“Because of the murder of their female heirs. They had no choice. Blackmailed into checkmate.”
“If I marry him, I will have control. There’s no other way.”
“If you get that far.”
She leaned back and shrugged. “You’re such a pessimist.” She held my gaze, her face deadpan. “You need to get laid.”
It was so unexpected I threw my head back and roared, nearly toppling backward off my chair. My cheeks ached; my stomach tight as I tried to rein it in. Lilyanna hid her amusement behind her hand but eventually, she doubled over as well, knocking the counters to the floor.
“I think,” I wiped my eyes, “the same could be said for Your Ladyship. Maybe then you’d get your priorities in order and stop chasing the crown.”
She grinned at me. “I think we’ll have to agree to disagree on that one.”
“Yeah, okay. For now.”
“But back to you. I’ve seen you and Clement flirting. You watch him all the time, when you’re supposed to be watching me, hover near him, smile when he speaks.”
“I do not smile. It’s a sneer at his condescending, holier-than-the-Goddess attitude.”
She stared at me, unimpressed.
“It’s nothing.” I made my voice strong and sure, but it was plain she didn’t believe me. I stood and offered her my hand, pulling her to her feet. “Now off to bed. I’m sure we have the most enthralling game of checkers ahead of us tomorrow.”
The collar of her robe flopped down exposing the roiling blue and gray skin of her neck. Her hand fluttered to her throat; what little color remained fleeing from her cheeks.
“It looks much better,” I said.
She pursed her lips, dropping her hand from her neck and twirled the ring on her finger instead. “You’ll sleep here again tonight?”
I sighed but nodded. She squeezed my hand, and I followed her into the bed chamber, climbing into bed next to her. The silk sheets were cool and smooth, as innocent as I once was. She really was going to be the death of me. Where had my detachment gone? It’s what I prided myself on, or at least Siobhan did. Hadn’t she spent years pushing me around the queendom like a checker piece, never able to forge even a semblance of a relationship? Maybe she thought I was too far gone, that her constant manipulation had finally seeded within me.
First, Clement managed to worm his way in as I couldn’t stop thinking about him, and now, Lilyanna.
Maybe that would be her downfall.
My eyelids were heavy, an eternal yawn building in my throat. As much as I needed it, I’d never let myself sleep. Terrible things happened when I did.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
THE HIGHEST POWER
I was running through the moors.
Climbing sloping hills and rounding rocky tors as the castle dwindled in the background. Grass clawed at my legs, pebbles embedding in my bare feet. The air was stale. Where was the fresh breeze? The scent of purple heather, the acidic twang of the peat?
It didn’t matter, I was leaving.
My body was thrust left, and my foot sank into a deep pit, my ankle snapping. Icy air seeped into my skin, crystals solidifying like diamonds on my clothes. A dull ache radiated up my leg, spreading in a fiery circle.
I kept moving.
Another thrust. This time as if a rope had been coiled around my waist, snapping taut and severing my momentum. I glanced behind. A winding cord, glistening in the moonlight like an umbilical cord trailed behind me. It snaked over the grass, looped the gray wall, and slithered up the central parting right into the claws of the castle gargoyle.
I fumbled to rid myself of it, hands slipping and sliding over the mucus. The gargoyle tugged, and I flew backward, landing heavily on the frozen ground. Inch by inch it dragged me back toward the wall.
My magic sputtered. I fought to release it, clawing at the cord, but it dangled just out of reach.
The line slackened, and I pitched forward, moist moss smearing across my lips and coating my tongue making me gag.
