Will stilled, his feet braced apart as he studied her. ‘I don’t hate him.’
‘You certainly don’t like him.’
The silence stretched long enough that she wondered if she’d overstepped; if she’d broken that fragile peace before it had even truly begun. But his voice was low as he finally said, ‘Because he is unburdened by powers.’
Will leaned a hip against the paddock rail, his arms folding across his chest. ‘Because despite their bickering, his father cares about him. Because his people adore him. Because he isgood. Because he is everything a man – a true prince – should be.’
Do not call me that.
It was a mockery, compared to someone like Aidon. At least, she supposed that’s how Will saw it, what he felt every time someone addressed him with those words.
How many times had she heard it since they’d arrived here? And she had spat that title at him herself and mocked him in her anger.
‘Don’t look at me like that,’ Will breathed. Pain lingered in his voice – on his face. ‘I don’t need your pity.’
She swallowed the lump in her throat. ‘I don’t pity you.’
It was true. It wasn’t pity that was coloring her thoughts. It was something far worse.
She’d always assumed Will took pride in his reputation; thought he basked in the glory of the title that followed him. But he was made by Gianna. Just as she was.
Weapons, the both of them.
She had been fine with it. Had been proud to serve her queen and her gods.
But now, she wasn’t so sure.
He scanned her face, as if reading the thoughts there. ‘I have always known, Aya, that there would be consequences for my choices.’
She wished she could turn away from the intensity of his stare, but she was locked there, trapped in whatever spell of his she couldn’t seem to escape from. ‘Then why make them?’
Something softened in his gaze at that – some emotion flickering across his face, there and gone in a simple blink. His voice was hoarse as he said, ‘Because they allow me to protect what matters.’ He pushed off the fence, his movements graceful as he hauled himself over the railing. ‘I’ll come with you tomorrow to the Maraciana. We’ll figure this out together.’
‘Where are you off to now?’
‘To prepare for a meeting with the king.’ He threw her agrim smile over his shoulder as he headed toward the palace. ‘You were right. It was foolish of me to return covered in blood. As you once pointed out, my reputation precedes me. I figure it’s best to get ahead of it lest he suspects I was involved with Helene.’
Wrong. She had been so, so wrong.
‘Do you want me to come with you?’ The offer surprised him as much as it did her when it left her mouth of its own accord. Will froze, glancing back at her as if he hadn’t quite heard her. Aya felt her lips twitch. ‘What? We’re bound by an oath, remember?’
Will grinned. ‘Charmed as I am, I’d hate to give Dominic two people to bully.’
‘You think me incapable of handling him?’
Will shook his head, his expression softening. ‘I think you incapable of nothing, Aya love.’
He started toward the palace again, and Aya peered after him, the vial burning in her back pocket as she watched him go.
46
It was amazing, Aidon thought, that even in the king’s throne-room, Will still managed to ooze arrogance. The Enforcer stood between two of the marble pillars that lined the walkway to the throne, his hands shoved casually in the pockets of his black jacket. Aidon stood at Dominic’s shoulder, the king’s bone-white crown glinting in the sunlight that streamed through the high windows behind him.
‘I assume you have a reason for calling this meeting,’ Dominic sighed.
Will gave a low chuckle. ‘I do love your directness, Majesty. It makes it so much simpler to get to the heart of the matter.’ Dominic’s brows rose, but Will continued. ‘Let us not pretend you weren’t going to call me in for questioning after Helene was taken. So I’m here to assure you I had no involvement in the matter.’
Aidon kept his eyes on Will as he said, ‘It’s true. He arrived shortly after Helene was taken and helped us in our search.’
