Chapter 24
Sander
I barely make it a block up the road before I accept that every fiber of me aches to turn around and finish what I never should have started. Kissing Astrid when she still thinks I’m my brother would have been the worst kind of disaster.
After I’ve made it two blocks, the disappointed look on Astrid’s face is fully burned into my mind and will likely haunt me the rest of my life. But it’s for the best.
Three blocks from Starlight Security, whistling starts up behind me. I wondered if the man in the shadows would follow me, and now I have my answer.
The whistling grows louder—he wants me to know he’s there—and I force myself to stay calm.
He isn’t getting any closer, and if he wanted to hurt me, he wouldn’t have announced himself.
He’s not afraid of me, which is worrisome.
Hex is well-known for his combat skills, and a misplaced arrow or barely imperfect rifle shot wouldn’t be enough to make anyone but a fool think a fight with me would be a good idea.
I need to be cautious.
Slowing my steps, I wait until the man catches up before I turn to look at him. He keeps a step behind me, his head dipped down and a cap obscuring his face, but I can practically feel his smile.
“Apologies for sneaking up on you like that, Your Majesty,” he says, his voice gruff but soft. Calm.
I, however, let my words come out biting. “That’s not my title.”
“And it never will be, according to gossip. But one has to wonder why.” With his hands in his pockets, his gait is casual, but I’m not stupid enough to think he isn’t a threat.
“To any outside observer, you’re as qualified to rule as your sister, if not more so.
Instead, you spend your time among soldiers, your boots on the ground and your sights on a commoner. ”
I can’t keep looking backward, so I reluctantly return my gaze to the dark street ahead of me as I walk and glance back every few seconds to keep an eye on him in my periphery.
“I had a long weekend, so I’d appreciate it if you told me why you’re risking your safety to judge my decisions.
Then you can let me be on my way without this turning into a fight. ”
“Judge?” He chuckles. “No, I happen to admire the life you’ve built for yourself.
And you’re the only one fighting here, Prince Hendrik.
Pretending you’re content with the way things are.
” He returns to whistling as we walk, keeping a deliberate distance from me in a way that makes me nervous.
He’s close enough that he’s not worried about being attacked, while far enough to be just out of reach if I try anything.
“What do you want from me?” I hate that I have to ask, but I get the feeling the conversation won’t continue unless I do. As it stands right now, I have no control here, and I’ve never felt this helpless before. Not even when I was drunk.
“I’m just a courier, Your Highness. Came to Invem to return a motorbike to a very intriguing security officer. Why would I want anything from a Candoran prince?”
He brought Astrid’s bike from Fennor’s estate?
The estate is far enough from Invem that he would have had to already be there by the time Astrid and I left.
He could have been there all weekend, but I was so focused on the nobles around me that I didn’t pay any attention to the staff. That was Astrid’s task.
Which is why he’s talking to me instead of her.
Whoever this man is, he’s probably been watching Astrid since dropping off her motorbike.
My hands curl into fists, an overwhelming need to protect her, but what can I do?
There’s a good chance he was waiting for me before making his move, and I’m not prepared for a conversation with someone who feels more important than he’s pretending to be.
“What do you want with Astrid?” When I don’t get an answer to that question, I try another. “What value is she to you?”
“Ah, value is such a subjective concept,” the man says almost wistfully. “To someone like me, she’s worth quite a lot. To someone like you? I have a feeling she’s worth a good deal more than that.”
I snap, lunging for the man and pinning him against the nearest wall. “If any of you even think about touching her, I’ll…”
The man tilts his head, as calm as ever as he gives me a good view of his weathered face.
I’ve never seen him before, which only adds to my nerves and frustration.
“You’re too curious to finish that threat,” he says with a wry smile.
“I like that about you, Hendrik. You’re not as impulsive as you’ve let people believe, and that makes you smart.
” His smile turns into a smirk, his eyes full of challenge. “It makes you valuable.”
Stunned, I slowly release him and step back as I try to think of the best way to handle this conversation.
Doing what Hex would do—attack to gain the upper hand and intimidate—didn’t work.
Astrid isn’t nearby to nudge me in the right direction, and it’s more obvious than ever that she’s crucial to things going right.
I can’t do this on my own.
“I’m not threatening Miss Storme,” the courier says with a wry smile.
“Then why does it feel like you are?” I grind out.
He chuckles. “I believe she’s intelligent enough to do the right thing, just as you are.”
‘The right thing’ could mean anything, but one thing is certain: this man is one I should listen to. We wanted to get to the heart of the anti-royalists, and I think I just met him.
Smiling, the man dips his hat and starts walking in the direction we came from, but he looks back only a few steps in.
“If you and Miss Storme would like to keep yourselves valuable, you’ll know where to be tomorrow night.
Change is on the horizon, Your Highness.
” As my heart drops into my stomach, he resumes whistling a jaunty tune and slowly melts into the darkness, leaving me breathless and queasy.
It could be minutes later or seconds, but when my phone buzzes with a text, I’m unsurprised to see it’s from Astrid.
Astrid:
Greywick just sent me two tickets to the symphony tomorrow night as a thank you for taking on the weekend job last-minute.
Now I know what the courier meant when he said I’ll know where to be. My fingers tremble as I send my reply. I have more than a decade of rigorous training under my belt, and yet the anti-royalist organization has left me completely shaken.
If they’re anything like the courier, they have a lot more power than we’ve realized.
Hex:
It’s not just a thank you.
Astrid:
No, it’s not.
Hex:
So we’re going?
Astrid:
I don’t think we have a choice. Are you sure you want to be in this with me when we don’t have the RIA behind us?
In that, at least, I’m confident.
Hex:
I’m with you, Astrid.
I’ll tell her about the courier tomorrow. Knowing her, she won’t get any sleep if I give her another problem to solve, and she needs to be at her best at the symphony.
Now I just have to convince Hex to let me keep being him. Based on the text he sent me a few minutes ago, informing me that he’ll be waiting up to learn everything he needs to know so he has the night to process, he’s likely going to fight me on that. But I’m ready to fight.
As much as I hate lying to Astrid, I have to see this thing through to the end. After Candora is safe and the dust has settled, I’ll come clean, and I hope Astrid will find it in her heart to forgive me.