His voice was cold enough to freeze blood in your veins. “I’m at the very limit of my patience.”
“You saw me dance with Arvel, realized that your pet secret weapon might be slipping through your fingers, and dramatically rushed over here to make sure I was secure under house arrest and pull me back in line. The kiss was pretty good, I will give you that. Omelyana is a lucky woman.”
“Maggie!”
“Lady Demarr!” I bit back. “Did you think that if you kissed me, I would be so overcome that my brain would turn off and I would meekly obey you without question on the off chance you might condescend to climb into my bed?”
Behind Everard, one of his knights winced. The other just stared, motionless like a statue.
“I don’t care that you danced with him!” Black smoke boiled out of Everard. “You were hidden and safe. Arvel dragged you out into that nest of vipers and made sure that every single one of them noticed you! If any of them find out what you’re capable of, they will crush every bone in your body for a crumb of the knowledge hidden in your head.”
“But they don’t know what I’m capable of, and instead of helping me fade into obscurity, you added to the spectacle by dropping everything and thundering through the streets to escort my carriage! You know Sauven watches you like a hawk. Everyone you interact with becomes suspect in his eyes. What were you thinking?”
“I kept you safe!” he snarled. “Arvel thinks laws don’t apply to him. He’s trained in defensive warfare, he plans and lays traps, and when they fail, he takes what he wants by force.”
“And yet neither he nor his knights are here, are they? The only one here trying to force me is you.”
His eyes were two green points of light. “I don’t have to force you. You’re already mine.”
Okay, that was it. That was the last fucking straw.
“I wish you would stop with this shit. For two and a half weeks I lived on pins and needles, wondering if you were poisoned and dying. Ramond, you didn’t even bother to let me know you were alive. If I hadn’t gone to the joedurar, I still wouldn’t know if you’d survived. It didn’t cross your mind, because to you I’m a tool, and tools do not warrant that kind of consideration. They are supposed to stay at home, nice and neat, waiting quietly until you need to use them. So please, for the love of the Aspects, stop and be honest.”
You broke my heart. Own up to it.
The whole courtyard was filled with his smoke now. We were ankle deep in it. It churned and roiled, sparking with green when it collided with itself. Magic saturated the air, so thick and potent, it sizzled on my skin. At this rate, he would wake up Isadau and adding her to this mix would only make things worse.
A third Selvan knight ran into the courtyard. “My lord, our absence was noticed. Crown Prince Kiel is on his way to Razmur. He’s accompanied by Silveren and the Redeemers—”
I faced Everard. “Answer me one thing: If I hadn’t danced with Arvel at the joedurar, would you be here right now?”
“My lord,” the knight called, his voice tight with urgency. “We must—”
Everard raised his hand and the knight fell silent.
Everard looked at me. “I want to be with you and just you. If you never told me another secret again, I would still want you. Nobody can take you away from me. Not Arvel, not Sauven, not the Archmage, not the entirety of the Crimson Empire. The only person who can come between us is you. And I promise you, from this point on, I will bring the full power of everything I am to win you over. You will put your hand in mine, Maggie, and you will do it gladly.”
When hell froze over. “Leave my house.”
He turned around and marched out, his knights in tow. Will followed him and barred the door.
The remnants of Everard’s power faded into the night air.
“You fucking fools,” Gort said, his voice bitter.
“Not your call,” Will told him.
Lute grinned. “They’re our lives, old man.”
“I told you,” Shana said.
I cleared my throat.
“The joedurar went very well,” I said. “I danced with Arvel and, Clover, he said I looked exquisite.”
She blinked. “He did?”
“Yes. He also said I was radiant. I do believe you are the most skilled lady’s maid in the entire city.”
