Lover's Curse (Red Queen Awards Winner)

Chapter Twenty Five - Small Mercies

You're buying stars to shut out the light                                                                          We come alone and alone we die                                                                                        - Buy the Stars by Marina and the Diamonds

Iris

I shouldn't be here.

There's no reason to be in her room if she's not in it.  I should be preparing for the meeting, devising ways to rid myself of Maven so Mother and I may speak alone.  Follow her home, if I can.

And leave Mare at his mercy.

My hands brush the surface of her desk, snaring on something cold, something that chills my blood and dulls my senses.  Silent stone manacles.

Don't make me use these.

I shred the note without thinking, sweep the spiteful remains into the nearest bin.  Everytime I think he can't sink any lower, he digs another hole beneath his feet.  Horrid little man.

What would he do if I took them?

They fit neatly within my satchel, a dark chill settling over my bones.  He commissioned a throne of the stuff.  How does he bear it?

It doesn't matter.  If he can withstand it, so shall I.

I'll not have him best me.

_

Who put this man in charge of seating arrangements?

Every placement seems calculated for maximum discomfort.  Shove the revolutionary between two Silver princes.  Put four chairs between his brother and his grandmother. Ensure Mother and I cannot speak without him hearing every word.

And of course . . .

"Hi."  Mare peers at Tiberias like a trapped mouse.  "I hope you're doing well."

Maven smirks.

My eyes drift to the hand he's draped over her arm, as if he owns her, as if she's a trophy to be displayed on his shelf, as if he has any right to be smug when she's in such obvious distress.

I'm beginning to understand how Tiberias feels.

I turn away.  I may be seated next to him, but that doesn't make us aligned.  If he wants my help, he'll have to beg for it

_

He kissed her.

It shouldn't surprise me.  It shouldn't anger me.  It shouldn't set my blood aflame and remind me of all the ways he might drown.  They've kissed many times before, and they'll continue kissing for days to come.  And when they return to Whitefire, they'll do much more than kiss.

"You look solemn."  Mother tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.  "Is something on your mind?"

We're finally alone.  He didn't want to endure her lecture on the dangerous ideas he might spread, the pointlessness of this display, how he ought to keep his concubine on a tighter leash.

Why do I feel empty?

"I'm exhausted."  That must be it.  "Father is dead.  I haven't seen you in months, and Tiora . . . "  My eyes water.  "She can't leave the country."

"No.  She can't."  Mother closes her eyes.  "I wish Orrec had found another way to seal the treaty.  One that didn't leave you so far away."  A sigh.  "She mentions you all the time.  If Iris were here, this document would be finished. I f Iris were here, I wouldn't have forgotten.  If Iris were here, I'd have been on time.  If Iris were here--"  She laughs.  "Your biggest fan."