Page 27 of Of Rime and Ruin
“Easy enough.” His ice tightens around my wrists and ankles.
I want to claw his face, rip out his hair. Smack that smirk from his pretty lips. My vision blurs with loathing.
“You think you can lock me up with a little snow? You’ll need to try harder than that,Frosty. Do your worst.”
Wincing, I twist my wrists and pull against his ice. Fuck, they’re tight. I’ll chew off my hand right here, in front of him, if it comes to it.
My stomach lurches. Who am I kidding? I don’t have the guts for that.
“You can’t handle my worst.” The king stands tall, watching with those icy eyes. I work to keep my face neutral as the scales at the back of my neck rise. “You. Will. Never. Leave. No one does.”
Never leave the Rime, my ass.I will escape him. Even if it destroys me, I will not let him keep me forever.
“Rule number two.” He paces, the cloak following him in a slither of leather. “You are my prisoner. My space is off-limits, and you will not enter the castle without my permission.”
“Hard to explore when you’ve locked me in a cage.”
He pauses, turning to glare at me. His eyes darken. “Your Majesty,” he corrects. “I am the king, and you will address me properly. Rule number three.” He paces again. His white toes splay on the floor, turning a deep shade of blue. “You willnotinteract with the Beast.”
“Which beast do you mean, exactly?”
“The clawbeast.”
“Does he have a name? Or shall I call him ‘Beast’?”
His jaw flexes. “That’s none of your concern.”
“If I don’t know his name, how do I know I’ve got the right clawbeast?”
“There’s only one,” he snaps. “And you’renotto go near him.”
I open my mouth to retort again, but nothing comes. What a strange rule to make.
He continues, “Follow my rules, and we won’t have any trouble.”
I spit on the floor and hope he steps in it—so much for ladylike charm. “Your little pet approached me,Your Majesty. Or are you forgetting you set him on my tail?”
“Enough,” he snaps.
He whips his cloak around, turning to face me. The king squats, his large frame looming, and I stare at his feet. The blue has spread to his ankles now.
“This is no way to treat a princess,” I mutter. Winona wouldn’t stand for this. By now, she would have concocted some masterful political speech intended to cut him to his core while securing an alliance. All I’ve got is annoying quips and guppish jabs, and they’re all falling flat. “Freezing cold and locked in a cage. What kind of monster are you?”
He grips my chin, lifting my gaze. “What?”
I look him dead in the eyes. “I said what kind of monster are you,Your Majesty?”
His eyes flash with something, a stray emotion in the void.
“Princess?” he echoes, his grip on my chin softening. His finger slides, stroking the soft skin of my throat once before curling back. Is that an edge of guilt in his tone?
I smirk. “Yes, Your Majesty. I am Princess Nahlani Mahelona, second heir of the Brine. And a threat to me is a threat to my kingdom. Her Majestywillfind me, and you’ll regret the day you locked me in.”
Will Winona come for me once she realizes what I’ve done? Or will she finally cut ties? Decide I’m a lost cause and leave me here to freeze to death, all alone?
He stares at me. His nostrils flare, and he sucks in a deep, long breath. “Find you?” he says. “As in, she doesn’t know herprincessis here?”
Shit.
