really that arrogant and insufferable.” He was closer to him than my other two mates.
Rosalinda turned to me, her expression softening a little as the resentment in her lessened. “I promised him I wouldn’t tell you.”
“If he’s in any trouble, I need to know,” I hissed. “He means more to me than you can ever imagine. Talk, Rosalinda.”
Rosalinda slumped onto a bar stool and gestured for us to sit.
“He didn’t want you to know this,” she said, burying her face in her hands. “He didn’t want you to go after him. He wanted to buy you more time. He made me promise that. It’s hopeless. He knew what would happen to him when he exposed the witch in public like that. He knew what kind of punishment he would face. Yet he still helped you, never once thinking of himself. I’d once had to watch the queen shatter every bone in his body when he disobeyed her. It’s worse than death for him to be in that place, to be beside her. He ordered me to keep aiding you in any way possible if anything happened to him, but I am crippled, knowing he suffers in hell and I can do nothing about it. I can do nothing to help my friend who once saved me and bought my freedom.” Her voice broke, and Adrian moved to her side and held her to comfort her.
Blood drained from my face, and ice filled my veins.
My mates embraced me to lend their strength and unconditional support.
“How did it happen?” I swallowed, my voice inhumanly cold and merciless and miserable. “He was in my realm. I thought she couldn’t reach him here. She should not be able to touch him here.”
Rosalinda raised her head, tears gone from her eyes, while her face was wet. “The blood bond does the trick. She can reach him anywhere, and he can’t resist her.”
“But he did,” I cried. “He injected himself with the vampire venom, and it thinned the blood bond between them. He told me so.”
