Page 56 of Princess of Thorns and Ruin

Wind whooshes down the runway, and the private jet’s white hull contrasts with the deep blue sky. Lucas offers me his arm as we climb the stairs up to the plane, Alec quick and silent on our heels. The cabin crew is accompanied by another member of the royal guard, and Alec gives him a sharp nod as we board the plane. “Your highness, this is Jude Laslow. He’s my most trusted man, and he’ll be coming with us on our journey,” Alec says.

I inspect the newcomer with a curious gaze. Since our first meeting, Alec Beaumont showed no true appreciation or loyalty toward any other living soul, not even his brothers. His manners are polite, but nothing more. Whoever this Jude is, he’s a true friend.

“I thought you were a one man band, Mr. Beaumont.”

“Every John needs a Paul.”

“Who’s John?” I say, pretending not to understand the reference.

Alec rolls his eyes. “Never mind.”

His companion is built like him, and I offer him a meek smile. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Laslow. Or should I say, ‘Hey, Jude’?” I wink at Alec.

Jude chuckles as he shakes my hand. “It’s an honor, princess.”

Alec shows Lucas and I to our seats in the first row, but I walk toward the back of the plane, where the staff is already sitting.

Bella greets me with a small wave, but I forget to smile back when I spot Leo, unnerved by his disheveled appearance. He’s sitting as far from the others as possible, and my heart booms at the black and blue bruise on his neck. He covered it up with concealer, so it’s probably invisible to the human eye, but the slightly darker tint of his skin is unmistakable.

“What happened to you?” I ask in one breath, feeling like I’ve been punched in the gut. “Who did this to you?” I raise an unsteady hand to the bruise.

Where did he run off to last night?

He doesn’t answer, his face ashen, and stares out the porthole window as though it’s an entirely different universe.

“Leo, please—”

He slices his head from side to side, his entire body shaking. “Not now. I beg you.”

My mouth opens in shock, and tears well up in my wide eyes. Leo’s bruise, attitude, and overall reaction to the pleasure bite are so jarring that I gawk, frozen into silence by his desperate plea.

Quentin slips out of the bathroom and bows politely to me, “Good morning, your highness.” He murmurs a quick “Hi” to Leo before sitting next to him, but the tall blond man remains sullen and quiet.

Clearly, Leo is not ready to confide in me, and this is not the place to make a scene. We’ll sort it out later, one-on-one, so I reluctantly walk away from him, doubling-back to my seat. But inside, I’m an inferno of hurt.

No one can touch my first-blood. No one. I’ll find out whoever did this and have their head.

In the first row, Lucas stares at the ceiling with his head tilted as far back as he can manage, stiff as a stick, the weight and scope of our decade-long dream to change his court clearly getting to him.

I sit next to my friend, and his head lulls toward me like I’m his center of gravity. “I’m not sure about this. It’s a lot,” he whispers close to my ear, scattering goosebumps on my neck. “We’ll have to find allies. People we can trust.”

“Yes. We’ll have to be real careful.” I change the subject, my mind stuck on more pressing matters. “Quentin is a nice guy, right?”

I’m trying to figure out who hurt Leo and why he’d try to conceal it.

Lucas throws a glance behind us, probably wondering where my sudden interest in Quentin is coming from. “Quentin is the best. Since the first day, he’s been acting like a puppy wagging its tail, ecstatic to have been rescued from the shelter.”

“So he’s not the type to brawl or throw a punch?”

Lucas’ forehead creases deeply. “Never, why?”

“No reason.”

My mind wanders back to last night, first trying to recall the exact moment Leo fled from my room, but a few other nuggets of the evening come into focus, distracting me from my goal.

Eyeing Lucas sideways, I bite my bottom lip. Another question plagues my mind. A somewhat inappropriate one. “Wouldn’t you have preferred a woman to Quentin? I mean…” my cheeks heat up. I can’t quite say the words, but judging from my body’s reaction to Leo last night, having sex with our first-blood can’t compare. It’s a rush I bet every vampire craves to experience.

Lucas shakes his head like he doesn’t follow. “No, why?” I give him a quick shrug, unwilling to betray my train of thought until his lips twist in a disgusted pout. “Did you really taste Sebastian’s first-blood last night?”

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