“Well done,” the king said, stroking the diamond chalice. “I thought she had you there.”
Laughter and chatter went on behind her, the nobles having a wonderful time with each other now that the entertainment had finished.
The king’s gaze roamed over Daisy’s body, stopping on the areas the female had cut or slashed.
“And not too banged up. Fantastic.” He put up his hand. “Take her to my chambers. Strap her in.” His gaze lifted, and given the direction, Daisy knew he was looking at Tarian. “Youneed fewer distractions. If you finish quickly, however, I will let you have one last night with her.”
After all…His red eyes rooted Daisy to the spot. The royal black around his irises started to move, increasing in size and speed, flowing around his pupils.You’ll still be useable even with a broken mind.
He jerked his head. The two guards yanked her to walking. This was it. It was happening. She was on her own with a magically diseased creature hellbent on destroying her. Not just pain, either, but torture. He’d try to break her spirit little by little until there was nothing left.
But she had her knife. And she had her resolve. She might be human, but she was not as easily breakable as they all thought.
The female still lay in the center of the marble floor, surrounded by a sea of red. She didn’t move. She’d given her life to help Daisy and, through Daisy, Tarian. Yet Daisy didn’t have any idea how she fit into all this. Why she was helping? What did she know?
Tarian hadn’t stood. He hadn’t moved since the last time she’d spied him. But now he lowered his hand from his lips, his expression hard, his eyes concerned.
Into her mind, he said,Some toys come alive in the middle of the night…
He let the sentence linger. Her sentence, spoken to him when in the human world.
She finished it.And kill you in your sleep.
His smile was slight.
Come back to me,he whispered, and then she was being walked through a side door into a lavish hall made for royalty.
Pain ripped through her heart at having to leave him, especially like this. At the uncertainty in his voice and the terror she’d heard beneath the words.
She wanted to curl into herself and shut off. To reflect on what had gotten her here, what had gone on in that room—that battle—and how the fuck this had all become her journey. She realized she’d gotten used to Tarian being around to protect her in this place. Used to theFallenwatching her back and dogging her heels. Even in the prison they’d been watching. She had no such luxuries now.
She pushed down her confusion, her fear, and the complete ickiness of her predicament and started paying attention. She noticed each turn and the face of each servant. When they entered through a grand set of double doors, she noticed the furniture, the sharp objects, and the items that could crush a skull, just like Kayla had first advised her.
Servants scurried around and out, giving the guards privacy. They’d likely do the same thing for the king, knowing he’d want to play with his new toy in peace. That was great fucking news.
Not great news was the straps the guards were leading her toward. They existed in an obvious bedchamber and looked like kinky torture devices popular among people with safe words. She doubted she’d get to choose one of those.
They took her along the side of the main bedchamber to a washroom. Without ceremony, the guards stopped. One of them yanked her around to face him before reaching for the buttons on her clothing.
“Whoa there, bud.” She slapped his hands away. “I’m going to need dinner and dancing first.”
The guard scowled and lifted his arm. She braced for the impact of his palm. When the blow came, she purposely stepped onto her bad leg and fell into the other guard.
“Do as you’re told,” the first guard gritted out.
She didn’t point out that he hadn’t actually told her to do anything.
She slipped the knife she’d just stolen from Guard Number Two into her pants pocket.
“Let me do it,” she said, taking a step back. She lifted her hands to show she was unarmed.
The first guard narrowed his eyes but grunted assent.
She undid the buttons and sacrificed a little dignity to give them a booby show as she figured out the knife situation. It was magically glued to her side, after all, and she needed to shed it in a way that these fools didn’t notice.
Thankfully, the moment her fingers brushed the sheath, the whole thing slid down to the tucked-in portion of her shirt. She bunched it all, waved her boobs around for good measure, and then put shirt and sheath in a ball in the corner. Her pants went next. She turned and bent to shimmy them down her thighs. The guards got a peek of certain areas that needed shaving, and she kept the stolen knife. Distracting males did not take a lot of brain power.
Knowing guards would not be interested in doing cleanup, she kicked her balled-up clothes more toward a corner and covered herself in mock embarrassment. There they wouldn’t be so obvious to the actual cleaning crew.
