Page 39 of A Story of Sinners

Unsettling was the perfect way to describe the male. “That he is.”

There was little conversation between those in attendance, and even the smallest bit of chatter was whispered in quiet. It was as if the entire palace had been held hostage in the presence of those from the Otherworld.

The only table seemingly unbothered was that of the fae court. Eulalia and Isadora conversed with one another as usual, while Fin and Ryken remained deep in discussion. Little Matilda remained silent, but silence seemed to be her normal countenance.

Laughter burst from the Faerie table, and Ryken glanced at Malachi, a glint in his eyes. Alarmed expressions whipped in their direction, bodies tensing, as if Ryken had doomed us all, but Malachi ignored the laughter and continued to ogle.

I fidgeted beneath the weight of his gaze.

As the laughter and conversation continued from Ryken’s direction, the others relaxed and resumed their conversations. The physical air of suffocation lightened just a bit, and dinner continued. Aiden leaned back and spoke with George, appearing slightly more at ease, and Gabriella breathed, suddenly relaxing.

“What is he like? Is he nicer than he looks? What was your childhood like?”

I would have answered Gabriella, if it weren’t for the overwhelming sensation of something slowly growing inside of me. An altogether unpleasant feeling swelled in my belly, and my gaze darted about the room, refusing to meet Malachi’s stare. He needn’t be encouraged.

A low, stabbing sensation prickled at my gut, and my head whipped to the Faerie table. What was happening?

Eulalia’s gaze met mine—judging from the slight frown on her face after Matilda whispered to her, something was wrong. Matilda’s lids lifted, and as she met my eyes, I could only hope the look of sympathy was merely a figment of my imagination.

My skin burned and itched, and I slowly inhaled to quell the uncomfortable feeling of my body, my clothes.

“What’s wrong?” Gabriella asked as I shifted. Her eyes widened at the sight of me, studying the slight beading of sweat on my brow, the dazed look in my eyes. “Are you all right?”

My lids lowered as sweat trickled off my chest. “Mm. Not sure.”

Then, it happened. Whatever Malachi had been waiting for, whatever he’d been watching for, suddenly overcame me, and when I looked to him, his gaze remained locked on me. A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

The room was so unbearably hot, so hot that I felt the urge to tear the skimpy dress from my bones, no matter who would see. I felt my skin flush and looked to my shaking hands. My vision narrowed, darkness meeting the edges. The sound—oh the sound!

The clattering of chairs, the hushed conversations, the tinkling of laughter—they were too much to bear.

My chair scooted back with a screech, and I rose, planting my palms over my ears. Every screech of syllables, every spoken word, every small noise around me felt magnified. I could feel my ear drums shredding. The light from the flickering candles blinded me, and my eyes squeezed shut at the sudden brightness.

The smells—I nearly doubled over from the scent of perspiration, the roasted chicken slowly decaying on the plates.

I needed to run far, far away from here. The change Malachi spoke of, the one he claimed would occur on my twenty-fourth name day, had come, and there was no knowing what it meant.

Nobody was safe.

I doubled over in pain as my core twisted, a horrible pain wrenching in my gut, a throbbing at my center nearly bringing me to my knees. Brandon caught me, quickly wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling my body flush to his. I whimpered at the contact, contact that should never, ever feel the way it just did.

“I need to go, Brandon. I need to go to my room,” I whispered.

He looked to Aiden for direction, who gave a curt nod.

“Take her to her room,” Aiden announced loud enough for those in attendance to hear. Then, he rose and kissed my cheek, issuing me a soft smile that was all for show. I should have been horrified by the moan that spilled from my mouth at the action, but my mind was too clouded with chaos to care. “I’ll be up shortly.”

It was a lie, or at least I hoped it was, but I couldn’t bother, not when my body felt on the brink of exploding. I needed to get out of here. I scanned the surrounding room, my skin stretching so tight, it felt it could barely contain my essence.

Brandon took my arm and led me through the hall, where we passed by tables of revelers donning confused expressions. The night would be one to remember for them, filled with a strange fae king and his companion, witches, a seer, and a table of demons, topped off by the complete and total meltdown of the King of Cambriel’s mistress.

As we made our way down the hall, I ducked my head to disguise the flush of my skin and the painful burning in my core. The way Brandon’s arm felt linked in mine, the point of contact, was simply too much to bear.

It was best to escape before the unknown transformation took over. Those in attendance did not need to see a supposed human shift into a monster.

Ryken’s nostrils flared as I passed by. My eyes met his, and a low keening noise swelled from my chest. I could taste his scent, the notes of bitter spices and woodsy herbs, and my mouth salivated. I lunged for him, ready to devour his taste, but Brandon tightened his hold. “Calm down, wild cat.”

Ryken rose to join us, but Eulalia gripped his arm. “Not yet. Remember your agreement with Aiden. If you leave now, it will be obvious.”

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