Page 33 of A Crown of Tears and Treason
His jaw ticked, but I had no clue what that meant. The powerful crown prince of the Blood Brotherhood must’ve had women throwing themselves at him left and right. Maybe I’d offended him. I didn’t really care, not when he was holdingmyswitchblade.
He tracked my gaze down to his hand. “Missing this little thing?”
What was he calling little? “That blade already stabbed one groom.”
“Planning on making it two?” he asked, obviously amused.
“It would only be fair. You took my chance at revenge.”
Only when the prince’s eyes narrowed did I realize my mistake. I’d said too much.
“Interesting.” He took a calculated step toward me. “What reason could you have to want revenge on yourbeloved?”
“He tried to use me as a human shield at the first threat. Wouldn’t you have done the same?” I said, hoping the pounding in my chest wasn’t as loud as it felt.
The prince studied my face for a long time. Then he flicked the blade back in its bone sheath. "You should have aimed for his eye. And you need a bigger weapon."
The Dragon raised his arm and positioned the switchblade right above the pocket in my corset. His icy gaze hadn’t missed anything at the wedding, had it? He pushed it in the corset slowly, eyes not leaving mine.
It was a simple thing. Metal sliding against fabric, nothing more. But the air around us shifted. Tension rose and settled in the pit of my stomach in a stir of emotions I hadn’t experienced until now. The blood in my veins throbbed.
He was a very dangerous man. I should never, ever forget that.
The switchblade disappeared inside the top of my corset. But The Dragon didn’t step back. Instead, his hands went to the edge of my veil, startling me.
Damn. The silk was so clear on my side, the fabric so lightweight, I’d completely forgotten about it. It explained Kaya and Vexa’s curious glances.
With a gentleness that seemed to belong to another man, he lifted the veil slowly. I could have stopped him at any time. But I didn’t. I’d been staring him in the eyes, he’d been looking at a bloody piece of fabric.
He set the veil on top of my head, but still didn’t move away as he studied my face, his breaths warm against my cheeks. My breaths turned stuttered at the intensity in his gaze.
“Hello, Evie,” he said, finally locking eyes with me.
“I’m at a disadvantage,” I said, glad my voice didn’t shake. I hadn’t been this close to another man since Fabrian had a knife to my throat and The Dragon had whirled me out of harm’s way in the garden. He towered over me with his intimidating presence. But I refused to shrink. “I don’t know your name for a proper greeting.”
All my life, he’d been the thing to fear. The prince. The terrifying Dragon. The evil spawn that would one day rule the Blood Brotherhood. The scheming asshole.
All good titles for the man in front of me. But not his real one.
“Zandyr,” he said.
My eyebrows flew somewhere near my veil. Had he really just given me his birth name? The thing I could use to lock into a spell if I, you know, actually knew how to do that? No Zan, no nickname, no nothing.
“Zandyr,” I repeated. A harsh, powerful name. One that fell easily from my lips.
He tilted his head to the side, analyzing. I had his full attention and if he wouldn’t stop it, I’d start squirming.
“Had enough of a look?” I said in a firm inflection more reminiscent of my grandpa Constantine than the Evie I’d grown into.
He frowned. “I don’t understand.”
That smarted. I didn’t have Clara’s grace, Dara’s bright eyes, Dax’s charisma, or Allie’s humongous presence, but I had a good pair of cheekbones on me and nice enough lashes. My face wasn’t beyondunderstanding.
“Yes, well.” I cleared my throat. “Beauty is subje–”
He shook his head. “You’re clearly a descendent of Adriana Vegheara.”
ThegreatAdriana Vegheara. One of the mightiest magic wielders in known history, the founder of the Protectorate,andthe one who’d started the rivalry with the Blood Brotherhood. Her name had been feared and respected. Grandpa Constantine used to say even the Blood Brotherhood had a statue dedicated to her hidden somewhere in their great Capital.
