Page 63 of The Nightbound Soldier

Ledger comes from behind me, holding out a dagger with carvings on it. Some are lit, some aren’t, telling me that whoever spelled the dagger managed only part of the spell before the undead magic they’re not supposed to toy with killed them.

I shield the dagger with my body, and the three of us move into the shadows completely.

“You took this from the male who petitioned?” I ask.

“No,” Leroy says. “He handed it to me.”

“Why would he do that?”

“The princess asked him to.”

“Sadly, that makes sense. Does the male even know he’s been disarmed, or did she completely charm him to the point where he’s following her around like a puppy?”

“I’m leaning toward puppy,” Leroy says.

“And these are the males who will make up my army?”

Ledger and Leroy nod.

I pinch the bridge of my nose. “Keep the dagger for later. I want to read the spell for clues.”

When I turn, I find the male alone. The princess left again. It’s right before dinnertime, so she’s probably changing into another dress, hopefully this time one that actually covers her body.

The twins remained. “Is there anything else?”

“You think she’s yours,” Leroy says.

“She’s under my protection.”

Ledger sheathes the dagger. “When I tried to eliminate him, she intercepted, said nobody gets hurt on her watch and that I better obey, or she’ll have my head.”

I smile. “Vicious little thing.”

“I argued that the weapon is a wooden dagger intended to kill a notturno.”

“She said you can take care of yourself.”

“She’s not wrong.”

“That’s not the point,” Ledger bites out. “The princess and most fae don’t seem to know you can’t die from a wooden weapon, but whoever made this”—Ledger taps the dagger’s hilt—“knows something. The engravings are too close to your brother’s handwriting to be a coincidence.”

I wave them off. “It’s misspelled, and the undead magic of my brother isn’t something people bottled up and now released into the dagger, so it won’t work.”

“How do you explain the spell partially lighting up?”

“Someone toyed with it. They’re not very good.”

“What of the fae male who brought it?”

On the other side, the grand doors of the dining room open, and people cease speaking. What was once a simple round space with white-painted concrete fitted between tall windows and dark marble floors is now an ocean-themed dining space offering a buffet of seafood spread over a long table on the left.

Clear, pale gray-blue lights sparkle off the walls, and the painted waves on the windows appear to move, creating an impression of us being under the sea. Beige glitter sparkles over the black marble floors and makes it look like sand.

What’s striking about it is that it’s not a summer theme or a slice of the Summer Court’s sea. It’s a portrait of the Winter Court’s sea with pale gray-blue waters, moody seas, and sunless skies. Traditionally, one would find such a landscape unattractive compared to the colorful landscape of the Summer Court, but the way it’s presented here makes it beautiful.

She delivered a complete underwater dining experience without being underwater.

And there are make-believe sirens.

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