CHAPTER 25 #3
“Until he breaks out of prison,” Axel interjected. He kept his voice light. “Fabian did mention his flames five years ago.”
“So we shouldn’t spook him,” Father mused. He gestured to Axel. “Tell the guards watching him to keep their distance. Even when we move, it shouldn’t look like an arrest.”
“And if he leaves before then?”
Father continued to pace, his eyes growing distant as he considered.
“Shadow him. I don’t want him loose in the castle, but he should believe everything is normal.
” Turning suddenly to Axel, his hazel eyes sharpened.
“And to help convince him, you should be in that ballroom mingling. Katrin will be fine with her sister; put those acting skills of yours to good use and give Ulrich something to watch.”
Distracting Lord Ulrich from his tails made sense. But after the trouble Lord Ulrich and his “assistant” had put him through, Axel itched to be in the middle of the action. He didn’t want to mingle; he wanted to apprehend his attacker.
Unfortunately, Lord Ulrich might be counting on Axel’s passion to override his judgment. Axel would be an easier target alone in the castle passages.
So mingle he would.
The sweet strains of the violins wrapped around him as he stepped back into the ballroom. The receiving room was concealed behind the orchestra, so he had a few moments to re-acclimate himself before plunging back into the murmuring crowds.
His eyes first sought out Lord Ulrich, then skipped to the place where he had left Katy and the others.
Tobias lounged in a chair next to Liesl; Helena stood in front of them with her arms crossed and her head turned away from another young nobleman.
Katy sat next to her sister with one hand resting lightly on her stomach.
Reclined back as she was, she looked tired, but her eyes gleamed with alertness.
“What did you find out?” she asked when he bent down to kiss her forehead. “Is everything in order?”
“Not according to my wishes. We have no form of retention, and Father has ordered me to mingle.” She started to lean forward, but he shook his head. “No reason for you to come with me, my love. You should stay here and rest.”
Her eyes narrowed. “I’m not a delicate flower, Axel. I don’t need to rest.”
“Perhaps you aren’t. But our little one may be.”
Hesitating at his words, she settled back against the chair. “A fair point. But don’t let those courtiers walk all over you just because I’m not there.”
“I survived the court for years before you joined me,” he chuckled, wrapping his finger in a loose curl. “I’ll be fine.”
Having her on hand to say the things he couldn’t was always exciting, but he’d been taking their barbs for a long time. A few more wouldn’t hurt him, and he didn’t have to speak with the nasty ones; some of his nobles were actually pleasant to engage in conversation.
After a final kiss to her forehead, Axel drifted into the crowd, pausing at intervals to chat.
His crown prince mask was firmly in place – thinner than it had been before Katy walked back into his life, but still vital.
He forced himself to pay enough attention to appear engaged, only sneaking occasional glances at Lord Ulrich.
What was taking so long?
The evening grew later, Axel dutifully mingled, and Otto had yet to reappear or send word.
Katy’s eyes began to droop, and she leaned more heavily against the back of her chair.
She needed to go to bed, but a would-be assassin was loose in the castle.
He wanted his wife visible, not hidden away in their rooms.
“I shall be sure to pass your concerns along to my wife; she is the expert in our kingdom’s sheep trade.
” Axel breathed into his shoulders when he felt them growing too tight; his smile needed to stay relaxed.
“For the moment, let us put aside such dull, dreary thoughts as the specifics of business, for ’tis Midwinter, and we should be—”
He broke off when his eye caught on a new arrival. What was he doing back in the ballroom?
No sign of Otto yet. Had something happened to him?
“Your Highness? Is something the matter?”
Dragging his attention back to the middle-aged noble at his side, Axel lifted his eyebrows and widened his pleasant smile.
“Of course not. I merely spotted a young couple providing the perfect example of enjoying the evening’s delights.
Perhaps refreshments to lighten the mood would assist. Would you like anything? ”
The noble declined, looking a bit flustered at his crown prince’s offer.
It gave Axel the opportunity to slip away, angling for the refreshments table with his customary casual ease.
He exchanged a few polite greetings on the way, subtly scanning the attendees as he went.
The shaggy-haired man had returned to Lord Ulrich’s side, and the two had their heads together.
No one came to report to Axel. No guards attempted to waylay either of his enemies. And where was Otto?
Setting one of Katy’s favorite snacks on a plate, he turned in her direction and stiffened.
Where was Katy?