Slade stops short, gaze diving into my own like he wants to swim past the surface and find what lurks beneath my deepest depths. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I say again, trying to perch that false smile on my face.
He looks over his shoulder at the others as they mount their horses. “You all go on ahead. We’ll catch up.”
Surprise flits through me, but I say nothing. Digby gives me a look before he follows Judd and Lu to the horses, while Slade leads me toward the carriage. I see the guards untether Honey, as well as Slade’s horse, attaching their reins to their own mounts.
All while more stares follow me, more voices chipping in.
“That’s the gilded pet. She killed Midas, you know. Caught him with another lover and stabbed him in a fit of jealousy.”
“You think that’s paint on her skin, or you think it’s really gold?”
“What do you reckon a lock of her hair is worth? Must be nice to walk around with wealth growing out of your scalp.”
“She’s nothin’ special. Take away the gold and what do you got? A jilted saddle who forgot her place.”
“What’s she doing here? Wasn’t one king enough for her? She’s gotta go and try and trap the eyes of ours too?”
“Hopefully, he’ll see through her gilded charms and rot her where she stands.”
“D’you think a golden girl can rot?”
I shut my eyes against the words, hoping that it’ll shut my ears as well. But still, they batter against me, like hail on a window, threatening to crack.
The driver of the carriage opens the door for us, and I settle inside first, sitting down on the plush green velvet seat. It’s bigger than the carriage I had to ride in while I was nothing more than a would-be captive in Fourth’s army, and it’s more elaborate too. Similar wood carvings are etched into the walls, geometric shapes drawing the eye to concentric diamonds and circles that overlap throughout the ceiling and walls.
When Slade gets inside after me, the door snaps shut behind him, and most of the light and even some of the noise is sealed out. The whole carriage jostles as the driver gets into his seat, and I hear the sharp click of his call as the horses begin to pull us forward.
Slade sits in the seat directly across from me, his wide legs opened on either side of mine. Some of the daylight feeds in through the curtained window right beside us, though it’s filtered through sheer green fabric.
Despite the sounds of the market, the excited voices when people see the royal emblem on the carriage as we ride by, and the clopping of the horses’ hooves, Slade’s quiet voice is the loudest thing in my ears. “Now, I want you to tell me what’s really wrong, and no lying, Goldfinch. I’ll know if you do.”
CHAPTER 49
AUREN
His gaze is the piercingsort that I’ve never learned how to dodge. It cleaves into me, perforating my walls and reaching past the smile I’ve still got pinned up against my cheeks.
The cracks form in my cheeks first, whittling my lips back down, no longer able to hold up the lie.
“Better,” Slade says, the moment my smile drops. “Now, tell me what’s wrong.”
“It’s not important.”
“Don’t be dismissive. We do not lie to one another.”
I let out a snort. “I’m pretty sure our entire foundation was stacked with lies.”
“Maybe in the beginning before we knew we could trust each other, but we’ve moved past that now.”
He reaches forward, snagging my hand, tipping my palm up before I even realize I should try to hide it. I feel the skate of his gaze as he takes in the blotted smears of gold.
“Your gold comes out with your anger.” His thumb brushes against the clammy metal drying on my skin, rubbing it over every line and groove.
“They were talking about me—some men in the market. But I think they might’ve been right.”
His thumb pauses, smears against the pad just beneath my index finger. “What did they say?”
