Chapter 3 #3
I shifted my weight, eyes locked to her as she passed a pair of men and smiled like sin itself.
Their suggestive smiles proved they didn't see the hollowness behind it.
But I did. She stopped by a stall full of freshly cut flowers, her bodyguard distracted by someone he obviously knew.
I could approach, have a few words with her, and then disappear before he ever realised I had been there.
A smokey floral wrapped around my senses as I stepped closer to her. For a brief moment, my eyes fluttered shut. Her perfume was powerful enough to bring someone to their knees.
Manicured fingers danced across lilac petals, then her gaze flicked up to meet mine as I approached. Twin sapphires grew wider. “You!” she hissed.
I folded my arms across my chest. “Why are you limping?”
She spun on her heel, pretending to be interested in a cluster of white daisies. “None of your business. Why are you watching me?”
Her words were filled with that familiar venom from the other evening. Couldn’t say I blamed her. After all, I had accused her of theft.
Slowly, I followed as she moved to a stall of lavender, honey, vanilla, and cinnamon scented beeswax candles. “Did you hurt yourself?”
She spun, her gaze pinning me to the spot. “I said it’s none of your business.”
I glanced at her full lips, dragging my eyes up to meet hers. “Do you need to see a healer?”
Her perfume wafted over me as she stepped closer, her chin tipped upwards in defiance. “Leave me alone. You’ve already caused me enough trouble.”
My brow pinched. How have I caused her trouble?
“Do we have a problem here?” a low voice rumbled beside me.
The bodyguard, a wall of muscle with a shaved head, puffed his chest, trying to intimidate me. Little did he know that I chased Thorns for a living—nothing intimidated me. Especially a man whose head gleamed in the sunlight like a polished egg.
“Not at all. This handsome gentleman was just saying how much he liked my dress.” The blue haired beauty—whose name still eluded me—wrapped her silken fingers around my bicep.
The warmth of her touch seeped into my skin, and I couldn't stop the thrill that climbed through me, burrowing into my soul as she turned her gaze on me.
I threw her a puzzled look, but she answered with a slow flutter of dark lashes. Something caught fire in my chest—I couldn’t tear my gaze away.
“If you’re not paying, then move on,” the bodyguard grunted.
Without giving me a chance to respond, he yanked The Night Jewel by the arm and tugged her away from the stall. She flinched, and something flickered across her face. Fear, perhaps?
“What’s your name?” I called after her, willing her to look at me one more time.
She paused, turning to gaze over her shoulder. The fake smile she wore before was back. “You can find me at the Silver Finch.”
It wasn’t her name, but it was a name.
I shoved my hands into my trouser pockets, trying to hide the grin forming on my lips as I watched her walk away. Just before she rounded the corner, she stopped by two small girls who were definitely not dressed for the wintry air.
A small glint of something metal caught my eye.
I watched as she pressed something into the hands of the tallest girl, whose silver eyes grew wide with surprise.
It would have been a kind moment if not for the brute of a man beside them.
The look he gave the cerulean-haired woman made my stomach drop.
And the way he yanked her arm, nearly dislocating her shoulder, made me see red.
One minute she was a beggar in the streets, then she was paraded around like a glittering jewel on the hand of a wealthy king—all smiles and silk, yet still treated with such disrespect.
Under the facade of her pretty smile and pretty dress was something dark.
There was more going on here than I knew, and I was determined to find out exactly what.
I didn’t know what to do with the blood pumping through my veins.
I wanted to let the adrenaline fuel my muscles.
Let my legs carry me to the man with an egg for a head.
Let my fist crack against his jaw, his teeth.
She might have been a prostitute—the lowest occupation within The Grey.
Maybe she was ill-tempered, or her loyalty swayed with the wind.
I didn’t know her. And it didn’t matter.
She was a woman. A shadowkin. And she deserved respect.
Heat travelled over my body. I needed to lose some steam—somehow. Sauntering into the shadows, I didn’t even bother putting my glamour back on. My mind churned with too many unanswered questions and thoughts.
I was nearly at the edge of The Grey when three rough-looking men barrelled around the corner, too busy laughing to watch where they were going. One of them slammed straight into my shoulder.
I didn’t budge—but he stumbled back like he’d hit stone.
“Watch it,” I snapped, shoving him off me. My patience was already razor-thin.
The guy squared up, jaw twitching like he had something to prove. I stepped forward, slow and deliberate, letting him see the heat behind my eyes.
“You sure you want to try that?” I growled.
His smirk faltered. The others pulled him back with muttered curses.
I turned without another word, my fists still clenched. I didn’t look back as I stalked off into the shadows, jaw tight, pulse thrumming. I needed to get out of here before I did something I couldn’t take back.