Page 22 of Clash of Storms
"If there's anyone who will know the princess's plans, it will be her maid." Stellan's cold blue eyes locked upon Malin. "And she'll speak them before I'm through with her."
They'll kill you.
Malin felt breathless all of a sudden. She had no wings. No magic. Not even a single drop of leviathan blood upon her. There was no hope of escape. All along she'd thought Árdís the one who needed it.
Help came from an unexpected quarter.
The Blackfrost.
"She's a nothing. A nobody. Why would she know anything about Árdís's intentions?" Sirius laughed. "She's not even a full-bloodeddreki. She's lucky Árdís even glanced at her, let alone took her as a handmaid."
The words stung, but as Malin was thrust before them, she stayed very small and still as she splayed on the marble floors.
I'm a nobody.
"I don't know anything!" Malin cried desperately. "The last I saw of her highness was when I walked into her rooms to bring her supper. The next thing I remember is waking up on her bed with my hands and ankles tied. I swear! I didn't even see who hit me. I didn't realize she was missing until Lor—Lord Lor—found me."
"You lie," Stellan snarled.
"I swear on mydrekiblood I do not, my prince."
Stellan moved to draw his knife, and before she even knew what was happening, Sirius had his hand on his father's hilt, forcing it back into its sheath.
"Letme," he demanded, as his father's shocked eyes turned to him. "Letme do the questioning. Árdís is my betrothed, after all. You want me to be hard? Then let me do this. Let me regain your trust. I'll take Malin to the dungeon and make sure I know every little secret the bitch has ever known. This ismy future we're talking about. If anyone's riding after Árdís, it's going to beme."
"Why not make it a hunt?" Roar mocked behind him. "Whoever brings her back first gets the princess's hand in marriage. I think dear Sirius has already proven he can't keep a mate in hand."
Stellan withdrew his hand from the knife. "Do as you will with her then. The girl's yours. But I think Roar has a good point. If you were more careful, the princess would not have had a chance to run. And you've disappointed me enough today." Stellan turned to survey the room. "Let it be known, whichever of my sons brings back the princess Árdís will take the prize; her hand as a mate."
Sirius strode to Malin's side.
There was no escape.
Be brave, Malin told herself, as he hauled her to her feet.You'd best have your wits about you, because now you need to outsmart the most dangerous male in the entire clan.
* * *
Malin coweredon the stone floors of the dungeon before him, and Sirius felt ill as he saw the look in her eyes.
Mother of dragons. He scraped a hand across his mouth. What the hell was he supposed to do with this mess?
"Do you need any help, my lord?" one of the guards asked in the doorway, practically leering at Malin.
"I can handle this," Sirius said coldly.
"Are you certain—"
"Certain." He slammed the door in the guard's face before he murdered the bastard and turned back to her. "Let me make one thing very clear. Your life is mine, right now—"
"Then take it," Malin challenged. "For I won't betray my princess, even if I had any idea of where she'd gone. Though I don't blame her for leaving. What sane woman would ever mate withyou?"
Her words were a dagger to the heart.
He'd known she avoided him, but he hadn't thought her dislike to be any stronger than what any other drekling at court felt.
He forced himself to harden, knowing the guard was listening to everything they said. Gliding toward her, he reached out to grasp her by the throat, forcing his voice low enough to be a silky menace. "If you don't tell me what you know, then you're condemning Árdís to death—or something worse."
The flicker of her pulse beat in her throat.
