“Just where do you think you’re going?” a man’s voice rang out. I knew that voice.
I walked faster.
“Guards. Detain her.” The familiar sense of a Gifting washed over me.
I ran.
“Stop!” The Gifting wrapped itself around my feet, making them sluggish as if wading through water. “You don’t want to be rude to your guest, Princess Arie,” King Amir called. His voice drew nearer. Footsteps sounded on the marble floor. One set sounded like the slapping of bare feet. “Come back and chat with us for a moment. Your little friend says you snuck in, but won’t say how. Maybe you’ll tell me...” A steel undertone lined his voice. Despite my wishes, my feet turned to obey, and I met them in the middle of the hall.
“I didn’t know you were getting married!” Rena clapped her hands as we came face to face, shaking her head. “I don’t know why you kept it a secret—your fiancée is so charming!” I frowned, confused. Weren’t the Mere immune to a Jinni’s Gift?
Amir smiled over at her and winked. Ah. She might be immune, but she couldn’t spot a lie to save her life.
“She’s just shy about my seeing her on our wedding day,” Amir purred. He turned toward me, and I felt the full force of his Gift as he added, “Aren’t you?”
Gritting my teeth, I nodded like a puppet.
CHAPTER 41
Arie
KING AMIR SUMMONEDAman who’d been standing unnoticed a few feet behind the king with his guards. I startled when my eyes landed on him. He was a Jinni!
Violet eyes and pale skin, tinted with a faint blue just like Gideon’s, his hair was tied back and he stood just a bit taller, but they could’ve easily been brothers. He carried himself like a soldier.
“This is my friend, Enoch,” Amir said, clapping a hand on the Jinni’s shoulder, who didn’t react. “And you are safe here with us. Your father is resting now, but he’ll be excited to see you when he wakes.”
Despite everything I’d just seen, a sense of peace stole over me and I believed him. Of course, we were safe. And my father was comfortable. King Amir would never hurt him. My body relaxed and my mouth tilted into a smile. I bit the inside of my cheek. Hard. The pain snapped me out of it, back to reality, as I tasted blood.
“I’d like to see him,” I managed to say, hating the way my voice trembled.
His eyes narrowed.She has a strong mind.
I should’ve pretended to be more confused. He studied me as I stood there. My father’s men did nothing. Their loyalties had shifted.
“You don’t need to see him,” Amir told me, still using his Gift. My mind stretched, fighting it but struggling. “You’ve a wedding to plan, doesn’t she, Enoch?”
