“Not really, no.” I tried for defiant, but the nervous crack in my voice gave me away.
“You don’t really have a choice, my dear.”
Hendon reached out and tipped my chin toward him so I was forced to meet his gaze. I struggled against Taryn’s hold. Hendon waved in her direction, and her grip grew even tighter around my arms.
“Just think, tomorrow is your wedding day. Aren’t you excited? I understand every young woman dreams of what her wedding day will be like.”
“I doubt Prince Anders wants to get married inside a jail cell,” I said.
“Of course you won’t get married in here.” Hendon absentmindedly palmed his necklace with his free hand. “I’ll release you, just in time for your wedding, if you promise to be on your best behavior. And I’ll make sure you keep your promise.”
The red jewel at his throat pulsed and gleamed; the unnatural light was reflected in his eyes, tinging his eyes crimson. Mesmerized, I couldn’t look away from the light, although every part of my being was screaming that I should.
Hendon murmured a spell under his breath. I could feel the magic forming around me, heavy and expectant. I didn’t know a counterspell, but I knew with all my being I did not want Hendon’s spell to reach me.
At my throat, safely hidden under the bodice of my dress, my amber soulstone started to warm.
Hendon finished his spell. Whatever the spell was, its tendrils were trying to sink into my mind and body, but finding no purchase.
I didn’t know what to do. Should I pretend his spell worked? But without knowing what he was trying to do, I didn’t think I would be very convincing.
I hesitated too long. And, unfortunately, Hendon was smarter than that. He could tell immediately that, whatever his spell was supposed to accomplish, it hadn’t worked.
He snarled at me. “How are you resisting? This spell has never failed.”
His ruby grew brighter, looking like a bright stain of blood at the king’s throat. It pulsed faster, as if in response to his anger. He gripped the necklace so hard his knuckles turned white.
My amber pendant grew hot, as if in response to Hendon’s soulstone. Surprisingly, the heat from my necklace didn’t burn me. I was afraid its reaction might cause Hendon to notice it despite its concealment, but he was concentrating too hard on his spell for anything else to catch his attention.
He repeated his spell over and over. His voice, already loud, continued to rise in volume. But still his spell didn’t affect me.
The more Hendon chanted, the hotter my necklace burned. Somehow, it was protecting me from Hendon’s magic.
Hendon broke off mid-incantation, his hand jerking away from my face so fast I involuntary flinched, afraid he’d strike me. But he didn’t. Instead, he studied me with those calculating eyes. His face was mottled and he was practically panting, like he’d just been running or fighting.
“No matter,” he said. “There’s always an alternate path to achieving one’s goals. I will get what I want, in the end. This is just a little detour.”
He snapped his fingers, and Taryn released me and walked out the door, still in her spell trance. I started after her, but the guard blocked me.
Hendon left the cell. The guard followed, pulling the door shut with a decisive thud. I ran to the door and peered out through the bars, watching helplessly as the king placed a possessive hand on Taryn’s unresisting arm.
The king turned to me. “I don’t know how you resisted me, but don’t think it will last for long, Princess. It will be quite a pleasure to figure out how you did it, and dismantle your defenses. I do so enjoy learning new things.” He patted Taryn’s arm and gestured down the hallway. “After you, my dear.”
They walked away from my cell and out of my line of sight. Hendon’s sickly sweet laughter echoed down the hallway, taunting me as it faded away.
Chapter Forty
MORE TIME PASSED IN an excruciatingly slow daze. Boredom and anxiety warred for supremacy in my mind. Eventually I dozed, exhaustion setting in after the adrenaline had worn off. When I woke up, the light from above had seeped away. The only illumination in my cell came from the flickering torches in the hallway.
Thanks to my afternoon nap, I was now wide awake during a time when most of the palace had gone to sleep. The torchlight didn’t penetrate very far into my cell, and I jumped at every little shadow. Was that a rat? I gathered my skirts around me and pulled my legs tight to my chest, trying to take up as little space as possible.
I heard more soft skittering, but it seemed to be coming from outside my cell rather than from inside. I shrank down even further. Was Hendon coming back?
In the hallway, I heard a soft, low voice. “Princess Jennica?”
“Beyan!” I flew to the door, sticking my hand out the bars into the hallway. I waved my hand around, hoping it would catch his attention. “In here!”
Beyan’s face appeared on the other side of the grille. “Jennica! Are you unharmed?”
“Yes!“
“Good. Don’t worry, I’ll get you out right away.”
I stepped back from the door, expecting Beyan to break it down, or maybe pick the lock or something. Instead, I heard a key turn in the lock and Beyan opened the door, squinting into the gloom. He held a key ring with several keys clanking together on it.
“Beyan, how did you — ”
“Come on, let’s get going. I can tell you as we go.”
“Wait.” I held out my arm, showing Beyan the magic-blocking band around my wrist. “Can you get this thing off me?”
Beyan squinted at the key ring in his hand. He quickly tried two keys in the band’s lock before finding the right one. It fell to the ground.
“What is that thing?”
