Page 67 of Ties of Dust

A flash of anger crossed the nobleman’s features before he could contain it. It wasn’t the anger that sent a shiver up Flora’s spine, however. It was the way it transformed Sir Keavling’s face, and the speed with which the fire disappeared from his eyes again. The man was most definitely wearing a mask. She knew the signs betterthan anyone.

“Perhaps, Your Highness,” Sir Keavling said smoothly, “you would be wise not to make an enemy of me.”

Cassius shifted forward, his taller frame towering over the other man. “Is that a threat?”

“Of course not, Your Highness.”

Now that she’d seen his mask, Flora couldn’t see anything else. Every word was false—she had no idea who this man really was.

“Watch yourself, Sir Keavling,” Cassius said, his form stiff with tension. “I will certainly be watching you.”

“Words I would only expect to hear from a man who has nothing to fear from close scrutiny himself.” The nobleman’s words were spoken quietly, sleekly.

Flora didn’t miss the way his eyes flicked to her and then meaningfully back to the prince. She stared stonily at him, knowing his interest in her was only in how she might provide leverage against the prince. But the nobleman would be disappointed. Cassius might prefer their situation not to be discovered, but it wasn’t such a dire outcome that he could be blackmailed through threat of it. She doubted Cassius would even care about the idle warning.

She was therefore surprised when the prince immediately bristled.

“You come dangerously close to crossing a line,” he said darkly. “You overstep your position, and your determined attempts to influence policy have been noted.”

“I wish only to serve Carrack, Your Highness.”

By way of reply, Cassius turned on his heel and stalked from the room. Flora could feel Sir Keavling’s eyes on her back as she moved smoothly into the corridor.

“You’re not needed.” Cassius’s words, directed to the other guards, held the hint of a growl.

Flora saw them exchange looks before they bowed andwithdrew. She, of course, couldn’t be dismissed, so she followed the prince in silence as he strode with agitated steps through a maze of corridors she hadn’t traversed before. They walked for some minutes, but when they emerged into a well-tended garden, Cassius didn’t seem to have calmed down much.

He moved down the rows of flowers and into a decorative spiral of hedges that reached the height of his head. After he’d traveled well into the spiral, he stopped and turned, the movement so abrupt that Flora actually walked into him.

Cassius’s arms shot out before she could stabilize herself, gripping her shoulders and holding her steady while he searched her eyes.

“Are you all right?”

“What?” She blinked at him. “Of course I’m all right.”

“He was threatening you, Flora, don’t you understand that?” Cassius’s hands tightened on her shoulders, his pale blue eyes intense.

“Calm down, Cassius,” she said firmly. She placed her hands over his in a reassuring gesture. His fingers were tense and strong. “He was threatening you—I can’t imagine he has any interest in me.”

“He does.” Cassius’s voice left no room for argument. “I’ve seen how he watches you.”

Flora hesitated. She’d seen it too. “Maybe he suspects the tether.”

Cassius didn’t respond. He pulled suddenly away, turning to the side and lowering his brow into one hand. He seemed to realize he needed to pull himself together. Flora had sympathy for him. If she was reeling from the previous night’s events—not only their dance at the ball but the illusory embrace they’d shared as they slept—hemust be as well. She understood perfectly how difficult it was to have no privacy from the person you most needed it from.

Hesitantly, she moved forward. The prince’s hair, usually swept back from his brow, had fallen over his face, making him look disheveled and more…human. With a featherlight touch, Flora slid her fingers under it, shifting the hair from his face. He stilled, his eyes closing in an expression that was somehow both guarded and incredibly vulnerable.

“Don’t worry about me, Cassius,” she said softly. “I’m much more resilient than you realize. I’m a weathervane. Worry about your kingdom and your alliance. That’s what Sir Keavling is really threatening.”

“I do worry about my kingdom.” Cassius opened his eyes, raising his head to look her in the face again. “Constantly. But I can’t seem to help worrying about you, too.”

“You don’t need to,” she assured him.

He didn’t look convinced. “What do you mean, you’re a weathervane?”

“Oh.” She laughed lightly as she took a step back. “It’s a nickname I gave myself during my studies. I might let myself be blown this way and that, but it doesn’t bend me out of shape. Weathervanes are designed to be blown about, they don’t suffer any harm for it.”

“Why must you be blown this way and that?” Cassius pressed, his voice low and far too captivated. “Why can’t you have a settled home?”

---