Page 95 of Song of the Shadow Prince
His eyes widened and his gray gaze snapped to me. “Pardon?”
I laughed and threw my head back. “Minister Malachai, please don’t make me repeat myself. It’s tedious.” I gave a boredsigh and inspected my fingernails. I was getting good at acting like a bitch. Lady Arya would be proud.
“You—!” He took a menacing step towards me, but I halted him with a raised hand.
“Minister, I’m sure you want your coin, and I have it. Let’s not complicate matters by saying words you’ll regret later.” I peered up at him. “If I hear even a whispered rumor about me in regard to what youthinkyou saw, I’ll come for you. And if you don’t think I have the means, I would reconsider that notion. I have the meansandthe funds. I’m a very resourceful lady.”
Minister Malachai huffed, straightening his robe and fixing me with a murderous glare.
I snapped my fingers at the driver of the carriage and motioned for him to transfer the chest of coin to the troublemaker before me. “Take it like a good boy, Lord Malachai, and let’s hope we don’t have to meet like this again in the future.” I grinned as he bent down to retrieve the chest.
Without another word, the minister angrily stormed back into the palace, struggling with the weight of the trunk. With my back ramrod straight and muscles coiled, ready for anything, I watched him leave. I didn’t relax until he was long gone.
“Thank you, baby Jesus,” I muttered to myself. It took a lot to pretend to be confident in a world where I felt woefully out of place. Without knowing if Minister Malachai was supernatural or not, I was playing with fire by baiting him the way I had. He obviously wasn’t a vampire, but he could have been any other brand of freaky that was out there. I needed to be careful.
Now, I just needed to find a way inside the palace and try to secure an audience with the seer… maybe by seeking out the second prince. Although, come to think of it, after how we left things the last time I was there, that probably wasn’t such a good idea. But desperate times called for desperate measures. That little asshole might be my only hope.
“Fuck it.” I’d just started walking toward the palace doors when I heard a man’s raspy voice.
“Looking for me?”
I spun around with wide eyes and looked across the courtyard to see the hooded figure I sought.
The seer.
A long, heather gray cloak shrouded his body. The hood was pulled low over his face, effectively masking his features. His voice was deep and gravelly but sounded young at the same time. This man didn’t appear to be older than thirty-five, but I’d already learned outward appearances were often deceiving in Elaria.
“Are you… are you the seer?” I ventured.
His lips, which were the only thing visible under the hood, quirked at the corner in a smirk. “Yes,” he casually replied. “Andyou’renot Lady Arya.”
My eyes widened. “You… youknow?”
He laughed. “I know many things, young lady. I was hoping to run into you soon. At least before this coming weekend.”
I frowned. “This weekend? Why before then?”
Does he know about my involvement with the vampires?
“Don’t you want to go home?”
The air sucked out of my lungs. “What?” I stumbled forward, nearly tripping over my feet in surprise. “What did you say?”
He took a tentative step forward, but still maintained a distance. “I said, don’t you want to go home?”
All the moisture in my mouth evaporated. I swallowed multiple times and tried to reclaim my earlier confidence. “You know how?”
He nodded. “The river is the entrance.”
I shook my head. “No, it’s not. I already tried that.”
He smirked again. “It’s not always open,” he said calmly. “Only at certain times, like this weekend.”
I furrowed my brows. “What do you mean?”
“Young lady, what do you remember about the night you arrived in Elaria?” He tilted his head to the side robotically.
I frowned. “I-I don’t know. I was on a boat. It was nighttime. I was on a river.”
