Camilla held her breath, heart pounding at the idea that it was happening a second time. She knew that whatever he said next would be terrible, knew that whatever had transpired had deeply wounded the prince.
“Before Lennox decided to play the first game with me, I used to receive invitations to visit the Wild Court on occasion. Their art is unlike any other, and a party in Faerie… they are legendary for good reasons. Chaos, debauchery. It fuels those who are beings crafted of sin. And the dark Fae are far wickeder than my brothers.”
Envy finished his drink, his attention sliding back to the bottle before he decided to continue.
“That night… something unsettled me about the invitation. It was not just for me, but for… her. However”—he lifted a shoulder and dropped it—“I wasn’t sure if my envy was clouding my judgment. Perhaps I didn’t want her to go because I didn’t want her to be fascinated by anyone else. Perhaps I didn’t want someone to see what I had and manipulate her. Or perhaps I was a selfish, controlling demon, as she’d accused me of being.”
“She went to the Wild Court on her own,” Camilla ventured, her stomach twisting into knots. It was no place for mortals.
“Fae are seductive by nature, especially to humans. You know well—humans grow up on stories, most of which don’t relay the full truth of the Folk. So she went to Faerie, tempted by adventure, tempted by a fairy tale that no one had bothered to reveal is actually a nightmare. She drank their wine, ate their food, and danced with their king. I arrived late, tried to save her. Then I was banished.”
It felt like a bird’s wings were beating inside Camilla’s chest.
“I asked my brother Wrath to intervene, to help me break the ward, but he declined. Wanting to avoid a war with the Unseelie.”
Rumors and legend claimed that the Unseelie King could create wards so intricate not even the strongest being could break them. She knew how powerful Envy was, knew he would have tried repeatedly to slip beyond those impenetrable threads. That his brother had refused must have hurt tremendously, but Camilla wasn’t sure even Wrath would have succeeded.
“From what I know, Lennox didn’t tire of her for a long time. When he finally did, instead of keeping her there where she could live forever, he dumped her back in the mortal world, at the queen’s behest.”
Envy’s gaze when it met hers was void of all emotion.
“Do you know what happens to humans who remain in Faerie too long, Miss Antonius?”
A tear slipped down her cheek. Envy watched it fall.
Time moved much differently in the Fae realm. If the king had kept her there for a long time by his standards, that meant hundreds of years had likely passed in the human world. When the king sent her back, she would have aged instantly and died.
There would have been nothing Envy could do to save her.
“I’m sorry, Your Highness. Truly.” Camilla was surprised by how fully she meant it, considering how deeply this mortal woman had clearly affected the dark prince before her.
“Don’t be. It accomplishes nothing.”
Envy grabbed the bottle of bourbon and stood, heading for the door.
He paused before facing Camilla again.
“Promise me something?” he asked.
Camilla nodded but didn’t speak, unwilling to make a vow without hearing the terms.
“Don’t ever trust an Unseelie royal, Miss Antonius.”
He was gone before she could respond.
With his confession still weighing down her heart, Camilla was slow to realize he’d only given her part of his story.
When he first began his heartbreaking tale, Envy had said the Unseelie King had taken from him twice. If the mortal was the first thing, then what else had the king stolen?
If she solved that mystery, Camilla suspected she would finally have the answer to what Envy was after, and why winning the game was worth any cost.
THIRTY-FOUR
ENVY STARED AT the bottom of another empty glass, wondering what had possessed him to share that story with Camilla.
No one knew the whole truth.
Not even Alexei. And one of the main reasons Envy had taken the vampire on as his second-in-command was to rally certain members of the vampire court to his cause, should a battle between House Envy and the Unseelie King ever happen.
It had been nearly two hundred years since Alexei had come to House Envy, and he’d been present for a handful of previous games throughout that time. All had been frivolous back then. But Lennox had also been less sadistic, more interested in Fae trickery than true torment.
Envy had slowly seen the change in Lennox, sensed trouble simmering in the Wild Court. If he were to actually win this game, he wanted to prepare for any outcome.
He’d been less cunning back then. He would not make the same mistakes now.
Envy had spent the years since then becoming someone new, someone who could not be defeated. Now every move he made had a purpose, a strategy.
He planned for all possible outcomes, slowly moving pieces into place, waiting for the chance to make his ultimate move.
Envy fixed himself another Dark and Sinful and sat on the overstuffed sofa of his sitting room, where Lo’s staff had laid a crackling fire.
He’d lied once again; he knew exactly why he’d told Camilla about the Unseelie King. He needed to ensure that the artist would not be tempted by Lennox. Envy had little doubt that their paths would inevitably cross as the game drew closer to an end.
If Camilla knew how dangerous the Fae were, she stood half a chance of surviving an encounter with them.
The knock was quiet but drew his thoughts into the present.
“Enter.”
Sloth shut the door behind him, his gaze slowly sweeping the room.
The scheming bastard had placed Envy and Camilla in a shared suite connected by a bathing chamber and this sitting room. He’d claimed it was to keep them close together for their comfort.
Envy had taken one look at the rumpled bed she must have napped in earlier and headed straight into the communal room, needing distance from her scent and his swirling thoughts about those sheets.
“Miss Antonius isn’t here,” he said, jerking his chin toward her room.
Sloth nodded as if he didn’t already know that.
“Good. I wanted to discuss something with you privately.”
Envy motioned for him to get on with it.
“I used my sin on her.”
“And she resisted it.”
“It happened with you as well,” Sloth surmised.
“No, Lust attempted to seduce her in Waverly Green. At first, I assumed it was because that realm dampened his power somehow. I believe she succumbed in the Sin Corridor, but barely.”
Sloth nodded again, taking it all in.
Envy knew he was sorting and compiling facts, taking his time.
Finally, Sloth spoke. “An amulet warding against dark magic is the simplest explanation. Or perhaps she has an enchantment inked onto her person?”
He looked Envy over clinically.
“Have you noticed any tattoos hidden on her yet? Maybe a symbol or initial?”
“You know my rule.”
“And I suppose she’s still here, so perhaps you don’t know.”