Raven may be playing the elegant fool as usual, but there's no mistaking the sharp glint in his eyes beneath the mischief. If Azarel makes a move, he'll meet him in kind, and even if I can't see that knife he somehow managed to smuggle out of the dining room, I'm sure he still has it on him somewhere.
Before either of them can escalate, Geo storms through the doorway like a battering ram. "Time's up!"
I roll my eyes so hard I'm surprised they don't fall out of my skull. "It's been five minutes."
"Ten," Nikolai corrects, following Geo with Knight looming behind him. "We agreed on ten."
"Youagreed on ten," I counter.
"Semantics," Geo grunts, planting himself between me and Azarel like a very grumpy wall.
I sigh, but there's something warm fluttering in my chest at their protective hovering. Even if it is annoying as fuck. "Well, while we're on the subject of introductions, Azarel, this is my pack." I gesture to each of them in turn. "Geo, Raven, Nikolai, and Knight."
Azarel's entire body goes rigid at the word "pack," but he doesn't challenge it.
Geo steps forward, and the smile on his scruffy, scarred face is all teeth and no warmth. "Pleased as fuck to meet you, Prince Azzhole."
Azarel's eyes narrow. "It'sAzarel."
"That's what I said."
They stare each other down, the alpha testosterone in the room thick enough to choke on. Knight's low rumbling growl adds to the ambiance, and Nikolai looks like he's deciding which vital organ to remove first. Raven's hand hovers near where his gun would normally be.
"As charming as I find alpha pissing contests," I interject before someone throws a punch and kicks off a fresh wave of bullshit, "I'm tired and I need another fucking shower after the garden incident."
Azarel nods stiffly, clearly struggling to maintain his composure. "The servants will escort you to my wing of the palace."
I stare at him pointedly, raising an eyebrow.
His jaw works like he's chewing glass, but he adds through gritted teeth, "Where you'll all stay as my esteemed guests, of course."
"How generous," Nikolai mutters, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Wasn't it though?" Raven adds brightly. "There's that classic Surhiiran hospitality!"
I turn to leave before this devolves further, and sure enough, there's a servant waiting in the hallway. She's young, pretty inthat delicate way that all the palace staff seem to be, and she bows deeply when she sees me.
"If you'll follow me, honored guest," she says in accented Vrissian to me.
I trail after her through corridors that all look the same to me—marble and gold and silk repeating in endless patterns. But I memorize the turns anyway, noting exits and windows and which doors look like they might lead to less trafficked areas. Old habits from navigating my father's mansion, from learning which routes would help me avoid Monty's friends when they'd been drinking.
I know we're being watched. There are guards at every intersection, trying to look casual but tracking our every movement. The servants we pass all pause to stare, whispering behind their hands once we've passed. The omega with the strange pack who dared to kidnap a prince.
But I don't care.
For the first time in months, I'm not running. Not hiding. Not trying to survive another day in the wasteland or navigate the dangerous politics of someone else's compound.
My pack is together. All four of my difficult, dangerous, impossibly loyal alphas are here with me. Assuming they don't kill each other in my absence.
The servant stops at a set of double doors that are even more elaborate than the others we've passed, with carved wood and gold inlay depicting scenes of birds in flight. "The Prince's suite," she announces, pushing them open.
The space beyond is ridiculous. A sitting room that could fit my entire childhood bedroom three times over, furnished with low couches and silk cushions and windows that overlook the gardens. Doorways lead off to what must be bedrooms, and I spot a bathing chamber through one archway that's calling my name.
"If you need anything, simply ring," the servant says, gesturing to an ornate bell pull. "His Highness has instructed us to see to your every comfort."
"I'm sure he has," I mutter.
I found him. After everything, after all the lies and betrayal and confusion, I finally succeeded at what I came here to do.
