Torrent of Tears (Scourge Survivor Series Book 3)(64)
“. . . after the introductory dancing, there will be a feast and then the actors will come and the finest dramas of the past cycle will be acted out. I attended one last year that. . .”
Blah. Blah. I gritted my teeth and scanned from right to left. Seventeen sisters sat erect in their cushy, junior thrones with intricate updos and golden armbands roping up delicate arms. Their ample chests were corseted and plumped up for view and their gowns were a veritable rainbow, reflecting the visual interpretation of their given names.
I scowled at my flat bodice. Thanks, Balor. When he’d done his magic enhancements, couldn’t he have given me more in the T-and-A category? I had the strength of earth, the passion of fire, but I got totally robbed in the boob gene pool.
As a tray-wielding waiter passed by, I swigged down the remnants of my flute and swapped it for a freshie.
Freya Love, sitting prim and proper to my left, scowled. “Could you at least pretend you have manners? You reflect upon the Ninth House now. Who raised you?” She gave a polite wave to a couple swooping by on the dance floor.
“Maximus Reign,” I said, pasting on a smile. “The most feared warrior and slayer of the Realm of the Fair.” I batted my eyes at the men standing with our douchebag fiancé at the side of the room. “Reign was more concerned with his kids coming out on top of a fight than which fork to use. You know, he never even mentioned holding up our pinkies as we stabbed through the chest of our enemy.”
Freya rolled her eyes. “You don’t scare me.”
“I guess I’m the twin who got the lion’s share of the brains.”
“Gods, don’t say that aloud. It’s bad enough you’re a sister Eligible, but to be my biological double—it’s horrifying.” She smiled for the crowd, keeping her gaze straight ahead. “Why don’t you go get yourself killed? Then, Zale and I won’t have you thrust upon us like someone’s unclaimed laundry.”
I snorted. “Trust me, I have no interest in playing house with you, Zale, and the sister wives of the Ninth House.”
“So, go.” She sipped on her glass flute. “Slip away after the feast and be gone. No one will even know you’re missing until the dramas conclude and that won’t be until after dawn.”
“That’s a great plan, in theory, but I’ve got unfinished business here in the palace. I can’t just take off. Besides, where would I go?”
“Back to your pathetic little mountain, of course.” She paused as the song ended. Some of the dancers milled around before us, waiting for the next song to start while others escorted their partners back to find someone new.
I busied myself with my champagne glass until the music picked up again. “I can’t access the portal pond. Believe me, I’ve looked into it.”
Freya slid her gloved hand into the silk clutch looped around her wrist and pulled out a sapphire brooch. As she delivered a Cheshire grin to the masses, she slid the jewelry into my palm. “Give this to the night watchman at the portal. His wife loves trinkets and he’s willing to bend the rules to keep her happy.”
My skin got hot as the hair on my nape stood straight up. “Why would you do this for me?” She looked over at Zale and I had to laugh. “You know Zale’s got a thing for me and you want me out of the way.”
“Please,” she scoffed. “He’s not interested in you any more than a man watching a dog fight. You’re a novelty he doesn’t understand.”
“And can’t possess,” I said. “He’s not used to being slighted by Eligibles. I’m not part of the collection he’s built for himself.”
“Two is hardly a collection.” She swept a wayward curl and tucked it back in place.
“Two?” I snorted again. “No, he’s up in the double digits. According to the guards, he sneaks them out behind the bronze wall and gets his grind on quite regularly. I actually stumbled upon him myself the first morning I was here.”
“You’re lying,” she snapped. An unattractive vein pulsed beside her eye. “You would say anything to cause trouble.”
“I guess that wasn’t you then, moaning and panting as the sun came up.”
She turned on me, her pale purple gaze hardening with fury. “Zale loves me. He told me I would be head-wife—”
“You too? He told me the same thing. Said I intrigue him beyond the others.” I laughed as she raised her hand to cover her mouth. “Oh, please. Is that the line he used on you? Come on, you’ve got to see that he’s a player, right?”
“Get away from me, you . . . you freak.” Freya Love’s veneer of perfection cracked like a fault line. She squeezed her eyes tight and when she opened them, her mask was back in place. “If you think I’ll let you ruin what Zale and I have, I promise you . . . you’ll find yourself on the unpleasant end of a tragic but fatal accident.”
I had to laugh out loud. “Let me get this straight. You’ve heard the allegations that I’m the person who stalked a senior Strati in the dead of night, evaded an army of soldiers and left four men with their throats hanging open and your first thought is to blackmail me with the threat of violence? Really? You’re going with that?”
While I was still chuckling over that one, a middle-aged man in a scarlet chiton stopped directly in front of us. “Princess Grace,” he said. “Would you care to dance?”