Page 27 of The King's Maiden
“He came up to me and?—”
“Quinn.” Elaine stared at me like I’d grown a second head. “Max Dread doesn’t approach anyone.”
“What?” I exhaled a shaky laugh. “What do you mean, he doesn’t approach anyone? He came up to me and?—”
She put her hand on my arm and stopped me again. A quiet—completely unexpected—growl escaped me, my frustration mounting quickly alongside my confusion.
“I’m serious, Quinn. Max Dread is, like, this totally elusive creature at Camelot Court. He barely interacts with the other Knights. Only shows up if they’re required to be somewhere. Girls go up to him when they don’t know who he is, but heneverapproaches them first. He never approachesanyone.”
“That’s ridiculous.” I put my hands on my hips, at this point sure she was pulling my leg, and I wasn’t really up for anyhazing the newbieschemes. “If he’s some kind of recluse who hates people, why the heck is he even part of Camelot Court?”
“His family practically founded the Camelot Society. I mean, everyone knows the D’Arthurs were the original family, but the Dreads played a huge role. Merle, his father, is Kappa Rho’s most prestigious alumni.”
“Kappa Rho?”
“Kappa Rho Theta. It’s the official fraternity charter, but everyone usually says KRT or Camelot Court, and you know who they mean.” Elaine waved off the topic and went back to Merle. “Anyway, Max’s dad has been an advisor to each year’s King since he graduated. And it was his great-great-grandfather who created The Quest!”
“Oh.” I didn’t know what else to say. “Um, well…I doubt it means anything that he came up to me then. I was standing in the doorway. Probably just blocking his exit.”
“Please.” She scoffed. “Like that would stop him if he wanted to leave. The guy’s huge.”
She had a point.
“Are you two talking about Max Dread?”
Blue eyes pinned me with an accusing stare. My brow lifted at the girl who stood behind us, her arms crossed over her chest. Her ivory skin and black hair made her eyes glint like sapphires in the mirror.
“Yes,” I answered, darting my gaze between her and Elaine. “Also, does anyone else think it’s weird that we keep calling him by his full name?”
Ignoring my question, the girl lifted her chin. “Stay away from him.”
I bristled at the unexpected command, but before I could respond, Elaine beat me to it. Having only encountered warmth and kindness from her, the chill in her tone surprised me.
“Might be hard to do if he picked her as his Maiden, Vivian.” Her cold glare matched Vivian’s sharp gaze. “And we take our orders from the King. Not you.”
Vivian responded with a derisive snort. “Please. As if Max would slum it with a charity case. Especially one that’s a?—”
I slapped my hand on the vanity, standing up and turning to face her. “I’m sorry, but do you know me?”
Vivian sneered down her nose at me, her red lips poised to respond. But I kept speaking before she could.
“Because I’m sure I don’t know you well enough for you to be making assumptions about me.”
“Assumptions?” She scoffed. “I made it a point to know everything there was to know about the other applicants for The Quest. The best way to defeat an adversary is to know their weaknesses, after all.” She lifted her shoulder, smiling placidly as some of the other girls turned their attention toward us. “You’re Quinn Everly. A broke college student who dreams of being a dancer but can’t get her lungs to cooperate. Not since your accident.”
My spine straightened.
“Not since you got your only living parent killed.”
A gasp sounded from Elaine, but I couldn’t look at her. Nothing Vivian said surprised me. It was all true. She quoted it straight from the short bio I’d included on my application for The Quest. My only question was how she’d gotten it.
Vivian smirked. “Do you want to know who spilled all your dirty secrets to me?”
I said nothing. Vivian hummed like she was considering sharing the information with me. But I knew better.
“That’s too bad.” Her saccharine tone and sweet smile contradicted the venom in her eyes and the bite in her words. “It’ll be so much more fun to watch you try and figure it out. Maybe it was the King. Our families are so close, after all. Or maybe it wasyourKnight.”
She stepped toward me, forcing my back into the vanity. I gripped the edge for leverage as she leaned in, and her lips curled into a cruel smile. A sense of dread filled my chest when Vivian’s eyes shot to Elaine.
