I look over my shoulder at Zen. Back me up! Wisely, he clears his throat a little before putting his hands on my shoulders. “Everyone, this is Dinah. I hope all of you would treat her well.” Its childish how much those words do to cool me down, or how my smile turns slightly smug. Well, whatever!
“W-What?” I nearly jump out of my skin at the unexpected question Vivienne and Arianna exchange a smug look in the mirror. “This dress isn’t even that revealing, dear. Why are you getting so worked up?” Vivienne laughs, tilting my face to put a hint of color of my lips “If anything, nightgowns wou
“It’s just, how can someone be so beautiful?” In the carriage headed to one Mr. Orion Dolmen, Andrea, Lukas and I sit. I’ve been hearing praises for the last half an hour. Lukas runs a hand through his hair, looking at a hand mirror. “I mean really, it’s it too much to look so handsome even in a
He knocks on the door, but I hear no response. Even so, the attendant opens the door for us, gesturing for us to enter. “You have to wait here, Sir.” He says to Lukas We knew that much already. Even so, Lukas arches a brow in a way that I now know to associate with the start of an argument he migh
So if the lullaby sounds more sad than peaceful, well, I can’t do much about that. “What’s your name?” I snap out of my thoughts and the words halt on my tongue. The room comes in view once more, and with it, the person sitting across from me. Orion is looking back at me with unblinking silver ey
I hope he can’t hear my heartbeat, “Meet who, young lord?” “My soulmate.” He mutters “It should be soon. The prophet said so.” Holy shit. The House of moon isn’t an extension of the church. It’s a whole ass cult! I gasp, “A real prophet, young lord?” He stops then. For a moment, I think we lost
“I’ll pay twice— no thrice as much.” Orion strides to where I’m sitting I jump when he goes down on his knees at my feet, “Young lord, what are you doing? Please get up.” He doesn’t. Instead, he takes both my hands in his. “I’ll take you home. I’m sick of that stupid water, and the house of moon,
“Talking to Francis about your contract.” He grins “You one day career as a courtesan was a huge hit.” “Lucky me.” I roll my eyes “So this means it’s not the church doing this, but some cult. If it’s about some kind of drug, does that mean it’s not a curse?” “The festival is in two days.” Zen says
I barely manage to find a waste bucket before everything I had for breakfast retches out. My throat burns. My vision is blurry. I dry heave every single thing in my stomach, warmth seeps out of the corners of my eyes. I can’t breathe. The smell of blood is everywhere. I sit there, holding the edges
The smell of rotting flesh is disgusting. Its muscle memory to pull the gloves over my hands, pick a scalpel off the medical tray. The body on the metal table in front of me has no head. ‘You have to take a sample of flesh, a sample of blood and take a look at the internal organs.’ Aunt Cynthia’s
How adorable. Apparently, I’m the only one who thinks so, since when I turn back around, everyone from the fourth prince and the first order to passing strangers and our coachman is looking on in disbelief. Is it so difficult to imagine Zen would get along with children? “Don’t leave your mouth ha
“My Lady, am I mistaken or is the fourth prince avoiding me?” I look up from knotting the satchel to my belt to face Zen. There’s a slight furrow in his brows, and he looks at Lukas, standing far, far from us and talking with the first order soldiers. The fourth prince has indeed, been avoiding Ze
I need to move. But even as I think that, I cant bring myself to move. He’s holding me too firmly, I think, entirely reasonable. I won’t be able to slip away like this. Even the most critical part of me can’t find that to be entirely an excuse. After last night, I doubt there’s anyone who would lik
I wake up to the sound of a door knock. My sleep hazed brain registers the sound, recognizes it, and promptly ignores it in favor of cuddling into the warmth of my bed once more. I don’t want to wake up just yet, since last night I fell asleep so late— Last night? My eyes open, blurry with sleep,
But he’s looking at me now, as if the answer might crush him, as if he’s bracing himself for it. I reach out to drape my arms over his shoulders gently, they hang down in front of his chest lightly. “Why? Because you did your job?” I ask quietly, hold his gaze “Or because you didn’t hesitate to do
“Lift your arm, please.” I say, and my voice comes out soft If we weren’t sitting so close to each other, I would’ve missed it. His shoulders tense up, the even breathing stilled into nothing. “You don’t have to do that, Dinah.” Zen finally says My brows furrow. Zen might be a warrior among warri
On the second floor hallway of the hotel, my eyes drift to the room where Zen is supposed to be. My room is just at its side. I wonder if I knock on his door right now, would he be annoyed? He did ask not to be disturbed. The image of his bloodied arm flashes in my mind. Just a moment. I just want