Slowly, ever so slowly, he held his hands up in surrender. “Reva unearthed it and brought it out for show and tell.”
I closed my eyes as I lowered my weapon. “Of course she did.”
“She’s certainly a wild card.”
“Good thing we aren’t talking about her,” I ground out.
“After things transpired, I couldn’t stick around. Things couldn’t progress past where they went. I couldn’t ruin her for her kingdom, for her future… husband.”
Alric ran his tongue over the front of his teeth. “I see.”
“So for the good of the world and for her, I left and I won’t return for a bit. I will admit I got a little sloppy, but I am in control now.”
Alric shoved off of the alleyway wall and nodded once. “That’s all I wanted to check in on. There is nothing wrong with having a night out for yourself and cutting loose a little, but I wanted to make sure this wasn’t an ongoing issue that we needed to address. You’re the commander and as much as I didn’t want to pull rank like that and remind you of who and what you’ve worked so hard for, I will. I would. I came here to do that if I needed to.”
I clapped him on the shoulder and bowed my head. “I appreciate that because I will do the same for you.”
He chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind it so much if you have to drag my ass out of a pub every once in a while. I probably need it.” He shook his head. “Hells, I know you needed it but I wanted to make sure you weren’t dead in a ditch somewhere or fighting through the townspeople or something even worse.”
“As long as we are on the same page,” I smirked. “I’m fine though, the silence is a nice companion and the food isn’t too bad.”
Alric groaned in envy and threw his head back. “I would kill for some silence. I would kill for some killing.”
“You can get a good break next time.” But I knew he wouldn’t. Anytime I gave him a break and let him loose, I knew he wasn’t resting and was still working. That was the downfall ofhaving eyes and ears everywhere, there was always something to report except in the case of Anya.
“Still nothing on the target?”
Alric shook his head. “Nope. All quiet. I kind of hoped you being out in the open up here would have drawn her out but so far the only reports I’ve gotten are about monster sightings and petty crimes.”
Frustration thrummed through me as I turned away from my friend and stalked across the half-frozen ground. My boots crunched with every step and I felt my stomach going with it. How was I supposed to keep Juniper safe while Anya was on the loose? Honestly, I wasn’t keeping her safe at all by being up here, but for now, I needed this. I wouldn’t get another chance once we were in the castle. Once she was inaugurated. But when would that happen? There were too many pressing issues at hand and I could hardly juggle what I had.
Alric whistled through his teeth. “Just be sure you’re back for the solstice celebration. I heard Juniper’s dress will be the talk of the night. Just imagine all the men fawning over her if you aren’t there frowning in the shadows.”
That was enough to set me ablaze. My eyes cut to him quickly. “I’ll be there.”
CHAPTER TWELVE
JUNIPER
The ball was three days away and I would have been lying to say I wasn’t nervous. Ryven still hadn’t returned, though Alric assured me he was in good spirits and not dying nightly by his own drink. It was somewhat of a relief. But my thoughts and overthinking were eating me alive. I could hardly focus on anything else and because Ryven hadn’t come back yet, I couldn’t help in the fields. I could see the stress in Alric’s eyes when I questioned him about it. Why did Ryven have to be there? Why couldn’t the girls come with me? They already trailed me everywhere as it was. What was one night going out to see about the crops?
I had my hands buried in my hair and was trying to stretch my back when the front door opened. The girls were in the bathing chamber and I hadn’t seen Alric in a few hours. My hand went for the dagger on the floor but stopped when I realized it was Ryven. His hair was wet and hanging around his face in thick curls, his clothes were rumpled, and there were bags under his eyes like he hadn’t been sleeping. In the back of my mind, I wanted to run into his arms but all I could do was frown.
“Did you have a good trip?” The words tasted flat in my mouth. I couldn’t imagine just how bad they sounded to someone else.
He nodded once and tossed his leather bag on the counter. “Yes, it was enlightening.”
“Did you come back for the ball?”
One of his dark brows rose. “Is that what they’re calling it?”
I continued to stretch forward and didn’t reply. What was there to say?
“No one is watching you?”
“Am I a child?”
I didn’t bother with looking up to see his face. He was the one who had left. He was the one that left without clearing the air and now I didn’t know how I was supposed to act. Even though Reva found my nightgown, I refused to talk about it. I felt mortified. I must have done something wrong for him to leave so abruptly. I couldn’t bring myself to face the sex goddess herself that left Alric hanging, wouldn’t speak to him about it, but he still chased after her. I wouldn’t be the one to chase after Ryven. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to. Oh, I wanted to know what I did wrong. I wanted to communicate but I couldn’t carry the world’s fate on my shoulders while nursing heartbreak either.
