They tied us up next to each other but not close enough to touch—me in my rope, Dallas in his silver chains.
“Does it hurt? Can you bear it?” I asked.
The prince winced, clearly struggling to compose himself. “It’s bearable.” But smoke still wafted from his skin where the chains touched him. White tendrils curled into the air then disappeared.
“Are you able to do anything? Use any of your powers?” I kept my voice low. Vampires could talk inside humans’ heads, sometimes manipulating them. I’d never seen Dallas do it, but Eve had used it on me a few times. It might help us.
“Not with these.” He looked down at his chains.
“I am so sorry.” I bit my lip, holding back the tears that threatened. There was no use crying now. Plus, if I started, I might not stop.
“Don’t. I should have slaughtered them all before I came for you, but I couldn’t bear to leave you tied up and vulnerable like that.” Dallas smiled, even though I could tell it pained him. “And I’m the one who got us here in the first place, remember? Stalking off from the stables, all high and mighty.”
“You had every reason. I was a fool.”
“You’re not a fool. You’re a young woman who has no experience dealing with the knaves and jesters that populate my world. You’re innocent, Gwyneth. It’s a miracle and a blessing, and it’s one of the things I love about you.”
I opened my mouth and then closed it, momentarily stymied.
He laughed, but it sounded strained. “You know, Tariq was probably right. If my father had sent you home, I would’ve thrown the contest. Perhaps my jester is smarter than I give him credit for.”
“Do you think he’s smart enough to come looking for us out here?”
“No.” Dallas looked down at his chains. “But don’t worry. I’ll think of something.”
The dirty prisoner, who was guarding us, snorted. “You royals are all the same. Think that because you’re born with a crown on your head, you’ve got some special power. I say, take the crown away, and you’re nothing, not even a man.”
He stepped closer, leering at me, clearly goading Dallas. “Perhaps I should show the young lady what a real man’s like.”
Dallas grinned at him, his teeth large, white, and scary in the darkness. “You know, I’m going to quite enjoy disemboweling you when I get the chance.”
“And I’m going to quite enjoy this while I have the chance, thank you very much.” The prisoner knelt before me.
My stomach lurched as he smiled his fuzzy smile, reaching for me.
“Get the bloody hell away from her!” Another voice rang out. A large soldier with a massive chest stepped forward. He grabbed the prisoner from behind, tossing him out of the way with brute strength. The prisoner landed in a heap, cursing, as the soldier leaned down to peer in my face.
My world went woozy as his brown eyes locked with mine.
“Hey!” called the prisoner from the ground. “What’d you do that for?”
“That’s my sister, you ass.” Balkyn smiled at me. “And if you ever come near her again, I’ll be happy to let the prince disembowel you.”
“They didn’t know. They couldn’t have.” Balkyn untied me gently, rubbing my wrists to help the blood-flow return.
“It doesn’t matter.” I kept my voice low. “It means they would have done it to any of the other girls. The way they’ve treated me is not okay, Balkyn. If you hadn’t been here just now…” My gaze traveled over to Moss Mouth. “I don’t know what would’ve happened.”
“I’m so sorry. But you’re right, and I’ll talk to them. You have my word.”
“Enough of that.” I hugged him fiercely, still not believing my brother was alive and that he’d come to my rescue. “I’m so happy to see you. I didn’t know if you were still alive.” I wanted to tell him that the prince had been helping me look for him, but I didn’t dare.
Dallas hadn’t said a word. He watched us silently.
“What’re you looking at, bloodsucker?” Balkyn asked him.
“Balkyn.”
My brother turned to me. “Don’t tell me you’re defending this vampire. I know all about that sick contest you’ve been in. He’s had you captive, Gwyn. You’ve probably got Stockholm Syndrome or some such rubbish.”
I took my brother’s measure swiftly, and it broke my heart. I didn’t risk looking at Dallas.
“I’m fine, I promise, and I’m not defending him.” I scoffed. “I just don’t think we need to goad him.”
I grabbed Balkyn’s hand, bringing his attention away from the prince and back to me. “We have so much to talk about. Is father still alive?”
Balkyn’s face twisted. “Yes, but he’s ill. That’s why he’s not here.”
“What’s wrong with him?”
My brother shook his head. “We don’t know. He’s had a fever for a while, and then for the past few weeks, he hasn’t been able to get out of bed.”
“Oh no. The poor thing…”
“He’ll be all right, I expect. He’s a tough one.” Balkyn smiled, trying to lighten the mood. “Speaking of tough, how’s Mom?”
“She’s fine. Winnie and Remy are, too. Winnie just had the flu, but she’s better.” I refused to look to Dallas, to bring Balkyn’s angry attention back to him. The prince saved her.
“I’m so glad. You’ve been getting on without us?”
I shrugged. “Not very well, actually. We’ve missed you terribly, but we’ve done our best.
I squeezed his hands. “But…where have you and Father been? I was hoping to have word from you, at some point. It’s been so long. We all thought you were dead.”
Balkyn’s eyes blazed in the darkness. “We couldn’t write or come home. We’ve been…away.” His burning gaze flicked to Dallas, and I flinched. “How can we kill this bloodsucker, anyway? Is it true what they say about a stake to the heart?”
“No, actually.” I licked my lips. “We just have to wait until the sun comes up.”
Balkyn tilted his head, inspecting me. “This one can be out in the sun. I’ve seen it myself.”
I didn’t hesitate. “But not for long. If you keep him out all morning, by the time the noon sun hits him, he’ll be dead.” The lie came forth easily.
I wished I could tell him that silver had no effect. But that proverbial cat was already out of the bag and currently singeing the prince’s skin.
“Are you certain?” my brother asked.
“Yes. They can only withstand the sun’s rays for so long. In short spurts, some of them are able to move about during the day. Some of them can’t tolerate it at all, of course. And the prince can only manage a few hours before weakens so much that he will die.”
Balkyn scrubbed a hand over his face. “How do you know all this, sister?”
“They’ve taught us a lot at the palace with lectures and books. Whoever wins the Pageant will become a vampire’s wife. They’ve been educating us on all the particulars so that we can be prepared.”
My brother grinned at me. “Then you are going to come in quite handy.”
He stood and reached out a hand for me, pulling me to my feet. “We’ll leave the vampire prince till morning then. It’ll be dawn soon enough. And when the sun sits highest in the sky, we’ll have a toast as we watch him burn.”