Page 68 of Nightmare's Dance

“What the hell!” I spun around, looking for my friend. I knew he had some sort of ability to hide like Nic did, but I’d not seen him simply vanish into thin air like that.

“He must be feeling better,” Nic said.

“Did he need to recover from being gone?” I asked.

The shadow prince nodded.

Camila, unfazed, continued on down the road.

“And you and he could just, like, teleport there or something?” I walked next to the prince.

He shifted a touch closer to me, probably unconsciously. The edges of the shadow that followed him everywhere brushed against my arm. I didn’t pull away.

“Yes, but that would separate us until you caught up. I’d rather know you are safe.”

“Why don’t you just go look and see if she’s there, and then return,” I suggested.

“I had considered that option, but I don’t want to draw attention to her more than we have to. Two visits might get noticed where one might not.”

“Oh.”

“We aren’t in a hurry,” Nic said. “We shouldn’t tarry, but the world isn’t going to end just because we took an extra day in the boundary lands.”

“Okay.” I stayed at his side and Geraint followed while Camila led.

Nic’s presence brushed against my awareness, just like the edges of his shadow stroked the back of my hand and my forearm. Unlike the cold, clingy shadow stuff that I’d experienced in Nightmare Castle, Nic’s shadowy self felt warm and softly caressed my skin.

Feeling conflicted, I let my mind wander while we walked. Robby said Nightmare needed its princess. Only I could wield the energy to repair the arches and I did think they needed fixing, but without the mirror dwellers, was there any point? And couldn’t I just fix them and then go home?

I wasn’t ready to be tied down with responsibility. I didn’t want to have to confront hard questions and push for answers. Isn’t that what being a princess was? Responsibility? I imagined even here that translated. It wasn’t like I wasn’t responsible. We fulfilled our contracts, showed up on time, put our all into every performance, but that was the life I wanted. Not the life of a princess in a land I didn’t even know was real.

Nic grabbed my hand and pulled me to a halt before I blundered into Camila’s back. The shadow essence surged between us at the contact, flowing into me. I thought I felt some of my energy transfer back to Nic. He sucked in a breath, clearly not prepared for that. Not that I had been. I trembled, an aching need settling into me. I should have been satisfied from earlier, but something coiled deep inside, longing for more.

“Nightmare needs its princess,” Robby said softly, riding up on a white horse.

I gasped, the beautiful animal distracting me a little from my desire to climb Nic like a tree.

Three additional white horses followed. They didn’t have horns, but they had silver hooves that rang like quiet bells even on the dirt path. None wore saddles, but I suspected we didn’t need any.

Nic hadn’t let go of my hand, his fingers tight on mine, a slight tremor noticeable in his grip. Actually, that might have been me. I couldn’t pull away. It wasn’t just the magic of the game we’d played binding us together. I really did like Nic. The prince had helped rescue Geraint when he didn’t have to. He cared about his people. And Nic was a fantastic kisser. All of my memories from our time together as children didn’t hurt either. I’d loved all three of them in my childhood way.

Geraint didn’t say anything, but his presence behind me was palpable. Was there a way through this? I remembered what Robby had said when they thought I wasn’t able to hear, that thing about the princes all expecting to share me and what was one more. Was that a solution?

I didn’t know, and I wasn’t brave enough to ask. Maybe that was what I wanted, but I had no idea how it could possibly work out. My vision got a little wavy while I stood there, frozen.

Geraint put his hands on my shoulders and leaned forward. “Breathe, Spark.”

Startled out of whatever daze I’d been in, I jerked, sucking in a breath. My vision cleared, and I pulled my hand from Nic’s. That seemed to release him from a similar trance. He tucked his hands into his sleeves. Or was that a cloak? Or shadows. His clothing shifted and the features he didn’t keep a tight hold on, like the length of his hair, blurred.

Robby seemed to stare at me, but when I looked closer, I thought he was staring at Geraint, instead. My knight’s fingers tightened on my shoulders, and he kissed my cheek before stepping away.

“My apologies,” Nic said, and hurried out of reach.

I rubbed my arms and tried not to feel cold without his hand on mine. The essence I’d absorbed from Nic still coiled inside me as if content to replace what I’d given Nic.

“Grab a horse, Princess,” Robby ordered. “This will be much swifter.”

Not completely free of the daze that had settled over me, I approached one of the horses and held out my hand.

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