𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗠𝗜𝗡𝗔𝗟 𝗟𝗢𝗩𝗘

5) Heeseung

After I've briefed our team for the morning and made sure they're settled in for the night, I swing a bag of supplies over my shoulder and leave.

Stepping out of the last guest tent, I run my hands through my hair and over my face and breathe deeply.

This operation has been a lifetime in the making, nothing can go wrong.

The circus performer Sunoo and the noble kid Niki are being kept together and closely monitored. As our leverage against the ringleader and the prince, they'll be important pawns in this game.

The cool air of the October night and the quiet of the empty circus grounds is soothing as I make my way back to the wagons.

In the silence my mind runs over the day's events. So far everything has unfolded exactly as expected, aside from one detail.

Earlier, I went into the maze of mirrors armed with a syringe. My plan was simple; pretend to be lost, find the prince, charm him, then catch him off guard to deliver the dose.

I usually have no trouble playing people like puppets to get what I want. They're drawn in by my face, my body, my voice, making them easy to manipulate.

But I took one look at the prince of Akra, and suddenly I was the one off guard.

He was shorter than me, with doe eyes, layers of soft mahogany hair brushing his forehead, and full pretty lips frowning at me.

I shook off the unfamiliar sensation of nerves and focused. I flirted with him, slowly closing in and drawing the needle into my hand behind me.

I expected him to at least be flustered by my advances, most people would be. But then he was the one stepping even closer, and I felt my control over the situation falter when it became clear he was seducing me.

So confident and so sinfully beautiful.

After that I got... carried away.

I would have kissed him if he hadn't noticed the syringe and sent me crashing into a mirror.

What's wrong with me? How could I have let that happen?

Those had been questions that both Sunghoon had asked me and I had asked myself after we eventually knocked the prince out.

He should've been an easy target, and I can't deny my irritation at the fact I needed Hoon's help to get the job done. The last thing I need is him questioning my reliability.

Since Sunghoon, Jay and I were chosen to lead Blessed-Cursed we've had an unspoken level of trust in one another, an assurance that we are each the best at what we do. But I can't be sure that they wouldn't betray me if they thought I was becoming weak.

I finally reach the wagons. The door to Sunoo's is ajar, low light glowing from inside.

I make my way up the creaking wooden steps, cross through the doorway and stop dead.

There's a candelabra and smashed fragments of a vase littering the floor, and then my attention is drawn to the bed and my eyes widen.

Sunghoon and Jake are tangled up together on it, Sunghoon pinning the prince underneath him.

They're staring at each other as if they might've been kissing, but then I see the blade cutting into Jaeyun's neck, and the blood.

I stride over and shove Hoon off of him.

"What the fuck are you doing?"

He blinks at me for a moment as if slapped out of a trance, before his usual cool mask slides into place.