Page 33 of Princess of Thorns and Ruin

A mysterious smile glazes her lips. “Your brother is nice.”

“My brother is a suck-up,” I snap, unable to stop myself.

“No one could accuse you of that, Mr. Beaumont.”

“I pride myself in keeping it real.”

She shoots me a glance over her shoulder. Her blue eyes gleam with mischief, and she laughs, but the sound isn’t sarcastic. I’m taken aback by her reaction…and the unfamiliar squeeze in my gut at the joyous, melodic sound.

Unparalleled access to the princess.

My brother might see it as an opportunity to befriend a royal and influence her decisions, but his words planted a totally different scenario in my mind. If I’m not careful, I’ll give the new king a scandalous reason to court-martial my sorry ass.

* * *

The next night brings an entirely new world of pain as the coronation gets underway. Pompous traditions drain the life out of me, and working security for the event of the century brought its load of challenges. I’m already exhausted by the time I put on my most regal uniform.

White roses garnish the banisters of the main hall, the freshly cut flowers painted with freckles of blood. Exotic fragrances waft through the air, and a red and gold carpet leads the way to the underground chapel where the ceremony will take place.

Jasper joins me on the mezzanine overlooking the entrance hall. “Shouldn’t you be with the princess?”

“She’s with the king. They asked for privacy.”

He sniffs the closest bouquet of roses and picks a few stems out of the bunch. “Blood from all over the world. A teenage girl from Bali. An elderly man from San Francisco. A strong lad from Benin… Humanity will never stop longing for us.”

“Ugh. They were merely tourists who didn’t know what they were walking into,” I grumble.

“Still…how wild is it that they keep coming, even though we kill so many of them?”

Garrett joins us on the landing and squints at me. “Where were you this afternoon? I couldn’t find you.”

They’re both wearing the family’s colors—blue and white—while I’m adorned in red and black.

I clear my throat. “I was investigating the attack on the princess.” With little success, but I keep that part to myself.

Jasper grins. “Don’t be silly, brother. We both know you’re not as loyal to the crown as you appear.”

My eyes narrow. What is he implying?

“You did good, Alec, when you let Eleanor escape,” Garrett says. “Victor will chase his own tail looking for her while I deal with the Zhaos as I see fit.”

His words fall over me like snowflakes, cold and numbing. For better or worse, my brothers know me better than anyone, and there’s no use pretending. They’d never believe that I lost a fight against Elle or her werewolves without taking at least one of them down. The only thing uncertain is how they plan to use that information to their advantage.

I straighten the sleeves of my jacket. “I didn’t do it for you.”

Jasper pats my back. “Whatever you need to tell yourself. A special tribunal will be held tomorrow, and I’ll make sure you get a chance to explain your failure without too much prodding.”

I crack a smile. “Go to hell.”

“Aren’t you sick of being ordered around? For centuries we Beaumonts have served the crown faithfully only to be given scraps,” Jasper chimes.

“Ludovic made Garrett Master of War before he died. That’s not scraps,” I say.

Jasper snickers, the sound dry and ugly. “He should have been the new prime minister, but Victor insisted on keeping Peter fucking Chastain, and now the bastard is in charge. Victor will never grow enough balls to stand up to him.”

Garrett nods. “Victor turns up his nose at us. Look at you. You’re the stealthiest assassin at his disposal, and he’s got you babysitting the princess.”

My eyes wrinkle. “What are you talking about? Jasper is the one who put me up to this.”

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