CARDIGAN, acotar ¹

chapter twenty seven

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CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN

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TAMLIN GROWLED COLDLY. the echo of it deepened into her bones, laced with wrath and rage, and everything that made the rest of them tense. his gaze snapped to the curtains, and the glamour covering feyre was stripped away. she strode toward him, but tamlin was already storming toward cecelia.

 the lady of the night court was still staring at the same spot where rhysand had been standing, as if she could still feel him, when tamlin's hand latched out, gripping onto her upper arm. she jolted.

"where the hell were you," he snarled.

cecelia glanced from his hand to her arm. and slowly, she tipped her chin up, meeting his gaze. carson never knew blue could be such a burning color, a wrathful one, until cecelia's sapphire eyes bore into tamlin's.

tamlin was wise enough to let go, but he lingered near her, as if she might attempt to find rhysand.

carson watched as lucien pushed up from the ground, on his knees. immediately, his eyes went to carson; rhysand's conversation pouring into the silence of the room. betrayal was painted over his usual smirks and grins, making her chest tighten until the point of pain. she turned, breath shaking as she went to feyre.

"why would you do that?" she whispered. "what if he comes after you."

"better me than you." carson shrugged.

feyre blinked, her blue eyes shaded and regretful. "carson."

"it's fine, feyre," she assured, taking her sister's hand and squeezing it. feyre clutched on it, not quite believing her words. "i'll be fine. i promise."

cecelia brushed past tamlin to reach lucien, and offered him a hand. warily glancing at tamlin, he took it, letting her help him stand. when he was up, she strode toward carson and feyre, those golden shadows trailing with her.

"are you hurt?"

though carson's head ached from how rhysand had slid into it, and her throat felt unusual after he'd stopped her from breathing for a few seconds, carson shook her head. she didn't quite know how to act with cecelia anymore. after the encounter with rhysand, she wondered how cecelia could marry such a high lord.

"what rhysand said about eris," tamlin said coldly, still lingering by cecelia. carson looked down at her boots. "is that true?"

all eyes went to carson as she said, "yes."

lucien shook his head, rubbing at his temple. he wouldn't meet her eye.

"and you let him into the manor, my home," tamlin growled out, and carson clenched her jaw. "do you realize you are a human in prythian. he is a faerie — the heir to the autumn court, who can kill you — and would kill you if you so much as look at him wrong." he swore, low and cold. "and feyre ... "

"i'm sorry," she said through her teeth. "but eris is ... he's not like that," she said and tried to look at cecelia for help. she had told her that eris acted different with her, but cecelia was once again staring at the spot where rhysand had stood. she opened her mouth, but tamlin's growl drowned out her voice.