Total pages in book: 161
Estimated words: 153795 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 769(@200wpm)___ 615(@250wpm)___ 513(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 153795 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 769(@200wpm)___ 615(@250wpm)___ 513(@300wpm)
Thane looks the prince up and down. “Sorry about that…friend.”
“What the shadows is wrong with you, Thane?” I snap, setting my wine down to assist Kelrean. “Kelrean, are you okay?”
Two guards appear with swords in hand, pointing the tips of their blades at Thane’s back. “Are you all right, Your Highness?” one of them asks.
“Give the order and we’ll detain him, sir,” the other guard says.
Kelrean raises a patient hand as bystanders swarm, murmuring among themselves with worry as they focus on their prince.
Oh my gods.
This is so embarrassing. This reckless assassin just punched royalty. Perhaps it will be Kelrean who causes Thane to finally meet his demise. What a twist that would be.
“I’m all right, I’m all right,” Kelrean announces, sniffling as he swipes a hand under his bloody nose. “Our friend here has suffered a rough journey. He had a few drinks, and I believe he needs rest. Mercy is needed here.” He fixes the lapels of his suit, then brushes imaginary dust off his shoulders. “Guards, please escort our friend to the castle so he may reorient himself.”
The guards go for Thane immediately, grabbing either arm.
“Get the fuck off of me.” Thane manages to maneuver himself away from them and storm off.
“Kelrean, I’m so sorry.” I clasp my hands together, looking at his bloodied nose. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m all right, Zaira. He got me good, I must admit.”
“I’ll talk to him. I’ll make him apologize,” I swear. “That was unbelievably rude of him.”
“Yes, it was, wasn’t it?” Kelrean accepts a handkerchief from another guard. When the blood is cleared, he sighs. “I should calm my people. See you at the castle?”
“Sure. Yeah.” When Kelrean saunters away, I chase after Thane and the guards, making sure to catch up before they reach a covered carriage. The guards shove him inside and demand the coachman take him straight to the castle.
“You’re lucky the prince is forgiving, otherwise we’d hang you on the mountain for what you’ve done!” one of the guards spits out.
“Just wait ’til the king hears about this,” the other one snarls.
When they storm off, I climb into the carriage and sit on the bench across from Thane. I hold on to the edge of the seat as we lurch forward. It’s only us in the dark, velvet confines—our bodies jostling with every dip and bump over the rocky path.
“I cannot believe you did that,” I finally mutter when we’re a third of the way there. “It’s like you want someone to kill you.”
He doesn’t dare look at me. Instead, he peers out the nearest window, watching the courtyard glow from a distance.
I scoff. “I don’t understand you at all.”
“I never asked to be understood,” he returns, eyes still focused out the window.
“Whatever.” I fold my arms. “You need to apologize to Prince Kelrean.”
“Apologies are only necessary when regret is felt.” He turns his dark gaze to me. “I don’t regret making your pretty prince bleed.”
“You know what, Thane? You are being beyond childish right now. You just punched a prince in the face in his own kingdom! They could’ve killed you for that!”
“They wouldn’t have succeeded.”
“He was being kind to you!”
“He’s full of shit.”
“You think that about everyone!” My voice rises a few notches. I don’t even fully understand why I’m yelling. Probably because I’m pissed that he’s keeping his voice so calm while I’m getting worked up. That has always irritated me. Analla would do it all the time whenever we had a disagreement. “I’m capable of making my own choices. You know that, right? I hired you to protect me when there’s danger. I didn’t ask you to watch me like a hawk during the times I’m actually enjoying myself.”
“I’m watching you because you trust too easily,” he fires back. “That heinous trait of yours is why you’re in this situation now. Because you hired a man you hardly know and put way too much faith in him.”
“And every step I take with you makes me regret that choice a little more,” I say under my breath.
After a stretch of silence, I sigh and lean forward, cradling my chin in my hands.
His eyes narrow, and he leans in, too, as he studies all the features of my face. “Are you sure about that, Quinlocke? Because when I look into your eyes, I don’t see regret.”
“No?” My pulse quickens. I hate how sexy he looks with the moon bathing half of his face, revealing the wicked scars I want to trace with the pad of my thumb. “What do you see, then, Valkor?”
He doesn’t flinch at the name like I thought he would. “I see hope, even when matters are unfavorable. You reserve it for me because you’re hoping you can find the light in my soul, but there is no light.” He pauses. “Do you want to know what else I see?”