“Why do you think I’ll need something like this at a royal ball?” I asked.
Nin sniffed. “I’m sure I have no idea what you and Sir Valen are up to. It’s probably nothing important, and tonight won’t be dangerous at all. But just in case.” She clasped her hands around mine, holding me—and the ring—tightly. “I expect you both back here safe and sound by morning.”
The bottom dropped out of my stomach, and I struggled to respond. Nin worried that we wouldn’t come back, and it made all the fears that I’d been trying to repress rush back.
“Of course,” I said, smiling weakly.
She gave my hands one last squeeze before letting go.
A successful heist, a magnificent payout, and a future where Maman, Valen, and I could all be happy…. Maybe itwastoo good to be true. I tried to shake the horrible feeling that I wouldn’t make it out of the palace tonight, much less ever return home.
Chapter 29
Emmeline
More guards than I’d expected stood at the entrance. Not enough to scare me off, but enough to make things interesting.
I took a slow, steadying breath. The cool night air, sweet with the scent of flowers, carried the delicate strains of a harpist’s serenade to the waiting guests. Valen and I moved slowly forward, stuck in line behind a woman whose twinkling gown had a train ten feet long. I wanted to step on the damn thing.
The Palace of Eternal Moonlight rose around us, its alabaster columns massive yet elegant. The courtyard we stood in formed a perfect crescent, embracing the ballroom’s dome like a silver chalice holding a pearl. Princess Regula was in there somewhere, wearing the jewel that had brought us here, the prize that wouldeither make my fortune or end my life before the night was through.
Above us, Earth hung heavy and blue in the black velvet sky, three-quarters full and casting enough light to paint everything in soft azure shadows. The courtyard’s flagstones—polished stone decorated with astronomical charts—reflected the light, creating the uncanny sensation of walking across the sky.
We finally reached the pearly white steps, and I lifted the skirts of my gown. The soft blue fabric clung to my hips and thighs before flaring out below my knees in wavy layers. The neckline would have gotten me arrested in Thallence, plunging between my breasts down to my stomach. Only the rigid bodice—inlaid with silver and gemstones—kept my nipples from spilling out in front of the entire palace.
Valen’s blue surcoat reached his shins, trimmed with silver and bearing the crescent moon emblem of the Moonlit Court on his chest. Swirling designs decorated his leather boots and arm bracers, and his sword hung sheathed from a belt with silver chains and charms like jewelry. I hoped he wouldn’t need to use the sword tonight. I’d burgled big manor homes and even a castle once, but this palace… it was on a whole different level.
Finally, we reached the top of the steps. A guard took our invitations.
“Your hand, please,” the guard said.
Valen held out his hand over a waiting table, where a second guard had placed a white paper. The first guard pricked Valen’s finger with an engraved silver needle that had a tiny crimson gem at its base. A drop of blood spilled onto the paper below, and words appeared as if written by an invisible hand—presumably Valen’s name.
“Next,” said the guard.
I stepped forward, and he repeated the same process. As my blood dropped onto the paper, I felt a quiver in my stomach.Would my shapeshifting somehow interfere with the magic? Letters appeared on the paper again, and I couldn’t even tell if they formed my name. Maybe Iwouldtake up Valen’s offer to teach me how to read after tonight.
“You can pass,” said the guard. “Enjoy your evening.”
Valen handed me a handkerchief, and I dabbed at my finger, but the bleeding had already stopped.
“Ready?” He put away the handkerchief and offered me his arm.
“Always,” I said.
We strode through the arched doorway and entered the vast ballroom. The domed ceiling far, far above was a fantastical depiction of the night sky complete with twinkling stars and shifting auroras. The massive, polished stone dance floor shone so brightly that the dancers seemed to glide across a mirror-bright lake, their reflections shimmering below. It was a dizzying sight, and that wasn’t even mentioning the attendees.
The outrageous fashions would have looked ridiculous if the fey weren’t all devastatingly beautiful. One woman wore a dress of clouds—not white, fluffy fabric but actual clouds swirling around her body. A man walked by with a massive cape like billowing moth wings, and another seemed naked except for shimmering silver paint and glittery gemstones affixed to his skin.
“I thought Nin was kidding when she said my gown was understated,” I muttered.
Valen smirked. “It’s the biggest party of the year. Everyone tries to outshine one another.” His smirk faded as he scanned the room. “Drudon is over there with Aristoph.”
God and Goddess damn it. What had happened? Did they catch the servant trying to poison him? Or had she taken the money and then ratted us out? I guess it didn’t matter. Drudon was here, and we would have to deal with him.
Valen’s sharp eyes continued their search. “I see Prince Cael on the dance floor. It doesn’t look as if the queen has made an appearance yet, but there’s—”
“Sir Valen! And Emmeline! How fare ye?”
