Page 52 of The Court of Thorns and Wings

“We probably do,” I said, agreeing in the only way I knew how without lying. “Be safe. I don’t want you getting harmed.” Then I headed to my room to wait for the perfect time to escape with Finnian and Tavish.

I’d been going over my plan the entire afternoon and evening. Gaelle had brought my lunch and dinner to my room so I wouldn’t leave, and I felt like a prisoner again, like when Tavish first brought me to Ardanos.

The only thing that kept my sanity in check was Tavish and me strategizing the entire time. From what he could tell, only one guard was watching them now. If I could distract the guard by giving him something that held his attention long enough to steal the key from him, I might be able to reach Tavish and Finnian before the guard noticed. As long as I could free them before the guard caught me, we should be able to take one guard down without alerting anyone else to our escape.

It wasn’t a good plan, but it was the best option we had.

Because of that, I didn’t eat the coveted sunberry tarts that only the highest of fae had the privilege of eating. Taking the sunny-yellow-filled pastry and wrapping it in a leaf, I headed to my door and opened it. No one was guarding my door or the hall. Right now, everyone was busy securing the kingdom, which worked to my advantage.

I flew down the hallway, heading straight to the prison. From what Gaelle had said, Mother and Father had locked themselves in the royal study to strategize, so I wasn’t worried about running into them.

A guard stood with his back to me, facing the opening that gave a clear view of the area west of the castle, searching for trouble.

I continued down the path.

When I found the lone guard in front of the holding cell, some of my worries passed.

He was leaning against the wall with his eyes closed. He didn’t even hear me land right in front of him.

Good. All of the experienced guards were watching for the threat of dragons.

I cleared my throat, and his red eyes popped open almost comically.

He took in a quick breath. “Princess Lira. You’re not supposed to be here.”

“Oh, I only came to drop off this pastry.” I held up the dessert. “Then I’m heading back to my room. With everyone gone, I thought you might like a snack.”

He licked his thin lips. “Oh. That’s nice.”

A tingle on my neck made me feel as if I were being watched, so I glanced over my shoulder but didn’t see anyone. Great, I could add paranoia to my list of growing problems.

“Here.” I handed him the pastry, and when our hands touched, I held on to the sweet a little tighter than necessary.

He tried to take it from me, but some of the sunberry oozed down his armor.

“Oh, Fates!” I exclaimed, getting closer to his right pocket. I released the pastry and bent down, grabbing the edge of my gown as my left hand slipped into his pocket. When my fingers brushed the cold metal, I shifted my weight into him, lifting the key while raising my right hand to dab the sunberry off him with my dress. “I didn’t mean to make a mess.”

“It’s armor, Your Highness.” He smiled reassuringly. “It’s easy to clean.”

I clutched the key in my hand and placed it behind my back before I stopped dabbing his armor with the hem of my dress. “Right. How foolish of me.” Sweat pooled in my armpits.

“The tart makes it worthwhile.” He beamed.

“Good.” I took a few steps back, angling my left side away from him. “I should get back to my room. I hope you enjoy it.”

“I will.” He lifted the tart and took a big bite.

Satisfied, I turned and flew back to my room. My wings wanted to move way too fast, but I forced them to flap at a reasonable speed as if I weren’t in a rush. Still, I couldn’t relax.

As I passed the intersection of the two hallways, someone grabbed my arm and yanked me toward them.

16

LIRA

My body spun toward them, and I reared my arm back for a punch, but a familiar face appeared in front of me.

Eiric.

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