I glanced over my shoulder at Caz, who was clearly listening but not reacting.
“Well, I guess she’s got you there. You technicallyaren’tstronger than the ice tyrant. Are you … Casimir?”
I looked back to Ella as I spoke, watching her face and trying not to take too much perverse pleasure in the slew of reactions that followed.
The confusion played out in scrunching upof muscles, lowering of eyelids, chewing of lips, and finally, a slow, unsure noise. Then she jerked upright, her mouth falling open, every muscle tight.
“There it is,” I said as she blinked. Then twice. And again.
“Casimir,” Ella repeated. “You called himCasimir.”
“Yes. I did.”
“As in,theCasimir, fourth of the name?”
I nodded slowly.
Ella gaped. “And he’s mated toyou?”
“Yyyyup.” I drawled it out, enjoying it. It was about time someone else had to deal with the news like I had.
“Oh, wow.” Ella snapped around to face Casimir. “My lord, uh, sire. I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you, I just—”
“No.” he lifted a hand. There was no command in his tone, but he didn’t need it. “Here among us, I’m just Caz. I am absolutelynothim.”
“Um. Okay.” Ella looked back and forth before plunking down into her seat and massaging her temples. “Oh, dear.”
“You’ll get used to it,” I said. “Probably faster than I will.”
“Right.” Ella leaned heavily on the armrest. “Any more big surprises like that?”
Dirk and Caz returned, plates ladenwith food for all four of us, thanks to Florian’s efforts.
“I don’t think so,” Dirk said, setting down the plates.
Ella eyed the food, the fingers of her right hand tucked under the collar. “I don’t think I can eat right now. Can we get this off first?”
Caz nodded, motioning for me to move to Ella’s side.
“It won’t be pleasant,” he said.
“Having it on hasn’t been a picnic either,” Ella said, looking right in his face. “Take it off, please.”
“Very well.”
Caz took the collar in his hands, and almost immediately, frost formed around the band. It stretched back over his fingers and toward his forearms while also circling around the back of the collar.
Ella flinched, but she did not pull away.
I hovered next to my friend, ready for anything.
“Ready?” Caz growled in a deep voice.
“Yes.”
With a powerful snarl, Caz twisted his hands in opposite directions. Metal shrieked with the effort and began to twist under the immense pressure. His muscles bulged, standing out against his skin as he wrenched at the collar until it snapped apart.
Frost clouds billowed out from the brokenends and toward Ella’s face. She jerked back with a cry, but Caz shoved a fist into the icy cloud first, stopping it short. His eyes glowed with silver-green light, and the frost cloud slowed its attack before eventually retreating to circle around his wrist as he fought the power.
