Page 68 of Fragile Oath

“I’ll escort her to dinner, if you like,” he offered casually.

Something ugly reared up inside of me, in spite of everything, and I opened my mouth to tell himnowhen I saw the smarmy grin on his face.

“Next time you wonder why Row is my favorite cousin, picture this moment,” I told him, moving the whiskey bottle out of his reach just as he went to refill his glass.

He shrugged, pulling a flask out of his coat instead. “I just thought you might want some help sorting through your feelings.”

“Yes, I’m lucky to have you,” I deadpanned. “In any event, that would hardly look good to MacBay’s guards, who are no doubt reporting on my every move.”

“Admirable attempt at recovering your dignity,” Gwyn offered.

“Wow.” I stared at her unblinking, but she only grinned back.

“Please report all hurt feelings to your favorite cousin, who is no one in this room,” Avani said from where she was warming her tiny squirrel by the fire. “For what it’s worth, I agree with Gal. I’m happy she took the initiative. Even dear Gwynnie is, though she’ll never say it out loud.”

Gwyn grunted something that might have been an argument or an agreement.

“Where is she, anyway?” I asked, glancing at the large clock against the wall. If my cousins were all in my rooms, then Galina would be alone, save perhaps, for Anna.

Avani turned her attention toward me, her long fingers still stroking the rodent’s head.

“I thought she might appreciate a few minutes alone,” she said, piercing me with that emerald gaze of hers that was far too knowing. “Well, alone with Anna.”

I nodded once, my conversation with Galina playing out in my head over and over again, the reminder of how much she felt like a burden, how dependent she had to be on everyone else, and how vulnerable she truly was.

Avani’s squirrel gave a small squeak, its chubby head tilting toward the sound of footsteps outside the door as it locked eyes with my cousin. She followed his gaze, explaining to him that it was only the soldiers before scratching his head.

She had tried to explain how her ability worked, though it was still a little murky. She got vague impressions from the animals that she could interpret more clearly if she knew them better.

But they could understand her just fine.

An idea formed in the back of my mind. It wasn’t perfect and it wouldn’t solve everything, but at least it would be a start.

* * *

Since I had askedAvani to hang back, we were running a few minutes behind. Galina was ready and waiting by the time we made it to her rooms.

Wordlessly, she answered her door, her eyes flitting between Avani and me. Once again, a wave of rosemary and lavender washed over me as she took my arm, bringing with it an unwanted barrage of memories I tried in vain to keep at bay.

She was dressed in a gown made of pale purple silk with delicate silver embroidery, her hair half braided up and pinned with diamond and amethyst hair combs. Black kohl lined her pale eyes, and her lips were stained soft pink.

Anna had worked hard to hide the signs of fatigue, but they were there, hidden under her carefully applied cosmetics. It cemented in my mind the plan from earlier.

“Good evening, Lady Galina.” The greeting was stiffer than I meant for it to be when MacBay’s guards were watching, but of course, she took it in stride.

“Laird Davin, Princess Avani,” she greeted back demurely.

She was already playing her part better than I was, though she made no move to close the distance between us. That was easily explained away by Socairan propriety, though. It wasn’t any different from the way we had acted before, back when we were lying to ourselves far more than we were the court.

My cousin addressed her politely in return as both Galina’s guards and my incessant escort fell in line behind us. Avani kept up a steady stream of mostly one-sided conversation on the way to the hall to cover for the tension flooding the air between Galina and me. She talked about how she had left Albert by the fire and asked Galina a few pointed questions about her feelings on animals while I occasionally hummed noncommittally.

I was struggling more than usual with this show, Galina’s proximity…all of it. How many times had we walked these halls under the same pretense we were engaged in now?Stars, if the weight of it all didn’t feel heavier tonight.

We eventually reached the dining hall, the crowded room quieting as we strode to the head table. The duke of Ram eyed us with irritation from his position at the end of the table with Uncle Logan. It was a seat of honor, but he was also boxed neatly away from his niece.

There were only a few seats left, and none of them were next to Mikhail. Two were to the left of Fiona Shaw, and one was further down next to Laird and Lady Jameson. For a very brief moment, I considered how terribly it would look if I sought refuge at that end of the table, leaving Galina to sit with Avani near Fiona.

At least the Jamesons were on our side. Lady Andra had always been kind, a reprieve from the rest of the court with the quiet wit and general warmth that she offered nearly everyone she knew. Even now, she smiled graciously at us over a steaming cup of cider, an expression that held none of the duplicitousness shown by the rest of the court.

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