A jeweled dagger lay on top of a red velvet cushion. The handle was silver swirls, almost mimicking the swirls of her ring, and encrusted with rubies and black sapphires, matching the scabbard it came in. The blade sang as she unsheathed it, the point sharp and gleaming.
“Perhaps you might give me my knife back now,” Cassius drawled, breaking the silence.
The knife she’d taken in Agripa, which was currently strapped to her thigh.
In the past, she might have suggested that if he wanted it back so badly, he could take it from her. And given the way he watched her, something flashing in his blue eyes, maybe he was thinking the same thing.
But that memory vanished as the sounds of her sister’s last gurgling breath whispered in her ears.
Cassius had betrayed her, cut a wound so deep there was no recovering from it. His knife wasn’t the only thing she’d take from him. A castle didn’t just crumble overnight, and she’d start chipping away at his, removing pieces brick by brick. Thalia sheathed the dagger, setting it to the side.
“I thought it would be wise to get to know more about my new home,” Thalia said, ignoring his comment. “I think it would be good to see what the capital is like, to introduce myself to the people.”
Cassius watched her, his face unreadable as she stabbed her fork in the eggs atop her rich, buttery, golden toast.
“So you want to go into the city?” he said, watching as she swallowed her food before downing the rest of her tea.
Thalia daintily wiped her mouth. “Yes. Unless that is forbidden.” She frowned at the spot of tea that’d fallen onto her chest. She patted away the spot, taking extra care to wipe her napkin across her cleavage, which was on special display thanks to the dark-green gown she wore.
She glanced at Cassius, whose jaw flickered. “It’s not forbidden,” he finally said.
Thalia raised her brow. “Then I’d like to go. I’m sure it is customary in your world for fanfare when a royal makes an appearance, but I have no need. I’d rather be seen as … me.” The last part came out awkwardly, and Cassius noted it with a flare of his nostrils.
“You’ll need an escort,” Cassius bit out.
“Of course,” Thalia practically purred. She turned to Keegan. “Are you busy this afternoon?”
Camilla choked as she drank from her goblet.
Keegan glanced at Cassius, but Thalia ignored the latter. “I’m afraid I have other duties to attend to.”
Thalia kept her grin fixed, not letting it slip as she turned to Camilla, who hid her laugh behind her cup. “Shall you escort me?”
Camilla shook her head, trying and failing to hide her smirk. “I have other duties to attend to as well.”
Fine, Lord Damien, then, even if being around him still set her on edge. But before she could open her mouth, the red-eyed Vampyr said smoothly, “I’m afraid I also have duties, Princess. But Lord Cassius shall be of service.”
Thalia slowly slid her gaze to Cassius, who glared at Lord Damien with so much ire she was surprised the Vampyr didn’t catch flame. “And will you escort me?”
Having Cassius accompany her was less than ideal, not with him watching her every move. But sacrifices needed to be made if she had any hope of learning more about the Vampyr realm and how she might gut them all.
Cassius toyed with the black quill, his fingers twisting so hard it nearly snapped. Finally, he said, “I have a few things to get to, but yes. We can leave in an hour.”
Thalia felt a surge of satisfaction go through her as she stood, her chair scraping back with the movement. “Then I look forward to it.”
Being out of the castle during the day was a shock to the senses.
The sun remained firmly behind the clouds, the sky gray and dreary as if waiting to rain. It cast the whole courtyard in a sort of gloom that seemed to wait for Thalia as she stood on the castle steps.
A few guards were stationed at her back, keeping watch. Thalia ensured that both Cassius’s knife and the prince’s gift were strapped to her waist. She’d also changed into pants and a tight-fitting tunic, practical clothes in case something should go south—like a Vampyr deciding they didn’t take too kindly to a human now serving as their princess.
Thalia craned her head as Cassius led two horses through an archway from what must have been the direction of the stables. She really needed to get a map of the castle. Given its vastness and quiet halls, gods knew what might be lurking around unsuspecting corners.
“I get my own horse?” Thalia asked.
Cassius raised a brow, adjusting the stirrups of the horse she’d ride. The dapple gray mare dipped her head, and Thalia scratched her forelock. “You seem disappointed.”
Thalia let the horse snuffle her fingers. “Not disappointed but surprised. What’s her name?”
