Page 6 of A Tongue so Sweet and Deadly

Pretend, for a little while longer, that all was well.

Chapter

Three

Lessia shivered when the wind tore through her coat as they walked the winding path back to their home. Her friends giggled and gossiped beside her, and the drunken soldiers joined them, laughing and boasting about their adventures at sea.

Slinging an arm around her shoulders, Ardow tugged her close to his massive body to shield her from the icy gusts of snow that swirled around them.

The cliffs that Asker was built upon did little to shelter the town from the ocean breeze, which in summer was well needed but in the deepest winter caused ice to slither up the stone buildings lining the road, making the stone town seem as if it were made of crystal.

Ahead towered the white castle that once housed the monarchs of Ellow. Warm light flickered out of the many windows lining the tall walls, and soft music reached her ears over the wind.

The regent must be hosting some type of festivities.

She’d never been inside the castle, had never been invited when other merchants met to mingle there.

It wasn’t too surprising. After all, she owned only a few rowdy taverns and the odd gambling room and had a bit of a reputation for being senseless and flighty.

Ardow squeezed her shoulders when they neared the metal double doors to the old warehouse they lived in. It was abandoned when Lessia found it, and she’d acquired it for a bargain from a desperate merchant who was shutting down his business. With Amalise’s and Ardow’s help, she’d turned it into a home over the years.

“I’m heading to the office quickly.” Lessia slipped out of his embrace. “Keep them busy, will you?”

She flicked her eyes to Amalise and the two other women they typically spent their evenings with—Soria and Pellie—and the seven soldiers they’d dragged home, including the dark-haired one Amalise had spoken to all night.

Ardow nodded, but when he guided the rest left, up a spiraling staircase—toward the only room they allowed outsiders—Amalise doubled back, patting Ardow on the shoulder as she passed him.

Lessia arched a brow. “Have you tired of the soldier already?”

It wouldn’t be the first time. Amalise loved to flirt, but no man stayed around for long. And even though Lessia teased her about it, her heart tugged when her friend grinned at her.

Amalise had lost her first and only love when she was eighteen. Six years ago, he’d gone out with a boat, working as a fisherman, as most men in Ellow who weren’t nobles did, and after they’d been caught in a surprise storm, the only thing that returned was shards of wood crashing onto the beach.

Amalise had told her one night when they’d both drunk too much wine.

It was the only time Lessia had ever seen her cry.

Her eyes burned at the memory. Seeing Amalise so vulnerable had made Lessia share her own worst memory, one that hurt more than all the years she’d spent imprisoned. One that forever would taint any good memory she carried from her childhood.

One that still haunted her dreams.

“Where did you go just there?” Amalise’s grin faltered, her eyes filling with worry as she placed a hand on Lessia’s shoulder.

Lessia shook her head, pushing the laughing girl’s face out of her mind. “Nowhere good.” She tried to smile, but it ended up more of a grimace. “I’m heading to the office. You coming?”

Amalise nodded, and they shifted a large shelf blocking the hidden door to the right side of the warehouse.

As they opened the door and slipped in, muffled sounds filled the air around them: hushed voices and soft footsteps echoing through the large room before them, bouncing off the shiny, arched ceiling.

Lessia glanced at Amalise, and they both rolled their eyes at the same time.

“I guess it is too much to ask that they follow curfew.” Lessia grinned.

When a head popped through one of the ajar doors lining the wall to the left, dark eyes widening and quickly disappearing, and a soft knock sounded on one of the walls separating the twelve bedrooms, everything fell silent.

Lessia couldn’t stop a small giggle from escaping, and after one look at Amalise, they both erupted in laughter.

“We know you’re awake. Come out,” Lessia managed to get out in between fits of giggles.

---