There was no way home?
Panic rose up in my throat, but I swallowed it back down.
“For how long?” The words came out a croak, my voice still raspy from dehydration.
“At least six months, if there’s an early spring,” Lord Theodore said.
“Six months,” I repeated through numb lips.
Half a year before I would see my family again. Half a year in the dungeons.
If they let us live that long.
Davin spoke up. “Could we not reside here for the time being, as…” he paused, “foreign dignitaries? And again, generous compensation will be arranged upon our safe return.”
Lord Theodore exchanged a thoughtful look with his brother, who shook his head.
“If it were up to me alone, I could be persuaded in that direction,” Sir Iiro intoned in a somewhat bored voice. “I have no desire to incite a war.”
I didn’t dare to let myself hope, not when he was clearly about to qualify that statement. Sure enough, he went on.
“But you have broken Socairan law. Perhaps your own country would look the other way at your dishonorable behavior, but here we do not frivolously thwart our principles.”
A few voices sounded around us in agreement, but Lord Theodore looked troubled. I tried to keep my features neutral.
“In any case,” Sir Iiro said after a moment, “this is not our decision alone, as it will affect all of the clans. The Summit will decide your fate.”
Well, that sounded ominous.
“Who or what is—” Davin began, but the duke cut him off with a gesture.
“I have business to attend to. We will reconvene for dinner,” Iiro declared before turning to leave.
Pompous arse.
Lord Theodore came to first cut the lines on Davin’s rope, then mine. I wanted to ask him more questions about the Summit, but I didn’t want to reveal my concern. Fia’s advice resounded in my head, something she said every time I winced when her sparring stick hit me.
To give your enemy a reaction is to give them power. Now I know where to hurt you.
Staring up into those guarded hazel eyes, I knew one thing for certain. Behind that beautiful facade, Theodore Korhonan was absolutely my enemy.
“So, no more friendship bracelets then?” I tilted my head to the side in mock disappointment. “And just when I thought we really had something special.”
His jaw tightened, but he didn’t react any more than that.
“This way,” was all he said as he turned to exit the grand room.
Davin and I followed, both of us flexing our hands to get blood flowing back into them while we walked. Our cheery guards walked at our backs, in case we decided to make a run for it with our complete lack of food, water, and basic resources.
At least they gave us some breathing room this time. Perhaps Theodore’s princess comment had struck a chord.
When we approached the turn that led to the dungeons, the lord surprised me by going left, leading us to a grand staircase winding up instead of the narrow set that led down.
“We’re not going back to the dungeons?” I asked, moving to walk next to him.
“That isn’t necessary anymore. You’ll be staying in your own rooms now, as the dungeon is not a fit place for a princess to sleep.”
“He said dubiously,” I retorted, raising my eyebrows,
“You don’t act like a princess.”
Davin snorted behind me, but I only gave Theodore a bemused smile.
“No? Do you have much experience acting like a princess?”
His lips parted, in offense or surprise. “Obviously not.”
“Then it would appear that between the two of us, I’m the only one who knows how a princess behaves. I’m glad we have cleared that up.” I looked over my shoulder at my cousin. “At least our cages will be more elegant now.”
The lord stiffened in response. “Do you take nothing seriously? Is this all a joke to you?”
His question sounded oddly reminiscent of one my father had asked recently, but I refused to think about that.
“Do you take everything seriously?” I asked instead. “I’m surprised you even know what a joke is.”
He narrowed his eyes, but continued on without response.
When we reached the end of the wide, empty hall, he showed me to one door while the guards led Davin to the next one over. My stomach twisted.
Though this appeared to be what Lord Theodore said it was, a guest room, in a far less intimidating section of the castle than they’d been kind enough to allow us to use before, I couldn’t help the nervous knot in my stomach at being separated from my cousin.
Davin caught sight of my expression and gave me a subtle nod.
“I don’t know about you, Row.” He yawned loudly. “But I’m going to take a nap before dinner.” The tension in my shoulders eased a bit.
His message was clear. We were safe. Safe for now, at least.
I nodded back to my cousin and turned to face the room in front of me.
Davin excelled at reading people and situations both. If he believed we were safe, then I trusted him. Besides, I supposed it didn’t make sense that they would escort us to guest rooms only to kill us.
Lord Theodore gestured for me to enter a room as opulent as the rest of the estate. A roaring fire blazed in the hearth with a steaming bath just before it, and gold-and-cream paper lined the walls around a bed stacked high with furs and plush velvet pillows.
I took in the rest of the room, my eyes finally resting on a tray laden with fruits and biscuits and cheeses, along with a small kettle and cup for tea.
My stomach growled, and it took all the restraint I had not to dive face first into the tray and devour every last crumb.
“Now that you’ve seen the elegant cage, would you prefer the dungeon, instead?” Lord Theodore’s voice burst the small bubble I’d momentarily been in.
Making a show of ruminating on the question, I finally shook my head.
“As cozy as the dungeons were, they had a distinct lack of biscuits.”
The smallest tinge of amusement tempted the corner of his mouth, but it disappeared as he spun to leave. Just before he shut the door, he paused, turning back to me.
“You don’t strike me as a lush.” He phrased it as a question.
I blinked at the non sequitur. “Well, I didn’t strike you as a princess, either.”
Lord Theodore stared at me for a long moment before speaking again. “If you are who you say you are, then why did you take the risk of buying from a Socairan smuggler, just for a few bottles of vodka?”
If his tone had been judgmental like it was earlier, I would have ignored him completely, but there was nothing aside from genuine curiosity this time.
So I thought about that day. There were a thousand answers I could have given him, but for some reason, I found myself settling on something close to the truth.
“Because it’s my sister’s favorite drink.”
