Page 69 of The Crimson Princess
“No. No, that’s true. What are you thinking?”
“I don’t know his plan, but his actions are rather telling. He let me stay for the Challenge. To me that says, he suspects something will happen that day. And he knows I will stand with him before I allow the druids or my brother to gain more power, even if I have to fight him afterward. And if he believes something is happening on Challenge Day, it has something to do with that portal.”
“He still has the book.”
“For now. If every gale in that arena is in danger, would he hand it over?”
“He’d call off the Challenge before he’d allow that to happen.”
“Would he?”
“Yes,” I insist.
“If he thinks the druids are standing with him, you might be right. But they aren’t, Satima. They are not.”
“What if they are? What if he negotiated with them and that’s why I’m promised to Bellar? You have to concede that came out of nowhere. It’s possible. And maybe your brother is pissed. He plans to call forward Third World on his own, and my father knows.”
“Why not just tell me? He knows I’ll handle my brother.”
“Maybe it feels like he’s asking for help and he fears you would decline. He did try to kill you.”
“Maybe. Or maybe they’ve all joined together to kill me.”
“Do you really think my father, your brother, and the druid king will share power?”
“Do you really think your father and the druid king will share power? We don’t know what is going to happen on Challenge Day, but something big is coming, and the only thing I know for certain is that I will be ready. Your father better be, too.”
In that moment, I am more certain than ever that I will be caught in the middle, and there may well be a moment where I have a choice to make. Toren or my father.
And my father represents Ravengale.
Toren’s hands settle on my shoulder. “I have intel arriving tonight. I feel pretty solid about having answers. All this guessingwill mean nothing when it gets here. Let’s take a few hours away from all of this. I want to show you Bloodstone.”
“Remind me again how long I have before I have to return home?”
“Today and tomorrow are full days. We’ll head back early on day three to ensure we don’t run into delays.”
“I need some time to read.”
“You have all day tomorrow.”
He helps me to my feet and we begin our adventure. For the rest of the day, Toren is my tour guide. We visit several of his favorite ocean spots before lunch and eat in a cozy ancient village that reminds me much more of Ravengale. Unlike my father, who keeps his distance from the gales, Toren has no barrier between him and his vampires. They know him and treat him like welcomed family.
After an afternoon in the snowy mountains of their furthest region, we end up in a quiet corner of a pub near Toren’s apartment, with Tabby, Gideon, and Stefan. Listening to them interact, I laugh more than I have laughed in a long time, and at one point I find Toren staring at me, his expression unreadable. I lean over and whisper, “What is it?”
He slides his hand under my hair, his palm warm against my neck, and in a very public display of affection, pulls my mouth to his and kisses me, before he says, “I like having you here.”
I can feel the eyes upon us, but I don’t care. “I like being here.”
Gideon clears his throat. “Public place and all, you two.”
Toren and I smile and share a laugh, before I settle back into my seat, and all I feel from Toren’s closest friends is acceptance and lighthearted fun. There is no rejection in them for me, and I wonder again why he doesn’t have a queen. I’ve never heard of him with a female by his side, but even without such a companion, he’s managed to create this amazing circle of friends, who allow him to exist outside his crown, who would die for him and him for them.
My mother was my best friend, the person who understood me in all ways and there’s a pinch of emotion in my chest that has meexcusing myself to the bathroom. I hurry away from the table and down a path framed by stone walls, and I’ve just turned a corner when Toren captures my hand and turns me to face him.
“What just happened?”
“Nothing, I—”
