Page 24 of The Sunbound Princess
Nikolas drifted forward. “Really?” He squinted at the wanted poster. “I don’t see it.”
Bel looked between him and the drawings. “The resemblance is uncanny.”
Nikolas flung his hands up. “Well, it’s a terrible likeness. Dain looks all right, I guess, but they gave me a double chin.” He turned to me. “I feel like they did it on purpose.”
Helios folded his arms, his muttered “gods” laced with scorn.
Bel peered at the poster. “Two hundred gold pieces for the capture of Nikolas Taniakes and Dain Zostas, wanted for theft of royal property and assault on the king’s guard.” She faced us with wide eyes. “You assaulted the king’s guard?”
“A misunderstanding,” Nikolas said, waving his hand.
She frowned. “I thought your bond was twenty gold pieces each.”
Nikolas moved in front of the poster. “Thatbond was.Thisbond is a little different.”
Bel narrowed her eyes. “Did you plan on mentioning it? Just how many crimes have you committed?”
“The poster is misleading,” I said. “The king owns most of the land in Saldu. Steal something, and the Crown will come after you for theft no matter who you took it from.”
“Whom,” Helios murmured, studying his fingernails.
Anger snapped in Bel’s eyes as she planted her hands on her hips. “So youarethieves. Experienced ones.”
“Which is exactly what you want,” Nikolas said smoothly. “You’re looking for something, and you don’t know where it is. You won’t tell us much about it.” One corner of his mouth lifted. “Forgive the assumption, my lady, but that tells me you’re not supposed to have it.”
She bristled. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I know about this.” He sobered, all his considerable charm tucked away as he held her stare. “Look, Bel, I’ll be honest?—”
“Ha!” Helios exclaimed, still examining his nails.
A muscled jumped in Nikolas’s cheek, but he continued, his gaze steady. “Dain and I are thieves. Really good thieves. It’s all we’ve ever known. But we operate on a code, and we don’t veer from it. We don’t steal from the innocent, and we don’t take more than we need. And when we say we’ll do something, we do it.”
Bel flicked her gaze to me.
“He’s telling the truth,” I said quietly.
Nikolas nodded. “We promised to help you find your jewelry. And that’s what we’ll do.” He put his hand over his heart. “I swear it.”
Bel chewed her bottom lip, indecision stamped on her face. Finally, she sighed. “If you’re such excellent thieves, why is the forest littered with your wanted posters?”
Nikolas glanced at the parchment, mild offense covering his features. “I wouldn’t say the forest islitteredwith them…”
I went to the tree and tore the parchment from the bark. Rolling the poster, I tucked it inside my jacket. “We stole from a wealthy landowner,” I told Bel. “Someone with connections. It was a stupid mistake. We sold the item we lifted, but the owner traced the theft to us. This isn’t the first time Nikolas and I have angered the wrong person. We’ll keep quiet and lie low until everything blows over.”
Helios pushed his spectacles higher on his nose, his expression equal parts pleading and exasperated. “Bel, you can’t be serious about continuing this insanity.”
She stared at me, her brows drawn tight. On impulse, I went to her and extended my hand. She lowered golden eyes to my palm. Her breasts lifted as she drew a deep breath and reached for me.
Magic struck, a flash of gold sparking in the air. It was bigger this time, and it shoved me into her. We collided, both gasping and off balance. I caught her against me, steadying us both.
She looked up at me with stark golden eyes. “I can’t ignore it,” she whispered.
Taking a risk, I took her hand and pressed it between us, our fingers entangled over my heart. “Then don’t.”
Maybe I should have said more. Nikolas would have. He always knew the right thing to say. But silence had always seemed safer to me. Once words were out in the world, there was no putting them back. If you kept quiet, you never had to worry about saying the wrong thing.
After a long moment, Bel pulled away. I let her go, and I held my breath as she drew her hood over her hair.
