With Pae fast asleep, there is not much else I’d rather be doing. Besides, I need something to take my mind offhim.
It wasn’t hard to smile and laugh with Pae after I climbed into that coach. No, it was after that was difficult. It was when she set off for dinner with the other contestants, leaving me in a sewing room of strangers, that I was finally forced to think of him. Of the betrayal that hit me like a physical blow, forcing tears to well in my eyes.
He lied to me. About his power, his plan, hiseverything.
And here I was, thinking he cared for me. Thinking that what I felt for him just might have been reciprocated.
But it’s Hera he wants more than me. Hera he’s willing to risk everything for.
I shake my head at the fabric I’m furiously stitching. It’s treasonous to escape the Trials. How could he gothrough with this plan if he knows the death that awaits them when they are caught?
‘I was bound to die anyway.’
His reasoning is as tragic as it is terribly true. I don’t want to think about what would happen if he was discovered to be a Wielder. In short, the king would ensure that was no longer the case.
The thought has tears prickling my eyes, blurring the fabric in my lap to nothing but a silver blob. Sniffling, I pull my hair into a messy knot, blinking away the emotion.
I’m angry at him. He used me. Lied to me.
Every thought vanishes when the wall ripples beside me.
No,someoneripples beside me.
I jump to my feet, clutching the needle between my fingers as if it will do anything to protect me.
My eyes widen when an Imperial steps through the wall.
An Imperial with the cleanest seams I’ve ever seen, and black hair interrupted by a streak of silver.
His dark eyes flick over me behind the leather mask, landing on what I’ve pointed at his chest. ‘So, this is what you meant by wielding your needle.’
That dull voice cuts through me, shocking enough to make me momentarily lose mine. ‘W-What…’ I choke on the word and attempt to try again. ‘What are you doing here?’
He swallows. His discomfort is visible, evident in the shifting of his feet. It’s almost as though he doesn’t know what to do with himself, and if I weren’t battling so many emotions at the sight of him, I might have laughed. ‘I was walking the halls and felt your power.’ He clears his throat at the mention of the ability he’s kept hidden from me. ‘I knew it was you. And I… I needed to see you.’
I gesture to the length of him with the needle still poised to strike. ‘Is that the only reason for your visit?’
He looks away, sighing. ‘Look, I came to see you first. That has to count for something.’
‘Well, it doesn’t.’ I cross my arms, tone defiant. ‘Don’t let me hold you up on your way to getting yourself killed.’
‘Please,’ he whispers, taking a step towards me. ‘Just let me explain—’
‘Explain?’ I laugh loud enough to have him looking around nervously. ‘You had nearly two weeks to explain to me what was going on. Instead, you lied.’I step back, my voice strained. ‘And you spent every day knowing that I would never see you again after I was done making that stupid uniform for you.’
He’s persistent, pushing forward as he pleads, ‘Dena. Please. If you don’t like what I have to say, you can stab me with your needle once I’m done.’
I eye him skeptically. ‘Promise?’
He nods. ‘Yes. But only because I know you wouldn’t actually do it.’
I feel offended, despite knowing he’s exactly right. ‘You don’t know that.’
‘I know you,’ he says softly. ‘And I know that I’m the fighter, and you’re the lover.’
I swallow. ‘Go on.’
He takes a heavy breath, one that holds the weight of something he’s carried for years. ‘I ran away from home. I was fourteen at the time.’ His head shakes slightly. ‘Hera was only twelve, living with my family because her parents had died. She’s my cousin – maybe I should have led with that.’
