Page 141 of A Dance of Shadows

My stomach sinks. “That’s unfortunate but useful to know. Thank you for the forewarning.”

Bianca offers me a tight smile, the warmth in her eyes softening it. “Thankyou. I haven’t really said that yet, have I? For… for being so merciful with Ennius.”

The slight quirk of her mouth with those last words tells me she recognizes it was really her I was attempting to offer mercy to.

I grasp her hand and give it a quick squeeze. “I believe in everyone finding the peace they deserve.”

Her smile relaxes at that. “I’ll certainly relish every moment of it. It’ll be nice to rejoin the full court after all this time.”

We walk into the dining room together so I can find out how much peaceI’mgoing to have today.

At the head table, my husband is standing rather than sitting, one foot propped on the seat of the chair as he makes an obscene gesture to his noble friends clustered nearby. Whatever story he was telling them, the motion sets off a wave of laughter.

If my stomach had dropped before, now it plummets to the vicinity of the bedrock far beneath our feet. That can’t be anyone but Linus.

Why has he taken the part of emperor for a second day in a row? Has something happened to Marc?

Wouldn’t the more purposeful twin have wanted to see to the business of the empire as soon as we arrive in the capital?

Linus glances over and notices me. I paste a smile on my face and move to join him. As I take my seat, he flops into his own even more carelessly than usual.

“Home sweet home is in sight,” he says in a jaunty tone. “Much less lumbering in and out of carriages for you, wife.”

The baby’s kick at my kidney matches my frustration. I dip my head. “I’ll be very happy to be done with that.”

And with you, whenever I finally can be.

The sooner I get into the carriage for this final part of the journey, the sooner that can happen. I dig into my breakfast as quickly as befits an empress’s manners. The food falls heavy into my gut, which is also currently serving as a punching bag.

I look forward to the day when my daughter can do her squirmingoutsideof my body rather than inside it.

As I stand up, a sharp jab runs through my pelvis. I freeze with a lurch of my pulse.

The brief cramp subsides, leaving me in the same achy but mobile state I was before. I drag in an even breath.

The medics advised me that new pains would arise in the final weeks as my body finishes its preparations for birth. That cramp was merely a sign that I will soon be ready to hold my daughter properly.

I gather myself to find Linus watching me with an inscrutable expression, his eyes narrowed above his smirk. “Is all well, wife?”

He’d probably rejoice to know about the discomforts of my pregnancy, as much as its outward effects on my body seem to displease him.

I recover my smile. “Quite. Are we to be off?”

“In a hurry, are you? I believe the carriages are being brought around.” He looks toward the dining room windows with a huff of a sigh. “Let us discover how much the rest of our court has missed us.”

Word will have gone ahead of us to summon them back to the palace. But if they’re in their right minds, they’ve enjoyed the reprieve from their emperor’s chaotic moods.

He leads me out to the convoy, which is indeed gathering in front of the waystation. With a flourish that looks nothing but mocking, Linus offers his hand to me to help me up the step of the carriage.

Because of course he couldn’t offer his wife the slightest kindness without turning it into a joke.

Anger flares within my ribs, twisting into a tight knot of flame that smolders on as I accept his hand and then watch him settle onto the cushioned seat across from me.

If I could sendhimup in flames with my will alone as that soldier tried to do to me, I’d be very tempted to give it a shot right now.

I drag my gaze to the now-familiar Darium landscape beyond the carriage. The leaves on some of the trees have yellowed with the cooler—but hardly cold—temperatures of the southern winter, giving the patches of forest a brightly mottled look that has a certain appeal. Much more appeal than staring at Linus’s sneer.

All that’s left is four or five more hours of enduring his company in such close quarters. Then… I may not be rid of him yet, but I’ll be able to find out where the end of our journey will take us.

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