His gray eyes widened.
“I remember you holding me and telling me to wake up.” A dull ache spread through my chest at the memory. “Was that real?”
Ban only stared at me. Didn’t even grunt a response.
It hurt my heart to imagine why he preferred not to talk. The voice I remembered had held a strong stutter. If someone had made fun of him for it, I’d hunt them down and kick their mean-spirited ass. Or give them a cupcake laced with super-strong laxatives and have them shitting themselves for two days straight.
Just needed to get out of prison first.
Footsteps echoed down the stairwell. Multiple sets. More guards? Or knights of the Royal Order coming to haul me to the gallows? Lead dropped into my gut as I waited to learn what fresh hell awaited me next.
Ban turned toward the stairs and rested a hand on his sword. Which made my chin wobble. He was preparing to defend me if necessary. The kicker came from the fact that he’d be defending me against his own comrades.
As the group reached the ground level and stepped into the dungeon, the tension left my body. Three men, all of whom owned a piece of my heart, rushed toward my cell.
“Oh, love.” Briar slid his hand through the bars. “Look at you. Are you all right?”
“Hey, Doc.” Tears sprang to my eyes as I locked our fingers. “Yeah, I’m okay. Ban’s been keeping me company.”
The guard nodded to him.
Maddox joined Briar in front of the bars and cupped my cheek. “If anyone has hurt you, I swear to the gods I’ll drive my sword through their heart.”
“Then you’ll be in the cell right next to mine.”
A pained glint showed in his eyes. “At least we’d be together.”
Callum stood on the other side of Maddox and surveyed the area. His expression soured when spotting the bedroll. “This is unacceptable. You…” His voice cracked. “You deserve better than this, Ev.”
“Eh, it’s still better than the night I spent in the dark wood. Even with Ro with me, it was creepy and—” A sudden wave of panic rose in my chest. He wasn’t with them. “Rowan! He vanished during the ball. Have you seen him?”
“No,” Briar answered. “We’ve not heard from any of the spies as of yet.”
“Do you think he’s okay?”
“I know he is,” Callum said, trying for a reassuring smile. Not sure if it was to reassure me or himself. “The snake loves you too much to let anything keep him away for long.”
Calm down. Don’t jump to conclusions.
“How’s King Eidolon doing?” I asked, feeling shitty for not asking sooner. There was just a lot to process at the moment. “Did he…”
“He lives.” Briar gently squeezed my hand. “But only just. He’s incredibly weak. The poison incapacitated him to the point I fear he may be confined to his bed for quite some time.”
“At least he’s alive.” I expelled a breath. “That’s good news.”
“Fortunate for us,” Maddox said. “You no longer face a murder charge.”
“Only the conspiracy to murder,” I mumbled before being struck by a sickening thought. “You believe me, right? I’d never hurt anyone, especially not—”
“Take a breath, sweetheart.” Maddox caressed my jaw. “I never doubted you even for a moment.”
“Neither did I,” Briar added. “Our captain told me what happened. You were paraded in front of the whole damned crowd and made a spectacle of.”
“I still don’t know how that vial got in my pocket,” I said, still in disbelief. “Someone had to have planted it on me, but I didn’t interact with anyone outside of all of you.”
“Think hard, love.” Briar moved aside a strand of my hair. “Do you recall anyone suspicious?”
“No. I just remember… wait. There was someone.” Everything came flooding back. “I bumped into them after leaving the royal family’s table. They wore a dark hooded robe, so I couldn’t see their face.”
