Page 85 of Mirror of Malice
“It’s my fault you’re like this, that you’ve been so completely debilitated.” Gabrielle broke into sobs. “I wasn’t supposed to inherit the crown like this, Mother. And now we have visitors, and they’re not stupid. They’re going to figure it out.”
Gabrielle was speaking in riddles, all of her statements vague and not connecting to anything I understood. Clearly, whatever she was referencing was why they’d closed down their border. She was only speaking to her mother, which meant the king had... what? Died? Disappeared? Something had happened to him for Gabrielle to assume the crown, and that meant she was no longer a princess. She was queen of Apolis. I’d always thought Gabrielle would make an amazing queen. She was fierce, confident, loyal, and she’d do anything for those she loved. I admired that about her.
But right now, she sounded so broken and lost and... alone. I knew what that felt like. So did Penn.
Gabrielle started singing, then, a soft melody.
Penn looked at me and gestured for me to go back to the room we’d been in. I nodded and once again flattened myself tothe wall, creeping across the ledge and back to the room. Once I was inside, I could breathe again.
Penn hopped in behind me and quietly latched the window.
I turned. “Time for me to assign a mission.”
Penn just leaned against the wall, waiting for me to continue.
“I’m going to take the princess—queen—out for a walk tomorrow and get information from her. Use my friendship to get her to divulge what’s happening in Apolis. The more I get her to trust me, the more she’ll open up, and maybe we can even get her to tell us the location of this weapon we need to destroy the mirror.”
I swallowed, guilt rising up in my throat like bile. It felt wrong. I didn’t want to use Gabrielle’s pain against her, use it to steal from her.
Penn clapped, slowly approaching me. “I’m impressed, and I like that plan.”
Just then, the door burst open, and without any hesitation, Penn dipped his head down and pressed his lips to mine.
Heat exploded in my stomach. I curled my fingers into the hair on the nape of his neck as he tightened his hold on me. I let out a soft moan, his lips coaxing mine open.
“What is going on here?”
We jumped apart. For a split second, I’d forgotten there’d even been someone standing there.
A guilty look crossed Penn’s face, so unfamiliar, and I realized what he was doing. He scratched the back of his head. “Well, this is embarrassing.”
Unlike the king of thieves, I didn’t have to act embarrassed. I touched my lips, still dazed over that kiss. It had been so short, too short, but it still blazed through every inch of my body. My heart thundered as Leoni glared at us.
“What are you two doing in this part of the castle?”
Penn cleared his throat and stepped next to me, roping his arm behind my back. “We like to keep things fresh, if you know what I mean.”
Leoni crossed her arms. “I’m afraid I don’t.”
Oh, blood and earth.
“Lilypad,” Penn said, “maybe you could explain, woman to woman.”
I was going to murder him. “Um, well, just, our bedroom gets a little boring sometimes.” I could not believe these words were coming out of my mouth. “So we like to explore, and?—”
Leoni held up her hand. “Oh, stop talking. I don’t want to know anymore. This is already far too much information.” She gestured out to the hallway. “I’m escorting you back to your room, where you are expected to stay. No more nightly walks through the castle.”
I followed Penn out of the room, and Leoni walked us back to our chamber, slamming the door behind us and letting us know we’d have a guard posted outside from here on out.
Once the door closed, Penn burst out laughing, shoulders shaking. I glared at him but couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled out of me.
“You should’ve seen the look on your face,” he said.
“Well, I wasn’t expecting you to kiss me!”
“It was the only thing I could think of in that moment. The only explanation for why we’d be wandering the castle in the middle of the night.”
“I sleepwalk.” I ticked off my fingers. “We got lost looking for the kitchens. You’re very bad with directions.”
