But I think Sander is finally realizing how serious my feelings really are as he studies me. “Fenwick had someone on the inside who let him in before we ever got to the arena,” he says as he sits on the chair next to the bed. “According to his own words after the guards detained him, ‘The royals have had their turn, and it’s time for a new age of Candora.’”
I wrinkle my nose. “Now I know why I had such a bad feeling about the guy.” As I speak, my wounds throb, and I grunt and press a hand to my ribcage to try to distract from the pain. I could have taken something other than basic painkillers, but anything stronger would have dulled my senses more than they already are. I’m regretting that decision right now,even if the drugs haven’t had a chance to kick in yet. “What about the other shooter?” I ask. “The one who got me.”
Sander growls low in his throat and glares at the bandage on my waist. “Disgruntled blueback. He let Fenwick inside.”
I lift my eyebrows as a swear slips from my tongue. “A cop?” I should be grateful that he didn’t hit anything important. “I thought Candorans were all about a peaceful existence.”
“From the little we know, he was hit with hard times and denied government assistance, and he blames the monarchy for his family going hungry.” Sander shakes his head. “He never should have been neglected like that.”
“That doesn’t mean assassinating the princess is a good idea.” I frown at him and the way he almost looks guilty. “His choices are not your fault, Sander.”
“But his circumstances are because ofmy family’schoices,” he retorts.
“What couldyouhave done? You’ve never wanted the throne.”
“But that doesn’t make me any less of a prince,” he snaps, then shrinks in on himself and bows his head, clasping his hands at the back of his neck. “What am I even doing with my life?” he mutters, more to himself than to me.
In the two months I’ve known the twins, Hex and Sander have both seemed perfectly content. They’re incredibly smart and the best fighters I’ve ever seen, but I figured they were happy to live more regular lives as palace guards instead of using their talents for better things. Sander is clearly in crisis right now, and I don’t know how to help him because I have no idea what he wants. I wonder ifheknows.
Sighing, he sits up straight and fixes a calm expression on his face that almost looks believable. “Rothesby recognized the blueback as the man you saw last night when you were tailing Fenwick. He and three other guards are taking both shootersto Invem.”
“Good.” I’m disappointed I won’t get to interrogate either of them until we get back to the capital, but it’s for the best. I doubt I could handle that conversation calmly.
“Rothesby also thinks there were others at the debate, but they got spooked and ran when the first two attempts failed. He and Hex went after a few suspicious men in the mayhem but couldn’t catch them.”
I glare at Hex across the room, but the prince isn’t looking at me. Probably on purpose, since I ordered him to run if things went south. Not dive into the fray. Rothesby, on the other hand, deserves a raise. “At least most of them were cowards,” I grumble, though I hate the idea of more people out there with enough anger to threaten a princess. It’s not like I can do anything about it in my current state, so I change the subject. “What about Grimstad?”
Sander glances at his sister, making my stomach twist. I really don’t like the way she’s connected to Grimstad in his mind. “From what I’ve heard, the wound was mostly superficial,” he mutters, “but Mum convinced him to head straight to Stonemere for some recovery time before the Celestial Ball instead of finishing his campaign.”
I swear under my breath. I’d forgotten all about the ball, a big annual celebration among the nobility that sounds like the worst night of my life. That includes being stitched up by a dull needle without anything to numb the pain. At least tonight I got a kiss out of it.
That won’t happen at a royal ball. Or maybe ever again.
“Grim took a bullet for the princess,” I mutter, as if I need a reminder of why he’s a better choice for Freya. She may have said that she doesn’t want to have a family with the guy, but that doesn’t mean she won’t marry him if it makes the most sense for her country. Last night was a fluke, a moment of passion that I shouldn’t have allowed, no matter how much I wanted it.
“So did you,” Sander replies, looking from me to Freya. “Did…did something happen between you two?”
“Me and Grim? No, he—”
“You know what I’m asking, El.”
Yeah, I do, but I can’t admit that I crossed a line. Not even to him. He and Hex are my closest friends here in Candora, but they’re still princes. Their life is not my life, and it never can be.
So I lie. “Aside from her putting my life in the hands of a questionable Candoran hermit? No.”
Even though it’s a bad idea, I look at Freya, reading her lips as she tells Hex that she was so afraid and didn’t know what to do. I failed her. I’ve been a terrible bodyguard from the start, and the only reason she’s still alive is because of Grimstad. Not me. From the beginning, I’ve made everything harder for her.
Grunting, I stand and head outside, realizing too late that it’s freezing tonight and I’m not wearing a shirt. But if I go back inside, Sander will keep trying to talk to me. Or Hex will accuse me of letting Freya down by not preventing the shooting in the first place. I need a moment to myself, so I ignore the palace guards who try to ask about my wound or what happened after we left the arena, passing all of them until I end up at the edge of a small pond.
The rhythmic croaking of frogs fills the air, and mist hangs heavy over the water as the moon reflects in the pond. As crickets chirp to each other, I can see why Wulfric would choose to live here. It’s peaceful. Calm. Something I’ve rarely experienced in my life.
Most of the calm in my life has come from Freya.
“Are you hoping to catch your death?” a soft voice says behind me.
I don’t turn around, even if my heart kicks up a notch at the sound of Freya’s worry-laden words. “Nah. I’m pretty good at surviving.”
“It is freezing out here, Elliot.” Before I can respond, she tucks a blanket over my shoulders. “I refused to lose you in the forest, and I will not do so now.”
