“Where’s Finn?” I ask, rubbing my eyes with the heels of my hands.
When neither of them responds, trading a look instead, I panic.
Even though it aches like a motherfucker, I stumble to my feet. “Where is he?” I demand, my legs trembling.
“We’re not sure if we can trust him,” Ellie explains, glancing at Aiden again.
Aiden is strategically standing in front of the door with his arms crossed. “We should leave him behind. He’s James’s son. We can’t trust him.”
“And you’re his guard,” I snap, ignoring the wobbliness in my legs. “If you don’t tell me where he is right now, I’ll?—”
“You’ll what?” Aiden cuts me off, stalking toward me, his boots scuffing across the dingy blue carpet. “You can’t do anything. You can barely stand up, for god’s sake.”
I let out a humorless laugh. “You don’t scare me, asshole. I know you’re probably used to Royals thinking you’re all spooky or whatever, but I’m not a Royal.” I inch closer to him. “And you don’t scare me at all.” I poke him in the chest.
His lip spasms as he stares at where I poked him and then at me. “You are a Royal, though.”
I roll my eyes. “Maybe by blood, but up here,” I tap my head, “That’s all northside trash. And northside trash knows how to punch a guy twice her size in just the right place to knock the wind out of him.”
He studies me, and it’s infuriating how difficult it is to decipher him. I’m betting he’s been trained to do that, to not show his emotions.
“Calm down, you two,” Ellie interrupts as she steps up beside us. “Fighting isn’t going to help with this already tense situation.”
I tear my gaze off Aiden and scowl at her. “Where’s Finn?”
Ellie casts a glance at Aiden, who reciprocates with a firm look, which she disregards. “He’s in the other room.” She points at a door behind me. “I’ll let you see him, but I should warn you that we tied him to the bed.”
“You what?’ I screech, then reel around, nearly falling down.
But I manage to maintain my balance, yank the door open, and dash inside the room.
Finn is lying in the bed with his back propped against the headboard and his wrist secured to a bedpost by a handcuff. He’s wearing the same clothes he had on the last time I saw him, only dirt stains the fabric, and his bare feet are covered in mud.
I notice my own clothes are dirty, and realize I need a shower. So does Finn.
When he spots me, he sits up straighter. “Maddy?” His gaze scrolls over my body, as if checking for wounds.
I climb onto the bed with him. “Are you okay?”
He nods, touching my cheek with his free hand, which is his bandaged hand. “I’m fine. I’ve been worried about you, though. They told me they couldn’t get you to wake up.
“Well, I’m awake now.” I stand up again as Ellie and Aiden enter the room. “Uncuff him now.”
Neither of them budges, lingering near the doorway.
“Maddy,” Ellie starts as she shifts her weight. “We need to leave him behind. It’s too risky to take him with us.”
“You can either uncuff him, or I’ll pick the lock and uncuff him myself,” I warn, staring them down hard. “I don’t care if he’s James’ son. He protected me. He’s been honest with me. And I’m keeping him no matter what you two say.”
Okay, maybe it was kind of weird to say that I’m keeping Finn, like he belongs to me, but I’m still tired.
“Besides, aren’t you friends with his mother?” I add with an accusatory arch of my brows.
“They both are,” Finn is the one to answer. Apparently, they’ve already had this conversation. “They don’t trust me, though, because my father chose me to marry you. They think I wanted to do it.”
Married. God, I almost forgot that I’m married to Finn.
“That’s not true,” Ellie argues, stepping toward me. “We’re just being cautious. Finn was part of the society, and everymember is working with James. You can’t blame us for questioning his loyalty.”
