Page 4 of A Touch of Iron
“Oh, I’m not worried.” Alec waved me off. “My one and only job is to keep Violet safe. Whatever you’re cooking, I hope it goes smoothly.”
“You were by her side earlier.” Tessa eyed him suspiciously. “You were standing pretty close.”
Alec looked at her wickedly. “Were we now?”
“Alec,” I reprimanded. “Stop.”
“What?” He looked over at me innocently. “I can’t help that Violet and I have gotten …close.”
Tessa scoffed and grimaced. “You remind me so much of him,” she murmured.
“Of who?” Alec asked with a raised brow.
“Kaz,” she said, speaking Kazimir’s nickname. It was surprising to hear it uttered in an intimate manner.
Alec jerked back as if he’d been slapped. “I’m insulted!”
“You should be,” Tessa said dryly.
Alec snorted. “Well, it’s obvious thatsomeonedoesn’t like me,” he mumbled.
“Clearly,” I said with a roll of my eyes. “Shouldn’t you be keeping an eye on Violet?”
He turned serious as his gaze fell on me. “She’s taken care of. I have Rook watching over her and Rosemary is by her side.”
I nodded. “How … how mad is she?” I asked tentatively.
Alec blew out a breath. “On a scale of one to ten, brother, she’s at a hundred. A heads-up would have been nice.”
I sighed heavily. “I couldn’t. There was no time.”
Alec frowned. “What do you mean?”
I shook my head. “Nothing. Just … protect her. The King is pissed. I’m worried he’ll do something out of anger.”
“But you have a plan, right?” he prodded.
“Yes, I do. But just … be careful is all I’m saying.”
3
ALEC
Ileft Ansel’s room with more questions than answers. I tried to play it off like I wasn’t worried, but I was well beyond that. One could say I was a bit terrified.
Violet’s ability to breathe fire was a twist I hadn’t seen coming. If she’d done it once, maybe I could have brushed it off as a fluke. But then it happened again, and in front of the entire Unseelie Court. I hadn’t had the opportunity to ask her what made her change her mind since the last time we’d spoken, she was adamant about not believing it herself.
Her demonstration changed the game. Ansel’s actions did, too. I used to feel confident and in control of the game board, but now I didn’t know what was coming and it scared me. I was worried for both Ansel and Violet. If I wasn’t careful, I wouldn’t be able to protect either of them.
I was walking through the dim corridors of the castle with my hands stuffed in my pockets when a whistle caught my attention. I glanced across the courtyard and saw Kazimir leaning against one of the pillars. His broad arms were folded over his chest and his long, dark hair blended in with the night.
When he whistled again, I figured it was for me. Taking a quick peek around the area to make sure no one else was around, I crossed the courtyard to meet him.
“What do you want?” I asked, keeping a few feet between us.
“I noticed you were on your way back from visiting your brother. How is he, by the way?” Kazimir raised a brow, but instead of concern, it was lifted in a taunting manner. He knew very well how my brother was. I saw my brother’s despair without even asking him. His heart was shattered by whatever it was he had to do to keep Violet safe.
“Why do you care?”
