Page 129 of A Storm in Every Heart
I can’t even imagine the humiliation—and that’s assuming I’m not in trouble for snooping.
I pull my legs in tighter and hold my breath as a pair of feet walk across the room and stop at the window just out of my line of sight
“For one thing, you could put an ounce of effort into making him like you,” the male voice says, sounding weary.
Lyra’s feet follow the man, and she stops directly in front of the desk. If I wanted I could reach out and grab her ankle.
She pops a hip out and sighs loudly. “You’ve been telling me for years that royal marriages have nothing to do with affection. What happened to your orders to be as bland as possible so theking and queen would think I was a safe, unthreatening choice of bride?”
“Evidently I’ve misjudged things,” the man says bitterly. “The king wasn’t nearly as concerned as I thought he’d be about his son spending time with a siren.”
My eyes widen, and I bite the inside of my cheek until I taste blood.
“You talked to King Sebastian about it?” Lyra asks.
“I did…and he didn’t seem to mind. Fucking idiot, this is why he has no right to sit on that throne. He’s completely blind to every possible threat.”
“Obviously,” Lyra says pointedly.
There’s a long pause, the scrape of a chair across the floor, and shuffling out of sight. “What did the siren say?” the man asks.
Lyra sighs again, more frustrated this time. “Nothing of substance. She doesn’t seem very bright to me.”
My eyes bug out of my head.Are they talking about me?
What am I thinking? Of course they are. There aren’t any other sirens at court.
But why?
“She could still be dangerous,” the man says.
“I doubt it,” Lyra scoffs.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean that she’s a self-absorbed child too wrapped up in melodramatic fantasies to be either dangerous or useful. I thought for sure she’d gone out of her way to bewitch the prince, but when I brought it up to her, she just stared at me with those big glassy eyes, almost like a fish. I’m almost certain she had no idea what I was talking about.”
A pang of discomfort hits my chest. I don’t care what Lyra thinks about me, but it’s still not pleasant to realize you’re being insulted behind your back.
I need to know who that man is, and why Lyra is talking to him about me. My heart is pounding so hard against my ribs I’m terrified they’ll hear it as I lean forward slightly, the top of my head skimming the underside of the desk. I peer past Lyra’s legs and finally spot the man now sitting in an armchair by the bookshelves.
My eyes narrow in confusion. I’m not positive, but I think it’s her father—the man I saw on the balcony with the royal family the day we arrived. He’s tall and blonde and dressed in expensive, fashionable clothing.
He’s an advisor to the king, I think. I’m sure I heard someone mention his name since we’ve been here. Marcus…no,Magnus.
Magnus happens to glance in my direction, and I lean back quickly before he can see me, my pulse thundering out of control.
“Hmm,” Magnus mumbles. “Interesting. I suppose the siren is quite young. It’s possible she doesn’t know what she’s capable of.”
“I truly don’t believe she does,” Lyra says flippantly. “I almost felt sorry for her.”
Magnus snorts. “Don’t. She may not be much now, but given some time she could be quite dangerous. For now, though, I think you may be right, but in many ways that’s worse.”
“Why?” Lyra asks.
“If the siren isn’t intentionally meddling, then perhaps Prince Kastian is genuinely infatuated with her. If that’s the case, then the compulsion won’t wear off if we dispose of the siren. It won’t matter what we do to her. He still won’t want to marry you, which derails the entire plan.”
Sweat begins to bead on the back of my neck and my hairline as I bite the inside of my cheek hard to keep myself from making a sound.
