My heart races faster, because even in my drugged state I know this is wrong. He’s used some kind of truth serum on me, and there’s nothing I can do to stop the answers from spilling out.
“Andwhyare you here?” His scent of tobacco mixes with whatever serum he has on his fingertips, and I have to fight not to gag.
“To survive,” I say truthfully, a sweat breaking out on my forehead as I fight not to say more than I have to. “And to figure out who I am,” I add.
“All predictable answers,” Germain drawls, sounding unamused. “And now,” he leans in even closer, “why don’t you tell me why Professors Thane, Raith, and Galen are so interested in such a pathetic human like you? You see, we need them. The prophecy made that clear, otherwise things may have gone a lot differently by now.” He chuckles darkly. “But you, well, frankly you’re an embarrassment to this academy, and we don’t need you. You might look good in a dress, but that’s not going to matter on a battlefield. We need real warriors, and the fact that you’re still alive…” He squeezes my chin, his fingers digging inpainfully before he lets my head go. “It’s a disgrace.Whyare they protecting you?”
“Ohh I get it.” I laugh. “You’re jealous of them, and you’re trying to find a way to hurt them.” I think I’m being clever avoiding the question, but it’s like the serum knows I haven’t given a sufficient answer and pain shoots through my system.
Germain watches me smugly as my lips tremble, and the answer to his last question pops into my mind without me even thinking it.They’re protecting me because they’re my fated mates.But I can’t say it. I won’t. I can’t. I— “Because…” I start, and Germain watches me eagerly.
“Keep it in, girl,”Elgen tells me, and I grind my teeth together, hoping it’ll help.
Sweat streams down the side of my face. “Because they’re…” I’m going to say it. There’s no way I can hold it in. No way to stop from?—
“Germain,” Raith’s cold voice cuts through the fog in my mind, stalling the words that had been about to slip from my lips. “Her highness has summoned you.”
Germain tenses, his expression hardening as he turns to where Raith is now standing close by. “Always appearing in time to ruin my fun, aren’t you? I’ll be there soon.”
“So you want me to tell her to wait?” Raith asks casually.
“She’ll understand,” Germain replies.
“Well, I guess if that’s the message you want me to pass on,” Raith says, sounding bored. “But between you and me, I don’t know if that’s the response you want to go with. It’s late, and I get the feeling she’s not in the mood for bullshit tonight.”
Irritation passes over Germain’s face, and I think he’s going to continue to ignore Raith, but then he turns abruptly, giving my mate a forced smile. In seconds, he disappears in a flurry of shadows.
The moment he’s gone, I sag against the pillar, my head still spinning as I grasp the smooth stone, desperate to have something to hold onto. “They’re protecting me because they’re my fated mates.” The words come out in a rush, like I was only just managing to hold them in, but nothing was going to stop me from speaking the truth.
Raith stares at me from behind his mask, and I’m not surprised when he doesn’t come for me. My mates are supposed to be keeping their distance, so the queen doesn’t find out about our relationship. Though, clearly some of the originals must already be suspicious if Germain was trying to get that information out of me.Well, that’s not good.
Raith turns like he’s going to walk away, but I blurt, “Please tell me this is going to wear off soon, because I struggle to keep my thoughts to myself on a good day, and I can’t be held responsible for what I say while I’m drugged.”
There’s a long pause, and then Raith curses. He steps closer to me, and I glimpse the bottom of his pristine suit as darkness swirls around us, and his shadows pull me into a shadow pathway.
Chapter Thirty-Two
~ Shade ~
When we exit the pathway, cool air washes over me, and I gasp, sucking it greedily into my lungs. My head is still spinning, but the familiar scent of pine and damp earth hits my nose, and I can just make out a blur of trees around me.Wait…we’re in the academy forest?
My heart thuds a little faster. “We can’t be out here. I’m not allowed to leave the party until the queen retires first.” Admittedly, I’m appreciating being away from the crowd, but I’d hate to be killed over something so trivial.
Raith doesn’t answer and he stares out at the trees, keeping his back to me.
“Don’t get me wrong, I’m enjoying the air,” I add, “but what if Germain goes looking for me again? Or the queen herself? I’m fine now. You can take me back.” Now that I’m away from the weird floral scent Germain had on his fingers, my head is starting to clear, and while I’d rather stay out here, I don’t want Raith getting into trouble for taking me from the celebration.
Blowing out a breath, I take a step toward him, but I stumble when my foot slides on a rock. With a yelp, I mentally prepare myself to impact with the ground, but Raith’s shadows curl around me, keeping me upright.
I grin, stretching my hands wide and moving away from his shadows when I can stand on my own again. “See,” I say like I hadn’t just been about to land on my face. “Perfectly fine.”
It’s safe to say, Raith doesn’t look impressed. “You can hardly walk. I’m not taking you back until the drug has worn off,” he says, and the easy tone is gone from his voice.
“Okay, and how much longer do you think that’ll take?” I have no idea how long the queen plans to stay at the party, but I hope it’s a while yet.
“I have no clue,” he rumbles.
Crap.“You know, I really can walk on my own, that was just an accident before,” I say. “I’ll show you.” Rubbing my hands together for luck, I squint, trying to focus my double vision, and I take a few steps forward. I move slowly at first, taking baby steps, and when I don’t fall, I lengthen my stride, heading toward where I think Raith is standing. Admittedly, it’s a little hard to judge the distance given my blurred vision.
