The spirits were haunting me, not her. For now, she was safe.
The following morning, I leaned back on the buttoned chaise, watching the snow slap against the windows. Big, fat snowflakes and sometimes chunks of ice would break the monotony with a dull thud.
A sharp rap sounded from the door.
“I think it’s your turn to get it,” I said.
Lilyanna perched on the other end of the purple cushions, systematically pushing at her cuticles one by one with her thumbnail. Her smile was tight, but she rose without complaint. She smoothed the deep creases in her long skirt as she walked toward the door. She tentatively touched the diamond handle, her entire body stiffening as the cold speared into her hand.
The prince strolled in. He looked the same as ever, smile bright, hair tousled, clothes perfectly pressed in matching funereal tones. Two guards marched in behind him. Both were men. Bulky, sullen, and heavily armed.
“Up you get, Tam.” He crossed to me, completely ignoring Lilyanna who cast a fleeting glance at the vacant corridor outside before one of the guards closed the door and positioned himself in front of it. He unsheathed his saber and dug it into the floor between his feet.
“Why?” I swung my legs to the ground, a dizzying wave of nausea firing through my body at the movement. I exhaled slowly, muffling the moan and burying my weakness.
The second guard detached himself from the prince’s shadow and hovered at my shoulder. He slowly drew his blade, the metal clanging against the sheath and vibrating directly into my ear.
I swiveled to glare at him, but the prince moved toward me again, and I flung my attention back to him. “Where’s Clement?”
“Oh, he’s a little tied up at the moment.”
My stomach twisted. Lilyanna tiptoed across the room; her slippers whisper-soft against the stone. She skirted the prince and sat on the raised arm of the chaise at the far end, her weight stacked in her legs as if she would bolt at any moment. She didn’t look at me, choosing instead to resume picking at her nails, but her face paled.
The prince laughed. “No, seriously, Tam. My wedding’s in two days. He has many chores to do, security details to plan. Hundreds of townspeople are coming.”
I didn’t know what to think. He looked like he was telling the truth, and I was so rarely wrong about people. My stomach shifted, pressing low in my belly.
“Hand over your weapons.” The prince hooked his fingers into his waistband, his shoulders back, muscles loose.
“No.”
The guard behind me gripped my arm and yanked me to my feet. He pushed me forward, and I stumbled, stopping myself from crashing directly into the prince at the last second.
“Unfortunately, Tam,” he casually reached forward and lifted the hem of my sweater, his fingers brushing my thigh, “you can’t be trusted not to harm yourself after that stunt with the bangle.” He unbuckled the holster, grabbing the hilt of the knife as the leather strap uncoiled to the floor. “And we wouldn’t want another accident like with that poor woman in the pit, now, would we?”
He raised the knife, hovering it above the gash on my forehead. Slowly he carved the air, following the line down to my lip. He jabbed it into my face, and I leaped back. My heart lurched, and the cut on my face burned as if he’d reopened the flesh all over again.
“I know you have more. You must’ve learned the castle has ears by now.” He pointed the dagger toward my boots. “Hand them over.”
The fabric lining slipped through my grasp as I forced my fingers to dig out the slim blades. I threw them at his feet, balling my hands into fists to sever the tremors. My chest heated and my throat tightened, but I kept his stare.
“Such a good girl now, aren’t you?” The dimples popped in his cheeks as he smiled. “I must say, it’s been a lot of work trying to tame you, but it has proven to be most rewarding.” He ran my dagger through the air again, licking his lips.
I fought back a shudder as I relived the warm nodules of his tongue brushing against my pulse, his nostrils flaring as he dragged his face up my neck.
“I wonder what role you would be most suited to after the wedding. You have already had a taste of what my permanent consorts can do. They are even now jostling for position, carving out a niche for you amongst the hierarchy. Probably as we speak.”
“Do I get a say in this, my prince?” Lilyanna kept her face smooth and her eyes soft. “Tam is mine after all.”
He laughed, dismissing her with a wave of his hand. “No, no, my love. She is mine. I’ll get you another one, don’t worry.”
Lilyanna quietened. She nibbled on her nails, her teeth clunking together every time she slipped. What would her plan be if I did die? She’d poured all her time and energy into getting here and then surviving. Why had she believed I could be the one to help?
I backed away and sagged onto the chaise. The guard behind me moved to collect the knives I’d tossed and pocketed them before sheathing his saber and resuming his position behind the prince.
“Poor, poor, Tam. Or should I say, Tamara. You do prefer that name, right? Or is it only when Clement whispers it into your ear.” I looked through him, my body wilting as I sank deeper into the plush pillows.
Prince Bellinor’s smile faltered. “Where’s your fighting spirit today, Tam?”
