45. Who Can You Trust?
45
WHO CAN YOU TRUST?
*Kieran*
An hour later, I’m walking back toward my room when I see the absolute last person I can stomach at the moment. Nessa. The moment she locks eyes with me, she’s running toward me, latching herself around my neck. Her little minions titter in excitement behind her. Were they not there, I’d maneuver to the side and let her run into the wall.
Instead, I reluctantly wrap my arms around her and pull her against my chest. Even before I knew the truth about Raven this was torture. Now, my mark burns so much I nearly cry out in pain. Even that can’t compare to the nausea I feel churning in my stomach.
“My love, you’re home,” she screeches, planting sloppy kisses on my face. It takes a concerted effort not to wipe them away. “I’ve been so worried about you!”
I push her away gently and smile at her awkwardly.
“No need to worry, darling, I’m home now,” I say in my smoothest, most charming voice. “I can’t wait until we can put all this nastiness behind us and finally wed.”
My mark burns sharply, and I have to reach up to grab it, smiling at her sheepishly. There’s a blazing look in her eyes that nearly screams at me, “Make this look convincing or I’ll make your life hell.”
My life is already hell without Raven, but I’m never going to admit that to her. If all goes well, a day will soon come when I never have to see her again. It can’t come soon enough, in fact. I don’t need any extra complications, though, so I gently grab her hand, raising it to my lips for a tender kiss. I could be on the stage for the performance I’m putting on.
“I’m so sorry that I must again depart from you, my love, but I’m meeting with my friends to discuss their roles in the wedding,” I explain.
Her eyes light up in excitement, and I hear her friends giggling again. Having a mate is exciting on its own, but being mated to the future king is more than they can imagine. Some of them eye me as if they wish they owned the hand I just kissed. I’m very much looking forward to never having to see them again either.
“Until we meet again,” she giggles, and lets me go. Not a moment too soon.
I nearly stumble down the hallway, trying to put as much space between us as possible. When I’m finally out of her sight, I wipe my face on my sleeve, rushing back to my room so I can properly wash my hands and face. My lips tingle unpleasantly from kissing just her hand. There’s no way I could have ever gone through with marrying her. I’m beyond grateful I no longer have to.
When I feel satisfied that there’s no trace of her scent left on my skin, I decide I probably should hang out with my friends. We aren’t actually going to talk about the wedding, of course. There’s nothing I want to talk about less with them. But I’m able to mind-link with them and let them know that I want a guy’s night.
We decide to raid the kitchens, and that’s where I meet with them. Each gives me a half hug or a clap around the shoulder, and I feel grateful for the true bond we all have. Taner loads up his arms with desserts while our friends Whyte and Lucias gather up whatever savory dishes they can find.
The kitchen staff glare at us, as we’re clearly in their way and stealing food that was likely intended for something else. I could not possibly care less, though. Stealing food that is likely meant for my parents somehow doesn’t bother me at all. It’s just another one of the small rebellions I’m becoming increasingly comfortable with.
I grab as many bottles of the good liquor I can carry, and we head off to my private drawing room. All of my siblings have one. Not Blanca, of course, not that she was my sibling. I try desperately not to think about her or I’m bound to spill a secret to my friends that I’m not ready to share. Instead, we eat, drink, and catch up on everything I missed while I was away on my travels.
Taner is sickly in love with his mate, to no one’s surprise. She’s all he can talk about, and the longer he goes on about her, the more we all groan. Poor Lucias didn’t even find his mate, so he understands the draw the least of any of us. Part of me wonders if his mate isn’t up in Escuro herself. Whyte adds a bit about his mate as well.
My chest aches thinking about Raven there without me. I wish I could just tell my friends about her, but I’m not sure how much I can trust them just yet. We’ve been friends since we were children, but what if I slip the wrong thing to them and my plan unravels? It’s too important to see this through. Until Taner says,
“Goddess, we’re all assholes. We haven’t even told you how sorry we are about Blanca’s death.”
I look up at him in surprise, a little uncomfortable with his sincerity. Partly because I know she isn’t dead, but mostly because I’m still not sure how to react to the news. Everyone knows we weren’t the closest siblings, that at most times we basically hated each other. Still, the pain from my mark throbs just imagining her death. I must be contemplating my response for too long because he keeps talking.
“I know you two weren’t exactly bosom buddies, but she was still your sister. Your twin, at that. That can’t be easy.”
His words split open something inside me, and I know that I can’t keep lying to him, to any of them. If I’m going to have to put on a mask for everyone else in the kingdom, it’s the least I can do to be real with the people who care about me the most.
“Do you remember what your father told you about Escuro?” I ask him, testing the waters to see how far I can take the truth.
Taner blinks at me in surprise, but he leans forward in curiosity. He nods at me silently. Our friends look between us, wanting to be in on the secret, so I fill them in on what Taner told me several days previously. It feels like years ago. Whyte and Lucias listen to the tale in open-mouthed horror.
“Can I trust you three?” I ask them when I conclude my story.
They nod solemnly.
“You know you can trust us with your life,” Taner confirms, and it’s all I need.
“Blanca wasn’t my sister,” I breathe out in a rush. “She’s the princess of Escuro.”
They stare at me for a beat before they burst out in laughter. It’s not until they notice the deathly serious look on my face that they realize I’m not joking with them.
“She’s also my mate,” I growl when they’ve finally stop laughing.
The tension in the room is palpable as they digest the truth I’ve just told them. Finally, Lucias breaks the silence.
“Your mate died?” he whispers in horror. Maybe he understands better than I give him credit for.
“No,” I shake my head quickly. “She’s not dead; that was just a ruse. But I need my parents to think she is.”
They’re still clearly confused, so I tell them everything. I tell them about the Haze and how, understandably, disgusted I was at first. Taner smirks at this, but he says nothing as I continue to speak. I tell them about Nessa’s blackmail and Raven running away. I leave out the graphic bits, the parts where Raven and I literally couldn’t stay away from each other, but I give them the gist of our journey. How I misled my father’s soldiers so we could make it safely.
“Why did you do all that for her if you didn’t think she was really your mate?” Lucias asks, but it’s Whyte who responds.
“When it comes to your mate, your body does things your mind can’t comprehend,” he answers solemnly. Lucias just shrugs and relaxes back against the sofa, pouting a bit that he’s still without a mate.
I continue my story, telling them about the wreck that I found Escuro in. In my mind, I still see the scorched trees and the devastated forest. I imagine the slightly sunken look on the faces of the Escuro residents. What was done to them was inhumane, and it’s my father’s fault. I tell them all this, praying to the Goddess that they understand. Because I can’t do the rest without their help.
They’re still intently listening when I go over my plan to stop my father. Whyte wiggles in his chair uncomfortably, and Lucias is still relaxing against the sofa, though Taner is on the edge of his seat. All three stare at me in wide-eyed wonder.
Finally, I ask them the question that is burning in my chest.
“Will you help me?”