He grabs my chin and turns my head so I’m facing forward. “Look at how beautiful our empress is.”
Everyone cheers.
He releases me, then lifts his glass. “A toast to our empress. My queen, my love, the woman who inspires everything I do.”
They cheer again, clanking glasses together, ale sloshing over the floor, men tossing back glasses and draining pints with massive gulps.
Caiden drains his own glass, then slams it on the table with a flourish. He grips my chin again, then presses his lips against my cheek in a wet kiss.
I wince, my nose wrinkling in disgust. His lips brush against my ear. “Do try to look a little less like you’re plotting my death, my darling little raven.”
Pulling away from him, I stand. “I’m tired. I want to retire.”
“I’ll return with you,” Caiden offers.
“No need,” I say.
“Alright.” He snaps his fingers and two guards near the door hurry to his side. Neither of them has been drinking. They’ve been waiting there in case they were needed.
“Please prepare a carriage for my wife. She’ll be returning to camp.” Caiden waves them away, and the men leave the tavern.
A barmaid arrives with two glasses in her hands. “More ale, Your Majesties?”
“No, thank you,” I say.
Caiden takes them both, then leans closer to her until his nose is nearly against her cleavage. Ale spills over the sides of the glass. “And what is your name?”
She giggles. “Gretchen, Your Majesty.”
He sets one of the glasses down, then drinks from the other while whispering to the barmaid. I use his distraction as my opportunity to leave. By the time I reach the door, Gretchen is in his lap, and his lips are on her neck.
She looks over at me, and I can read the guilt in her expression. I mouththank you, hoping she understands that she’s welcome to him.
A smile replaces her slight frown, and she leans into Caiden’s touch before sliding her hand down his back. I step outside into the cold night air. My breath fogs and the thin layer of snow over the ground seeps into my slippers. I reach out toward the falling snow. They’re small, hard flakes. Not the beautiful fluffy ones. Still, I catch them on my fingers, watching them quickly dissolve as I wait for the carriage to arrive.
Several guards assist me into the carriage, and I’m silent for the short ride to camp. When we arrive, they insist on checking every inch of my tent, leaving me to shiver in the falling snow.
When they tell me it’s safe, I duck inside and look around for myself. There’s no sign of anything amiss, but I still don’t trust anything that’s in my trunk.
Instead, I remove my dress, leaving my underclothes on before tucking myself under the blankets.
I burrow under them, shivering but feeling numb. Closing my eyes, I will sleep to claim me. If only so I could leave this place for a short while. Instead, I see Brevan using his magicto kill without mercy. Another dangerous man with too much power.
Squeezing my eyes tight, I try to push the image away. I know why he does what he does. I know Caiden keeps his sister captive, just as he holds Anya to keep me in line.
What would I do if he asked me to use my magic to kill dozens of people? Would I go along with it?
My chest tightens. Brevan has been doing this for years. I know my brothers would have rather died than allowed me to become a killer on that scale.
Flopping onto my back, I open my eyes and stare up at the canvas of the tent. There’s a warm glow from the small lamp on the table. My insides twist as it reminds me of the flames that consumed that entire village.
Yet they spared this new village. At least for now. Were they going to drink their ale, fuck the people who lived here tonight, and slaughter them tomorrow?
I toss the blankets aside; anger I can’t tamp down bubbling up. Before I can think better of it, I burst outside the tent. The two guards at my door straighten at my presence, then their eyes dart away quickly. I remember that I’m in my underclothes so I wrap my arms around my chest to cover my peaked nipples. I imagine if their cheeks weren’t already red from the cold, they’d be flushed with embarrassment.
“Where is the enforcer?” I demand.
The pair look at each other as if hoping the other knows how to answer.
