Page 33 of A Court So Dark
Cardian rose to his feet and looked down at me with cold blue eyes. I wanted to stand and hold my own as he glared at me, but instead, I relaxed further into the chair, acting the way a person who could shoot laser beams—nullifier or not—should act.
He thought for a moment, then turned to Cedric. “You may leave.”
“Are you sure, my king?” Cedric asked.
“Of course, I’m sure. Don’t question me again.”
“My apologies.” The man bowed and retired from the room.
I blinked as a feeling of well-being flooded me, and suddenly I realized that the sick feeling that came over me when I first spotted Cardian and his guards had been due to Cedric.
“Feel better?” Cardian asked.
I stood up very slowly, my legs firmer than they’d felt a moment ago. A tingling sensation began in my hands. All I had to do was leap forward, wrap my hands around his neck, and drain every bit of life out of him. Except I couldn’t do that, not when Kalyll was still a prisoner in Nerethien, not when Cardian was the one who could take me to my mate.
“I do feel better.” I smiled in a crooked way that wasn’t me at all.
“Good.” Cardian matched my smile, and I had to admit I was surprised he hadn’t shown even an iota of fear after Cedric left.
He really was certain I wouldn’t hurt him. That was how blinded he was by his poor assessment of people. He measured everyone using his own standards. He was a slimeball, so therefore, everyone else must be a slimeball too.
“What now?” I said.
“You can return to your chamber. I will call you when I need you.”
The chamber with the crystal bird that he could use to spy on me.
Without a backward glance, he hurried to the door to find Varamede, I assumed. There, he paused, his hand on the knob.
Over his shoulder, he asked, “Why did my brother have you up on a pedestal while you lay there frozen?”
Oh yes, a strange thing to do for someone Kalyll barely knew.
My thoughts raced at a million miles per hour, trying to figure out the appropriate response to this question. I snatched the first one that seemed reasonable and delivered a Hollywood-worthy performance.
“The fool fancies himself in love with me.” I struck a femme fatale pose that made me feel absolutely ridiculous.
At first, he didn’t appear to buy it, then he said, “Ah, the female guiles. You have plenty of them, Lady Fenmenor, and Kalyll can be such a trusting fool. Our alliance might be even better than I thought.”
He left the room and closed the door behind him. I stood frozen for a long moment, then collapsed on the chair, a wave of exhausting relief washing over me.
CHAPTER 12
DANIELLA
WhenLarinawiggledherselfout of my breast pocket, I nearly jumped. She had been so still, and I had been so focused on not being discovered that I’d forgotten she was there.
She shook herself, her entire body wiggling like that of a wet dog. Her wings gave a little snap and appeared behind her back. She jumped into the air and started hovering around.
I did a double-take.
“Where did you put your wings?” I asked.
“I can stash them away,” she said as if that was the most obvious of things, and I should’ve known. Maybe I’d been wearing these pointy ears way too long, and she’d forgotten I was human and was still clueless about most things concerning Elf-hame and its people.
“I must say, you had him fanning your fire.”
“I did what?”
