I stood abruptly and stalked toward the door. At the threshold, I looked back. “Don’t get too comfortable, Helena. You summoned Raven to Hale’s Corner, and she survived our confrontation. She’s still out there somewhere. If I were you, I’d watch my back.”
“I can handle myself, Lucian. I appreciate the concern.”
I closed the door on her, tears burning my eyes. Things would never be the same between us again. The one person whom I’d confided in, who kneweverythingabout me. We could perhaps move on from this, remain civil with one another, but I would always be wary of her. I supposed that was how she’d lived in my company all those years, every day wondering if this would be the day I ended her, but hoping I could be taken at my word. It was appropriate that I would have such a black cloud looming over me now. Helena could reveal me at any time. She said she wouldn’t. But that uneasiness, that tension, would always be there.
I didn’t like the feeling of turmoil roiling through me. As soon as I reached my room, I slammed the door shut behind me and crumpled onto my bed, punching my pillow again, and again, and again.
CHAPTER NINE
Istared into the wide obsidian eyes of a horse, its tail twitching warily. It didn’t rear up or shriek in protest at my presence, however, so that was a win. As a vampire, I had to keep my horses’ eyes shielded so they never caught a glimpse of me, or they could have harmed themselves trying to escape me. I’d had one horse throw itself over a cliff rather than be near me.
“Good boy,” I murmured, patting its side gently.
“Girl,” the stablemaster corrected at my back. “That’s Ginny. If you want to gain her trust, I have some sugar cubes in back. Has a sweet tooth, she does.”
I smiled. “I like a lady with a refined palate.” I threw a look back over my shoulder at the tall, lanky man prowling in the shadows, working oil into a leather saddle. “Is this one of the lords’ horses?”
“Ginny is the duchess’s horse. She doesn’t ride much anymore though. I’m sure she wouldn’t mind if you fancied a go.”
“Oh, no. Just curious.” I glanced around at the stalls on either side of the narrow corridor. “Whose are those horses?”
“Oh, well, the duke has Blackbolt there, but we don’t let anyone ride him, save myself to give him the exercise. Ambrose has Daytripper, and Maxwell has Calliope.”
“And what of Emmett?” I asked innocently, noting the stablemaster pause in his work before continuing.
“Ah, well, haven’t seen Corpse Runner in a fortnight.”
“Corpse Runner?” I echoed, amused. I noticed a figure stride into the far side of the stable. His orange jacket screamed against the subdued colors of the barn, skirt fading to yellow like a sunset against the long stride of his legs. Zachariah looked utterly out of place, but I couldn’t deny that he looked chic.
The stablemaster grinned, stopping his work to face me. I avoided looking in Zachariah’s direction. I didn’t want to distract the man, not when I was trying to ferret out information. “To be fair, the lord named him when he was young.”
“But the horse has gone missing?”
“Along with his master,” the stablemaster sighed. “I assumed they were at Foxglove Abbey, but that doesn’t appear to be the case. Emmett knows how to take care of him, so wherever the young master has gone, I’m not too worried. Only, some farmers have been missing their cows nearby, and this wouldn’t be the first horse to go missing around here over the past few weeks.”
“So, there’s a thief about.”
“Or wolves.”
“But you haven’t seen anyone suspicious?”
The man pursed his lips, squinting at me. “I don’t know. You seem a tad suspicious to me.”
“Oh, he’s suspicious, alright,” Zachariah agreed, making a face as he skirted a pile of horseshit, sending a swarm of flies buzzing angrily at his proximity. He daintily stepped over a heap of straw, lifting his hem to avoid dirtying the silk. “My, it’s like an obstacle course in here, isn’t it?”
I chuckled. “Most people coming this way aren’t dressed in their finest, I imagine. I expect the dress code usually involves riding boots.” I sent the stablemaster an apologetic smile. “I haven’t ridden a horse in … years. I would likely break my neck trying to.”
“Eh, that can be remedied. Ambrose is a natural. He can teach you in a few hours if he had a mind to.”
“Or Maxwell,” Zachariah threw in. “He loves to ride.”
I raised an eyebrow. “What are you doing here, Zachariah?”
He shrugged. “I was waiting for them to put the finishing touches on the results from the token challenge and saw you sneak in here like a thief.”
I snorted. I’d voted just this morning before they’d begun counting tokens. Cecelia had told me I could do with my token as I saw fit when she visited to see how I was faring, given that she had secured several already and wouldn’t be needing mine. I’d decided to give it to Violetta. She’d likely expected to leave the competition today. Isabel would vote for her, of course. And I had decided that of all the people I’d come to know whom I would like to stay on, she would need the support most.
I ran a hand through Ginny’s hair before regarding the stablemaster with a sideways glance. “So you haven’t seen anyone else suspicious?”
