The Mortal Queen | The Cruel Prince / Wicked King Fanfic

Sixteen

Cardan

I take a deep breath and try to stay focused on what Jude is telling me, trying to connect all the details so they make sense. But I can't find the connection yet. I feel like I'm missing something.

"And then Jack—" Jude's voice comes back into focus.

I look at her again. "I'm sorry, who is Jack?"

She looks like she wants to smack me. I got lost in the details again, and must have tuned her out unintentionally. I reach over to the other side of Jude's bed and turn on her lamp so I can see her better. That might improve my focus if I can actually see her. On second thought, maybe not.

"He's the one that went back into the locker room with me, ready to beat up whatever creep was in there." Her eyebrows raise in expectation. "Stay with me!" She teases, and shoves me playfully.

I shake my head, trying to clear my thoughts. "Oh, right. Jack." I pause, then look her in the eye. "I don't trust him."

Jude rolls her eyes at me, so I quickly add, "Or any of them. None of them should be trusted."

Suddenly she looks bored. "I am one hundred percent sure they're all harmless humans." She says defiantly, and knows I'm about to argue with her, so she puts her fingers over my mouth to silence me, but if I'm being honest, she's just distracting me in the most delicious way possible. I am really trying hard to focus here, but I haven't seen Jude in so long my senses are on fire.

Can we just go back in time 30 minutes and pretend we aren't in imminent danger? I much prefer what we were doing before this conversation started. Why did I open my stupid mouth?

"Have you forgotten that I can't be glamoured or enchanted? I know they're harmless humans, or I'd be able to see something not human."

The night shirt Jude is wearing is so baggy, the collar has slipped over her bare shoulder, exposing her sun-kissed skin. She has a stripe of creamy pale skin, I'm guessing from her running clothes or her swimsuit. Focus, idiot.

She waits for me to agree with her. I gently kiss the tips of her fingers, then pull them away from my mouth.

"Fine." I say calmly. "But all you've proven is that they're really human, not that they're harmless."

She rolls her eyes at me. I can't help smirking at her, even with the seriousness of the situation.

"I should remind you that humans aren't exactly harmless creatures. You're a prime example of just how not harmless a human can be."

The expression on her face confirms she's thinking the same thing I am right now, that she's reliving every sneaky, underhanded, and nasty thing she's ever done to me. It's impressive, really. Her list of conquests could fill an entire book.

You're the most terrifying human I know, yet I can't seem to stay away from you. I must be insane.

My smirk stretches into a full on grin. She knows I'm right.

"Whatever. Fine. I'll be more careful around the humans." She says mockingly, with a wave of her hand.

"So, now what?" She asks, looking to me for answers.

I suddenly remember Jude was telling me something. "What were you saying about this Jack?" I ask her. Jack seems like a very untrustworthy and stupid name.

She stares blankly at me. "I honestly can't remember now. You distracted me!" She says with playful frustration, then grabs one of her pillows and smacks me in the face with it. She really likes to do that.