Feeling my heart tremble during this evening's drinks left me feeling sick. The realization my heart was tied to Kate’s fear was still sinking in. I stood with my father and Beta’s Glenn and Rhett, closely watching the others in the morbidly dreary dining room. Rose was meant to attend, but Father felt she might let the side down and told her to stay in her room. It’s basically been a waste of her time being here. Had negotiations gone well and the mood been jolly she might have got to enjoy the party. Not this time.Normally I would feel some sympathy for her, but until I get to safely question her tomorrow, I’m not remotely concerned right now. I know I’ve done some shitty things, had numerous one-night stands and left some girls a bit glum for a week, I’ve never run one of them out of town. A piano was tinkling for entertainment as musty chandeliers glowed but after the tension of the meetings, there wasn’t much mixing going on. Instead, everyone stood about holding wine goblets,
Hearing Roxie seduce Austin made my skin crawl. When I heard his door shut, I paced the floor. Despite everything she had put me through there was no way I wanted her life in Austin’s hands. Perhaps this demon has made her overconfident, thinking she can read a man like Austin. Even the guys she went with back in our hometown, they might have been uncaring bastards but Austin…the risks were enormous. /Austin can’t hurt Roxie without damaging pack relations, he can kill you and nobody says a word because you’re his/ Raya warned. It didn’t stop me pacing, back and forth I walked for what felt like hours until I heard the door open once more. The sound of cackling followed, and I felt my worst fears confirmed. In that instant it didn’t matter what Roxie had done to me, my sister was in trouble. She’s always going to be my sister. Her betrayal still stung, it hurt every time I thought of her, but it was amazing how quickly that vanished when I realized she was in danger tonight. Afte
It was less than two minutes, but it was everything. Raya was pinging around my mind like a rocket, exhilaration firing as I blindly stumbled back into the room. Stripping off I quickly unlocked the door before diving into the shower. I had to scrub any trace of his scent away before Etherly came back. I couldn’t even pretend to look happy in front of her, knowing we were returning to the isolation and fear of Greenway. Etherly’s face was equally miserable from sleeping on a lumpy chair all night as she concocted her latest bizarre, gilded imagery. Today I looked like a stretched satsuma, in a loud orange and gold gown. It was in no way practical for driving home. The knots and buttons she fastened at the back would guarantee me a painful drive. “Are you looking forward to returning home,” she randomly asked, adding dozens of golden butterflies to my hair. My eye make up was a gold and kohl-black shimmer, hardly recognisable in the mirror. “I am,” I replied with a smile. Home to F
I looked at her on purpose. /Course you did/ Alba scoffed as I tried to convince him for the hundredth time on the drive home that I know what I’m doing. I’d fallen asleep almost immediately after leaving Foxton, no surprise after an entire night on the balcony. Rhett said nothing, perhaps he knew why I looked like shit, from sitting out in every form of weather waiting for those two precious minutes with her. /Worth it/ Alba growled contentedly and I smiled to myself. Her beautiful face, the way it tilted up towards me with so much trust and adoration. The way just grabbing her to me made a little desperate pant escape and a blush rise to her cheeks. Fuck. Time to focus. Not that I’d managed to do that when it became time to leave. When Luna Gwyneth came in for the flirty farewell I had to look across, even though Kate looked nothing like herself. She looked like a fucking candlestick to be honest, trussed up in all that silk and gold. But it was still Kate. Underneath the s
Trundling back into Greenway, I should have been enchanted by the huge thick trees and opulent buildings leading to the Packhouse. Every imposing tree trunk just reminded me of prison bars. Every tree is a barrier between me and Fyrestone. Thankfully Austin and Zaw were immediately interested in the latest correspondence and palace news. I spotted Mina directing a dozen servants, all carrying huge bags and trunks of precious jewels with military precision. Now the Conference has concluded, Austin will not care about every single thing I do. I hope so anyway. When I passed Mina, her blue eyes widened and a wide smile beamed across her face. I gave her a small smile back. Even though I hate Greenway, Minahas been one of the few lights. Back in my small room I stripped off as much of the clunking gold and jewels as possible. "You're back?" as the face and beautiful round, blue eyes of Seraphine appeared at the door. Her hair tumbled down in shimmering brown ringlets, her lips curled i
Heading down the cobbled path with Rose gave me a strange sense of Déjà vu. We had done this only a few months ago. Late at night, the scent of citrus and sweet fuchsia flowers mixed upon the dusky evening air we had strolled, close siblings, able to trust one another. I had declared I would stand up for her, make sure I would do everything I could to prevent her being in an arranged marriage to Austin. Now I was here to find out just how much she had deliberately ruined a young woman’s life. “Much further?” Rose asked, her eyes glued downwards to the cobbles. She wore a long black dress, covered in slashes and chains. After being dolled up like a toy for the Conference she was back in full punk mode. Her short dark hair was a mess of wild curls and her ears covered in new piercings. I was in my leather jacket, unzipped, grey shirt underneath. “Just into the orchard, did you do all those piercings yourself?” “Roxie, we were bored at Foxton,” she shrugged nonchalantly. /Fantastic/
Rose was out of the picture, leaving just the three of us. Friends since boyhood yet it felt as though I was meeting Glenn for the first time. This was the guy who had been there when my mother died. He physically picked me up, and with Rhett carried me outside the packhouse into this orchard. I screamed myself hoarse that day, such emotions forbidden by my father in his presence. Now grown men, he stood as surly and miserable as a teenager, hands shoved into his green hoodie front pocket and eyes studying the floor. “Glenn, what do you have to say?” “Nothing. You heard Rose. That’s what happened. I followed the Luna Princesses orders.” “Glenn, you’ve been my best friend for so long…don’t make me do this.” “Do what?” /Here we go/ Alba said, as I took another plunge, let’s destroy another relationship tonight. Sighing I pushed my black hair from my forehead and simply said. “Why did you tell Kate to head to Greenway? Why would you send her to Austin!” This time Rhett lost contro
Now I have the amulet back I feel safer, Austin is still using me for meetings, but the suspicion has lessened. Over the past couple of weeks I have most of my meals with Seraphine and Mina. I laugh sometimes. I have a routine. I am assembling the fragments of a life here in Greenway. It is all necessary to provide a cover for my true intentions. Every time a meeting ends and I head down to the library to add to the records I open a filing cabinet drawer. There is no apparent logic to the previous scribe’s system. Random years, random topics spill out as I take a couple of minutes each day to try and find whatever it is I need to help Dex. In the two weeks since we returned, I have gone through just one silver filing cabinet, another two dozen to go, plus the meters of bulging wooden shelving, plus the lockboxes. I need to get faster but the howling anguish of Hugo reminds me of the price I will pay for being found rooting through these documents. Just as I finish putting away some