Did he do it? I gape at him, mouth hanging, confused. I thought he had given up. Tristan said that Kayn won the auction. My mind whirls. Even with how thick the fog in my brain is, I don't miss it when Tristan pounces on the smug fae. It gives me a little satisfaction to see the smirk wiped off Prince's face.
"I'll hold him!" Tristan roars, stretching his arms to grasp the fae. The size difference between the two is beyond obvious — it leans toward scary. My heart grows with affection for this man I barely know, defending me even when I can't even escape the cell and run.
But Prince's shock lasts all but a second. He reaches beneath his robe and grabs something by his collar, raising his other hand. Tristan smacks face-first into an invisible barrier, raising both fists to punch at it. Prince rolls his eyes.
"Personal guard dog?" He shoots at me. "Pull on his leash. We don't have time for this."
I bite my lower lip to keep myself from laughing. "Tristan," I call, watching the man growling at the fae. "It's alright."
"I won't let this vampire take you!"
I blink. "He's no vampire. He's a fae."
Tristan gapes at me from over his shoulder. "A fae?"
"Using glamour to pretend I'm the vampire,” Prince says with his upper lip tilted up. “Now move out, we have to leave."
Tristan analyzes my face for another moment and I nod him on. He steps away, letting his arms drop, and Prince releases his hold on whatever he had underneath his collar. Something powerful, no doubt. I want that.
"So Kayn won the auction," I ask as Prince moves to the front of my cell, pulling a small, dark green velvet pouch from the inside of his robes. He has something with the color green, that much is obvious. "And you're pretending to be him to steal me."
He grins, pulling a stone the color of blood from the pouch and holding it between two fingers. "I tried to do it the right way, but while I've used my long life to collect knowledge, he collected favors. Hard to compete with that." He shrugs. “Vampires,” he says as if that word explains everything.
I can't help but smile back. Even when my instincts tell me I should not trust this guy, it's impossible not to find him amusing. "Great. I'm ready to leave."
He nods. "Step back."
Not that there are loads of space for me to hide, but I do take one step away from the glass. Prince raises the stone, touching the pointy tip to the upper corner of the glass and murmuring something under his breath. Bright blue light shines from where the stone touches, and he writes something in runes I can't read. Once he reaches the other side, he steps away, and I cover my face. I don't need the glass to burst and blind me right now.
The glass doesn't explode, and when I look back up, it's gone. No idea where it went, no time to ask now. I step into the corridor and take a deep breath, but the air out here smells as sterile as in the cell. My gaze drops to the pouch of stones in Prince's hand. "That was handy."
"Very," he replies, putting the pouch away. "Very difficult to come around, too. As I said, I collect knowledge." And he turns. "Come. Once Kayn reaches the guards, he'll know something is wrong."
I turn to Tristan, gaping into his deep eyes without the glass between us. Not that it changes much, but it's nice. Wanting to feel his warmth, I reach out and touch his forearm, letting my fingers slide down to his hand. His skin is... Odd. It's definitely not soft, but it's not rugged. It's like his muscles are so strong the skin can't be smooth.
He opens his palm to receive my fingers and holds my hand in his. That same tug I feel deep inside me when I touch Apollo or Ren repeats here, and I swallow hard. Does this mean I'm just attracted to him, or is there more to it? Tristan's lips pull into a soft smile, and he pulls me after Prince.
Yeah. Should leave the soft feelings for later, when we're not about to be caught.
"What's the plan?" I blurt out after a second, my heart squeezing at the sight of all these creatures I have to leave behind. They watch us pass with wide eyes, pressing themselves to their cells, gaping in disbelief. And I can't do a thing for them.
"I have a portal stone," Prince replies without looking back, and I have to be careful not to step on his flowing robes. Sort of annoying, but I'm not complaining. Not when I almost had to go home with Kayn. Gods, I would be forced to see Donatello. What would he do? Would he laugh at me?
"A portal stone?" I arch an eyebrow, even if he can't see it.
"A stone that opens a portal." The way he says it makes me feel like the dumbest creature alive. I can almost hear him rolling his eyes. Glaring at his back, I wait for him to explain how it works, but he doesn't. The pointy-eared jerk.
"The wards keep portals from opening in this level," Tristan offers, his fingers warm on mine.
Prince raises a finger. "On this level." He then points the finger to his right. "Not the next one. Which is why we have to hurry." The fae shoots me a questioning look over his shoulder. “Is he truly coming along?”
“Yes,” I reply without thinking. Tristan has kept me company and he deserves to leave. Having someone on my side also comforts me.
Prince shrugs, and I know he’s about to say something when he stops moving. I almost bump onto his back, skidding to a halt at the right moment. When I look around his shoulder, I see the girl who brought me food. The slick black hair frames her pale face, and her eyes are wide with shock as she gapes at us.
Relief washes through me. I shove forward, wanting to get close to her. “Hey,” I start in a soft voice, opening what I hope is a comforting smile. “Why don’t you — ”
There’s no time for me to finish my thought. She turns and races off, steps skittering away amid the cages until they disappear.