Page 6 of The Robin on the Oak Throne

“I bet it pleases you.”

His smile was feral. “I never know whatyouare thinking.”

“Lucky me.” Kierse glanced away. What was the point of hiding it from Graves anyway? Maybe he knew of another place where the bracelet might be kept. His magicwasknowledge, after all. If only every bit of it didn’t come with a price.

But she needed that bracelet. She’d been working all spring on a way to get into the market. This was the only opening.

“A goblin-made bracelet,” she finally said. “Silver with an amethyst at the center.”

Graves’s eyes lit on her. After a beat of silence, he began to laugh.

Kierse put her back up. “What’s so fucking funny?”

“Even you could not have succeeded.”

“Why?”

“Because, little thief, Queen Aveline iswearingthat bracelet tonight.”

Chapter Three

Graves made it seem like a problem that the queen was wearing the bracelet. But it wasn’t a problem.

It fixed everything.

“Even better,” she said.

Then she jerked the door open and strode out.

Graves was hot on her heels as she navigated the never-ending corridors. “You cannot think you’ll take it from her.”

Kierse smirked at him. “And why not?”

“She’s one of the oldest living dryads, and you are in her domain. She is queen of this domicile.”

“And tonight is the night where every person at the party can have an audience with her. Which includes me.”

Graves shot her an exasperated look. “An audience is not a private matter. It is in front of the entire court.”

“Are you questioning my skills?”

“Not at all,” he assured her. “But you’ll never get close enough.”

Kierse ignored him as she trotted down the last set of stairs that led to the receiving room. Midnight was approaching and with it, the end of the public audiences and the beginning of the ball. She had to get to the queen before that happened.

A pair of guards stepped toward her with menacing glares but backed off at the sight of Graves. Well, at least histhreatening energy worked in her favor.

She moved into the dwindling line that led to the throne room. But Graves grasped her elbow and jerked her out of it.

“This is reckless even for you,” he argued.

She sighed. “Look, you aren’t even supposed tobehere. I told you that I’d come back to New York when I was ready. I don’t know what part of that you don’t understand. I don’t need your help.”

“As flattered as I am that you think that I came all the way to Paris just for you,” he said with a pointed look, “you needed my help to extract you from that guard.”

She snorted. “Like I couldn’t have handled that on my own.”

“Without leaving a trail of bodies…”

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