Page 85 of A Crown Without Mercy

“I’m fine. Thank you.”

“Holy shit!” Stefania exclaimed.

Brienne placed her hand on Sylvana’s forearm and winked. “I think it’s safe to say they have feelings for you. We have never seen them treat anyone else this way.”

“We will see how long it lasts,” Sylvana joked.

“Oh shit. Here come the beasts,” Venthana interjected.

“What do we have here?” Elsa asked.

“Shouldn’t the four of you be on your backs in servitude somewhere?” Aurelia snarked.

“It appears as if Sylvana has already been on her back whoring for the Acherons,” Elsa snarked.

Sylvana leaned over and ran her face up the side of hers. “You smell like a fucking Helot’s cocotte.”

Sylvana’s friends laughed aloud and moved closer to her. “The greenish hue on your repulsive faces is unbecoming,” Stefania snarked.

Nicolai looked over when he tuned into the conversation between Sylvana, her friends, another group of ladies. “Brothers.”

Kieran looked over and just as he and Nicolai took one step, Riordan placed his hands on their shoulders. “I’m curious? I want to see how she handles herself.”

They stood shoulder to shoulder watching and listening as the altercation unfolded.

“What makes you think we are jealous of a field hand? Sylvana is nothing more than a blackbird hiding behind the feathers of a peacock.” Nora laughed.

Sylvana stepped forward. “I would tread lightly. I am not bound by the rules of the court.”

“You are notboundbecause you don’t belong here. The Acherons will discard you as easily as they do the rest of their whores,” Latavia replied.

Elsa acted as if she tripped and poured her entire goblet of cherry wine down the front of Sylvana’s dress. Her friends looked on in horror when Sylvana gasped and stepped back; they watched as the fine linen absorbed the burgundy liquid.

“Oops, I tripped.” Elsa laughed and covered her mouth with her hand while her ladies laughed under their breath and mocked her.

Riordan, Nicolai, and Kieran’s canines slid from their gums the moment they saw the liquid splash against the front of Sylvana’s body.

Sylvana looked at Elsa and bared her canines; the blood splattered across Elsa’s face when her fist landed squarely on her nose.

“Oops, I tripped,” Sylvana snarled.

Riordan, Nicolai, and Kieran let out a belly laugh while the ladies winced, and/or shrieked.

“We should handle this before it gets further out of control,” Riordan stated.

They sauntered over, and when Riordan turned Sylvana to face him, he felt her trembling.

“I—I am so sorry, milord. I didn’t—I just reacted.”

Riordan watched as her eyes glossed over with moisture. He lifted her hand and wiped the blood from her knuckles with his thumb. “Are you hurt?”

“No. I’m humiliated.”

“Then I shall have to fix that.”

Nicolai pulled her between himself and Kieran while Riordan stepped in Elsa’s direction. “You have made a grave mistake,” he growled.

Sylvana was terrified by the look upon the brother’s faces, and how the color of their eyes shifted from their normal tones to a glassy, coal black.

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