Page 93 of Court of Secrets and Flames

After he leaves, I sit on the mattress and flip through the chronicles. Somehow, Blair’s words of encouragement give me hope, and I cling to them.

Everything will be all right.

I don’t know when or how, but I choose to believe that it will be. Eventually.

Sometime later, more voices trickle into my cell.

Metal clanks against metal as Hyde unlocks the door to my cage and steps back.

Two guards enter first, tall and stoic as they line the walls of my prison, their presence a silent declaration of the king’s arrival. With as much grace as I can muster, I rise to greet King Jasper, whose eyes flicker over me with the briefest glint of an emotion I can’t name. If I didn’t know better, I’d guess regret, but since he’s the one who tossed me into a cell in the first place, I must be mistaken.

I eye him warily, wondering which version of Knox’s brother stands before me. “Your Majesty.”

I remind myself to play it smart. To keep my cool and not allow him to bait me. Pissing him off when he’s already upset won’t help my situation.

“Lark.” His gaze sweeps across the cell, his mouth tightening when his eyes land on the dingy mattress. “I trust you are well.”

“As well as can be expected while under your esteemed care.”

So much for playing it smart.

To my surprise, he lets the dig slide. “Are you ready to pledge your commitment yet?”

“I’m afraid not.”

“I figured as much. Oh well. I hope you don’t mind keeping me company while I eat dinner.”

Is the king seriously going to eat dinner with me…in a prison cell?

Moments later, two more guards appear, carrying a small wooden table and two chairs.

Apparently so. I wonder what this new game is?

I learn the answer to that question when the butler follows, announcing the courses like the herald of an approaching army. Duck broth with crushed mint comes first.

Except there’s only one plate. The delicious aromas make my mistreated stomach grumble, but the king digs into the first course without me.

I guess he grew tired of waiting out my cooperation and decided to speed the process.

The next dish announced is lark simmered in plum wine. I side-eye the hell out of the small birds swimming in sauce. Is this a not-so-subtle jab at me?

Suddenly I’m not seated across from the king but lost in the memories of my brief weeks at Flighthaven, both the good times and the bad. I arrived on campus with a target on my head and someone was always ready to take a shot. Helene, one of the other fledglings, even poisoned my custard on my first visit to the cafeteria.

Funnily enough, by the time Knox abducted me, my relationship with the other woman veered closer to friendship—or at least respect. I hope she survived the trial. Until I got caught up in these memories, I’d forgotten Helene and Leesa secretly dated for a short while and create a mental note to ask my sister about her at a later time.

Jasper pulls me from my musing. “Are you sure you wouldn’t like a plate of your own? Agree to the marriage, and you can eat and then I’ll have you out of here.”

I stare at his plate and try not to drool. “I’m good.”

He eats in unnerving silence. Unless you count the sounds of approval he makes from time to time, which I’m sure are deliberate. And I won’t lie. Watching him eat is torture. I’m half tempted to lunge and grab a handful of food and shove it down my throat.

In the end, Jasper is the one who caves. My keeps growling, which I can tell it makes him uncomfortable. Still, I’m not sure he would have offered me anything if the kitchen hadn’t messed up and served strawberry pastries as one of the two dessert dishes

Jasper scowls at the tarts. “We must have new kitchen staff. Otherwise, they’d know I’m allergic to strawberries.” He glances at me, then back at the pastries, and then shoves the plate toward me. “Here,” he grumps, “may as well not let them go to waste.”

My mouth waters as my fingers brush the flaky crust.

I take a bite, the familiar taste a fleeting solace that engulfs my senses.

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