Page 22 of Shadows of the Crown

He shrugs, tilting his head as those gleaming eyes burrow through my resolve. “I saw you on my way back to the castle and was interested in what you were doing.”

“And why shouldn’t I gut you right now? Especially after that stunt you pulled earlier—I’ve killed for less.” He laughs deeply, leaning into my weapon. “You think that just because you’re a prince, you are safe from my blade?”

His brows furrow. “Well, yes. You wouldn’t murder the Eldorian prince.”

“Oh, I don’t discriminate,” I whisper, slanting my head toward him as if I’m about to share a secret. “I’d slice open your throat without a second thought and sleep just fine after watching your life bleed out before me. And the next day? I’d carry your head around the kingdom, so there was no question about who killed the Eldorian Prince.”

He groans, his eyes rolling as he shifts to lean against the wall. “Fuck, angel, that mouth of yours.”

I pause. “Angel? Do I look like the Angel to you?”

He smiles, causing heat to rise along my neck. “The Angel is said to be beautiful, but cunning. Quick, yet silent. Disarming, but deadly.” Silver eyes slide down to my lips, his fingers grazing the sharp of the blade until they surround mine against the hilt. “So, yes…you look exactly like an angel to me.”

We watch each other. I search his eyes for deception, finding nothing but hungry sincerity. I sense no fear or hesitation. He is not oblivious to my dark habits and corrupted thoughts. He understands the consequences of someone with his status falling for someone with my reputation.

Yet, here he is.

How unworthy I am to have the genuine affections of anyone. Especially the target of my revenge.

Is this not what I wished for, though? I have teased and taunted the prince, knowing my calculated attention would garner his interest. All to get him close enough to me that I can follow through with my plans.

So why does something gnaw at my stomach when I think of pushing this blade any further?

I do not become emotionally attached to my subjects. I do not care for them or see them as anything but an obstacle to my ultimate goal.

I chuckle, the awkwardness of it foreign to my ears. “I’m sure you’re used to women falling for such flattery—fuck, you probably don’t even need to say anything to have them in your bed—but I am not the one, prince.

“Truthfully, I’d consider yourself lucky enough. No one haseverfollowed me and lived long enough to tell the story.” My threat does not have the desired effect. Rather than seeming concerned, he grins boyishly at me. I hold my breath, if only to hide just how his attention truly makes me feel.

He purses his lips as if he’s attempting to withhold a laugh. “What?” I snap, thankful that the darkness covers the flush in my cheeks.

The corners of his eyes crinkle, his gaze brightening mischievously. “You—the Silver Wraith—just admitted that you find me attractive.” There’s a little bounce to his stance; he seems too excited about something I definitely did not say.

My brows furrow as I ignore the tingling heat spreading through me when his hand squeezes mine playfully. “Is that—” I scoff, seeking for something to cover my loss for words. I settle for storming off. “Fucking delusional,” I mutter to myself as I pull my blade back to sheathe it, smirking at the conversation he has with himself before jogging to walk next to me.

We travel in silence for a time, and it’s curiously pleasant. That is until he speaks again.

“I’m sorry about the trial—the collar and new rules. I had no idea my father was planning that.”

“Of course you didn’t. Your father does whatever the fuck he wants.” I’m only a little surprised that he heard me, with how quiet my words were.

“I know. It’s just—”

I halt and spin to him. “Do notdefend your father to me. I don’t fucking care how great you think he is.” I continue, faster this time, leaving the wide-eyed prince sputtering.

“Wait!” I don’t. He catches up, anyway. “I wasn’t going to defend him.” That gets my attention. I look over and raise a brow, and he surveys the surrounding area in response. “I was going tosay that I cannot change his rules, but I don’t agree with them, either. What he’s planned for you all is not right.”

I study him. The square of his jaw that wraps around to a soft point, connecting to plush lips. His dark lashes are thick and feminine. The way his hair frames everything…curling at the top, only to part at the right angles to accentuate the lines of his face.

But it’s his eyes that speak to me. The silver irises that somehow match my own anomaly and see much more than I’ve ever been willing to give.

“You’re staring,” he whispers, clearly amused.

I shift, swallowing thickly and berating my incessant curiosity. “Only because I’m trying to figure you out.”

He makes a surprised noise. “What’s there to figure out that I haven’t already shown you?”

“Are you seriously asking me that?” I turn my head to him once more, somehow not shocked that he's being sincere.

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