Removing Griffin's fingers from my vest, I slap both palms to his chest, not even giving him a side-eyed glance as he soars through the air and tumbles across the street. In this moment I see nothing but Lena. Not my mother's rage, not my friends, not even the eventual punishment for my actions. My thoughts, my focus, my entire being is honed on the only thing that matters: Intercepting the guards before they dare to touch her.
“Stop!”
I, along with everyone else, freezes mid-motion at the Queen's command. We hold our breath as we wait for her to make her next move.
A faux, charming smile creeps up Adelphia’s face, dismissing Lena to address her people. “Of course we don't arrest those who express their thoughts. In fact, I welcome the insight provided by those who are less fortunate.” She peers down at Lena, her eyes flashing as her grin shifts to a sickly-sweet grimace. “I thank you for imparting such wisdom.”
Lena snickers and it takes everything in me not to strangle her for it.
Adelphia’s smile tightens. “Who might you be, little human?”
“Lena.”
“Your full name, child?” Adelphia says more sternly, that sickly-sweet smile still plastered to her face.
Lena silently assesses Adelphia. “Dalenna Nectallius.”
Adelphia’s brows bunch, and she pulls on the reins to halt her restless horse. “I’m not familiar with that surname.”
Ignoring the implied question, Lena squints up at her. “My gods… there’s so much darkness in you, isn't there? So much pain.”
Darkness?
Adelphia’s lips pull back and she bares her teeth. “Where are you from?”
Lena shakes herself from her spell and shrugs. “I'm a traveler. You could say I'm from many places.”
Abandoning all pretenses, Adelphia’s mask dissolves into an expression carved from ice. “Why have you come to Cascadonian?”
“Seeking trade.”
“And what is it you trade?”
“Leather.”
A surprised chuckle bursts from Adelphia. “In Cascadonia?” she asks incredulously. At Lena’s silence, her chuckles flourish into an arrogant laugh, quickly multiplying within the crowd while Lena watches with an apathetic mask of her own.
Adelphia smiles imperiously down at her. “I’m sure you've realized what a fruitless endeavor that will be.”
Lena’s lips curl into a secret smile that gives the Queen pause. “I have.”
Adelphia tugs on the reins, directing her horse forward and trotting past Lena. Aerin moves to walk alongside her horse, and the Queen’s guards encircle them both. Without so much as a glance in Lena’s direction, Adelphia tosses over her shoulder, “Well, Lena from nowhere, seeing that you have no real purpose here, I expect you’ll soon be on your way.” Peering at Lena over her shoulder, her voice hardens to steel. “Sooner, rather than later.”
Lena hums noncommittally.
A hate-filled gleam sparks in Adelphia’s eyes before she dismisses Lena and trots to where Aurora and I stand at the edge of the crowd. “Aurora, Darius, I expect you both for the evening meal.” Not a request, but a demand; her horse clomps away before either of us can respond.
Raucous conversation breaks out as the crowd begins to disperse, hundreds of admiring gazes following Lena as she glides towards us, calmly joining us as if she didn’t just publicly defy a queen and barely escape death.
Kace bites his fist and squeals. “You’re my hero,” he says to Lena. “Insane, but still my hero.”
“I can't believe you said that to her.” Aurora slaps Lena’s arm, shaking her head in disbelief. “She was furious!”
Lena shrugs one tan shoulder. “I wasn’t trying to make her angry.”
Amara snorts, tossing an arm over her shoulder. “Liar.”
Smiling mischievously, Lena wraps an arm around Amara’s waist. “I wasn't trying to. I just tend to have that effect on people.”
Tristan drops his head back and sighs. “Always have to make a statement, don't you?”
Lena shrugs. “I don't kneel.”
Tristan grabs both women by the waist with a rueful smile and steers them away from us. “No, you don't.”
Watching Lena, Tristan, and Amara merge with the pedestrians now rushing to resume their duties, my mind churns on the enigmatic woman's public spectacle, unsure if I should feel anger towards her or admiration. But one thing I’m certain of is that Dalenna Nectallius is a reckless, impulsive, insane bit of a woman, and absolutely the most magnificent, breathtaking creature I have ever laid eyes upon.
I’m so fucked.
Chapter 11Lena
“I'm sorry, sweet girl,” I coo, petting the forehead of my white mare, Layla. “I should have come sooner.”
Gleaning feelings of abandonment and intense irritation, I suspect she'd be scowling right about now if she had the facial muscles capable of it. Expressing her displeasure the only way she knows how, she huffs a breath and stares me down with those large brown eyes of hers.
From the day I rescued her, I've been unable to stomach the thought of confining her unless absolutely necessary, and only for short periods of time at that. Since she's incapable of understanding the laws of mortals and accustomed to roaming as she pleases, her current accommodations feel more like a prison than a hostel.
Unlatching the gate, I walk into the stall and brandish a full burlap sack. “I brought treats.”
