Page 54 of Heart of Night
“The wedding is set for the end of the month,” he repeats, his eyes trained on Myron, whose face has hardened to granite, tendons in his neck standing out as he fights the magical bonds Ephegos is keeping in place.
End of the month. Six days.
Suddenly, it doesn’t matter who is following me or forced to be my lady’s maid, or even my guard with good intentions and bad affiliations. It’s only Myron and me, and the endless canyon opening up between us in those few days left to make my escape. Erina has Herinor and Ephegos, he has Myron, and Royad, the nameless Crow, and Astorian in the dungeon, and even a drug to make us all pliant.
And I have nothing to pit against his cruelty.
Twenty-Seven
Ayna
“He can’t do this,” I fling at Herinor, who has joined Clio and me in my room for a change. “He can’t force me to marry him when I’m already married to Myron.”
I try not to panic at the memory of Katrijanov escorting him back to the dungeon after the party, of the shiver running through my body when Myron’s ocean-blue eyes met mine over his shoulder before crossing the threshold. Magic or no, those eyes hold the power to silence the world around me, to make me drown in everything that he is.
I can’t allow myself to even think of him, or I won’t be able to form a clear thought.
“He can do whatever he wants. That’s the problem.” Clio is lounging on my bed, gesturing at Herinor whose vigilant gaze follows my pacing around the room. “He’s a fucking king with no regard for the laws of the fairylands.”
“What are the laws of the fairylands?” It’s not like anyone ever explained to me. All I know of the fairylands is the Seeing Forest, a very limited perspective of a much larger realm where a variety of other fairies live in peace under the rule of Clio’s brother.
“Mating bond over marriage.” Clio shrugs when I stare at her, trying not to read into the meaning of her words.
“There is nothing more sacred than a mating bond,” Herinor agrees.
“I didn’t strike you as the romantic type,” Clio quips, fiddling with the maid’s cap until it comes loose from her head. Massaging her scalp with one hand, she tucks the cap into the apron. “What?” She observes Herinor’s glare with as little respect for the warrior as any creature could hold—she’s the Fairy Princess after all—and crosses her ankles, her feet dangling over the edge of the bed.
“Just because I never had the chance to find a mate doesn’t mean I’m a barbarian.” Herinor holds Clio’s gaze, and I could swear the two of them will tear each other to shreds if I don’t get one of them out of the room.
“You are a barbarian.” Clio gestures at his overall appearance. “The nice armor and tidy hair don’t change anything.”
Watching Herinor grind his teeth, I ponder who of the two I need more at this moment and who I’ll kick out.
“Can we please stay on topic?” I decide I need them both to work on the matters at hand. “I can’t marry Erina, married or mated. I can’t marry him.”
“Because you want to overthrow him and take the crown of Tavras for yourself, Lady Milevishja?” The scars on Herinor’s forehead scrunch as he raises his brows at me. “Because if that’s what you want, you might be better off marrying him and poisoning him once you’ve been crowned queen.”
“He has a point there,” Clio reluctantly agrees, fingers still in her hair as she undoes her braid with a frown on her features.
It’s been a while since I shared the news with Clio, but Herinor knew from the day Erina filled me in since he was standing guard during that fateful conversation. This is the first time he’s brought it up, though.
“Not happening.” I stop by the window, eyeing the darkening gardens in search of a solution. “He is a monster.”
“You thought Myron was a monster when you met him,” Herinor reminds me, and he’s not wrong.
“He never tortured someone I love to force me.” On the contrary. The day of our wedding, he handed me a knife to protect myself from him if need be.
“Truth,” Herinor admits, sitting back in the chair that seems too small for him. “He’d never have done such a despicable thing.”
My gaze drifts to Clio, who is rebraiding her hair. “Don’t forget Erina is holding my mate prisoner, too.” Despite her calm exterior, the fire of vengeance burns hot in her jade eyes. “And the other two Crows, of course.”
She’d happily sacrifice Royad and the other male if that meant Astorian got out alive, I have no doubt.
“The wedding is in six days. How do we get them out so Erina loses his leverage?” It’s the only question I should be asking, but there are so many swirling in my mind, like how did Kaira get into my head. Can she hear me now? When will I see her again? I haven’t told Clio and Herinor about what happened with the part-Flame in the throne room. For now, it feels too intimate to share with anyone.
“I shouldn’t be in here when you’re planning. If I know, my deal with Ephegos might force me to inform him.”
Clio stops him with a sharp look. “If you as much as think of telling him anything we speak about in here, I will end you, with or without my magic.” Her hand drifts to her hip where a sword would usually be hanging, and the menace in her expression is convincing enough to make me quiver.