Page 31 of Invidia

“I should get my brother,” he mumbled.

“Why? I mean, I get that he has more authority than you, but surely it’s within your power to sort this out?” I suggested tentatively. Or I did my best to sound tentative. My patience was growing a little thin.

“That’s not… I don’t really do that.”

My smile was more of a grimace by that point. There was no good reason he couldn’t—Damen had just demonstrated outside that he was perfectly capable of jumping in and taking the lead. He just chose not to.

“Damen, you handled things really well out there,” I said softly, maintaining eye contact and doing my best nonconfrontational corporate face. “It isn’t realistic for King Allerick to personally address every logistical issue that the ex-Hunters face in moving here. You could really help us in this area.”

I wanted to tell him off a little bit, because he was being a spoiled little princeling, but I didn’t want to let my mouth run away from me and get banished back to the human realm.

He nodded once, gesturing for one of the staff to come over. “You’re right. Okay. Yes. There’s a ground floor guest apartment with a small garden area out front, near where Captain Soren and Astrid stay. Please ready that room.”

“Have you eaten, Iris?” I asked.

“No, but I’ll be fine.”

“I’ll send for food,” Damen said with a decisive nod.

“And some water for Tilly. Perhaps we could eat in the dining hall?” I suggested to Damen before turning my attention back to Iris, lightly touching her forearm. “We’ll give you a tour of the place now while it’s empty.”

“I would appreciate that. Thank you.”

“Great, let’s go. We’re going to make you feel so welcome here, Iris. Anything you need, just let us know,” I said, giving her arm a squeeze.

Selfishly, I was glad for the opportunity to be useful in a way that wasn’t going on random filler dates for Ophelia, hoping I would meet The One, or fussing with curtains that nobody but me cared about. I liked being helpful.

No, I needed it. I needed to feel needed, because what was I bringing to the table otherwise?

Chapter 11

“Evrin!” Captain Soren called, striding over and tilting his head in greeting. “I never thanked you for what you did the other day.”

It took me a moment to realize that he was talking about me “rescuing” Verity.

“Please don’t. I basically tripped over her. There were no heroics involved.”

He almost smiled. “Thank you, regardless. I noticed you’ve been staying on longer and longer after your shifts recently. Is there anything you wanted to… discuss?”

I almost shuddered. This kind of conversation didn’t come naturally to either of us. But I appreciated that the captain was at least not standing several feet away from me like his horns might disintegrate if he got too close. It had taken a few months after I’d first joined the Guard for any of them to feel comfortable standing even somewhat close to me.

“No, nothing.”

Soren shifted his weight awkwardly. “Well, don’t overdo it. Selene suggested that you go to dinner tonight in the dining hall. Join in. There’s something of a celebration going on with the new Hunter joining us.”

Selene would suggest that. She was an outsider too, among the Guard, though in a very different way from me. Others weren’t actively repulsed by her presence.

“Is that an order?” I asked. Soren gave me a pointed look and I sighed in resignation. “Fine.”

“Good. I’ll be checking that you’re there.”

Delightful.

I waited until the vast majority of the court had entered the dining hall, intending to slip in discreetly and sit at the back of the room, drawing as little attention to myself as possible—from both my fellow Shades who would be disturbed by my presence, and from Tallulah, who would undoubtedly be sitting at her usual spot near the front.

But I hadn’t reckoned with what it would feel like to see her. And not in the distressed condition she’d been in the last time we’d bumped into each other either.

Tallulah’s presence was so magnetic, so energizing, that even I—who was conditioned to avoid any and all socialization—was drawn in by it. It was the reason I’d approached her in the first place. Of course, that magic hadn’t lessened any with time.

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