“Hmm,” he hums distractedly as his eyes sweep over my face. “Are you having a good time tonight?”
I blink at him. “Well…”
“Spit it out, Gray.”
“Fine,” I huff. “Not particularly, no.”
He cracks a smile. “Then we both agree that these balls are incredibly boring.”
I can’t help but laugh. “And what if you’re the reason I’m not having a good time?”
“If that were the case,” he says with a grin, “you likely would have stomped on my toes or pulled a dagger on me to get away by now.”
“Don’t give me any ideas, prince.”
He chuckles softly. “You’re right. I’d hate to bloody my suit.”
We continue spinning around the dancefloor while I ignore how close his body is to mine and look around the crowded room filled with chatter, laughter, and music. I spot Andy laughing with Jax as they stumble around the dance floor, and it doesn’t take long to find the other contestants in the crowd.
When my gaze lands on Kitt, I’m surprised to find him already watching me. He’s surrounded by a group of fawning girls, but his eyes are trained on Kai and me as we dance, doing nothing to interrupt his brother and steal back his date. And there, clasped in his hands are two drinks, one full while the other is nearly empty.
I’m about to look back at my partner when my eyes snag on a servant. The boy’s dark, curly hair bounces atop his head with each stride as he carries a tray of bubbling beverages through the crowd. His brown eyes sweep across the room as if searching for something or someone.
The boy from Loot. The boy with the leather. The boy I stole from. The boy with the note addressed to my house.
A tidal wave of questions floods my mind. Why is he here? I thought he was an apprentice, not a servant. Is he looking for me, looking for the paper I stole from him?
I’m swept from my thoughts when Kai spins me and my eyes dart to his without my permission.
Mistake.
His midnight hair falls over his forehead in messy, silky waves. Smoky gray eyes meet mine, captivating, chilling. His set jaw loosens, pulling his lips into a cocky grin as he watches me take him in.
Dimples. Both of them mocking me.
“Like what you see, Gray?” he croons, knowing that will get a rise out of me. I huff, looking away from him to fight the flush that’s finding its way to my cheeks. Rough fingers glide from my back to catch my chin, gently guiding my face back to his as he mutters, “By all means, carry on. I’ll never deny myself the chance of watching you watch me.”
“And why is that?” I ask with a nonchalance I don’t feel.
His smile is wicked. “Because it is far more fun to admire you when the action is mutual.”
I nearly choke on my laugh. “Don’t flatter yourself, prince. I am not admiring you or your stupid dimples,” I sputter, trying to act as though I wasn’t, in fact, doing just that. His smile only grows, causing those dimples in his cheeks to deepen distractingly.
“Liar.”
A frustrated sound escapes me as I glare up at him, refusing to give him the satisfaction of avoiding his piercing gaze. We continue dancing to the slow tune, our movements slowing in turn as Kai asks, “So, what’s the score now?”
“What?” My brows scrunch in question at the sudden change of topics, though I’m relieved, nonetheless.
“I’ve helped you, what, three times? Possibly four, now?” His eyes study my face intently. “So that makes it four to one, then.”
I huff out a laugh. “First of all, I didn’t help you. I saved you, remember?” I raise my eyebrows at him. “Surely that has to count for more than just one point. Besides, I didn’t realize we were keeping track.”
“Fair enough.” He shrugs slightly. “How about we say the score is two to four then? That’s generous.”
My eyes light up. “Look at that. The prince finally admitted I save him.”
He laughs, the sound rumbling through his chest, crinkling the corners of his eyes. “I never said—”
Splitting screams drown out his words.
I’m momentarily stunned, only snapped out of my daze when pain tears through my left forearm. The shooting jolt has my eyes falling to the torn, bloody flesh there.
Throwing knife.
Suddenly, I’m crashing to the floor with a strong, solid body landing on top of me. No, a strong, solid body covering me. Explosives erupt around the room, and my ears ring from the impact. I feel a wave of heat accompanied by smoke and hunks of stone sailing towards us.
Kai’s large frame hovers over me, his hand cradling the back of my head so my skull didn’t crack on the hard marble when he threw us to the ground. He’s shielding my body from the debris and knives flying around the room. I regain my hearing slowly, each scream amplifying as my ears pop and ring back to life. I hear terror and the trampling of feet all around us, men and women rushing toward the exits, trying to escape the madness.
Kai wrenches me to my feet, ducking low as he half drags me towards the wall, trying to get us out of the open. “What is going on?!” I shout over the sound of explosions and echoes of screams. But Kai is busy barking orders at the guards and people around us, telling them what to do and how to do it. Every bit the future Enforcer.
The ballroom is utter chaos. Debris from the explosions litter the once pristine floors. Throwing knives glint as they whiz through the air, thrown by the few fleeing figures wearing black strips of leather that cover only the top half of their faces.
Mimicking the Imperials’ masks.
Who are these people?
A few bodies scatter the floor, some soaked in blood, others crushed under the large chunks of stone thrown from the explosions and struggling to free themselves. But the element of surprise has passed, and the Elites that were dancing cheerfully only minutes ago now fight back against the masked figures. Guards pour into the room, some Flashes, others Blazers or Brawnies.
A few Shields scatter purple forcefields around the room, protecting those around them from the attack as weapons bounce harmlessly off the glowing domes. Without a second thought, Kai adapts the Shields’ ability to throw up his own forcefield around us.
“There’s no time to explain.” His eyes are wide, the only sign of his worry. “How badly are you hurt?” He reaches for me, but I step away, my back colliding with the hard wall behind me. Pain shocks up my arm, but I grit my teeth and ignore it.
“I’m fine, but what is—”
“I need you to get to one of the safe rooms. The guards will take you—”
“Kai, I’m not leaving.”
He flattens me fully against the wall, boxing me in with his arms on either side of my head. His eyes are wild, like smoke smoldering from a blazing fire. “Then don’t think I won’t throw you over my damn shoulder and carry you out of here myself. Is that what you want?”
I know he’ll do it too. Kai is not one for empty threats. I look over his shoulder at the few masked figures trying to flee and fight their way out. They look unprepared, using weapons rather than powers, doing little damage against the abilities being used against them.
I watch the chaos ensue, confusion clouding my thoughts. Where are the Ignites who caused the explosions? My eyes scan the room, snagging on a round, glass object sloshing with dark liquid, clutched in the hand of a masked figure.