“Do we know why?”
Melom snorted. “Why do you think?”
“Yeah. I guess we’re lucky that we never leave the palace.”
“Damn right we are. Could you imagine going to the market and being attacked?”
“My mother would be so worried,” Melom said with a nod.
Mynor wanted to yell at him that no one cared about his mother’s feelings, but he pressed his lips together instead. He’d already made an enemy out of one of the guards, even though he hadn’t done anything to provoke the asshole. He wanted to stay on the other guards’ good side so they’d leave him alone unless ordered differently.
“It’s almost like someone is taking them out methodically,” Melom continued.
Mynor was surprised that Melom knew that word, but his brain was already working on what Melom had said.
Someone was taking down the guards one by one. That sounded like someone who had a precise goal. It certainly didn’t sound like someone had drunk too much and decided to have fun, or like a thief who’d been caught and had to defend themselves. It couldn’t be a coincidence.
“I bet Anya isn’t happy,” Melom said, getting Mynor’s attention again.
“You can bet that she’s not. She’s been focused on her son, though, so she just sent a bunch more guards out there to threaten people.”
“Maybe they’ll get attacked, too.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised.”
Neither would Mynor. He couldn’t be sure, not while he was cut off from his life so completely, but he suspected that Alphan had something to do with this. It would make sense. Alphan couldn’t contact Mynor right now, but that didn’t mean he was giving up on their mission. It might be self-imposed, but they both believed in it. They both wanted Anya to fall.
Attacking her guards at the market wouldn’t kick her off the throne, but it was something. It was more than Mynor could do right now, and he was glad that Alphan wasn’t too focused on him. In fact, he didn’t want Alphan to think about him. That way lay disaster, possibly for both of them, and Mynor didn’t want anything to happen to his best friend.
But if he knew Alphan, there was a reason behind these attacks, and that reason could very well be reaching Mynor. Mynor didn’t see how that might work, but if there was one person who could figure it out, it was Alphan.
And the only thing Mynor could do was sit in his cell, wait, and see what would happen next.
God, sometimes, he hated his life.
Justin couldn’t sleep.It had been hours since his mother had brought him to the roof to show him the city—in fact, it had been an entire day—and he still couldn’t stop thinking about it.
Anya expected Justin to stay. She expected him to become the king after her, to learn how to do that by her side, and probably to do it with a smile while keeping his mouth shut. He should have seen it coming, shouldn’t he? She’d been a little odd since he’d arrived, but he’d thought it was because she hadn’texpected him to find her in Hell or maybe to want to find her at all. Right now, he couldn’t remember why he’d wanted it so desperately.
He sighed and stared at the ceiling. A lot of it had to do with Caitlin’s death. She was the only mother Justin had ever known, and he missed her. He probably wouldn’t be here if she hadn’t died. He’d been trying to re-create the relationship he had with her, hoping he could find something similar with his mother, but now, he knew that wouldn’t happen. It wasn’t the kind of person Anya was. It wasn’t the kind of relationship she was looking for with him. Right now, it wasn’t the kind of relationship he wanted with her, either.
He pushed himself into a sitting position and listened. The palace was quiet around him. It was the middle of the night, so it wasn’t surprising. He knew that staying here, staring at the ceiling, wouldn’t help him sleep, but maybe he could take a walk. There was an inner courtyard that was quite pretty, where he knew he would be safe, and spending an hour or so smelling flowers and trying to relax might be nice. At the very least, it would stop his thoughts from going round and round and distract him since he couldn’t doomscroll on his phone. He’d tried, but there was no Wi-Fi or data connection.
He silently got up and got dressed. He supposed that he could walk around in his pajamas, especially when they were as pretty as the ones he’d been given when he’d arrived, but it made him feel vulnerable. He didn’t think it was a good idea, not here. He wasn’t home.
He didn’t even know if he’d be allowed out of his room. He’d never tried, not during the night. He always stayed in his room after he left his mother in the dining room after dinner. It wasn’t like he didn’t have entertainment there. Phones might not work, but Anya had made sure Justin had all the comforts he could need.
He half expected the door to be blocked, but while itwaslocked, it was because he’d locked it from the inside. The door opened easily enough, and he poked his head into the hallway, waiting for something to happen. The guards were always respectful, but he could tell that a lot of them didn’t like him. That was fine with him. He didn’t need anyone here to like him, not even Anya.
But no one called out to ask what he was doing. No one told him to stop. No one appeared to ask him where he was going. The hallway was silent, as was the rest of the palace.
He stepped outside the bedroom, holding his breath. When nothing happened, he smiled at himself and closed the door. He didn’t want anyone to realize he wasn’t in his room.
He remembered the way to the courtyard, but once he was there, he hesitated. He had an opportunity here. This was one of the few times he didn’t have guards following him around, no doubt keeping him away from parts of the palace where they didn’t want him to go. He was free to roam, and as long as he was careful, no one would find out about it.
He grinned as he turned around and walked back down the hallway. Maybe a little exploring would help him feel more at home here.
That thought made his smile drop quickly. That was the thing, wasn’t it? Hedidn’tbelong here. He might be Anya’s son, but this wasn’t his home. Even Hell wasn’t his home. He belonged in the human realm with his brothers, and sooner rather than later, he planned to go back.
