Page 52 of Cursed

Rob grimaced. “You really think there’s going to be a problem?”

“I don’t know what to think anymore, my man.” Vince shook his head. “This entire place has gone nuts.”

“Roger that.” Rob took off after Marguerite, and Vince finally made it into the ballroom proper. He showed his card to the door attendant, and the woman immediately began threading her way through the crowd, gesturing to him to follow. Though music was playing and people were already dancing, the vibe was very different here than it had been at the gathering earlier in the week. For one thing, there were far more people, and food and alcohol flowed in abundance. It seemed a much looser affair, more like a grand party than a formal rite of passage.

For the other, Edeena was not mingling happily on the floor with all her admirers. She was sitting in the place of honor, her back perfectly straight, her face serene. She seemed to be scanning the crowd and when her glance fell on him, she smiled.

Vince couldn’t help the way his heart turned over in his chest. He touched the arm of his guide, and she checked her stride. “Do you know what the agenda is here tonight? He asked. “Is there a set time for the, uh, announcement?”

The woman shook her head. “Ordinarily it would have already happened, but the countess’s father has been delayed.

Oh, no. Vince looked hard at the woman. “There’s nothing wrong with his wife, is there?” he asked hastily, and she shook her head, her expression wry.

“Nothing that dramatic. Rumor has it she’s in perfect health, in fact, and that the old—that the count has merely been using her as an excuse to isolate Edeena with her thoughts and obligations.” The woman shrugged. “I guess it’s worked. There’s an entire betting pool on who the countess is going to choose as her husband, and even the men in question are taking part.” She laughed at Vince’s shocked expression. “Welcome to Garronia, Mr. Rallis,” she said. “We have our own way of doing things, and they’re not for the faint of heart.”

She cut to the side, taking him away from Edeena, and they stepped into a small open space, something Vince wouldn’t have thought was possible in such a packed room. Then he realized that in the center of the space, Queen Catherine was stepping back from a man he didn’t recognize, the two of them exchanging formal bows.

Then she turned to him. “Ah! Mr. Rallis, I’ve been waiting for you,” she said, extending her hands to him. “Indulge me with a dance, if you would be so kind?”

Someone moved behind her, and Vince caught Dimitri’s rueful grin for a second, then he stepped forward and took the queen’s hands.

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