“Clear the air?” she repeated, her brows furrowed as she sat on the bed. “Why?”
I stared at her. “What do you mean, why? Aren’t we… there’s been so much tension between us. I thought you were angry about what I said.”
“Angry?”
Blinking, I started doubting myself. Wasn’t she angry with me? “Yes, it’s been nearly impossible to hold a conversation with you all week. I thought you were mad.”
Reaching over, Luna grabbed a pillow and hugged it to her stomach. “Oh, gods. I’m not…” Furrowing her brows, she drew in a deep breath. “This is my fault.”
“What?” I pulled the chair over, slipping into it before rubbing my hands over my eyes. “What are you talking about?”
Luna stared at me. “You think we’re fighting?”
“Aren’t we?” That doubt grew, twisting within me, accentuating the ever-present hunger in my stomach. “You’ve barely spoken to me all week.”
Luna groaned, shaking her head. “I’m sorry.”
She moved off the bed onto my lap, pressing herself against my chest. As soon as her bottom landed on my thighs, I wrapped my arms around her, breathing in her scent as I held her close. Having her so close was not helping the burning need to feed within me, but this was the closest we had been since the night in the inn.
Still, I wasn’t sure why Luna was apologizing. “I must confess, darling, I’m a little confused. You’ve barely spoken to me all week.”
“I just… got lost in my head. I was thinking about Marius and the Tether…” Her voice trailed off, and she shook her head, burrowing against my chest. “Do you know that when I was young, they used to call me the Ice Queen?”
A rush of anger flooded through me, and I clenched my fists. “Who called you that?”
I would find them and ruin their lives. Luna was anything but icy. She was smart and beautiful and thoughtful.
“My sisters.” A harsh laugh escaped her. “Much like the snow currently falling outside, they accused me of being cold and unfeeling to a fault.”
“That’s ludicrous,” I snarled.
Luna might not have been the most expressive person I knew, but she felt things deeply. I could see it in her eyes, in the way she carried herself.
Gods, Ifelther emotions through the Binding Mark.
How dare they make her feel so poorly about herself?
My shadows swirled in my veins and an aching desire to find Luna’s family and teach them a lesson about treating people pulsed through my body.
Instead of giving into the primal need coursing through me, I shook my head. “They were wrong. You’re perfect just the way you are.”
Luna shrugged. “I’m just… I’m not great at emotions. Sometimes I get lost in my head for days. I’m sorry you thought I was angry with you.” She raised her head, brushing a kiss over my lips. “I’m not, you know. I just got distracted. They used to tease me, and I thought…”
“Your family was wrong, Luna.” I waited until her brown eyes met mine. “You are perfect just the way you are.”
She opened her mouth to reply, but before she could, a knock came at the door.
“Princess?” Fleur’s timid, quiet voice filtered through the door. “I’ve brought you some dinner.”
Luna looked up at me. Her lips were plump and there was an openness in her gaze that made a hunger grow within me that had nothing to do with blood and everything to do with the female sitting on my lap.
“Let’s continued this later,” she whispered.
All I could do was nod as Luna pressed her lips against my cheek. She stood, letting the maid into the room, and I tried to ignore the aching in my fangs.
Fleur looked over at me as she walked in with a tray. “Nelo is on his way, Your Highness. He said it’s urgent.”
I nodded, shadowing into the hall. As soon as Mother confirmed the People of the Night were back, I tasked Nelo with searching through the castle for any hint of them. We would leave no stone unturned. Not when Luna’s safety was on the line.
Dismissing the guards stationed outside the room, I leaned against the cold stone.
I didn’t have to wait long. Shadows soon filled the hallway, and Nelo appeared in front of me. There wasn’t a hair out of place on his head, but something in his eyes immediately made me straighten.
Curling my hands into fists at my side, I asked, “What’s wrong?”
The vampire sucked in a deep breath. “I’ve uncovered a spy, my prince. He’s admitted to killing the Light Elf.”
A glimmer of hope sparked in my blackened soul.
“Tell me everything.”