Page 1 of A Court of Bones & Sorrow

Chapter One

Samara

The gorgeous princewith enchanting blue eyes wanted to marry me, but I wanted to stab him in the heart and set his corpse on fire.

He was the reason our people were dying.

The wards that had protected our outposts for over a century were failing and the wraiths were getting in, and he was the fucking reason. My memory helpfully served up the image of a discarded doll from the last outpost that had been slaughtered by the shadowy monsters. That child had died, and Prince Draven was the Moroi who had let the monsters in.

Fury burned through my veins as I desperately struggled to keep it off my face. It’d been three days since we’d learned the truth at an abandoned temple in the badlands. The wraiths were actually the Unseelie Fae. Somehow, they’d pushed their shadow magic too far and turned themselves into monsters. We’d killed three of them when the prince had left with their leader, Erendriel.

Now Prince Draven was here, standing on the wide stone stairs that led to the inside of House Harker.My home. I keptmy gaze on him, but from my peripheral vision, I didn’t see any guards with him, and the only people I’d seen since we’d walked through the gates had been ours. We’d covered our tracks well at the temple. Was his being here a coincidence?

“This wasn’t exactly the response I was looking for,” the prince drawled, the smile never slipping from his face even as something else flitted through his eyes. His hair fell in a straight, black curtain to his waist, the silver streaks glittering in the bright sunlight.

“Apologies, my prince.” I forced the words out as I bent my knees, giving a slight bow, hoping he mistook my rapidly beating heart for excitement about him being here. Though it was possible he knew exactly what we’d been up to and was just toying with us. “I’m beyond delighted by this news; it simply caught me off guard is all. Given how things went with my first marriage”—I lowered my eyes and clutched my hands together in front of me in what I hoped was a convincing show of uncertainty—“I just never expected another offer to come my way, and certainly not one like this.”

Warm fingers titled my chin up, and I barely restrained myself from slapping the proprietary touch away. Something in my expression must have given that away because Prince Draven smoothly pulled his hand back.

“I’ve always thought Demetri was an over-entitled fool, and the fact that he did something to drive you away only confirms that.” Prince Draven’s expression was charming, but there was an edge to his voice. “Would you think poorly of me if I told you I was secretly delighted when I heard the two of you were ending things? And that I might have a chance with you?”

His smile morphed into a sheepish but unrepentant grin.

Die.

Instead of voicing how I really felt, I forced the corners of my lips to curl into a sultry smirk. One that always made menthink of wicked things. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kieran’s jaw harden, but he remained a few steps behind Prince Draven. He hadn’t been with us at the temple in the badlands and had no idea the prince was the traitor we’d been looking for. I hoped he knew everything I was doing right now was an act and that I wasn’t actually falling for the prince’s charming bullshit.

Alaric hadn’t said a word but remained a steady, calming presence as he stepped from my side to be one step above me, as if to put himself between me and Prince Draven. I couldn’t see Vail without turning around, but I assumed he was still somewhere behind me. Probably glowering and very obviously plotting murder.

They would all die if I failed to play this right. We didn’t know what Prince Draven knew. We’d killed all the wraiths who had seen our faces . . . hopefully. But it was clear the wraiths had been using that temple regularly, which meant Erendriel had surely returned there at some point. It wasn’t like he wouldn’t have noticed that the three wraiths he’d left behind were no longer there.

Prince Draven’s showing up here now couldn’t have been a coincidence. Maybe he didn’t know who had been in that temple, only suspected someone from House Harker. Maybe he did know it was us but wanted to find out what we knew and who else we had told, but two could play this game. We had questions, so many moonsdamned questions, and he had the answers.

I might not be much of a fighter, but when it came to politics and deceptive words, there was no one better than me. This was a game I knew how to play.

“My prince,” I purred, “you’re too kind.”

“There’s no need for titles, Samara.” He gave me a smile that was pure sin and took another step, forcing Alaric to backup until he stood by my side. “We’ve known each other our entire lives—Draven is fine.”

It didn’t escape my attention that he could have gone to my other side instead of stepping into Alaric’s space. I wasn’t the only one who knew how this game worked. Draven not only survived, he flourished in the Moroi courts. I needed to be careful. He held an arm out for me, but I shook my head and waved a hand at my clothes. “I don’t want to get dirt and grime all over you.”

There was a very real chance that if I had to hold his arm like he wanted, I’d lose my temper and sink my claws into his flesh. That would kind of ruin the whole flirting thing.

“They’re only clothes.” He shrugged and kept his arm extended. “I’m more than willing to pay the price of a little dirt on me if it means you’ll be by my side.”

I forced myself to let out a breathy laugh and slipped my arm around his, fighting against the revulsion at the contact, and allowed him to lead us up the stairs towards the main entrance. A dull ache was already settling into my cheeks from how hard I’d been smiling. As we walked past Kieran, I brushed my free hand against his, our fingers curling together for the briefest second. Then I glanced over my shoulder at Alaric as Draven led me inside, and I found him staring at the back of the prince’s head with a look of absolute hatred.

The staff and courtiers of House Harker scattered as we strolled down the hallway, Kieran’s and Alaric’s footsteps trailing behind us, but I couldn’t tell if Vail had followed or not. I was a little surprised none of the higher-ranking nobility were here, trying to capture a moment with Prince Draven.

“I’ve already spoken to many of the advisors and officials,” he said with a thick note of satisfaction.

“Oh?” I tilted my head towards him and arched an eyebrow.

A wry, mischievous smile played across his lips. “You werewondering why a hundred Moroi aren’t lining these walls, trying to beg a favor of me so they might have a better chance of getting my mother to agree to whatever they are scheming.”

“Was I?”

“You were,” he said confidently.

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