House of Lies and Sorrow (Fae of Rewyth #1)(29)

I stood from the table. “Are you questioning my ability to keep Jade safe? Because I assure you, I am more than capable of eliminating any threat. Any threat.”

Kara shook her head in disgust. “For a human?”

I motioned for Jade to stand next to me, and I wrapped an arm around her waist. “For my wife,” I growled. “Let’s go, Jade.”

She nodded and followed me out of the room. I didn’t let go of her until we were alone in the hallway. Surprisingly, she played along until we were alone, and shoved me away.

“This is your game now?” she hissed. “You ignore me for days then show up to be a possessive asshole?”

I held in my laughter. Jade looked wild. Her long, black hair was messy and unhinged. Her clothes hung awkwardly off her body, and her eyes seemed larger than the last time I had seen them.

Saints, I had missed her. I had actually missed her the past few days. Although I was never going to admit that.

“Possessive asshole?” I repeated. “You forget I am the next king. They should respect you more.”

“I can handle myself, thanks,” she replied.

“Oh really? You seemed to be doing a great job out there. Serefin shouldn’t have let you leave.”

“Because I’m your prisoner, right?” she asked. “I’m supposed to sit in my room like your property, and not leave until you tell me to? Is that right?”

I opened my mouth to reply, but couldn’t speak. Yeah, that was right. That was exactly what I wanted from her. Because she wasn’t safe here. Even my bedroom wasn’t safe, but at least I knew where she was. At least I knew what she was doing.

“I can’t risk you waltzing around the castle. You’re a target.”

She gave a ‘who cares’ motion with her arms, and let them fall to her sides. Her big eyes glistened, but the rest of her face was drenched in anger. “I don’t want to be here,” she said as she took a step closer to me. “I can’t just sit in there and watch my life waste away.”

My chest tightened, but I didn’t budge. “It isn’t safe, Jade.” I’m sorry, I almost added. But I stopped myself. I wasn’t sorry for protecting her. I wasn’t sorry for wanting to keep her alive.

A single tear fell from her eye, but she didn’t look away. “I want my life back,” she said.

She was pleading with me. I knew that. This was probably the closest thing to begging that Jade would ever do.

But it didn’t make a difference. I didn’t care. Giving into her meant risking her life.

I opened my bedroom door and motioned for her to enter. Her jaw clenched and her nostrils flared. I knew she was holding back her emotion. Her mask was cracking. But hope was deadly in Rewyth, and Jade was holding onto a life she would never return to.

I leaned in close to her as I whispered in her ear, “What life, princess?”

And I shut the door, locking Jade in.

“I wasn’t going to let them hurt her,” Serefin said from behind me.

“I know you weren’t.”

He smiled. “Although you sure know how to put on a show.”

“You think they had anything to do with this?” I asked him.

He shook his head. “I don’t know, but they seem to know more than everyone else about the attack. And Kara’s trouble. We both know that.”

I agreed. “I’m only keeping her in here until I know she’ll be safe,” I explained. I don’t know why I felt the need to explain myself to Serefin. He was never the type to question my decisions. He would follow me anywhere, he would do anything I asked him to do.

But still. Something in his expression made me continue, “As soon as I find out who’s trying to kill her, she’ll be free to roam the castle.”

“I know, brother,” Ser replied. “I get it.”

I nodded and started to walk away.

“You can’t keep her safe from everything,” he yelled after me. “A human will always be a target in Rewyth. As much as we wish that weren’t true.”

I didn’t turn around. I didn’t acknowledge his words.

But Saints. He was right. I knew he was right. Jade had a lot to learn if she was going to survive in Rewyth.





CHAPTER 13





Jade





Two hundred days went by.

Okay, it was only four days. But it felt like two hundred.

The water couldn’t get my skin clean enough. I stayed under the steam until I was sure I was going to melt away and float into the river myself. But it didn’t matter how many times I shampooed my hair or how hard I scrubbed my skin, I couldn’t forget the feeling of Malachi touching my thigh.

Holding my waist

Leaning in close.

I shook my head. It was ridiculous. It was pathetic.

My brain even restored to dreaming about him. As if I needed to think about him any more than I already had.

My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the bathroom door.

“Go away, Malachi,” I yelled.

But it wasn’t Malachi who entered anyway, chirping herself on the ledge of the sink.

It was Adeline.

“Adeline!” I shrieked. “What are you doing in here? I’m kind of naked right now!”