Like I said. Ignorant bastard.
Once I was certain my voice wasn’t going to shake, I spoke up. “She was just trying to help me,” I said as we approached the large castle. My stomach dropped at the sight of it, like my body knew I wouldn’t be leaving again anytime soon.
Malachi shook his head in front of me. He hadn’t released the tension in his fists for the entire time we had been walking, and his muscles had been flexing nonstop under his thin shirt that was now plastered to his body with water.
Not like I had been looking.
“She knows better than to disobey me,” he growled without turning to face me.
The words alone were enough to make me laugh out loud. “Okay, father,” I spat. I was playing with fire, but I didn’t care. Malachi had made it very clear that he could kill anyone he wanted to, yet here I was. Alive.
Malachi stopped walking so abruptly, I almost bumped into his back.
When he turned to face me, his eyes were swarming with emotion.
“Don’t ever talk to me like that,” he said, pointing a finger at my chest. “And don’t pretend like you know anything about my family or what goes on here. You know nothing about this court, and you know nothing about me.”
“Because you won’t tell me anything,” I pushed. “And you’ve been ignoring me for days!”
He laughed, but it chilled me to my bones. I crossed my arms over my chest and tried not to shiver. “If you knew everything, you would run like the Saints as far as you could to get away from here. So don’t ask for something you can’t handle, princess.”
I debated his words for a second. He had turned and continued walking, but as I followed after him, I added, “I want to learn how to fight.”
“To fight?”
“I want to learn how to protect myself,” I said, trying and failing to keep my voice from breaking. “I don’t want to be afraid. I want to have a fighting chance at survival. You made it very clear that I’m as good as useless here.”
He hesitated, and for the second time today I thought he was going to apologize, but he didn’t.
“Fine,” he said after a few awkward seconds. “I think we could all benefit from you knowing how to protect yourself against the fae.”
The fae. He said the words as if he wasn’t one himself. I nodded in response but said nothing else. The conversation was over.
I followed him as he entered the castle, completely ignoring everyone who seemed to be gawking at him. I copied his movements, keeping my head down as we weaved through the maze of the hallways.
Something on my leg was burning, but I didn’t dare to look. Adrenaline had been pulsing through my body since the tiger had attacked, and I hadn’t thought to check if I had been injured in the crossfire.
I certainly wasn’t going to check in front of Malachi. He didn’t need any more reason to keep me locked away.
I was still dripping wet. My hair was leaving a trail of water on the white flooring, but Malachi didn’t seem to notice. Or care.
Probably the latter.
Malachi turned another corner and tensed immediately.
I lifted my head for the first time since we entered the castle, only to be standing in front of the King of Rewyth himself, and all five of his sons.
CHAPTER 16
Malachi
I wanted to grab Jade and drag her back into my bedroom, where I could lock my door and keep her there, away from the monstrosities of my family.
But it was too late. I had successfully avoided the bastards since our discussion the other day, and now it was time to confront them.
My father and my brothers stood just a few feet away, every single pair of eyes fell on me.
And then I watched as every single pair of eyes shifted to the dripping wet girl standing behind me.
My wife.
“Well, well, well,” my father said, stepping forward. “The lovely prince and princess. It’s quite a pleasure to see you doing so well!”
He meant alive. It was a pleasure to see Jade alive.
I wasn’t buying it. “We were just heading back to my quarters,” I said as I reached a hand back to Jade. She grabbed it without hesitating, which nearly made me sigh in relief after the fight we just had.
Smart girl.
I wondered if she could feel how tense I was. How important it was for her to play along here.
My father eyed us both up and down, lingering his gaze on Jade’s wet clothes for a few seconds too long before saying, “I’m calling a court meeting this evening. I suggest you attend and bring your new…wife.”