Page 54 of Prince of Shadow and Ash

Regulus watched him go, his expression stony.

“I do not like that man,” Dresden said. “The villain.” He spat.

“Drez!” Regulus snapped.

“That seems harsh,” Gaius said. He stood behind Minerva with his arms wrapped around her stomach.

“I’ve heard things,” Dresden said. “Scandalous rumors. About why his engagement was called off.”

“Nolan was engaged?” Adelaide asked, the information like a slap to her face. Regulus’ expression shuttered at her use of Nolan’s first name, and she felt an immediate twinge of guilt.

“It wasn’t very public,” Dresden explained. “But rumor has it his parents had arranged a marriage for him a couple years back. Some say to Baron Gaveston’s daughter, but who knows. He offended the bride’s father, who called it off. If that weren’t enough to call him a villain, one of the Carricks’ servants will swear up and down that Baron Esmil’s oldest daughter was forced to join a convent after she was caught...” He cleared his throat. “WithNolan Carrick.”

Adelaide’s face heated as she recalled Nolan’s offer to walk her to her room at Carrick castle.

“That’s a terrible thing to say based on rumor,” Gaius said.

“I’ve heard something similar.” Minerva nodded. “And I know a few young ladies who’ve admitted to pushing the boundaries of propriety for Nolan Carrick’s charm.”

Adelaide shrugged. “Hopefully that means he’ll easily find someone else to bother with his bravado.”

“Or he’s run out of other viable options,” Dresden said. Adelaide didnotcare for that possibility. She must have looked upset, because Dresden added, “But that seems unlikely. He’ll probably have moved on by this time tomorrow.”

“Enough about Nolan Carrick.” She waved her hand. “He’s wasted enough of our time.”

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REGULUS DUCKED OUTof his tent and stretched. The sun just peeked above the horizon and the chill air bit through his worn, loose linen shirt and trousers. His bare toes curled into the grass. The clatter of pots, sound of footsteps, rustle of tents, and snatches of quiet conversation drifted through the air. He breathed in deeply as he stretched, and immediately regretted it. The air stank of dust, smoke, horses, and body odor. It smelled like camp and took him back to his days as a mercenary. He had many fond memories of those days, but he wouldn’t go back. He didn’t miss camping with dozens of sweaty men who hadn’t bathed in weeks.

“Good morning, my lord!” Harold beamed as he rounded a tent, arms full of firewood.

“You’re particularly cheery today,” Regulus noted.

Harold bent down to arrange the logs in the ash from last night’s fire. “Never been to a tournament,” he said. “It’s exciting.”

“Never?”

“Never, my lord.”

“Huh.” Regulus supposed that made sense. Since becoming a lord two years ago, he had avoided tournaments. People were already suspicious of him, with his checkered background and the ease with which he defeated Lady Arrano’s champion. Best to keep a low profile and avoid any accidental displays of the supernatural side effects of the sorcerer’s mark.

Thinking of the mark made him uncomfortable. Was he endangering Adelaide by courting her? Could he risk marrying her?Oh, Etiros, do I want to marry her. He had assumed he would never marry. Too much darkness. Too much shame. But then Adelaide. She gave him hope. She liked his scar. His past and his scar, two things he thought made him undesirable, and she accepted them. But could she accept his mark? Could she love him if she knew the truth? Knew the oath he had made? The evil he served?

Not forever. Until his debt was paid.

If the sorcerer kept his word.

“Are you all right, my lord?” Harold’s brow puckered.

“Oh, yes.” He smiled. “Just thinking.”

“You should do less of that,” Dresden said, emerging from the tent opposite Regulus’. “Makes your face all frowny.”

“According to you I’m always frowning.”

Drez yawned. “Yes, but less so yesterday. I’d like to keep this new trend of smiling Regulus going.”

Regulus shook his head and rolled his eyes.

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