Page 43 of Crown of Briars
“Come.” I swept past her and grasped the door handle. When I opened it, the training yard greeted us once more.Stubborn castle,I thought. If it wanted us to go here, there was no fighting it. I had learned that long ago.
“The best way out is forward,” I said, stepping through the doorway and extending my hand to Sybelle. She eyed it for a long moment before taking it, her tiny fingers interlacing withmine. When she stiffened, I wondered if she thought my claws would tear her soft flesh to ribbons.
These humans always thought us nothing more than savage, feral beasts with no control. If we were intelligent enough to possess magic, we were certainly nimble enough to keep our claws from slicing open poor, defenseless humans.
Sybelle’s eyes darted from my crimson fingers to my face and back again, as if she were utterly shocked. Was my skin hotter than she anticipated? Were the claws too terrifying?
But none of those seemed to suit the curiosity burning in her gaze. She lifted our entwined fingers so she could better scrutinize my hand.
“Does your skin… change color?” she asked. Her voice was full of awe. Not a hint of disgust or horror.
I cleared my throat, unsure of why such a close inspection made me feel uncomfortable. “Sometimes. It is not all one color, but I cannot change it at will. It often gets darker in the winter and lighter in the summer, though.”
A small smile lit her face as she turned my hand over, her eyes traveling from my knuckles to my wrist and back down again. It felt oddly… intimate. As I followed the path of her gaze, I realized what she was seeing. The skin on my hand ranged from bright cherry to dark burgundy, creating an ombre of colors. When I looked at the contrast of her pale fingers, I realized human skin was not like this; it was one uniform shade.
Interesting.
“Your Highness?”
I started, turning to find Murvo, my captain of the guards, standing in the grass, sword drawn as he looked at us with curiosity and confusion. He was tall and bulky with amber skin and two large sets of wings folded at his back. Behind him stood a row of soldiers, also holding swords.
We had obviously interrupted a training exercise. I heardSybelle suck in a sharp breath beside me, but I kept her hand clamped in mine.
“Forgive us, Murvo,” I said in Agnarrish. “You know how the castle is. We’ll just be going.”
Murvo’s dark gaze flicked from me to Sybelle. Something flashed in his gaze when he looked at the human, but it was gone in an instant. He nodded, turning back to face the soldiers as I guided Sybelle toward the east side of the castle.
“What are they training for?” Sybelle asked, her voice tight.
I glanced at her. Her eyes were hard, and her mouth formed a thin line. “They are soldiers,” I said slowly. “They train to defend our home against outside threats.”
“Or perhaps they train to invade other lands,” she said.
Rage simmered in my blood at the accusation in her tone. I abruptly dropped her hand and stopped walking so I could face her fully. “Go ahead and say what you mean, human. Don’t mince words.”
She squared her shoulders, inhaling deeply. Her chin lifted, but she still only reached my collarbone. She didn’t seem to notice; her eyes were full of venom as she looked up at me.
“Those are the very soldiers who have been slaughtering my people for years,” she said, her voice trembling with rage. “Are you saying thatwepose a threat to your home? Or do you simply not have any control over your men?”
My rage deepened into an all-consuming fury that rocked violently through my body. I felt my wings spread behind me, and my claws elongated. Sybelle’s eyes flared wide as she noticed it, too.
I loomed over her, teeth bared as I growled, “So you believe your people are completely innocent? That they are not invadingmylands and plunderingmyvillages first?”
“Why would they do that?” she demanded.
“Why indeed,” I hissed. “It must be easy, to be human. You can lie and tell your people there are good reasons for attackingthe horrid unseelie demons across the border. ButIcannot lie, human. And I have seen firsthandyoursoldiers stealing from innocent civilians, beating women and children, and burning down homes all for their own amusement. So perhaps you should be interrogating your own people before throwing accusations at me.”
It wasn’t until Sybelle gasped that I realized black shadows had pooled at my feet, surrounding us both. They continued to inch upward, reacting to my anger.
I took a step back, and the shadows receded slightly. I was breathing heavily, my heart thundering in my chest. “I’ll have Enzira move you to the east wing as soon as possible,” I said, unable to look her in the eye. “If you’ll excuse me, I have important matters to attend to.”
I strode past her, sensing her watching me as I made my way back to the castle. I would place her next to my rooms so I could watch her and uncover her secrets. She was the key to breaking the curse, and she could not do that unless I steered her in the right direction.
But that did not mean I had to enjoy the situation, nor did it mean I had to like her in any way. She had proven her prejudices against my kind spoke more loudly to her than common sense. If that was how she wanted to live and think, then fine.
For now, I needed to put as much distance between myself and my human bride as possible, before my shadows choked the life out of her.
My head was still spinningwith rage and confusion from Varius’s words.Perhaps you should be interrogating your own people before throwing accusations at me.
