He’d need to glamour me again too. It’d been almost a full day since he’d last done so, and from what I’d gathered, it usually faded in half that time.
Soren hesitated. “No need.”
“I don’t understand.” My mind started chanting,Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!But I had to ask, “Why would you help me?”
“It aligns with my goals.”
“Which are?” I pressed. I didn’t know why, but I needed to know.
Studying my face, Soren stayed quiet for so long that I thought he would refuse, but finally, he took a deep breath. “I have multiple reasons. The easiest to explain would be that I’ll take any opportunity to thwart the prince of the Hollow Court.”
Once again, I should’ve let it go, but I wanted to understand Soren better. “I know why he holds a grudge, even if it’s ridiculous, but... you’re angry with him too? What did he do to you?”
His whole body tensed.
If I hadn’t been paying attention, I’d have missed it. But the tips of his fingers grew white from pressure, his shoulders tightened, and a muscle feathered in his jaw.
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” I said softly. Though truthfully, I wanted to know even more desperately now.
“I suppose it might be beneficial for you to understand the Hollow Court a bit better,” he finally said in a voice that sounded like he’d chewed glass. He pushed out the next words like they hurt. “He’s the one who insisted on removing my wings.”
HORROR CROSSED MY faceagainst my will. I tried to still my features, but I could tell from Soren’s wince that it shone through.
His solemn gaze drifted away and then back to mine. “You might remember that I mentioned it was part of the bargain for my coming here?”
I nodded.
“Well, my father agreed it’d be best.”
I tried not to gasp, but I couldn’t quite stop it. “Your owndadagreed to that deal? Why? That’s insane! How couldanyonemake a deal like that, much less family?”
“The deal was multipurpose.” Soren’s voice was detached. He stared at a point on the wall as he explained. “Removing my wings would impair my strength and cripple me in the eyes of my own court, shaming me and everyone who might try to maintain contact with me. Humiliation is a goal all its own to the folk here.”
My hands covered my mouth as nausea roiled in my stomach. It wasn’t just the aftereffects of the wine anymore. Soren’s tired blue eyes returned to mine, paler than usual, but his hard expression blurred a bit as I blinked away tears. “That’s awful...”
“The prince has been jealous of me since we were young. When I ended his engagement to my sister, it only intensified his fury.” Soren stood from the bed, moving to the desk by the wall, which put his back to me. “There are probably other ways they could’ve severed my ties with my own court, but this particular method fulfilled a personal grudge.”
