Shaking her head, Dareena pushed all thoughts of Arolas out of her mind, and as the guards escorted her to the dining room, she imagined she was going to have dinner with her mates instead of the elves. The brothers would love seeing her in this dress—it flattered her figure perfectly, the bodice lifting her ample bosom and highlighting her small waist before it flared out into voluminous skirts. Her heart warmed as she imagined the hungry looks in their eyes as they debated between devouring the food on their plates or devouring her. But then, was there really a reason they couldn’t do both? A smile curved her lips at thethought.
“My lady.” The guard’s voice snapped her out of her reverie. “We’rehere.”
The warm tingles that had spread through Dareena’s blood vanished as the door to the dining room opened and she laid eyes on the royal family. King Andur sat at the head of the table, with Arolas and Basilla at his elbows. Relief flooded through her as she noticed the empty seat to Basilla’s left—Lady Valenhall was seated next to Arolas, and at the foot of the table sat a dark-haired man Dareena had never seenbefore.
“Lady Dareena,” the king said as they all rose from their seats. Dareena inclined her head, trying to be gracious even though all she wanted to do was rush out of the room. “It’s a pleasure for you to joinus.”
“Indeed,” the duchess said as Dareena opened her mouth to respond. “You’re just in time—another few minutes and surely I would have fainted fromhunger.”
“Perhaps if I had been given advance notice, you wouldn’t be made to suffer so, Lady Valenhall,” Dareena said coolly as she took her seat. The duchess’s eyes sparkled with annoyance, and the man at the other end of the table raised his eyebrows. But Dareena didn’t care—let them think what they would. They already believed her to be a harlot. What more damage could shedo?
“I don’t believe we’ve been introduced,” she said to the man as servants set plates of salad in front ofthem.
“How rude of us,” Arolas drawled. Dareena forced herself to meet his gaze even though he made her skin crawl. “Lady Dareena, this is Count Silus Kianor, envoy from Shadowhaven’s court and a trusted friend. Count Kianor, this is Lady Dareena Sellis, the Dragon’s Gift. Or should it be All Dragons’ Gift?” His lips curled into a cruelsmirk.
“Arolas!” Basillasnapped.
“No, that’s all right,” Dareena said coolly, picking up her utensil. She forked up a bite of salad and looked straight into Arolas’s eyes. “I do have quite an appetite,” she said before putting the fork in hermouth.
The atmosphere in the room turned awkward, even as Arolas’s smirk turned downright smug. “Whatever arrangement you have with the dragon brothers is none of our concern,” the duchess said in a clear attempt to wrangle the conversation back within the borders of propriety. “So long as your country agrees to ourdemands.”
Dareena swallowed a retort. “I have no reason to believe that my mates won’t cooperate,” she said, “unless they hear of how terribly you’ve treated Alistair. Do you know he rots in the dungeons below even now, like a common prisoner?” Dareena leaned forward, pinning the duchess with a fierce look. “You promised we would be treated like guests. Does the word of an elf mean solittle?”
The duchess stiffened. “I had not heard of this mistreatment,” she said defensively, turning to Arolas. “Is thistrue?”
“It is,” Arolas said, “and I see no reason not to leave him there. Spending a few days in the dungeon is the least any of the dragons deserve after all they’ve put our country through. I care not what you promisedthem.”
“Father!” Princess Basilla said, sounding scandalized. She turned to the king, who had an almost detached look on his face, as a spectator to a sport rather than a participant. “Are you really just going to sit by and do nothing while Arolas soils our goodname?”
“Don’t talk about me as if I weren’t in the room, sister,” Arolas snapped. “I am not the one behaving dishonorably. The dragons have yet to come through on their end—if they had paid the ransom by now, your little dragon friends would be free. It seems the negotiations will be protracted, though of course I could be persuaded to speed them up.” His gaze lingered on Dareena’s bosom, making her stomachtwist.
“It is very likely the dragons are stalling in a bid for time,” the count said, his deep voice smooth as the surface of a dark lake. He stroked his beard as he considered Dareena. “Rumor has it that the entire fortune of the dragon kingdom was stolen away by Dragomir, and that his sons are searching for it as we speak. But it is unlikely they will recover it—the former king may be mad, but he is still the stronger dragon. I doubt they will be able to pay even a fraction of theransom.”
“I don’t know anything aboutthat—”
Arolas pounded his fist on the table before she could finish her sentence, sloshing their wineglasses.
“How dare these pathetic beasts toy with us, as if we are not to be taken seriously!” His face turned red as he bared his teeth, and Dareena flinched as his angry gaze clashed with hers. “If your ‘mates’ insist on playing games,” he hissed, “then perhaps I need to give them an incentive to take us more seriously. Guards!” He snapped his fingers. “Bring the dragon princehere.”
“Arolas,” the king said, stirring from his stupor for what seemed like the first time. “Is this really the righttime?”
“Yes, really?” Basilla interjected, her face pinched with anger. “Can we not enjoy a meal every once in a while without you making a spectacle of some sort?” She looked like she wanted to rake her nails across Arolas’s face, and Dareena couldn’t blame her. Similar thoughts were going through her head, even as part of her was excited to see Alistair’s face again. She hoped he hadn’t fared too badly in theoubliette.
The servants brought out the next course—poached salmon—as if nothing were amiss. Dareena couldn’t even bring herself to pick at the food—she watched the door anxiously, waiting for the guards to come back. To be fair, she wasn’t the only one not in the mood to eat. Basilla looked downright mutinous, and the duchess looked a bit uncomfortable, taking small bites of her food as she observed everyone at thetable.
“So,” Count Kianor said, breaking the tension-filled silence, “Princess Basilla, have you considered Prince Mordan’s marriageproposal?”
Basilla, incredulous, opened her mouth, no doubt intending to deliver a scathing retort. But before she could, the door opened. Dareena and the princess gasped as Alistair was dragged in—his wrists and ankles were shackled, his clothes torn and dirty, and his matted hair hung over his face as he was hauled inside, barely able to standupright.
“What have you done!” Dareena cried, shooting to her feet. She tried to rush over to Alistair, but Arolas waved a hand, and a gust of air pushed her back against thewall.
“I’d advise you to stay back,” Arolas said as he rose from his seat. Alistair finally lifted his head, and Dareena let out a breath of relief as she saw his eyes blazing—they were filled with hatred, but at least they had life in them. “You wouldn’t want to get blood all over yourskirt.”
“Wha—” Dareena began as Arolas yanked a sword from one of the guard’s sheaths. The sword gleamed in the candlelight as he swung it high, and Dareena’s heart leapt into herthroat.
“No!” she screamed in horror as he chopped off Alistair’s right arm at the elbow with a single swing. Dareena followed the arc of spraying blood with mingled shock and disbelief, and the duchess shrieked as some of it spattered her face. Alistair roared with pain as he dropped to his knees, his other arm still firmly in the second guard’s grip—the first guard was holding the severed arm, a stunned look on hisface.
This can’t be real,she thought numbly as she stared at Alistair’s bloody stump.I’ll wake up in just a moment, and all of this will begone.
