Page 37 of Decoy

“I suppose it’s rather difficult to spy on your quarry when you can’t find them.”

I instantly recognized that familiar and aggravating voice coming from behind. I spun around to find Luke himself, wearing a deep frown.

“How did you—”

I’d been able to sense the advisor’s arrival—an awareness that extended to the other members of the court, attending guards, and servants crowding the room—yet as before, Luke had failed to capture my notice, a riddle made even more puzzling considering he commanded attention whenever I found myself in his presence.

“That’s not the most pressing question.” He leaned closer, compelling me to step back until I pressed against the hedge. “Are you in cahoots with the royal advisor to find dirt on me?”

Dread twisted my stomach. My first instinct was to lie and feign ignorance, but by the warning filling his dark eyes, I knew I had no hopes of getting away with it. “You overheard.” How could he have possibly achieved such a feat from across the garden?

He sensed the confusion shrouding my unspoken question. “I’m an expert on obtaining information.”

Apparently so. Hopelessness shrouded me. This man far surpassed my own abilities in every way, making me entirely inadequate for the daunting task before me. If he was truly the one I searched for, how could I ever hope to best him? No matter the breadcrumbs he dropped for me for his own amusement, they’d never be enough to lead me to what I needed…meaning I’d failed, just like my first mission.

Luke lowered his voice. “Your silence condemns you, but I still want answers. What’s going on…Princess?”

My suppressed shame finally took hold to burn my cheeks. “I didn’t mean—” I sought for any excuse, but none were forthcoming, for in the end I was guilty of all he accused me of. I couldn’t fathom why I would feel bad for anything I did to the man who’d tried to kill me, but for some reason I felt a strange need to protect him.

Silence stilled his accusations as he searched my face for the secrets I remained desperate to protect, even as his own remained hidden far from my own reach. I fought to mask my emotions, but his training made him too attuned to be so easily fooled.

Rather than the condemnations I expected, surprising concern softened his expression. “Are you alright?”

The question wasn’t mocking, nor did it seem insincere. Despite having caught me actively investigating him, he seemed genuinely troubled by the distress slipping free from my rigid barrier.

Though I felt an acute sense of regret for him to discover the extent of my dishonorable treatment of him, my relentless guilt compelled me to confess all. His eavesdropping had already provided him with enough information to expose my ill intentions. Only honesty would salvage any hope of moving forward. He may have been an unusual choice as confidant, but despite numerous opportunities he hadn’t killed me, and oddly enough he felt like my only friend here.

As if he sensed these desires with his highly attuned awareness, he offered his arm to escort me away from the others, seeming entirely unconcerned that going off alone with him would only add to the rumors of us being a couple.

He led me to a neighboring garden abloom with honeysuckle, irises, and crocuses whose symphony of perfume filled the caressing spring breeze. The secluded beauty closed in around me like the noose that remained an ever-present fear. With no one around to witness, it’d be all too easy for him to rid himself of the one spying on him.

“You’re exhibiting a great deal of trust in choosing to be alone with me, but as easy as it’d be to kill you, I desire to play with my food for a bit.” Mischief filled his eyes, accenting his theatrics that despite my fear I could now see clearly for what they were.

“Perhaps if you speak the lie enough, you can convince yourself of its truth. You won’t kill me until you’ve obtained every advantageous piece of information, and then you’ll choose a method that will allow you to avoid any blood.”

He frowned. “You exude a lot of confidence for being at a distinct disadvantage.”

I shrugged. “If you truly desired to kill me, you’d have done it already.”

His careful hold on his performance faltered and I smirked in triumph. It felt good to finally win a round in this dangerous game, one that despite the risks I found myself enjoying the longer we played.

I tilted my head and considered. “I’m curious what method you have in mind when the time comes for you to finally do the deed. You’ve already attempted poison…perhaps strangulation?”

He squeezed his eyes shut with a groan. “Must we discuss this?”

Conversing about various blood-free murder methods felt the safer course than the obvious topic. Similar to a moth attracted to a flame despite the risk of being burned, I found myself wanting to know who he was—to see beyond his assassin persona to the man hidden inside.

“Surely you’re gentleman enough to warn a lady how you plan on ensuring her eternal silence so she can prepare herself. Not to mention I still have to wonder at your own motives. For someone whose family enjoys the benefits of their close ties with the crown, it seems strange you’d seek to destroy that future by murdering the sole heir.”

Unless their true ambition was to possess the crown itself, a potential motive that acted as yet another piece of evidence that he was the mastermind I sought. He didn’t immediately answer, making me wonder if I’d pushed this game of ours too far. With every steadying breath he seemed to draw his scattered confidence securely back around himself.

“Offering ample warning seems pointless. Strangulation would likely require greater resolve than I currently possess considering how long it takes to dispatch a victim, though it has the advantage of being silent. However, poison is far more ideal. I have no plans to do that at present; if you’re in doubt, feel free to search me.”

He opened his arms invitingly and for a faltering moment I made the mistake of imagining his proximity surrounding me as I conducted the required search. My cheeks burned at the thought of being so close to him, a blush that by his responding smirk he’d unfortunately noticed.

I couldn’t hide anything from this odious man.

Luke finally directed the conversation away from the topic of murder to the topic at hand. He helped me ease onto a bench near a fountain whose soothing sound would help mask our conversation from potential wandering eavesdroppers and loomed over me, his arms folded and his look expectant.

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