Silence stretches between us, his words hanging in the air.
“Maybe I was wrong,” I say stiffly. “Perhaps you do have a way with words.”
He turns towards me with a crooked grin. “And what do you think about her, hmm?”
My eyes drop to the stain on my shirt. I smell of wine and whiskey and the faintest hint of lavender that always clings to Paedyn. And with the way she clung to me tonight, the sweet scent of her has seeped into my clothing to distract me.
What do I think of her?
When do I not think of her?
I grab the flask from Kitt’s fingers and repeat the same words I had earlier. “I’m not drunk enough to talk about this right now.”
Lies.
Even sober she has my head spinning. I don’t need to be drunk to admit what she’s done to me, how she’s made me feel.
The swishing of skirts and chatter of excitement has me looking up. I watch as the guests begin to head out of the gardens and towards the training grounds. I throw Kitt a confused glance, to which he responds, “I have no idea.”
We stand, only slightly unsteady on our feet, and follow the crowd. Before we’ve even made it to the training yard lit with torches, I spot rising platforms surrounding a large dirt ring where guests begin taking seats.
Tealah steps out into the middle of the ring and spins in a circle, smiling at the guests surrounding her. “How fun is this! Not only did we get a ball, but we also get a brawl!”
I was certainly not planning on fighting tonight.
The crowd cheers and claps as they look around, likely searching for the contestants. And I’m doing the same. There’s no sign of the girls, only Jax, Braxton, and Ace on the opposite side.
I run a hand through my hair, suddenly dizzy from the alcohol and all the powers pressing down on me. The flask grows sweaty in my hand and I’m wishing I hadn’t drunk so much of it even as I contemplate downing the rest. When I move to head over by the contestants, a hand grasps my arm.
“Kai.” I turn to find Kitt’s eyes pinned on me. “In case I don’t see you before tomorrow...”
“I know,” I say, not needing to hear the three words to know that he means them. “I know.”
“Be careful,” he says with the hint of a smile. “And don’t you dare die.”
“Don’t worry. You won’t be able to get rid of me that easily, Kitty.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Paedyn
“What is taking so long? You know, you really are a princess sometimes.” Lenny’s grumble is muffled by the door separating him from my room as I tear off my dress.
“Calm down,” I mumble back. “I’m trying not to rip my gown.”
“Yep. That’s something a princess would say.”
I roll my eyes and pull on my thin training pants, pairing them with a loose cotton shirt. “Well, would a princess be going into a fight to entertain guests at a ball?”
I slip on my boots, and my hands itch to snatch my dagger and slide it into one of them. But when Lenny came banging on my door to inform me that I was needed in the training yard for an impromptu brawl, he also made sure to mentioned that outside weapons were prohibited. I sigh at the sight of my silver dagger, wishing I could have it on me for comfort alone.
When I swing the door open, Lenny nearly topples over after leaning heavily on it. I snort and he gives me a sarcastic smile before we begin at a quick pace down the hallway.
“Is this normal?” I ask in a hushed whisper, leaning close to him so none of the other Imperials can overhear. “Making us fight at a ball? And right before a Trial?”
He throws me a look, and even with the white mask obscuring half his face, I see the worry in his eyes. Lenny’s emotions are always on display, always written all over his features. “Nothing about this year’s Trials is normal.”
I nod as we round the corner and head out towards the training yard. The rising platforms around the dirt ring are filled with elegantly dressed guests in green and black, looking out of place among the muddy yard. Torches surround the ring, casting eerie shadows across the excited faces in the crowd.
“Did you get any information from your prince yet? Perhaps about a certain tunnel?” Lenny asks quietly.
I sigh and shoot him a look. “Not in the few hours since you last asked, no.”
He cracks a smile at that, but it quickly vanishes when we step up to the ring and the crowd around it. My eyes sweep over the scene, taking in Tealah at the center and the crowd leaning in to hear her every word despite it being amplified loudly.
“Since you are all unable to witness the Trials firsthand, as is typical, we have a special treat tonight!” The crowd claps as Tealah continues, “The contestants will be selected at random to fight, and the outcome may aid in your decision of who to cast your vote for!”
My heart skips a beat.
Not only am I going to lose this, but I am also going to lose their votes.
I scan the crowd for my fellow contestants, spotting them across the ring. It seems that only the girls were allowed to change, their gowns gone while the boys still wear their pants and dress shirts.
My eyes roam over a stretching Andy next to a stiff Blair. Beside them, Jax and Braxton talk quietly while the latter begins rolling up his sleeves to reveal his massive arms. Ace stands farther off, content to stick his nose in the air and observe the crowd.
And then my eyes stop on him, roaming over his rolled pants and the now see-through shirt sticking to the body beneath. He’s dumped water on himself in an effort to sober up, and a faint smile lifts my lips at the sight of him shaking out his wet hair.
When Tealah calls out his name, Kai lifts his head and meets the eyes of his opponent. Braxton stares back at the prince for a moment before offering him a nod and stepping into the ring. Within the next few frantic beats of my heart, the boys break into a brawl.
Unsurprisingly, Kai is sloppier than normal, which is to be expected since he isn’t exactly sober. But even with his disadvantage, years of training has him quick on his feet as he falls into a familiar rhythm. The fight is fierce, captivating the crowd with every punch and dodge. Only when Kai barely manages to pin Braxton to the ground for several seconds does the crowd erupt. Imperials quickly rip them apart before they can do any more damage.
Andy and Ace’s names were called next, and their fight was a fast one. Upon stepping into the ring, Andy shifted into a wolf with a sleek burgundy coat. She growled when Ace used his typical trick of surrounding his opponents with identical illusions of himself. But with Andy in her animal form, she stuck her nose in the air and smelled the real Ace among them, pouncing before he could even react. She knocked him to the ground and sank her claws into his chest, looking far more animal than Andy.
“Next up is Blair Archer and...” Tealah skims the card before saying, “Paedyn Gray!”
I let out a shaky breath while my heart slams against my ribcage.