Chapter 35
Chapter 35
Lila
Emma was still fiddling with my hair when the announcement came through the main hall: Lord Jackson himself had selected a group of high–ranking noble daughters for “formal introductions and private conversation with His Majesty.” It was phrased as a tradition, but it sounded a lot like handpicking.
Elena Ashford’s name wasn’t on the list.
I kept my expression blank as Emma froze behind me, comb still in hand.
“Seriously?” she whispered.
I nodded once, slowly.
Emma let out a low curse–something rural and unladylike. I appreciated it.
The girls who had been selected glowed like lanterns in the dimming light. Gold thread in their gowns. Dainty heels that clicked just so. Perfect smiles ready to spit venom at a moment’s notice.
Vanessa was first in line, of course.
The Royal Banquet had been announced at dawn, and by sunset, it looked like the Gods had decided to host the next trial themselves. Gold–rimmed chandeliers flickered like fireflies overhead, casting soft light across endless crystal, silk, and finery.
Music hummed faintly from a small ensemble tucked behind an arched column, the notes delicate and aloof, as if the instruments knew they were merely background for more dangerous performances.
This wasn’t just a meal, this was theater. And I hadn’t been given a part.
We arrived late enough that most of the room had already begun to swirl. Waitstaff moved like water, filling goblets and clearing tiny, jeweled plates. The scent of roasted meat and citrus glaze clung to the air, warm and heavy.
I scanned the far end of the ballroom past the polished marble dance floor, the elaborate floral arch, the open balcony where the moon hung like a
watching eye.
And there he was.
King Damon was seated in a high–backed chair, not quite a throne, speaking quietly to a dark–haired candidate who had angled her entire body toward
him like a flower seeking sun.
He wasn’t smiling. But he wasn’t leaving either. My gut twisted.
“Don’t,” Emma murmured beside me. “He’s just doing what’s expected.”
“I know.” I said with a sigh.
“He doesn’t even look interested.” Bless my friend, she was trying to cheer me up thinking I was mooning over Damon’s lack of attention.
“I know.”
I was in a way, but not like the other women who weren’t selection. Damon was talking to them and not to me, yes. But it was the message that was clear and: it was only a matter of time before I was cast out.
That had different consequences for me.
I didn’t think I would hold any kind of favor after yesterday’s disastrous meeting in his study, but I hadn’t expected I would be frozen out either.
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Chapter 35
The other women moved around me laughing at everything. They all flirted with practiced ease. One of them giggled so sweetly it made my teeth ache.
I tried to blend in. Stay small. Just enough to be seen but not remembered. But the Court didn’t work that way. If you weren’t shining, you were
flammable.
Emma stuck close to me, whispering commentary under her breath like armor. “Lady Thalia’s pretending she didn’t have garlic at lunch?
I hid a snort behind a delicate sip of champagne. But Emma carried on, “That smile is definitely rehearsed., and is Lord Jackson actually smiling at Vanessa? I thought his face was carved from stone.”
I almost laughed. Almost. But the knot in my stomach was growing. Coiling.
I hadn’t even danced yet, Goddess willing I could avoid it altogether, and I already knew how tonight would end. In some sort of disaster as usual.
I was no further ahead at either winning Damon’s heart or a seat to save my mother. I made it almost halfway through the banquet before my luck ran
out.
I camped out near the refreshment tables with the pewter trays gleaming with candied fruit and sparkling flutes of wine, when I felt a familiar shadow slide too close.
Vanessa brushed past me, delicate as a breeze. A second later, her wineglass tilted.
Red wine bloomed across the front of my blush pink gown like a rose bleeding through silk. I froze. The wetness of it seeped through the fabric, slow and deliberate.
Vanessa gasped, obvious to my ear it was too loud, and completely forced. “Oh no! Lady Elena, I’m so clumsy!”
I looked down at the mess spreading across my bodice, breath caught in my throat. Someone nearby stifled a laugh. A servant hesitated, unsure whether to intervene.
Emma stepped forward fast. “Watch where you’re going.”
Vanessa blinked at her. “It was an accident.”
Her mouth said accident. Her eyes said move again and I’ll aim higher next time.
I forced myself to take a step back. “It’s fine.”
“It really is,” Vanessa purred. “I’m sure it’ll dry before anyone notices.”
I met her eyes then and finally saw the gleam she didn’t bother to hide. This wasn’t about Damon. Not really.
This was about hierarchy. And putting me back in my place. Outranked, outshined, outsmarted. Vanessa thought she’d won.
wasn’t going to give her the reaction she wanted though, It was best to leave bullies lacking in satisfaction. I turned, chin high, and walked away without another word.
Emma followed, muttering curses under her breath. “She’s unbelievable. We should have tripped her into the fountain.”
“I’d rather drown her in it,” I said quietly.
Emma gave me a look, half–scandalized, half–approving. I pressed my back to the wall out of sight and closed my eyes. The wine was sticky. The smell clung.
But it wasn’t the stain on my gown that left the worst mark. It was the sting of failure.
“Oh, come on, Elena“, Emma said gently, trying for encouragement. “It’s just a dress. You’re not the only one Vanessa’s tried to numiliate.”
“No,” I said quietly. “Just the one she’s most interested in watching bleed.”
Chapter 35
Behind us, laughter echoed down the corridor. I stiffened before I even turned.
Vanessa’s voice floated in like rancid perfume. “I was wondering where the little garden mouse ran off to
Emma bristled beside me. “Seriously? Can’t you take the win and go away?”
Vanessa didn’t look at her. Only at me. Her eyes dragged slowly
my ruined gown, her lips curling in mock sympathy.
“Don’t tell me you’re hiding because of a little wine. I thought you were tougher than that, Elena.”
“I’m fine,” I said coolly.
She tilted her head. “Are you?”
Her entourage hovered behind her, a wall of silk and judgment. One of them whispered something I couldn’t catch, and they all giggled again.
Vanessa took a step closer. “You know, I can’t quite figure you out. One minute you’re all quiet charm, the next you’re biting the King’s hand like you think it’ll feed you.”
“Maybe I don’t care about being fed,” I said.
She grinned. “No, I don’t think you do. That’s what’s so interesting.”
I held her gaze, even as my heartbeat climbed. “You’ve been drinking. You should go sit down.”
“I will. But I thought I’d offer some advice first.” She leaned in slightly, voice lowering. “Be careful how high you pretend to perch, Elena. People might start wondering how you got there in the first place.”
I didn’t move. I didn’t blink. I just stared her down.
Vanessa’s eyes sparkled with something that wasn’t just malice. It was knowledge. Or maybe the suspicion of it. The thrill trapping her prey right before going in for the kill.
She patted the edge of my skirt, where the wine stain had stopped spreading.
“Such a shame,” she said sweetly. “You could’ve made it so far.”
My jaw clenched. The fire snapped in my chest, and I took one step forward, fists curling. I didn’t care how public it was, I was going to wipe that smug look off her face with whatever words I had left.
“Say that again,” I said, voice low, dangerous.
Before I could do anything, say anything more, a deep voice cut in like a blade wrapped in silk.
“Ladies,” Asher drawled from the archway, lazy and lethal. “Do I need to separate you, or is this some sort of bonding ritual I’m unfamiliar with?”
Vanessa froze, Emma exhaled, and I didn’t move; because I didn’t trust myself not to finish what she started.
