Chapter 20
Deals
Evelyn stormed out of the ballroom to get away from Haydn. Damien caught up with her in the hallway.
“Whoa! What happened?” he asked, taking hold of her arm.
“That asshole tricked me!” Evelyn shouted.
“Okaaay.” Damien pulled her farther away from the party while a couple guards nearby pretended not to listen. “We’re not going to yell that right now about people who outrank me.”
Damien settled Evelyn against the wall and stood too close in front of her. They were still in sight of the ballroom door but out of earshot.
“Let me go back to my room,” Evelyn demanded. “I don’t want to be here anymore.”
“That’s not one of the options I gave you. Either you stay until the end of the ball, or you leave with me.”
“You handed me to a monster!”
“What are you talking about? What the hell happened with Ritter?”
“This!” Evelyn held up her wrist to show him the tattoo.
Damien glanced at it. “You made a Bargain with him? Why?”
“You knew he could do that?! Why didn’t you warn me?”
“I didn’t think it would matter during one dance, but I suppose I underestimated your ability to get into trouble.”
“This wasn’t my idea!” Evelyn hissed.
“I know,” Damien said gently. “Lochmatten fae love making deals. It’s like a game to them. During the war, I ended up with a tattoo just to get a second beer at a party.”
Evelyn blinked. “You made a Bargain for a drink? What did you agree to?”
“Nothing I’d want my mother to hear about.” Damien smirked. “Now, what’s your deal with Ritter?”
Evelyn looked down at her tattoo. “He promised to tell me a secret if I visit Lochmatten.”
Damien stared at her, waiting for more details. “Is that it?”
It sounded a lot worse when Haydn said it.
“He didn’t tell me it was magically binding!”
“He probably should have mentioned that,” Damien agreed. “When are you supposed to visit the isle?”
Evelyn bit her lip. “Anytime in the future. I’m not required to go, but I’ll be stuck with this tattoo if I don’t.”
“Did Ritter give you a clue as to what the secret’s about?”
“He said it was something my family has kept from me.”
“So…” Damien fought to keep a straight face. “Under the terms of this Bargain, Ritter will give you a piece of non-essential information if and when you choose to visit his homeland. Am I understanding that correctly?”
Evelyn scowled at him.
“You’re the one who agreed to it.” Damien laughed.
“He promised to leave me alone if I said yes!”
“So, really, you made two deals. You took a tattoo so Ritter wouldn’t ask for a second dance.”
“But I didn’t know I was getting a tattoo,” Evelyn whined. “How can he mark a princess without consent?”
“By the rules of his magic, you gave consent. And the tattoo is a heart. A tiny one. It’s not like you have an outline of a dick on your forehead.”
Evelyn blushed. “No, Haydn wouldn’t be alive right now if he had done that.”
“Evelyn,” Damien groaned. “He is a member of the High Council of the Commonwealth of Lochmatten. Please do not threaten him.”
“Why are you defending him? I thought you were on my side!”
“I would draw my sword against him or anyone else if you actually needed protection. But from what you’ve told me, I think you are more of a danger to Ritter than he is to you.”
Evelyn tried to push Damien away, but he caught her wrists and held them. “What am I missing, Princess?”
I was so worried that Haydn had died in the explosion and I would never see him again. But now that he’s here, he isn’t who I thought he was. I don’t know how to merge Haydn and Councilor Ritter in my head. And since I was dumb enough to make a Bargain, I’m linked to him even in this small way.
What if he does actually know a secret about my family? What if he’s telling the truth?
“I don’t trust him!” Evelyn snapped. “He knows too much, he’s immune to all of our magic, and secrets seem to be his favorite thing in the world!”
Damien gave her a pitying look. “You just described Lochmatten’s version of an ideal leader. Knowledgeable, powerful, loyal.”
“Then I don’t want to go to Lochmatten,” Evelyn decided.
“That’s fine. You’ll just have to get used to your tattoo.” Damien lightly kissed the heart on her wrist, like a parent kissing a child’s bruise to make it feel better.
A pleasant shiver ran up Evelyn’s spine.
Damien keeps touching me… I should tell him to stop. But I like when he touches me.
“Can we go back to the ball, or do you want to leave?” Damien asked. “Leo hasn’t danced with you yet, right?”
Evelyn’s heart skipped at the idea, forgetting her anger at Haydn and confusion over Damien.
Surely the ball can’t go on that much longer. I don’t want to miss my chance to see Leo… if he still wants to dance with me.
“We can go back.”
Damien led her into the ballroom. “Wait here. I have an idea,” he said before walking off.
Surprising no one, Evelyn did not wait there. Instead, she wandered over to the Taste Court’s table. Lord Robert was distracted talking with Lord Grégory.
Evelyn returned to the woman who had handed her a glass of wine earlier. “Could I have another drink, please?”
The woman looked delighted by the princess’s request and quickly poured a larger glass. Again, Evelyn finished the wine all at once.
“Are you allergic to following directions?” Damien complained when he found her.
“I should ask a Healer about that,” Evelyn quipped.
Damien addressed the woman supplying drinks. “Is that wine from the palace?”
“No. This is Barbeau’s. He says the king’s wine is disappointing.”
Damien glared at Evelyn. “I was only gone for a minute.”
“I was thirsty,” she said, batting her eyelashes.
He ignored her tipsy flirtation and removed a bracelet from his pocket.
“Is it your turn to be a princess?” she teased.
Damien fastened the bracelet around Evelyn’s wrist. It was wide, with three rows of diamonds interspersed with aquamarine jewels.
“Um, thank you?” Evelyn said.
“It will hide your tattoo,” he explained.
“Oh! Thank you! Where did you get it?”
“I borrowed it. Nicolas’s cousin always wears too much jewelry.”
“Does she know you borrowed it?”
“Probably not. She’s had more wine than you tonight. I doubt she would notice if I stole the shoes off her feet.”
Lord Robert and Lord Grégory chose that moment to begin singing.
Their song did not match in tempo or style with the music playing in the ballroom.
Both lords’ voices were off-pitch in different directions.
The words were unclear and drunkenly slurred, made worse by a disagreement on what the correct lyrics were.
Most of the Taste Court joined in, increasing the volume exponentially.
The performance would have been impressively awful in a tavern and was royally offensive in a king’s palace.
Evelyn loved it.
Damien dragged her away before the princess’s wine-addled brain inspired her to participate in the spectacle. “I think that means the night is almost over.”
Evelyn scanned the room for Leo, but the movement made her head spin.
Damn that wine.
“He’s not going to forget about you,” Damien said, partially holding her upright. “But if you puke on his shoes, I’ll never let you live it down.”
Damien forced Evelyn into a seat at an empty table and sat beside her.
“Shouldn’t I be dancing?” Evelyn asked.
“You’ll hurt yourself.” He crossed his arms petulantly.
“I thought you liked dancing with me.”
“I’m glad you believed that.”
“Why are you so grumpy all of a sudden?”
“Maybe because I have to babysit a drunk princess while listening to Barbeau’s rendition of ‘The Loneliest Goat in the Valley.’”
Evelyn started giggling, feeling like the wine was bubbling over inside her. A hint of a smile appeared on Damien’s face as he beheld her descent into madness.
When Evelyn managed to calm herself down, her mood swung in the opposite direction.
“Damien?” she whispered.
“Yes, Princess?”
“Do you have nightmares?”
“About what?”
That isn’t a no.
“I dream about the four soldiers we found,” Evelyn confessed. “I see the explosion when I close my eyes. I keep thinking about the people in the hospital.”
“Me too,” Damien admitted. He took her hand and held it under the table.
His skin is warm. Even this small touch feels like a hug.
“Leo was mad that I left my room and saw the patients,” Evelyn recalled. “Some of them didn’t have skin anymore.”
“The Healers’ magic is working,” Damien reassured. “The patients are getting better.”
“How do you know?”
“I was at the hospital earlier.”
“Why?”
“Almost all of the patients are soldiers I’ve worked with for decades. You and Leo aren’t my only friends, you know.”
Evelyn held back tears at his words. “I’m sorry.”
“I can take you to the hospital so you can see how much the Healers have done,” Damien offered.
Evelyn thought about it. “Can you take me back to the bar?”
Damien winced. “Why there?”
“So I can see that it’s empty. Something in my mind doesn’t believe that the fire and the people are gone.”
He nodded. “Yes. Not tonight, but I’ll take you.”
She squeezed his hand in a silent thank you.
“You look amazing tonight, Evelyn,” Damien murmured. “Leo is lucky to have you.”
Evelyn’s breath caught in her throat.
Why does he sound so sad?
“You’re handsome enough in that uniform to break some hearts tonight,” she told him. “Women keep looking at you. Men, too.”
Damien’s green eyes sparkled. “Have you seen me dance with anyone else?”
No… Damien has only danced with me. Is there someone else he wanted to dance with? Or has he been thinking about Angelina?
Leo walked over to them, and Damien quickly let go of Evelyn’s hand. She jumped out of her chair, regretting that decision when her head started spinning.
“Are you all right?” Leo chuckled. “Did I see you take wine from Lord Robert?”
Evelyn gripped the table for balance. “I’m fine.”
“She’s been a menace the whole night,” Damien said.
Leo ignored him and held out a hand to Evelyn. “I believe you promised me a dance, Princess. The last song is about to start.”
He didn’t forget about me.
“I would love to dance with you.”
Leo led Evelyn into the crowd. She shot a last glance over her shoulder at Damien. He was staring at her with an unreadable expression. Then Lord Nicolas took the seat next to him. Damien grinned and they started talking.
Focus on Leo. You’ve been waiting all night to be with him.
The dance began and Leo spun Evelyn around. Looking into his blue eyes made her feel like she was flying through the sky. But Damien’s words popped into her head like arrows trying to shoot her back down to the ground.
What color are his eyes with the illusion?
“What do your eyes look like to everyone else?” she asked.
“They’re a golden brown color,” Leo said.
How many siblings does he have?
“Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
Leo flinched almost imperceptibly. “No. Does wine always make you curious?”
Where did he grow up? Are his parents alive?
“Where are you from? Where are your parents?”
Leo frowned. “Where are all of these questions coming from, Evelyn?”
“I want to know more about you. You already know everything about me.”
“That’s why I wanted to talk to you this morning. We should get to know each other better. There’s so much I want to tell you, but right now isn’t the time.”
Why do I feel like I’m in trouble?
It was Evelyn’s turn to frown. “I only asked where you’re from. Is that a secret?”
“No, of course not. It’s just a long story.”
“It’s not a complicated question, Leo.”
“Tomorrow, Princess. I promise I will answer every question you can think of. But please give me until tomorrow,” Leo begged.
“Why?”
“I don’t want to waste tonight on things that aren’t important. I want to dance with you and tell you how gorgeous you are.”
Evelyn couldn’t help but smile. “I guess the boring stuff can wait another day.”
“If you stay in Gryon, we can have all the time we want.”
“Or you could come to Carrowmore.”
Leo shook his head. “I need you here with me.”
“Why?” Evelyn asked again.
“Because I cannot imagine going a single day without seeing your beautiful face or hearing your voice or holding your hand.”
If my heart beats any faster, I might actually die in this ballroom.
Leo leaned in closer. “Will you consider it? Staying here with me?”
He wants to be with me! I know it’s not that easy, and it’s not like he’s proposing, but… He wants me to stay!
“I’ll think about it,” Evelyn said.
When the final song came to an end, she wanted to cry.
How is the ball already over? That was too fast!
Leo bowed to Evelyn and kissed her hand. “Tomorrow, Princess. Give me tomorrow and I will give you the world.”