Page 114 of I Dream of Dragons
“Don’t get me wrong. Arkin and I were so relieved when you saved Jai in the arena. The mermaids helped you, I suppose. Be honest with me.”
He doesn’t know Iamfinnfolk. Imagine if he did. This is already bad.
“I wouldn’t have let him drown, Tru,” I say, “no matter what. You know that.”
He doesn’t reply. The silence between us stretches, tense and vibrating. I follow him down another corridor, wondering what he’s thinking. If I convinced him or not.
After a while, I can’t take it anymore. We’re in a part of the palace I don’t know. “Where are you taking me?”
“You wanted a bath,” he says mildly.
“Yes, but…”
“This way.” He gestures and I walk ahead of him, casting him worried glances over my shoulder. “Have you been to the palace baths? They are marvelous.”
“No, I… Nobody told me about them.”
“You’ll love them. They are reserved for the aristocracy, you see, but I can get you in.”
“You don’t need to bother. A simple bath will do.”
“Nothing is too fancy for Jai’s lady.”
I shake my head. Something’s wrong. “Tru… just take me to my room.”
“As you wish.” His hand presses against my back again. He guides me through halls and rooms, up stairs and more stairs, and right about when I’m totally disoriented, he leads me out onto a large balcony over the ocean. The balustrade is broken in two places. I wonder what happened.
“What are we doing here?”
“I wanted to show you the view.”
“Tru—”
“Jai is my friend. And you are his enemy. I saw you talking to the mermaid on the terrace. The mermaid trying to haul Jai into the sea.”
“Shit.” I slink along the wall, inching away from him. “Tru, look. I wouldn’t let her take him.”
“You are betrothed to a sea prince. I heard what she said. You work for the sea queen, for the finnfolk, those bastards who took my sister from me.”
His sister?“About that?—”
“Jai still isn’t completely sane. The creature in his mind is alien and has its own agenda. I may or may not agree with the king’s plan to open the gates, but…” Tru advances on me. I take a few steps back. “But Jai is a good man and I won’t let you kill him.”
“Kill him?” I shake my head. “No! I’m not planning on killing him, I don’t?—”
He shoves me backward. I stumble back and suddenly there is no more ground underneath my feet.
He has pushed me off the balcony, the balustrade was broken, he just shoved me?—
A scream tears out of me as I tumble through the air.
And into the sea.
CHAPTER THIRTY
RAE
I open my eyes in dappled darkness.
