Page 46 of The Coveted
Sebastian and I nearly silenced the room, but my heart was thunderous in my ears. I looked out into the sea of faces, with their elegance and theatricality—dulled by pleasure, witch drugs, and lies—and I realized I didn’t fear them. I pitied them. I kept my chin held high, hoping my small smile didn’t look more like a grimace as I fought against reading the entire room’s energy.
I spotted Daelon, and I nearly froze. He frowned as he stared at me, Renata at his side. She wore a red gown that strongly resembled the one Daelon gifted me, and Daelon wore an all-black tux.
Close your mouth, I whispered into his mind.
He glared.What thefuckare you wearing?
“Isn’t there supposed to be music at a ball?” I whispered to Sebastian to distract myself from all the stares.
“Soon, darling,” he said.
We stepped off the carpet to join the rest of the attendees, and I noticed that Lucius was up on his throne, alone save for Nathaniel and two guards. His favorites among the nobility were in the crowd with everyone else, albeit in their own obvious cluster. Abraham and Serena wore matching forest green and gave us beaming smiles. Christine’s face was sour, her silvery dress leaving nothing to the imagination, as it was sheer in most places and cut out in others. I wasn’t really sure how the fabric stayed put on her skin, or if it truly qualified as a dress. Taryn looked pale, refusing to look at me. Jasmine wore a sky-blue gown that complemented her light brown skin beautifully, her long black hair falling in waves around her. Daelon and Renata were looking at each other, and her aura was red and sultry, teeming with yearning, which tested my already strained self-control.
Sebastian and I stepped forward to join them, but a sudden movement in my periphery stopped us in our tracks. On instinct, I turned just in time to see a man dressed in plain white stumble as he stared at me, his mouth agape. The tray of elixir in his hands lurched and fell forward. I reached out a palm.
Stop.I caught the tray and the glasses in midair, and the servants around him scrambled to pluck each glass from their levitated position. He averted his gaze finally, muttering something to them. I quickly turned back around to meet the bewildered eyes of the elite.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” Christine said.
Sebastian cocked his head. “She’s right, you know. He knew better than to stare at a lady in that way. They need to learn from their mistakes.”
I pursed my lips. “If anything, it was my fault,” I said. “For wearing such a distracting dress.”
Serena laughed, jumping in to save me. “You look divine, Áine. Abraham and I were just saying how no one has ever worn something so bold. It suits you.”
“Clarice made that?” Christine asked, raising a brow. “Feels a bit… goddess-cult-ish to me,” she muttered with disdain.
Abraham waved a dismissive hand. “The heretics are not the only ones who can appreciate the beauty of the cosmos. I can see the King’s power in your gown.”
Okay, sonotwhat I was going for, but at least no one was jumping to burn me at the stake. I smiled gratefully at the two of them. “Thank you. Clarice did a fantastic job.”
Sebastian’s arm encircled my waist, and I tensed for a moment before relaxing into it. The sight of Renata clinging to Daelon and staring at him hungrily sure helped.
“They can at least do their jobs correctly,now.” Sebastian whined, snapping his fingers at the rattled servants.
The man who’d fumbled quickly brought elixir, averting his eyes. He nearly shook with fear. His aura was warm and serene at its core, and I recognized with surprise a part of my own energy within its depths—like a flooding of angelic light.
Áine, the one blessed by the Goddess,the servant’s voice sounded in my mind, soft but strong. I had to work very hard not to show my surprise at his ability to use telepathy with a stranger.We invite you to our Solstice worship tomorrow. Allow me to send a map.
I felt him pushing at the barriers of my psyche, and I allowed the vision he shared to take shape.
Got it,I replied, my heart practically beating out of my chest. Solstice worship? That was something I hadn’t done since I was a child, safe in the rolling hills of our secluded village.
My mothers always said I’d have friends where I least expected them. A familiar song rose up from the depths of my soul, and I remembered its tune carrying through the servants’ quarters, through the kitchens, and over every plot of Earth, Aradia, and beyond.
Chapter15
“So, what really happened between the two of you?” Christine asked with a deceptive smile, gesturing lazily between Daelon and me. Her voice was slightly slurred, her catlike eyes glazed over. “Because I just don’t see it.”
Everyone in our huddle but Daelon and I were drinking elixir, waiting for Lucius to let the dancing commence.
“Nothing,” we both said at once, which of course sounded really, bloody suspicious.
Jasmine bit her lip, exchanging a glance with a now beaming Christine. “Secrets don’t stay secret for very long in the castle,” she murmured, wagging her finger.
“Insufferable gossips. The lot of you,” Serena chastised teasingly.
Taryn had disappeared, which would’ve made me uneasy if I wasn’t so distracted. Even without the elixir, I was starting to feel the effects of a room full of pleasurable, intoxicating energy. Just like at clubs and parties in the human realm, there was nothing more powerful than a group of people sharing an experience, and the energy it created could be either one of the most thrilling or the most uncomfortable in the world for me. It all depended on what frequency I focused on. But in this room of witches drinking pure ecstasy, all I could feel was their immense delectation.
