“No, he only told me who the delivery is for.” Ilario tilted his head to the left, his gaze landing on a pretty fae in a royal blue dress. She looked to be around Lora’s age. She shouldn’t be mixed up in this. No one should.
Eyden swept dark locks of hair from his face as he composed himself. “Okay, I’ll do it. Keep your eyes on Lora.”
“I won’t let your girl out of sight,” Ilario answered. Eyden’s heart warmed at Ilario’s words, but she wasn’t his. Part of him knew she would never be.
Lora had made it clear that she had no desire to keep their relationship going when she’d disappeared while he’d been fast asleep. Eyden had thought their night together had been a glimmer of hope, that they could find a way to overcome their differences. He was still angry—furious, even—about her lies, but she had been partly right. They’d both lied. She couldn’t trust him, but he had stupidly hoped she still wanted to give it a chance. To try and fix this fucking mess they’d created.
Either way, she deserved to go home and be with her family. Eyden had promised to bring her back, and he wouldn’t go against his word. He had already failed at giving her a cure.
Giving Ilario one last look, Eyden split paths with him, heading to the fae Ilario had pointed out while keeping out of Nix and Lora’s view. He wished he could trade places with Ilario, but it was better this way. Only one of them should be damned. And Eyden had been burdened with guilt for a long time. He’d survive another load of it.
Ilario had tried hard to convince him to use fake pills. It was wrong,he’d said. Too wrong to even consider. But Eyden had more than considered it in the past. He hadn’t wanted to, but much like now, he saw no other way. Sometimes one’s options were blinded by fear. It could drive someone to a single choice, arising out of pure desperation, clawing itself to the forefront of one’s mind.
The fae woman was leaning against the wall unsteadily, an empty glass in her delicate hand. Her long dark hair almost reached her waist. Eyden stopped a few feet away and cleared his throat. The fae’s head swung up, and Eyden internally cringed at her reddened, puffy eyes. She was not well. And he would give her the chance to make it worse.
Was it her choice or his? Whose fault would it be if she fell too far, too deep? A lump formed in his throat. He hated himself for going through with this—for not agreeing to Ilario’s suggestion to use fakes, to take that risk at least. But Eyden knew enough about their delivery to know that fakes would be too easily discovered. They might as well not try at all then.
Eyden focused on the feeling of the blade against the inside of his arm, grounding him. He was about to speak when he realised he didn’t know Nix’s real first name, so he said, “I was sent to deliver something to you.” The fae’s body shifted forward as if she was about to lunge for what she craved.
“Hand it over then,” the fae answered, slurring her words. She held out her hand.
Eyden took out the small satin bag filled with fortae, a drug made from the blood of humans, but his hand wouldn’t move further. He had sworn to himself that he would never do this again.Never.He prided himself on keeping his promises, yet he could never keep the ones he made to himself.
“Take it easy, okay?” Eyden said as he forced himself to drop the bag into the fae’s waiting hand. She pulled it open to peek inside, ignoring his question completely. As the knot in his stomach grew, Eyden couldn’t help but glance back at Lora. His reason. Hisexcuse.She wasn’t looking at him, and he made sure she couldn’t see him.
“Do you know her?” Eyden asked the fae woman. She immediately popped a pill into her mouth—not as discreetly as he would like. It was a reckless question, but he needed to know why Lora was here. It made no sense.
The fae let out a cynical laugh, almost tripping over her dress as she stumbled forward, the bag clutched in her hand. Eyden helped steady her with one hand.
“I know, but I shouldn’t yet,” she said, staring holes into Nix’s head.
“Is she a friend of his?” Eyden dared to ask.
The woman laughed again. “Of course she is. He befriends all the princesses.” She put a hand over her mouth, the bag of pills almost dropping. Her empty glass fell to the ground, but she didn’t even notice. “I probably shouldn’t have said anything.” Another laugh spilled out of her as she slumped back against the wall. “But who cares?”
Were these the words of a drunken girl or confessed truths? The fae swayed, and Eyden reached out to grab her again, his gaze landing on the bag of pills. Spontaneously, he pretended to accidentally knock it out of her hand as he caught her. She tried to straighten herself, searching for the bag frantically, and Eyden—subtly eyeing the bag of pills— stepped on it.
“No, no, no,” she wailed, dropping to the ground as a slight breeze drifted through the room, taking away a part of the crushed pills. She poured the leftover pills into her palm. Eyden moved to block the view of the fae around them. She glared at him, and he held up his arms, the picture of innocence.
“I will need more,” she demanded.
“Maybe next time,” Eyden said. Would there be a next time? The voice in his head screamed how wrong this was. So fuckingwrong.
Eyden forced away the guilt. It seemed as if his quest for answers had brought up more questions. Drunk fae were either really helpful with their loose tongues or completely disastrous, sporting outrageous lies.
“I’ll consider it if you tell me what you mean byprincess.Which kingdom is she supposed to be from?” he asked, expecting another lie.
The fae woman stared hopelessly at the leftover mess of silver-red powder in her palm before her bloodshot eyes reached Eyden again. “Turosian. She’s an Adelway.”
Chapter7
Lora
Was she losing her mind? Did Lora wish Eyden was here so badly that she had imagined him?
But Ilario was here too, so it had to be more than her imagination. She had wanted to talk to him, but Rhay hadn’t left her alone until now. He’d been drinking excessively and had only recently gotten distracted by a handsome fae who had pulled him into a dance.
All Lora wanted now was to find Eyden or Ilario. Either one would do. Were they here to rescue her? Had Eyden come because of her—even after how she’d left him? No matter the reason, she needed to make sure they wouldn’t ever come back here. It was too risky. But this place, with all its silver drapes, was a maze. Everywhere she looked, she saw sparkles of silver, blending everything together.
