Page 96 of Ruled By Magic

“We’re not here to harm you. You’re in danger, and you can’t trust the main palace guard. You need to call your personal guard, men who are loyal to you. Can you do that please, Your Majesty?”

The king narrowed his eyes. “Garron? And Leopold? What the hell is going on?” Despite his vulnerable position, his voice rang with authority.

Leo stepped forward. He bowed to the king. “I’m sorry for the intrusion, but he’s correct. Please, summon your guards.”

The king didn’t drop his shield but touched a slim golden band that circled his wrist, frowning. Moments later, four guards in uniforms with the king’s cat sigil on the breast appeared in the room. I jumped. The men drew weapons and surrounded us.

“Don’t harm them.” The king dropped his shield and stood, draping a dressing gown around his skinny frame. His gaze moved between Leo and Garron. “Explain.”

Leo described our ordeal without emotion. The king remained silent, stone-faced.

Garron took up the tale. “He wanted to kill the Lord Commander and take the throne in one night. Investigate your medical staff and you’ll find what I’m saying is true. He planned to make it look like natural causes.”

The king nodded to a guard, who vanished. He addressed the remaining soldiers.

“I need to speak with my advisers. Take them to a waiting area, see them comfortable, but don’t let them out of your sight.”

“I’d like the rest of my party brought to me, please, Your Majesty? I’m concerned for their safety,” said Leo.

The king nodded and waved a dismissive hand. If the revelation about his son’s betrayal distressed him, he wasn’t showing it. How could he be so business like? This was the world Leo moved in, a world I hadn’t seen up close before. Maintaining power and poise was everything. Leo’s ability to set his personal feelings about the king aside made more sense now.

The last of my strength faded. I forced one foot in front of the other as the guards led us out of the door.

With a soft blanket around my shoulders, my hand bandaged, a glass of water in my hand, and the rest of the group present and safe, I felt stronger, my raw nerves smoothing over. Two guards stood at the entrance, but we’d received refreshments, and they seemed friendly.

Hex sat next to me on a small sofa, legs curled up to avoid pressure on her sore ass. I knew the feeling. She wasn’t talking much. She’d lurked in the corner until Leo got a summons from the king. Adante’s men threw all our group into holding cells as soon as Leo and I left the party, but they hadn’t been harmed.

Leo had abandoned the pretense that we weren’t a couple. It didn’t seem to matter anymore. Within minutes of us leaving the king, a guard had appeared to take Garron away. His story checked out, and they needed his help to locate Adante. What did he want? I didn’t trust him.

I tapped Hex’s foot with my own. “You’re quiet. Feeling okay?” My voice still rasped, my throat painful.

Hex looked down at her hands, then shuffled close to speak privately. “It’s stupid, after what you’ve been through.”

“Come on. Tell me.”

Hex sighed. “It’s just—” She twisted the end of her ponytail between her fingers. “For fuck’s sake, how am I supposed to look him in the eye now?”

“Leo?”

“Yes, your fucking boyfriend! The guy who bent me over and—” She shook her head.

I suppressed a smile. “Don’t worry. We’ll never speak of it again.” He’d better not. “I can’t wait to get home.”

Home. Friends, family, freedom, and a life I couldn’t picture yet. The partner of the most powerful man in the territory. I closed my eyes to clear a wave of unreality, as if this were all a strange dream and I’d wake up in my old bed, in my old flat, alarm blaring. Late for work, as usual.

“I’ll have to stay with Mum.” Hex made a face. “She won’t believe a word of this.”

“I’ll bring Leo for a visit, that’ll convince her.”

Hex’s face split in a grin. “Oh, please can we? She’d die.”

Leo returned an hour later. He gave everyone a tight smile. “Good news. We’re free to leave for Dexia tomorrow.”

“Thank fuck for that,” muttered Peter.

Leo’s strained expression didn’t match the rest of the group’s relief. I frowned. “Are you—” He shook his head. Later.

A yawn overtook me. “I’m done. Do they need us for anything else?”

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