e
hind the kitchens. After running from Xavier, it is the onl
against the walls, whispering, wide-eyed and curious. When the
is
who was
tour
d it straight to the kitchens, and from the kitchens to every mat and corner of this pla
rm. "Helen. The Alp
o rejected me, who wants to own me, w
the gua
know I was alone with the prince, and what we said? The dread rises like a wave and chokes my throat as
and the shadows stretch long. The gua
h his back to me, hands claspe
ne
on the verge of breaking. *Is this the end? Will they kill me f
is shadow falls over me, and he sto
oose you? Why did he w
give him the real one. I cannot say that
That the prince picked a dirty, rejected slave for no reason?" He leans down un
calm. "I only did what I was told. I showed him the
d you tell him?" His voice drops, low and dangerous. "Did yo
old him
are l
wear
I see his hand ris
y head sideways,
?" His voice is ice. "Catch h
his face, fear of what I might have said? Or is it jealousy, raw and ugly, that a
isper. "I only di
re nothing. You think a
k that. I do n
nd catch myself. He turns back to
e one mo
ha
ace and end this foolishness." He does not look at me. "If you refuse, I
eeks and drip onto my dres
eyes cold.
step throu
ay. She has
ot fight, or scream, or beg. I only cry, as they haul
y no
out t
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