Page 152 of Crown of Darkness
And while the ripple of our presence is clearly spreading through the castle, nobody in the woods seems to be aware of it.
“We can’t run,” I tell him, swallowing hard. “They’ll be looking for someone who’s running.”
He could fly out of here, but can he carry me?
Or will there be archers in the trees?
Thiago slows, his hand sliding through mine. He tugs me into a crowd of laughing fae and steals a glass of elderberry wine from a servant’s platter for me. “Then we don’t run,” he murmurs in my ear as he tugs me into his arms.
With the mask in place, he looks like the Lord of Darkness, breathed into fae form.
“What do we do?” Failure makes my breath catch. This was our one chance, and we lost it and….
“We dance,” he tells me, his hand stroking my spine, “and we focus on getting out of here safely. Tomorrow, we will deal with the consequences.”
I rest my head against his chest, dizzy with disappointment.
“This way,” he says as he takes my hand and spins me into a dance.
There’s a nonchalance to his actions, but I can see his eyes roving the night. A pair of guards come together at the edge of the clearing, but we are merely another couple in a sea of dancing fae.
The guard’s jerk a couple apart, tugging their masks from their faces. With a curse, they move on, grabbing another couple from the dance. Ripples of surprise start stirring among the fae. Even drunk and merry, some of them are starting to realize this isn’t normal.
“They’re searching all the dark-haired couples,” I breathe.
But as I speak, they wrench at a tall brunet dancing with a blonde fae woman.
“Any dark-haired male.” Thiago’s eyes narrow, and then he looks down at me. “Go. They won’t stop you if you’re not with me. Not with that hair. I’ll slink into the shadows and follow you.”
Pulse pounding, I fetch another glass of wine. He vanishes in a swirl of his cloak, and I push between a pair of gossiping fauns, making my way casually across the clearing. The prickle between my shoulder blades itches, but nobody stops me. Nobody cries out.
And then I’m in the trees once more, and there’s a shadow flitting along through the woods beside me, like an invisible wolf that follows at my heels.
“Finn’s going to meet us by the lake,” Thiago whispers in my head.
I head in that direction.
The dancers are thinning out now, and though I nearly trample a pair of entwined lovers as I stagger through a thicket, we’re almost alone here.
Almost.
As I hurry around an oak, I see a tall figure picking her way through the middle of the clearing. The moonlight glimmers on her golden gown, and she clutches her skirts in hands that are bedecked with a half dozen rings.
I skid to a halt.
“The wards are not designed to rouse the guards,” my mother says, her cold eyes locking upon me. “But they will wrap themselves around any intruders like spider silk, so I can track them at my leisure. Hello, little thief. Step into the light and show me who you are.”
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Chapter Thirty
“Stay hidden,” I warn Thiago.
There’s nothing but silence from his direction, but I know he’s there.
The thought doesn’t ease my nerves; this is what I’ve been trying to avoid at all costs. The last time these two were in the same vicinity, they nearly tore each other apart.
“Who are you?” she demands, flinging a hand toward me.
