“Julieta is dead,” Luna whispered. She didn’t move, she didn’t push to look any further. Her voice cracked. “She’s really dead.”
Her breaths were ragged, but she didn’t cry. She turned around, burying her face in my chest and wrapping her arms around my middle.
“I’d like to go now,” she whispered.
Hoisting her up so her arms hung around my neck, I drew my arms around her. Holding her tight against me, I squeezed as her legs wrapped around my waist. “I need to tell the guards, and then I’ll take us back home.”
She looked up at me with weary eyes. “Alright.”
The desire to Persuade Luna to forget all the things she saw in this room was strong. My fingers itched and my shadows strained beneath my skin as I yearned to push my will onto hers. Perhaps I could take this entire night from her. But even if I did that, her friend would still be dead.
Instead, I rested my forehead against hers. “I’m sorry, Luna.”
Laying her head on my shoulder, she whispered, “Me, too.”
She was a silent weight against me as I called on my shadows. They swirled around us, moving us not to our room, but to the main barracks in the lower west wing of the castle.
My feet landed on the stone, but I did not release my grip on the shadows. Leaning against a crumbling black wall, I kept my wings wrapped tightly around us both as we remained in the embrace of my darkness, taking in the space before the guards knew we were there.
A barely dressed human straddled a vampire on one of the three shabby couches lining the walls, their sounds of enjoyment filling the room, while a trio of vampires in various states of undress drank coffee around a table nearby. Others consumed blood from goblets, and a rowdy game of cards was underway in the corner.
Luna sniffled, pressing her head against my shoulder, and I released my grip on the shadows. As soon as they slid back into me, silence fell over the room as a dozen pairs of black eyes turned to us.
“Your Highness.” A tanned vampire I didn’t recognize stepped forward, bowing as though she was wearing elaborate court clothes and not a minuscule strap around her breasts and tight-fitting leggings. “How can we be of service?”
Strengthening my grip around Luna, who was still clinging to me like a monkey, I met the vampire’s gaze. There was no time for pleasantries. “I need to know where Gareth is.”
The vampire nodded. “He’s in the Northern Wing tonight, Prince. Walking the outer walls and checking on the parapets. Can I—”
I shook my head, pulling on my shadows. “That won’t be necessary. I’ll find him.”
The guard dipped her head, and Luna and I disappeared into the darkness once more.