“There has to be another garden in the palace,” I said loudly as we approached the door, counting on the guard hearing me from the other side. I fumbled with the door, gave the guard a quick smile of acknowledgement, and hurried Valen away. “The place is humongous. I’m sure we can find some privacy without risking getting strangled by a killer plant. It’s almost as bad as the time we nearly drowned in those rapids because you wanted to take a romantic swim. You need to run these little surprises by me first.”
“Yes, dear,” Valen grunted.
I ranted for another minute until I felt sure the guard couldn’t hear us anymore. Then I lowered my voice. “How are you?”
A sheen of sweat covered Valen’s face, and he leaned more of his weight on me. “I’ll manage.”
Except he didn’t manage. More of his weight fell on me, nearly dropping me to the floor.
“Valen?”
He didn’t answer, eyes open but glassy.
“Shit.”
I shapeshifted to add more muscle to my frame and then hauled him up the staircase. The palace itself turned into my enemy. It was so vast, its ornate stairs stretching endlessly upward. Each footstep reverberated through the cavernous hallways, a frantic sound swallowed by the oppressive silence.
“Mother…” Valen murmured. “Mother, no…”
I stumbled and looked at him in horror. His glassy eyes stretched wide, staring at something only he could see. I hated those damn roses more than I thought possible. Of all the countless hallucinations its toxin could have caused, it made Valen relive his mother’s murder.
“It’s all right,” I said. “You’re all right. It’s not real.”
He gave no sign that he could hear me.
I dragged him forward foot by grueling foot. Sweat dampened his shirt, his body as hot as an oven, but at least he didn’t pass out. He stumbled along, mumbling words too low for me to hear.
All that time spent studying the palace floor plans paid off. I knew where to turn to bypass the ballroom. We passed a few other guests in the corridors, but I just gave them a crooked smile and a shrug as I helped Valen past. Nobody gave us a second glance, as Valen was far from the only “drunk” person at the ball. We passed another guest vomiting into a potted plant.
“Almost there,” I whispered to Valen as we approached the doors.
Guards held them open, revealing the starry sky outside—and freedom. I couldn’t wait to climb into our carriage and rest Valen on the seat. Even with my added muscle, my arms and back burned from supporting his weight for so long.
“Stop screaming,” he whispered. “Please, Aurea. I’m sorry. Just stop screaming.”
Ice slid down my spine, and I nearly dropped him. What had he…? No, it was a hallucination. The toxin could be making him see something completely fake. It wasn’t necessarily a memory. Aurea’s warning had slipped from my thoughts while dealing with Regula and the deadly roses, but now her words echoed through my mind. What had she meant?
What had Valen done to make her scream?
I hesitated, his weight nearly crushing me, and then lugged him forward. Twenty more feet, and we had a clean getaway. I could doubt him later. Right now, I needed to get us out of here.
Footsteps came from behind us—fast. They clanged against the marble floor, revealing a suit of armor. My arms trembled, and Valen slipped down before I gripped him tightly again. Was the guard chasing us? Had Regula woken up?
The guard ran right past us and whispered something to the guards at the doors. Then he dashed back down the hall, passing us again without a glance in our direction.
The other guards pushed the doors shut.
The deep thud of the heavy doors closing echoed down the corridor, and I swore I felt it rattle my chest. God and Goddess damn it. We’d been so close.
I kept dragging Valen forward, my feet trudging as my mind raced.
“The palace is on lockdown.” A guard stepped forward as we approached the doors. “No one gets in or out.”
“Can’t you let us through?” I asked. “He drank too much. I need to get him home where he can rest.”
The guard’s stern gaze softened. “No exceptions. There are guest rooms in the east wing. He can sleep it off there.”
“There are?”
