Aziel sighed. “It looks like someone may have cut her.”
That’s the best story he could come up with?Nymiria could have rolled her eyes. Good gods, shewantedto.
“Shame.” Camalia huffed. “A woman’s appearance is her most lethal weapon. Take them straight to the receiving parlor. I will retrieve my husband off the ass of whatever bitch he is riding at the moment and be with you shortly.” Her skirts rustled and her heels clacked against the stone flooring, retreating in the direction of the east wing. Unfortunately, the smell of her perfumes lingered in the air and the longer both Aziel and Nymiria smelled them, the more their stomachs rolled.
Once her footsteps could no longer be heard, Aziel turned to the guards. “I will see us both to the parlor, you lot hang back a moment—make sure no one followed us out of the forest.”
“But her majesty—“
Aziel clicked his tongue harshly, his chest going taut against her. “I just rescued her from an entire coven of Mystics. If they haven’t discovered she is missing yet, they will. And they are like bloodhounds—they can sniff her out. Now,” he huffed, flicking his head to move the disheveled hair from his eyes. “Watch the fucking tree line.”
The clanking of their golden armor signified their retreat, leaving Aziel and Nymiria to themselves. She stirred slightly, but his hand tightened on her thigh. “Not yet, moonflower.” She let out a grumble of something incoherent but that was certainly a curse, bringing a smirk to his face. The wrinkle between her brows was back, her teeth clenching around each word—all of which were surely filthy and meant to be insults directed at him.
Aziel wove through curious onlookers, schooling his features once again.
By the time they were safe behind the closed doors of the parlor, Nymiria opened her eyes, only to feel herself falling.
She landed roughly onto the settee, a squeal of displeasure knocked from her when her bottom missed the cushions, smacking against the floor.Her head whipped up in Aziel’s direction, eyes narrowed. “A little bit of a warning would have been nice!” She hissed.
Aziel shrugged. “You’re supposed to look disheveled.”
“And throwing me onto the floor was the best way to achieve that?”
Another shrug. Only, this time, it was accompanied with a humorous grin. “In my defense, you were supposed to land on the settee.” Nymiria groaned in response. This man was hopeless and all of that attraction she'd had towards him earlier that day was dangling by a very frayed thread. “I don’t see why you’re angry with me. You were the one who flailed around like a cat being thrown into a tub of water.”
Nymiria snarled a curse under her breath as she pulled herself up onto the cushions, her lips curling at one side when she lifted her middle finger in front of his face. “You’d have a lot of experience with throwing cats in water, wouldn’t you? You look like the type to have drowned a few—absolutely demented.”
She watched as he lunged in the chair across from her, that smug grin still holding his face hostage. “I love animals, actually. I have drowned quite a few humans, though.” He picked up a book that was left laying open on the table beside his chair. “Be a good girl and pretend to be a damsel in distress. Lay back. Look pitiful.”
“You could ask me nicely, you know. I’m sure that nasty attitude of yours has made it easy for you to get your way with everyone else in this kingdom, butIam not everyone else. I am—“ Before the words could leave her mouth, Aziel’s eyes snapped up to meet hers, his fingers stilling on the seam of the open book.
He tilted his head to one side. “You are…what?”
“Forget I said anything.” She sighed, doing her best to avoid the dark stare that tracked her every move. She curled up into a ball on the velvet cushions, shivering at the memory of Brandt—theMimic's—hand caressing the inside of her knee in that very same spot only a few nights before.
She closed her eyes, running her fingers over each dip and groove in the fabric, only to startle at the feeling of something warm being placed over her. There was no use in opening her eyes. She already knew by the smell of it, that Aziel had covered her with his jacket once again.
The scent of cherry blossoms on the fabric was enough to make her body slowly relax, even her face had smoothed back to normal—even if she still wanted to stab him.
Chapter 17
Nymiria jumped when the doors to the receiving parlor burst open, her stomach tying in knots until her eyes landed on Oran's face.
Aziel was on his feet immediately, crossing the room and placing a hand to his brother's chest to stop him. "What are you doing here?" He asked.
Oran scoffed, throwing Aziel's hand away from him. "Let me see her." He snarled.
"She's traumatized, Oran. I believe you should calm down." Aziel said lowly, with a hint of a warning laced in his tone.
She couldn't just sit there and let them argue like this. She didn't know the bounds of their relationship, if they cared for one another or deeply hated each other. She didn't care, either. Nymiria rose to her feet. "I'm fine." She declared, the sound of her voice causing both men to look in her direction. "Aziel saved my life."
Again, it was not a lie. Hehadsaved her. In more ways than one.
Oran gave one final glance at his brother before shouldering past him, his hands immediately going to the curve of her jaw and angling her face to observe her closer. He let out a deep breath, eyes closing and jaw tightening before he turned to Aziel. "The two of you are either the smartest people to have ever walked the earth or the dumbest." He sighed. Both Nymiria and Aziel exchanged worried glances before Oran shook his head and continued. "I followed you both out into the garden that night. I saw what the Mimic did. And while I don't agree withyou taking her across the Divide, it was the best thing you could have done. The hysteria it would have caused had Nymiria reappeared without Brandt—"
"Did they ever find the real body?" Aziel asked.
Oran nodded, moving away from Nymiria to card his fingers through his hair. "Yes, they found him a few miles south of Fairnam. His entire caravan was torn apart. All of his men faced the same death."
