“Thank you. I’m sorry. I just don’t know these dances yet,” I murmured, glancing down at his feet.
Radella had tried to teach me a few. I had no doubt Destiny would have moved like water across the floor in a matter of minutes. Faith would have done the wrong steps, thrown back her hair and laughed as she stepped on toes. Seemed I was cursed with the desire to make sure everything was perfect.
I let him lead. His touch was light. Respectful. He made sure to twirl me past his friends, who all cheered and clapped as we passed. We danced closer and closer to the open wall and the large, outdoor area. I was too busy watching feet instead of figuring out how they’d engineered an entire side of the ballroom to be gone. The fresh air felt wonderful, and I took a deep breath to clear my lungs, and my head. The effects of the wine were fading. Thank god. I hated not knowing whether or not I could trust people. I knew this “gift” the citadel had given me was a form of cheating, but I wasn’t giving it back. Hell, I didn’t know how, even if I wanted to. Which I definitely did not. A girl needed all the help she could get.
“The fresh air is wonderful. Thank you.” The music ended and Zel held out his arm, facing a stone terrace that overlooked a large garden. I took his elbow and followed him to the railing, looking out over the labyrinth of pathways and tall hedges. It reminded me of an elaborate maze, something I’d seen in a movie. “I had no idea they actually made gardens like this. It’s like Versailles, I think, but I’ve only seen those gardens in pictures.”
He nodded as if understanding that I spoke of somewhere on Earth. “There are many places to conduct business within the gardens. Every large estate has one.”
“Really? Every single one?”
He nodded. “Yes. The plants chosen are designed to muffle noise. Business deals. Secrets. And—” He cleared his throat, cutting himself off mid-thought. “Other things.”
I could imagine what those other things might be. In fact, now that I had the idea in my head, I wanted to take Leo out there. Tonight. Find a hidden corner and make love under the stars. To get lost for a few hours and just be alone. Away from all these people. The noise. I wasn’t an extrovert by nature. The party had lasted a few hours and I was already exhausted.
A couple walked arm-in-arm toward one of the tall entrances, flanked on either side by dense foliage twice their height. I felt my shoulders relax a bit when their glow came back. Golden. Pink. With flashes of red. They were in love, whoever they were. And they were sneaking away to do what I wanted to do with Leo.
Be alone. And have some sexy times.
But that was not my destiny this night. I had to play dress-up for a while longer. Smile and shake hands and kiss babies. Well—there weren’t any babies here—but it was a thing. Political. I had to be political.
“Thank you for the dance, Zel, but I really have to get back—” Shit. My gift had returned.
His aura was dark. Not grumpy dark, or greedy dark. Not envious or angry.
Evil.
He must have seen the knowledge in my eyes, because he grabbed my arm in a vise with one hand, and placed the tip of a dagger just under my ribs with the other. Right below my heart. It hurt, cutting through the fabric just enough to nip my skin. One thrust, and I’d be dead.
“What are you doing?” I hissed.
“I’m taking you to your mother,” he murmured, deep and deadly. “Be quiet and come with me. One word, one scream, and you’re dead. Understand?”
“Yes.” I understood all right. He was a liar. He was evil. The one guy we’d saved in battle turned out to be a killer.
But he knew where my mother was, or at least who had her. That flash of truth had sparked through his aura as he spoke. I’d cooperate, for now. The chance to find her was worth the risk. I’d go with him, find out where my mother had been taken, and trust Leo to find me. I winced at the nick of the knife and allowed him to pull me down the stairs and out into the dark night.
I didn’t really have any choice.
6
Leo
I was so done dancing with other females. It was as if custom intentionally kept mates apart. I breathed in the perfume of the dozen or more dance partners that clung to me. Goddess, I needed a bathing tube before I even got near Trinity. The same probably went for her as well. The idea of another man’s scent clinging to her—even passing it to her as innocently as a public dance—made me see red, but even that was better than the vision of a naked consort in her fucking bed.
The final song came to an end and I bowed to my partner. As soon as it was acceptable to leave her, I spun on my heel and searched out my mate. She’d been speaking with someone by the wine table and I’d seen her walking with a guard. A guard who I barely recognized from the ambush the evening of the three sisters’ arrival on Alera. He was
whole and healthy, quite an improvement from that night.
He would have to get on his knees and thank Faith for saving his life.
Trinity had been relaxed and smiling at him. Knowing my soft-hearted mate, she wanted to offer her thanks for his bravery. That was all well and good, but I wanted all those smiles, all that attention, on me. Yes, I sounded like a sullen little boy, but where Trinity was concerned, I was greedy. Flaunting what was mine in front of the other males was not something I enjoyed. The dormant males would not understand what they were missing. The mated males had no reason to envy me. The consorts and the rest? They would be made to understand that if they hurt one hair on my mate’s head, I would make them suffer ten-fold before I killed them.
Trinity was a princess, but I didn’t care about politics. I was a soldier, plain and simple. Rich. Poor. None of them mattered to me unless they were willing to stand next to me on the field of battle. Pretty words meant nothing if one wasn’t willing to bleed for them.
I had no doubt Trinity would stand next to me against an entire horde of Hive Soldiers, if I asked. Hell, even more likely, she’d refuse to leave a fight even if I ordered her out of danger. Not as a battle-hardened soldier wanting to fight hand-to-hand like Destiny—she was too tenderhearted for that—but leading, organizing, planning.
She was magnificent. And mine. I had nothing to prove to anyone but her.