Page 31 of A Hunt So Wicked
"I'd do it too," she promised, a wild glint in her eyes that left not a single doubt in my mind. She was brilliantly insane, and I loved her for it. I came here for money, and I got three friends, too. I'd take it.
"But what about Evie?" Isla asked. "You tripped Prince Torin, then got the first dance with him, plus two—twodances with Alasdair Oberon!"
"And she was spotted chatting with the younger Oberon and King Ero. Our little Eves was a very busy girl last night," Kael teased, waggling his blond brows.
I marched to the door, desperate to avoid talking about myself. "Don't we have someplace we need to be?"
"Ah, a walk and talk then? Perfect. I'll lead the way," Riv proclaimed, pushing past me and opening the door, seeing right through me. "You can't get out of it that easy."
"Ugh, fine. Yes, I did those things. What else do you want me to say?" I questioned as we walked through the hall. Maids and other groups of women were milling about, having their own hushed conversations.
Isla looped her arm through mine. "Did you like any of them? Were they kind? Did you feel—"
"I'll stop you there. Torin and Alasdair have no boundaries in regard to... what's proper."
Three confused faces glanced at me, and I groaned, hating to have to explain. "I just mean, they were a bit handsy. It just confirmed what I already knew to be true—that the royal men are—"
My sentence died quickly as we rounded a corner and walked right into King Ero and his sorcerer, Corvus.
"Your Majesty," all four of us said, shocked.
"Good morning," he replied coolly. Much cooler than he'd been the night before. I curtsied and tried willing my heart to slow. Had he heard what I was saying? About his own son? His eyes drifted over my friends before coming to rest on me. "Miss Evie, how nice to run into you again. Did you enjoy yourself last night?"
I blinked and looked at my friends before realizing he had only addressed me."Yes, yes, I did. It was a magical night. Thank you, Your Highness."
He nodded, and the chilliness of his initial disposition seemed to warm slightly at my response. "Very good. I trust the four of you are headed to breakfast? I was just on my way there. I'll let you get a head start; I have some news to share this morning. Make sure you all eat your fill. The cooks went all out."
We all nodded eagerly and mumbled ‘thank yous’ as we passed, leaving him looking after us. None of us so much as breathed until we broke through the doors of the Great Hall.
"That was..."
"Oh, my Goddess," Isla breathed, holding her heart.
"You don't think he heard, do you?" I demanded, keeping my voice low.
Kael shook his head, looking grim. "You'd know if he had."
"We'll have to save discussions of that nature for when we're in the privacy of our own room, hmm?" Rivka mused, leading us to the end of a long table with three open seats. Unfortunately, Kael would have to sit at the guards’ table, but that didn't stop him from pulling out each of our chairs.
As I sat down, my eyes connected with Belinda sitting at the tables directly across from us. She very pointedly looked up to where Kael was pushing my chair in and then back to me. Slowly, she smiled. My skin prickled. After seeing Kael and I hugging each other last night, of course she would draw conclusions about the nature of our relationship, seeing things that weren't there.
She was going to be a problem.
Luckily, I just needed to get through this damned forced vacation, then I'd never have to deal with her again... but if she caused trouble for Kael, I'd ensure she'd regret it. I never had many friends. There simply weren't many candidates being from a small village. The ones I did have, though? I would do anything for... and if Belinda thought she was going to mess with any of these three? She'd find out just how vicious I could be.
Kael said goodbye and headed for an open seat on the back wall where the rest of the guards were sitting. Servers promptly placed plates in front of us full of eggs, sausage links, different varieties of toast and pastries, and what looked like fried potatoes. My stomach growled. I suppose there was hunger lurking beneath the cover of that horrible hangover, which, thanks to Isla, was practically nonexistent now.
We began eating, shoveling food in like it would disappear at any moment. "Mmm, so good," Riv mumbled around a giant bite of eggs.
"It is excellent food," I agreed, slathering a piece of toast with some grape preserves.
"If they feed us like this the entire time we're here, I might never leave," Isla said. "But when do you suppose they're going to have us go join The Hunt? Have either of you hunted before? Are we going to have to actually,” she paused and leaned in before continuing, “killsomething out there?”
King Ero appeared at that moment, his sorcerer Corvus again on his right and a guard on the left. "Looks like we're about to find out," I whispered, not wanting to draw his attention again for any reason.
"Good morning, ladies and guards. I hope you had a good night's rest after the eventful evening we had!" He was dressed in full royal regalia. Black trousers with silver threading and a blazer of deep crimson with embossed silver buttons, each of which held the crest of Volos, a dragon's face. "I am sure you're all curious as to what the schedule will be over the following days. The most important thing is that in four days' time, we will hold The Choosing Ceremony."
Excited gasps and chitter chatter broke out with that news. What were we supposed to do over the next three days until that moment? Surely there had to be other things on the schedule? At least the anxiety of playing this game would lessen after the ceremony. Then I could get my payout and get home. I was fairly confident in my performance last night. No royal in his right mind would choose me as a wife. I was already daydreaming about how I could stock my classroom with all the supplies we'd never been able to get. I could update our books, get some better desks and tables, and maybe even some musical instruments.
