Page 36 of Throne of Ice and Blood
“Where are they?”
It takes me another few seconds to realize that the words came out of my mouth. Giving my head a quick shake, I try to push out the shock and dread. After pulling myself together, I turn to face Draven, who is still standing a few steps away, watching me with unreadable eyes.
“Draven.” Steel creeps into my voice as I lock eyes with him. “Where are they keeping Isera and Alistair when they’re not humiliating them in public like that?”
He clenches his jaw and watches me in silence for a second.
“In the kennels,” he replies at last. And before I can so much as get another word out, he adds, “But you’re not going there.”
“I need to see them!” I protest. “I need to talk to them.”
“And say what?Hang in there?”
I jerk back, his mocking words hitting me like a slap. Because that was exactly what I had been planning to say.
Raking both hands through his hair, he forces out a frustrated breath while shooting me a look full of exasperation. “There is nothing you can say to them that will make this better. All it will accomplish is to putyouin danger.”
“From what?” I snap back.
“From everyone!” Taking two powerful strides forward, he closes the distance between us and grabs me by the shoulders. “You need to be careful. Everyone in this palace works for them.” His eyes are burning with frustration as he locks them on me while he tightens his grip on my shoulders. “Listen to my words.Everyonein here works for them. So don’t try to sneak out, don’t get seen, and don’t talk to anyone.”
I have no intention of promising any of the sort, so I decide to change the subject instead. Lifting a hand, I motion in the general direction of the banquet hall. “Did you do things like that to your previous life slave?”
There is no emotion at all in his tone when he replies, “Yes. It’s what’s expected of me.” Then pain creeps into his eyes for a fraction of a second as he adds, “But I don’t want to do that to you. I can’t. So please, don’t do anything stupid that will draw their attention.”
And there he goes again, saying things that make me think he truly cares about me. But still not giving me a reason for it. Or doing the one thing that would help me, which is to let me escape. But I decide not to venture into that dangerous subject at the moment. I’m still planning on sneaking out to find Isera and Alistair the first chance I get, so I can’t risk making Draven too suspicious.
Narrowing my eyes, I study the tense expression on his face and instead ask, “Is it always like this? The humiliation and the cruelty?”
“Yes. Since they were treated like shit by the fae dragon riders, they want to balance the scales by being cruel to you now.”
“Butwedidn’t do anything. Isera and Alistair didn’t do any of that.”
“I know. But they don’t care.” True loathing flashes across his face for a second, and he squeezes his hand into a fist. “For them, those past crimes are enough to justify what they’re doing now.”
“You keep sayingthey. You don’t agree?”
He gives me a pointed look. “If I did, I wouldn’t have tried to save you from this, now would I?”
A sudden burst of frustration rips through my soul, and my next words come out like a shout. “So why do you serve them?” I throw my arms out in exasperation while staring up at him. “I can tell that you despise them! Despise what they do. So why do you still do their bidding?”
He opens his mouth as if to reply, but then just closes it again. Blowing out a sigh, he shakes his head and just begins turning away as if to leave.
My hand shoots out, and I grab his arm and yank him back to face me. “No! Don’t do that. Don’t begin answering and then change your mind halfway through. You always do that. So answer me for once! Why do you serve them?”
Anger flashes across his face. “Because I don’t have any other choice.”
“There is always a choice!”
“You have no idea what you’re talking about.” The anger on his face transforms into searing pain for a second before his expression becomes unreadable again. Clenching his jaw, he flexes his hand and draws in a controlled breath. “You don’t know them like I do. You don’t know what they’re capable of. What they’ve already done. To me. And to others.”
“You’re just a coward!”
Hurt flits across his face for a fraction of a second.
And I immediately regret my words. Because he’s right. I have no idea what he has gone through before this. I have no idea what made him betray his entire clan in exchange for power.
But before I can take it back, that flash of hurt disappears from his features and a smirk full of challenge spreads across his face instead.
