WHEN I RUSHED into the room where dinner was being served, Vera hadn’t arrived yet. Damian lifted one eyebrow at my own late arrival but didn’t comment as I strode across the room to where he sat at the head of the table. I took my place a few feet behind him. My heart beat an uncertain cadence in my chest as I let my hand drop to the hilt of my sword and silently waited for our guest to arrive.

Rylan stood on the other side of Damian. When I glanced over, he was watching me, his expression questioning.

Everything all right? he mouthed.

I shrugged and turned to the table. How could everything be all right? A border village had been targeted by a black sorcerer again, the king had been attacked in his own palace, I’d just been forced to recount one of the most horrible days of my life after barely sleeping in the last forty-eight hours … the list kept going. A sharp pain began to throb beneath my skull with each beat of my heart.

The reason I’d been late to the dinner was because I’d made a quick stop in the kitchen to meet this “taster.” I didn’t like the fact that Lady Vera had supposedly traveled all this way with a taster. It seemed like a rather wasteful person to drag along on a jungle trek. Unless she was expecting to be poisoned. Or wanted to place someone in a prime position to poison one of us — including the king.

I don’t know what I expected when I walked into the kitchen — to see a stranger huddled over the soup, perhaps — but I couldn’t even find him at first. The chef had to point this taster out to me. The man was of average height, his shoulders slumped, his eyes on the ground. His hair and beard were the same remarkable shade as Vera’s, dark mahogany, but I couldn’t see the details of his face, since he cowered in a darkened corner of the massive kitchen as though he were afraid of his own shadow.

“You there,” I’d called out, and he’d flinched, not looking up at me. “Are you Vera’s taster?”

He’d nodded, swallowing so hard his Adam’s apple shot down his throat, then back up again. He lifted his head a little bit, but his eyes stopped when he saw my sword.

“Why are you hiding in the corner?”

“Sorry, miss. Just trying to stay out of the way.” He’d spoken softly, his accent thick.

“Do you have a name?”

“Rafe, miss,” he’d responded, his gaze dropping back to the floor again, and I’d finally given up. He wasn’t armed; he looked completely harmless. Looks could be deceiving, which I knew better than anyone, but as he bowed to me and scuttled back against the wall when a servant rushed in between us, carrying a board laden with four steaming loaves of bread, I sighed and turned away. “Keep an eye on him,” I muttered to one of the sentinels at the door, jerking my head toward the taster.

My attention was drawn back to the dining room when Damian shifted in his chair, impatience evident in the taut lines of his body. There were a number of people at dinner tonight. Damian usually preferred to dine alone, or with his closest advisors — which was a very small group. But he’d apparently decided to increase his circle tonight. I had to wonder if it was for Vera’s benefit or his own.

Four other men and five women sat at the table. General Ferraun was one; he had entered shortly after I did. And I knew two of the other men were part of the royal court — Duke Tussieux and Baron Durand. But the last man I knew only by face.

Duke Tussieux’s wife sat next to him, as did Baron Durand’s. I recognized two of the girls from the hallway earlier, when Jax and I had been walking together. My fingers tightened on the hilt of my sword, but otherwise, I gave no indication of my unhappiness that they were included in the dinner.

The three unmarried daughters of the royal court glanced at Damian coyly while waiting to be served. They were obviously thrilled to have been invited to eat with the king, a rare honor, and one that I was pretty certain he’d never given any females from court since his ascension to the throne. Again, I wondered what he was hoping to accomplish. At least half of the court had left the palace after his coronation, choosing to return to their homes and lands now that Hector was gone. Damian’s father had forced the nobility to reside at the palace, prey to his every whim and desire for a party or lavish dinner, but Damian had given them the option to stay or return home. It hadn’t escaped my notice that most of those who had chosen to remain had unmarried daughters.

My stomach twisted unhappily as I forced myself to look away from the table and stare instead at the door, waiting for Vera to arrive.

If I’d admitted to Damian that I still loved him that first time he’d come to see me after I’d been burned, if I’d ignored my conscience and followed my heart, how different would this dinner be? Would I be seated at his side, dressed in something finer than anything Vera owned, with a ring on my finger proclaiming me the king’s betrothed?

A giggle from the table caught my attention, and I glanced down to see two of the young women whispering to each other. The one who had shushed her younger sister earlier looked up at me — or at my scars, to be more accurate — and then quickly away when she realized I was watching them. I clenched my jaw, forcing myself to keep my expression impassive. It was amazing how quickly the gratitude of the court had changed; the first few days after the coronation, I’d been nearly overwhelmed with expressions of appreciation. But all too soon, many stopped looking me in the eye, stopped saying thank you, their gazes lingering elsewhere as they whispered behind their hands.

I watched the third girl glance at me as well, but her eyes were on my pants while she whispered to her friend.

This was exactly why my fantasy was nothing more than that — a useless dream. I would never be seated next to the king, not as his betrothed, never as his queen, not even as his friend. I was his scarred guard, and this was what I would remain.

Damian suddenly stood, his chair scraping back, and I snapped to attention as Vera finally swept into the room, accompanied by two of her guards and the man in the black and white robes. If it was possible, she looked even more stunning than the first time I’d seen her. She’d changed into an ivory dress with deep blue embroidery lining the sleeves and hem. Her hair was a mass of rich auburn curls, pinned up so that the graceful slope of her shoulders and neck was enhanced to prime effect. I felt my own unsightliness acutely in comparison, particularly after having just let myself daydream for even a moment about what might have been between me and Damian.

“Lady Vera,” Damian said, his deep voice traveling across the room. “I hope that you were able to rest and recover from your journey.”

“The room you gave me is very lovely indeed,” she said as she glided toward the only empty chair, across the long table from Damian. It was a place of honor, but it also put her as far away from the king as possible. She lifted an eyebrow but didn’t comment as one of her guards pulled out the chair for her. The other man lifted her napkin and laid it across her lap after she sat down. Once she was settled, Damian reseated himself as well.

The servants immediately brought out the first course, a fruit salad tossed with lime and honey. Damian leaned back in his chair, his posture one of nonchalance. But I could feel tension rolling off him in waves as he began to eat.

Vera glanced up at the man in the black and white robes. Some sort of silent communication seemed to pass between them, and after he gave a slight nod, she finally lifted her fork and took a hesitant bite of the fruit.

“I wasn’t expecting such a large gathering,” she said after her second bite. She looked up at Damian and gave him a brilliant smile. Then her gaze slid past Damian, to Rylan just for a brief moment. Without moving my head, I glanced at him and noticed his stance relax and his lips turn up slightly as though he was holding back a smile. When Vera turned back to Damian, his shoulders relaxed slightly as well, and I wondered what expression was on his face. I couldn’t see it from behind him. Her beauty seemed to have quite the effect on the men, and I had to suppress another surge of frustration.

“The palace is abuzz with your arrival,” Damian finally responded. “I had so many requests from the members of court to dine with you tonight, I was forced to turn the majority of them away. These are a few of my closest advisors and their guests from the royal court. They wanted to see if you are as beautiful in person as it had been rumored from those who saw your arrival.”

“And? Do you find me to be as beautiful as you were told?” Her question should have been addressed to the rest of those seated at the table, but her eyes didn’t leave Damian’s.

Damian sat up taller in his chair and leaned toward Vera. “Though I saw you earlier, I had convinced myself that you couldn’t truly be as beautiful as I remembered. But seeing you now proves me wrong. You are even lovelier than my memory served.” He took his wine goblet and lifted it to her in a salute.

Vera’s smile was radiant as she took her own goblet and lifted it back. The others at the table hastily grabbed their glasses and joined in the impromptu toast. The young women who had been whispering about me weren’t giggling anymore as they took sips with everyone else in tribute to Vera’s beauty.

“I heard that there was an … unfortunate event following my arrival earlier today.” Lady Vera’s voice was the perfect tone of innocence, but I stiffened, wondering how she’d heard about the attack — unless she’d had something to do with it. True, the entire palace was probably buzzing about it, but I’d hoped the servants and staff would have known better than to gossip about it with anyone from Dansii.

“Nothing you need worry about. It was a minor disturbance and was quickly dispelled.” Damian waved his hand. “As are all threats to me or my nation.”

“It must be so comforting to have such confidence in your safety and that of your people.” Again, Lady Vera’s voice was perfectly innocent, but I shivered inwardly at what I perceived to be a hidden threat in her words.

Damian didn’t respond right away, choosing instead to take a bite of fruit. When he’d finished chewing, he changed the subject. “Would you care to share the message you brought now?”

“Let’s enjoy this lovely meal with our eager audience first. Pleasure before business, as they say.” Lady Vera smiled coyly at the king.

“All right, let’s eat first,” Damian agreed.

I had to force myself to stare at the wall instead of glaring at Vera.

After the first plates were cleared away, the servants brought out the main course. It appeared to be some sort of fish with a mango puree artfully drizzled on the top and a garnish of fresh herbs. The smell was tantalizing, but I had no appetite as I listened to Damian flatter Lady Vera, complimenting her on her dress. Her eyes flickered to mine as she used her fork to cut herself a bite of fish, the smug expression on her face making me want to grab her plate and dump it in her lap.

When the door burst open and a servant ran into the room, everyone paused, including Lady Vera with her fish halfway to her mouth.

“Stop!” he shouted. “Don’t eat it! Poison! It’s poisoned!”