Chapter 9

CHAPTER 9

R ight now, my magic is erratic, and Raphael would tell me not to use it. But if he can take care of himself, then I can make my own decisions.

I need to make sure he reports none of this.

I turn to Cadoc and pour myself into his mind. I find his recent memories from the moment I showed up. I picture a white snowstorm, and I unleash it on these memories, burying them, making them disappear. Cadoc's legs buckle under the onslaught, but I keep going until nothing of the past hour remains in his mind. Even if questioned by the King's Watch, he won't be able to explain how the prisoner escaped. I doubt he'll be able to recall the prisoner at all.

Follow me , I command.

I lead him back the way we came, through the corridors and back to a wider hall. I plan to send him to the guards' quarters, then leave through the kitchen and make my way to the portal, but I don't want to risk letting Cadoc out of my sight too close to the kitchen. I'm about to erase his most recent memories when the sound of footsteps interrupts my thoughts.

I turn, and my heart skips a beat.

From one of the arches, the silhouette of a tall, broad man crosses into the shadowy hallway, towering over us. When he takes a step forward, a shaft of moonlight illuminates his face.

Ice crystallizes around my heart as I stare at his coldly beautiful features.

The Dream Stalker stands before me, and the world tilts beneath my feet. Time seems to slow.

Here is one of the most powerful Fey in existence, and right now, his attention is locked on me. His broad shoulders block my way, and his dark eyes pierce me, the pupils nearly black, framed by thick eyelashes and straight eyebrows. The moonlight sculpts his high, sharp cheekbones and casts a silver sheen over his tan skin. Thorny tattoos climb his neck. Maybe it's because I've heard his thoughts for so long, or maybe it's his otherworldly beauty, but the man is hard to look away from.

He's a million times more dangerous than the King's Watch. If he figures out who I am and what I'm doing here, I'll live out the rest of my days being tortured to death. And if the stories about him are true, the prince will be drinking champagne while it happens.

His expression is unreadable, but his dark eyes slide from me to Cadoc.

Fuck. Have I lost control of the veil protecting my mind? Has that spiderweb of connection drawn Prince Talan to me like a moth to flame? Or in this case, perhaps it's the deadly flame that's been drawn to the helpless moth.

Quickly, I summon the veil in my mind again, shielding my thoughts. I can't let him recognize me.

Cadoc seems to awaken at the sight of the prince. "Your Majesty." He bows deeply.

But Talan's eyes are back on me, staring down from his considerable height. A strand of his dark hair falls, sweeping over his cheekbone. "Who are you?" he asks quietly. "And what's going on here?"

"Your Majesty." Cadoc bows again, his movement erratic, stunted. He's still in the throes of my mind control, struggling to make his own decisions.

I follow with my own deep curtsy, eyes fixed on the floor. I'm nobody, I'm nobody, I'm nobody .

"Tell me your name," the prince says, "and what, exactly, you are doing in the countess's hall. Only she and her people are staying here, and I do not recognize you two."

"Your Majesty, I was merely showing this guest the way to, uh…" Cadoc frowns in confusion. He has no idea what he was doing or why.

"There's a cloud over your head." A bored smirk tugs at his lips as he idly flicks his fingers toward Cadoc.

A surge of magic hits the delicate tendrils I'd woven around Cadoc's mind, severing them instantly. Blinding agony shoots through my skull. It feels like I've been stabbed in the brain, and I clench my teeth against the pain and try not to scream.

For a moment, I think, Raphael was right.

The pain fades a little, and Cadoc stumbles back. His mouth opens and closes, but no sound comes out. He stares at the prince, then at me, his eyes widening. "What happened to me?"

But Talan isn't paying him any attention. His gaze is fixed on me, and I feel the full force of his dark magic thrumming over my skin. Goosebumps prickle my flesh, and a shiver dances along my spine.

"Well. That's interesting," he murmurs.

"Your Majesty," Cadoc shouts. "This woman…I don't know who she is. She did something to me. She's an intruder. She got into my mind."

My head still throbs, and I can hardly think straight. I tense, glancing at the open archway to the stairwell on the other side of Talan. It's twenty feet away, but even if I ran, Talan would be right behind me.

My heart is a tempest. Maybe I should throw myself down the stairwell to my death while I still can. I don't think I'd withstand torture as well as Raphael did, and I really don't want to find out.

"We must report this!" Cadoc says. "The chatelaine must know. The king must know!"

"There's nothing to report." Talan's voice is glacial, disinterested. "This is none of your concern. Leave now."

"Your…Your Majesty?" Cadoc is struggling. Talan severed my control over him too sharply, and he can't string a coherent thought together. "She…she did something. I…there's something wrong with me. She's dangerous…dangerous…she is…"

Talan arches a black eyebrow at me. "Well, maybe I like dangerous women."

"You're insane, just like everyone says," Cadoc blurts. Then, realizing what he said, he shakes his head. "No, I didn't mean that. I don't think that."

"What did you say?" Talan asks, and a quiet, controlled rage laces each word. "Please repeat that."

Outside, the wind rises, rattling the windowpanes, shrieking through cracks, as if the world outside mirrors his anger.

Cadoc goes pale as the snow, and he points at me. "I didn't say it. I didn't…the intruder…she should be interrogated. Executed. Treated no better than a demi-Fey."

The air goes cold around me, the torchlight flickering, nearly snuffing out.

Talan gestures to Cadoc, and the white-haired guard falls to his knees, his eyes open wide. He trembles, screaming. Outside, lightning flashes, and thunder rumbles soon after. Snow whips at the windows.

My thoughts are spinning out of control, frantic as the frozen storm outside. I am going to die here in Brocéliande.

Talan lifts his dark eyes to me, and the expression I see there is positively lethal. "That is what will happen to you if you try to escape, intruder. Understood?"

I swallow, glancing at Cadoc as he twists in pain. "What are you doing to him?" I ask.

"Oh, nothing. He's merely dreaming. He's dreaming of pain." Talan lazily twists his fingers in the air, and Cadoc lets out a shriek.

"Stop it!" I hiss.

"You're worried about the fate of the man who wanted you executed?" Talan cocks his head at me, then makes a twisting motion with his wrist. Cadoc slumps forward on his hands and knees, moaning quietly.

"Leave now," Talan says to Cadoc, his voice as smooth as silk. "Tell no one of this, or I'll pay you another visit while you sleep."

Shaking, Cadoc rises to his feet and skulks out of the hallway, into a stairwell.

Talan prowls closer, a hunter stalking its prey.

My blood roars.

I'm alone with the Dream Stalker, a fate worse than death.