Chapter Fourteen
Serin
I’d never worn so much material in my life.
I felt like I was carrying around another ten pounds as I ran my hands down the beading on my bodice and opened the door into the hallway.
My gaze found Jet first—standing near Vishen and Nira in an all-black tunic and trousers. His hair was slicked back, and there was a silver crown set with black stones sitting on top of his head.
I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen anyone more beautiful.
“Wow,” Jet said when his gaze landed on me.
“Seriously?” Vishen asked, speaking to Nira. “You did that?”
He got an elbow to the ribs for that. Hard. But Nira was smiling.
“It’s just missing one thing,” Jet said.
“Oh, I don’t have any… adornments.”
“I do,” he said, disappearing into his study for a moment then coming back with a silver tiara with black gemstones. It was a more feminine, delicate version of the one on his head.
“I can wear that?” I asked, wide-eyed as he approached me to set it on my head.
“You’re a princess.”
“Not really.”
His gaze cut down to mine. “You are, though,” he said. “Legally, we are married. And I am the prince. So you are a princess.”
I liked that.
Way more than I should have.
“Now, do you have any last words?” he asked with a private little smirk for me.
“When in doubt, just hand me more food.”
They all chuckled at that as Jet offered me his arm, and we made our way down the hall with Vishen ahead of us and Nira walking a few feet behind.
The chorus of voices pulled us in the direction of the dining hall, the sound so loud it made my shoulders rise up.
I was getting used to being around other people, but perhaps not so many of them all at once. I could only catch a word or two here or there, everything swirling around in my mind until I felt dizzy.
Seeming to sense my discomfort, Jet pulled me more firmly against his side as he stopped to speak to someone who called out to him.
Their gazes slid to me on occasion, but because Jet didn’t invite me into the conversation, they didn’t either.
I reminded myself that I wasn’t being rude, that this was a persona I needed to play. That I was doing this because—
Grimwood.
Like my thoughts had conjured him, there he was. He was in a charcoal tunic with matching slacks and shining jewelry adorned his fingers, wrist, and a single, very large medallion sat at the center of his chest from a chain.
Feeling me tense, Jet followed my gaze just as Grimwood turned to look in our direction.
Jet turned in toward me for a second, his voice just for me. “It’ll be okay. But we have to greet him. It would be strange for you not to see your father. Two minutes and it will be over.”
With that, Grimwood started toward us, arms outstretched.
I tensed, sensing he was about to embrace me, when Nira stepped in the way, appearing out of nowhere.
“You can’t touch the princess,” she said, her hand on the hilt of her sword—a silent threat. One I knew her well enough to know she would absolutely deliver on if she had to.
“That is my daughter,” Grimwood insisted, chest puffing.
“She is the princess,” Nira countered. “A title that supersedes your offspring.”
God, I loved Nira.
A muscle ticked in Grimwood’s cheek.
“So be it,” he said, looking down his nose at Nira as she stepped back to the side.
“My dear,” Grimwood said as I stared daggers at him. “My Prince.” He ducked his chin ever so slightly for Jet.
He was not ready to accept the disrespect, though.
“Your Princess,” Jet clarified.
“Pardon me?”
“She is your Princess, not your dear.”
Grimwood’s jaw went to granite. “Very well. My Princess. I hope you are settling into your new accommodations without complaint.”
“She has acclimated very well to her new role,” Jet explained. “If you’ll excuse me, my father is trying to get my attention.”
Grimwood nodded, but I could see the way he watched me as we moved away. Like he suspected something. But he would have no proof of anything if I played my part and kept my mouth shut.
“I see she has found the jewels,” Cass said as we approached, his gaze on my crown.
“I brought it out for her. I figured we wanted a united front at this sort of event.”
Cass nodded. “Forward thinking. Yes. That is what we want. We are a strong family unit now. And hopefully that belly will round out and everyone will know the next generation is on its way.”
I felt my cheeks warm.
I didn’t need Jet to explain that to me. All creatures, even the ones around my lake, bred, reproduced, and birthed. I’d even seen many creatures come into this world. I knew what Cass meant when he said he wanted my belly to round. And how it would do that—at least… the basics of it.
And there was the king, making suggestions about what his son and I were doing in private.
“These things take time,” Jet said, shrugging. “But it will happen.”
“Good. Make sure it does. Increase your chances,” he added with a smirk that made my cheeks go even hotter. “What did her father have to say?”
“Not much. He inquired about how she was settling in.”
The king seemed calmer than when I’d seen him last. Focused. In control. I hoped for Jet’s sake that it continued throughout the whole evening.
I was led throughout the hall and dining room while Jet spoke to various men and women.
It was nice not to need to speak. I got to just stand there and observe.
And what I saw was a side of Jet I hadn’t gotten a chance to before: the politician, the prince, the future king.
He was calm, confident, and at times, very charming.
He seemed to remember every small detail about these people’s lives, making each of them feel important to him.
Which, I imagined, was exactly his plan.
He was trying to create allies, forge relationships that would get him support if or when Cass fell.
“Stay here for one minute,” Jet said, nodding toward a group of men. “I need to speak to them, and they won’t talk around you.”
I gave him a nod, pretending it didn’t bother me even as my belly did flip-flops. What if someone came to speak to me? Would they think I was rude for not responding? Or had the news already spread that I didn’t speak? I’d prefer that.
“You look like you need a drink,” a voice said as a body moved in at my side.
Then there he was.
Tove.
Cass’s advisor. Or if what Jet and our guards said was right, the man who pulled the puppet strings on the mad king.
He was surprisingly attractive for such a morally grey man—more strongly built than the average fae. But those eyes of his—they felt like they could see everything. Like they could potentially see through me.
I took the glass from his hand but caught a quick shake of Nira’s head in my line of vision and chose just to hold it, not sip.
Unbothered, Tove watched my profile long enough for me to want to squirm. But I forced myself to stay still. Well-bred and raised women almost certainly didn’t shift around nervously. Even less so, a princess.
“I hear you are mute,” he said, allowing the pressure on my lungs to loosen slightly.
“That feels quite convenient.” I felt a sharp pain in my arm, enough to make me suck in a breath, but I managed to keep any sounds in as I realized he’d pinched my arm.
Hard. When my head whipped over, staring at him, his lips just twitched. “Hm. Interesting.”
I just stared at him.
The longer I did, the more I saw his cockiness slip. Like he couldn’t quite figure me out. Was I challenging him? Was I simply upset with him?
“Now, I wonder. Are you just mute? Or are you simple-minded too? What’s going on in that head, I wonder?”
Mostly that I wished I had that nifty little knife Nira kept in her boot so I could poke him with it and see how he liked being assaulted for no reason.
“I can’t decide if you are simply another female pawn in a man’s chess game…
or if you are Grimwood’s spy. An awful thing to do to a daughter, no doubt, sending her into the arms of a cruel prince to endure…
whatever a woman must just to feed information back to her father.
But men have done much more wicked things, don’t you think?
Especially a man who might want a crown and kingdom for himself. ”
“Tove,” Jet said, his tone deceptively light even as I looked over and saw the tension around his eyes. “I’m sure you’ve heard by now that my wife doesn’t speak. Were you just looking for someone to listen to you speak?”
“I wasn’t sure if the rumors were true. But not a peep.” His gaze cut across the room at a booming laugh from the king, making him stiffen. “It was lovely to formally meet you, Princess. If you’ll excuse me.”
As soon as he was gone, Jet fished the glass out of my hand and gave it to Vishen.
“You didn’t drink that, did you?” he asked, making me shake my head. “Good. Are you all right?”
I couldn’t speak to him, not in a room full of eyes watching me. So I lifted my arm, showing him the little purple mark on my arm.
Jet reached for my forearm, his touch gentle, and little sparks shot off at his touch.
“Did he… pinch you?” I nodded. Jet sighed. “Sorry. I shouldn’t have left you. He’s… something else. Did he say anything to you that is interesting?” I nodded. “Okay. Keep it fresh in your mind. We will talk about it after the feast.”
With that, the food was brought in.
I let everything else fall away but sharpening the memory of my interaction with Tove… and stuffing as much food in my mouth as I could without looking like a complete glutton in front of everyone’s eyes.
The sights and sounds around me were overwhelming, making my nerves feel frayed, and seeming to sap more energy than they should just sitting there. But it wasn’t long before a chill settled into my bones and aches started in all my muscles.
It was enough to make me put my piece of bread back down when my arm felt too heavy to hold, and fold my hands in my lap.
Jet’s gaze cut over, seeming to see something in my face, but knowing he wasn’t able to do anything about it right then.
Under the table, he grabbed my leg and squeezed. My hand went over his, holding onto him, grounding myself to him, reminding myself that this would be over soon.
Just when I wasn’t sure I could take it anymore, Cass said his goodbyes and was led away from the table by Tove and several of his soldiers.
Jet took it as his opportunity to excuse us as well, leaning in as he pulled out my chair to beg me to just be strong until we got to the stairs.
My bones felt as brittle as old wood, but I managed to stay upright out of the dining hall, down the hallway, and up the first set of steps.
When a soft cry escaped me as I started to fall, Jet was right there to sweep me into his arms.
There was no hesitation in hiding my face in his neck, breathing in his spicy scent, warming myself with his body heat.
“Almost there,” he promised as Nira ran ahead to unlock the door and get me a glass of my lake water.
Jet sat down on the bed with me still on his lap, cradling me with one arm and holding the glass to my lips with the other.
I gulped until it was gone, feeling it immediately start to soothe my aching muscles.
“Next time, we’ll remember to bring a flask,” Nira said. “We can discreetly hand you two drinks and keep Serin from crumbling.”
“This seemed fast,” Vishen observed.
“It was the stress,” Jet answered for me. “She’s from a lake.”
“That soup was different,” I said, getting a chuckle out of Jet.
“It was a stew.”
“What is stew?”
“It’s soup, but thicker, heartier.”
“I liked it.” I felt better, but I didn’t move from my position. “I didn’t like Tove.”
“Can’t fucking believe he pinched you.”
“He pinched you?” Nira yelled, getting shushed by Vishen, who looked out into the hall.
“He wasn’t sure I was really mute,” I explained. “And he was curious if I was simple too. Or if I was Grimwood’s spy.”
“Shit,” Vishen said with a sigh.
“And he is very much aware that Grimwood wants the crown. He seems mixed on me. But I don’t know if he would talk about his suspicions to your father.”
“Knowing him, he probably will,” Jet said, shaking his head, rubbing the top of my head in the process.
“It’s not something we don’t already know,” Vishen reasoned. “We just need to be extra careful with Serin and her cover story now.”
“We can do that. We aren’t going to let anything happen to you.”
I knew he believed that.
But war was coming.
And whether we liked it or not, I was a piece to move around the board.