Page 65 of Kingdom of Dance

“I never even considered any other course,” he said, so quietly she had to strain to hear him. They were passing a rowdy tavern, and Obsidian’s eyes were sharp as they darted all around. Zinnia didn’t miss the way he drew closer to her. It certainly felt nice to not be alone this time.

When they reached her usual gate, she expected Obsidian to melt away again, but it quickly became clear that he intended to see her all the way back to her room. The same watchman was on the gate as the previous time, and he squinted at Obsidian as they approached.

“Forgot your passcode this time, I suppose, like you forgot your letter before?”

Obsidian’s face gave nothing away, but Zinnia shook her head. Obsidian had barely arrived when she’d undertaken her last outing, but that was no excuse. She’d known Basil had called the soldier to keep an eye on her. She should have guessed that he was the person who’d supposedly fallen asleep in the boat and followed her through the gate.

Once the gate was shut behind them, the two figures took off silently along the cliff’s edge. She noticed that Obsidian moved with a grace that was almost feline, his training evident. There was clearly more to his story than the average soldier. Not that he was likely to share the details.

When they’d almost reached her window, it occurred to her to wonder what Obsidian’s plan was. “You, um…” She cleared her throat. “You won’t be able to get into the castle through my window. It’s got an enchantment on it to keep people out.”

“I know,” he said curtly. “I identified it my first night here.” He paused, sounding a little awkward himself as he added, “Not that I was trying to get through it. I was just…assessing the protections.”

Zinnia smiled to herself. It was always endearing when she managed to throw him off balance, even unintentionally.

“I’m not going to crawl through the window like a thief. I’ll go in by the gate, but not until I’ve made certain you’re going back inside,” he informed her, wiping the smile from her face.

“Are you my jailor now?” she challenged.

He met her gaze, unimpressed. “Should we go back over the part where my presence most likely prevented you from dying on two separate occasions tonight?”

She scowled but held her peace. He had a point.

They’d reached her own window now, and she turned to him. “I suppose you’ll report to Basil first thing in the morning?”

“No,” said Obsidian grimly. “For this, I’m confident he’ll want to be woken.”

Zinnia winced. She wasn’t looking forward to this interview. “It’s the middle of the night.”

“Which is why you’d better be the one to send a guard to wake him,” Obsidian agreed. “They might not do it if I ask.”

Zinnia sighed, resigning herself to the inevitable. “All right. Go back to your rooms. I’ll have a guard come fetch you, make it seem like we weren’t, you know…”

He looked at her blankly, and she rolled her eyes.

“Creeping around together in the middle of the night.”

“Oh.” Obsidian once again looked a little rattled, and Zinnia couldn’t help smirking.

“See you shortly.”

She slipped through her window as gracefully as she could, self-conscious in the knowledge that she was being watched. But by the time she was inside, and peered back out at the cliff, there was no sign of the soldier.

Zinnia changed quickly, stripping off her pilfered clothes and pulling the first gown she touched over her head. She winced as the movement agitated the various scrapes and bruises she’d acquired that night. None of them were at all serious. Certainly nothing to the ache that had weighed her down for the entire day, since Idric’s latest assault on her very essence.

As expected, she found guards outside her door, and as expected, they looked absolutely astonished when she requested them to rouse the king for her. Making no attempt to offer an explanation, she walked in their wake as they moved down the long corridor. She waited in Basil’s receiving room, feeling especially awkward about summoning him from his bed like this now that he had a wife to be inconvenienced along with him. But better she did it than Obsidian.

Her heart wrenched a little at how quickly Basil emerged, his hair tousled from sleep, but his eyes sharp and full of concern at the news that his sister had summoned him.

“What is it, Zinnia?” he asked, his gaze passing rapidly over her, as if looking for an injury. “Are you all right?”

She swallowed. “I’m sorry to wake you like this, Basil.” She looked pointedly at the guards, and Basil waved them to the door. As soon as they were gone, Zinnia sank into a chair, her hands twisting nervously in the folds of her gown.

“What’s going on, Zinnia?” Basil asked, sitting across from her. “I haven’t seen you do that since we were children, all those times Father called us into his study to reprimand us.”

She gave a weak smile. “Different king, but I’m afraid I’m still in trouble.”

He frowned. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

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