A man stands to my right. He faces the room, keeping a watchful gaze on the people around him. The man is tall, his short black hair streaked with strands of gray, thin age lines etched into his face. There is a familiar force to his presence… unyielding and powerful, like a violent storm.
Casimir’s father.
“Your Grace,” I comment, returning my focus to the room. “Roderick, correct?”
“You would be correct.” His voice is a low baritone with a stern edge. “A question, if I may?”
I don’t reply right away. The longer I wait, the more Roderick’s magic digs into me like thorns. Clenching my jaw tightly, I inhale a sharp breath as I try to bear the pain without letting it show. He is going to force something out of me, the same way Casimir does.
Roderick can’t find out about the things I’ve done. It will ruin all of my plans. I bite the inside of my cheek and hold my breath, fighting the magic as it claws deeper into me. Roderick can’t know. Casimir can’t know. No one can know the awful things I’ve done.
A scream pierces the room.
The sound of glass shattering reaches my ears, and wine spills onto the floor as Nikolas falls to his knees, his head between his hands. I spot Serafina slipping out the doors as the entire room focuses on the scene. Nikolas spirals into a rampage, throwing punches and waving his arms wildly through the air, shoving people over in the crowd.
“Get them off me!” he screams in agony, fingers tearing his skin as he tries to fight off the invisible force that’s swallowing him whole. Nikolas falls over the banquet table, the food crashing to the floor as he knocks it over.
I feel a piercing gaze on me.
Turning my head, I meet the gaze of Duke Roderick Bainbridge.
CHAPTER FORTY
Duke Leander Vaughnof Valneth also exhibits signs of madness, bashing his head against the wall, blood running down his face and dripping onto the stone below. Guards rush across the room in an attempt to calm Leander, but he only takes a sword from his belt and stabs it into the gut of another, causing a mass panic as people flee the room.
Someone grabs a piece of shattered glass from the floor to examine it, sniffing the liquid before calling out. “Scorpion’s Haze! Don’t drink the wine!”
The room descends into chaos. Nobles scatter in a frenzy, pushing one another out of the way as they race for the doors. The thunder of hurried footsteps and the sharp edge of panicked cries fill the chamber as wine glasses fall. Glass shards scatter across the stone, coating the floor with red, causing people to slip as they flee.
“My, Princess, you seem rather relaxed given the circumstance,” Roderick points out.
Shit.I stood there in silence, watching the manic scene unfold before me without reacting. I didn’t gasp or flinch, my face an unreadable calm mask while others ran for their lives.It is my error—not playing the part, letting Roderick observe me so closely.
I lift my gaze to meet his. “So are you,” I counter.
“Was that truly necessary?” Roderick’s voice turns harsh.
“Nikolas is the leader of the rebellion,” I whisper.
“Then you should have told the King that.”
“I was going to tell Casimir myself, but he seems a bit preoccupied now,” I reply calmly.
The chaos around us grows. Leander dives into the crowd of nobles, punching one across the face. White foam spills from Nikolas’ lips as he screams in agony, writhing on the floor. More highborns fall into psychosis, the poison taking hold of their bodies as they go insane. Casimir and Barnham enter the room, confusion crossing their features as they take in the scene around them.
“He told you his namesake?” Roderick’s brows lower into a scowl.
“He did.”
“He shouldn’t have.”
I scoff. “He can do what he pleases.”
Roderick’s aura is wildly threatening. “You are a little hellion who is astainon this court and a direct threat to our people.”
“You have no idea what I’m capable of,” I threaten, clenching my jaw.
“Spoken like a true Valantis.” He watches me with precise scrutiny.
