11
I blinked open heavy eyelids, still dizzy.
A pillow cradled my cheek. The sound of a fire crackling and the steady echo of feet around a stone room. I tried to turn my head toward the footsteps, but pain lanced through my skull. I let out an involuntary groan.
Blake’s face swam into view, his bronze hair catching the light. I blinked up at him, disoriented. My body felt like it had been ripped open and stitched together again.
I tried to speak, but my throat rebelled, only a dry rasp escaping. He held a metal cup to my lips. Cool water soothed my dry mouth, and I sipped gratefully.
Finally, I managed to croak out, “Where am I?”
“In the palace.”
I struggled to a sitting position, drawing the ragged edges of my dress around me.
The suite was easily three times the size of the hut I shared with Edith. Golden pine floors were polished to a high sheen,warmed by a rich red rug that covered the length of the room. Rosewood chests were tucked into the corners. Tapestries depicting Tyger Warriors in battle fluttered over the walls, lit by a large arched window. A lacquered mirror hung next to the window by a dressing screen. I was lying in an enormous platform bed piled high with pillows and a thick silk comforter.
“What happened?”
His face hovered close. Tired. Strained. His hair was mussed, a few dark strands falling over his forehead like he’d been running his hands through it.
“Don’t get up yet,” he said sharply, pressing a hand to my shoulder. “You survived by the skin of your teeth.”
I glared at him. This was allhisfault. “Don’t touch me. Is Edith all right?”
His hand lifted, slow and deliberate. At his nod, I sagged with relief. Edith was safe.
“Why are you here?” I asked.
His jaw clenched as he breathed out roughly through his nose, eyes fixed on the wall. “You are under my jurisdiction now.”
“What?”
“You Bonded a tygress,” he said, voice flat. “That makes you one of mine.”
“One of—?” Possessiveness rolled through me like a wave. “Flame ismine.”
There was a pull in his cheek, like my protectiveness of the tygress was something amusing. I clenched my fist hard against the comforter. Would they kill me if I hit him?
“She belongs to the dominion. And, as her rider, so do you.” His arms crossed as he paced in front of the bed, looming over me. I’d never longed to hold my dagger more. “Now, are you prepared to tell me what you did in the Arena?”
“You mean surviving?”
“Yourvoice, Rubi,” he snapped, heat replacing all the usual coldness of him. “Tell me, and I might be inclined to help you—”
“Help me?” I laughed, pushing myself up despite the protests of my aching muscles. His disapproval was tangible. “You tried to kill me in that Arena. I got lucky because Flame appeared. She is the one who helped me.”
The door slid open then, and a trio of maids scurried in, all flustered and giggling among themselves when they spotted Blake’s tall figure by my bed.
“It’s him,” one of the maids breathed, her voice barely a whisper. I rolled my eyes, noting the slight flare of pink in the Ambush Master’s cheeks.
The other two maids instantly fell into nervous, clumsy bows, their faces flushed as they tried to hide their awe at seeing the famed Twin Blade. “What can we do for you, sir?”
His eyes fixed on me. “She needs food and a bath with plenty of hot water.”
The maids stumbled over each other in their haste to please him.
I raised an eyebrow. “Is it a hobby of yours to intimidate the domestic staff?”
