My knuckles burned instantly like fire from the ninthhell.
“That bitch!” the blond roared. He cradled his nose, blood seeping through his fingers.
Suddenly, the pale one had me pinned against the wall. I realized I was too short; they were too tall, too strong. Held like that, I could not shape a single spell.
Screaming might have been an option. But here, no one would have heard me.
I felt a hand travel across my body, and bile rose in my throat.
“You might want to stop that,” a deep voice said.
Time folded in on itself.
We all turned toward the voice. It came from impossibly near.
Kael stood there, beside us.
“The Court Wizard…” the blond muttered, still cradling his nose.
I was released. I sucked in air as if I had been drowning. Tears blurred my vision. Never in my life had this happened. I never wanted it to happen again.
Kael spoke no more. He simply stepped closer. The drunken leers and dull desire that had warped their faces fell away as if a blade had cut them.
They fled, stumbling over apologies.
I let out the breath I had been holding.
“Are you all right?” Kael asked, concern hardening his features.
“Yeah,” I breathed. “Thank you.”
I hated that I had done nothing, that fear had frozen me. I hated that only Kael’s presence had chased them off. Not my words, not my title, especially not my powers.
“Do you need anything?” he asked.
For a moment he was unexpectedly gentle. I hated that too, because he probably saw me as a useless mage who could not fend for herself.
“I could have handled this myself,” I spat, too sharp and not thinking.
He chuckled once without a smile. “Oh really? Tell me how.”
I forced myself to steady. I resorted to the only shield I had when I felt exposed. I turned my nerves into a joke.
I lifted my hand as if to cast, chin high, smile broad in the most theatrical way I could muster. “I could have blasted them to pieces.”
That earned me a smile. “With the power ofdance?”
What had he said? Was someone else mocking my dancing again? I shot him a look striking like an arrow. His smile did not fade. It remained—infuriating and even more so beautiful.
I had enough for the night. I wanted to go home more than anything.
But not before I gave mysaviora piece of my mind.
“What’s your problem with me?” I demanded, sharper than I meant to.
His smile vanished. His brows drew together, but he said nothing.
“All you do is look at me as though I’ve done something unforgivable. Ever since the assembly. Then you assaulted me. By the stairs, remember? The next day, you asked Lo to spy on me. What is this?”
