And I needed to figure out a way to slip past Niik to plant the device in the computer and slip back out again.
I added a few sprays of perfume to my neck and across the front of my chest. I tugged the neckline of my dress over my shoulders so it showed off my bare collarbone.
The clutch purse not only completed the look but it gave my hands something to do when I became nervous, and being surrounded by a gang of oversized aliens was bound to make any girl feel uncomfortable.
“Well, my girl,” I said into the mirror. “This is it. Can you do it?” I wagged a warning finger. “You’d better.”
Buzz buzz. Buzz buzz.
“Gah!” I said, spinning on the spot so fast the clutch purse launched out of my hand and halfway across the room.
It didn’t sound like the Changeling’s chitter noise it made with its mandibles—I shuddered again—but it was close enough to give me pause for thought.
I surveyed the room and checked each of the corners. There was enough light in the room to dispel any shadowy recesses.
Another buzz and it brought my attention to the bed.
The communicator.
I gathered up the dress and struggled down to my knees. I get dolled up nice and then I had to get down on my knees like an old chambermaid…
C’est la vie.
I didn’t have the strength to lift the whole mattress but luckily my arms were bare. I reached under it until I found what I was looking for.
The communicator buzzed a third time as I grabbed it and yanked it out. I’d hidden it there in the first place so no one would find it. If it kept buzzing like this, the whole castle would hear it.
I’d received a message:
3 HOURS
That was all it said.
3 HOURS
Well, thanks a lot. That was really worth ruining my look.
But it wasn’t just a countdown update.
It was a threat.
I had to put that device in his computer system within the next three hours or me and my friends would be toast.
When time ran out, the creatures would turn up.
I shivered again.
They would be here.
Which meant they were probably somewhere close by already.
I clenched my hands but I was no longer in possession of my clutch purse. The floor was. I grabbed it and squeezed it tight.
A knock came at the door.
This time, I almost dropped the communicator.
I shouldn’t be trusted with electronics.
“One second!” I said.
I accessed the communicator’s settings and switched the noise and vibration settings off. Then I shoved it back under the mattress, got to my feet, and smoothed down my dress.
I cleared my throat.
“Okay,” I said. “Come in!”
The door squeaked as it opened.
Kal stood framed in the doorway. His broad shoulders took up the entire space. And these were not small doors.
His eyes scanned the room.
“I heard a noise,” he said. “Are you all right?”
Probably me practicing my pitch with the purse.
“Fine,” I said, my throat giving out. “Fine.”
He performed one more sweep of the room before settling on me.
This is it, I thought. Showtime.
I thrust one hip out and pressed a hand to it. I let the other arm hang by my side. I crossed my legs so they looked longer (apparently) and sucked in my cheeks to make my face slimmer.
I wasn’t sure if I was meant to do all the tips at the same time but it was too late to pull out now.
The look on his face, as they say, was priceless.
He was too much of a gentleman to ogle me openly, so his eyes flew over me, top to bottom, and then back up again, taking everything in. Hopefully, he’d ogle me later during the party while my back was turned or I was busy talking with someone else. I might wrap the necklace around a finger as if I didn’t notice him checking me out. And then I would glance in his direction and catch him looking. He would turn away suddenly, caught in the act and, flustered, commit a pratfall or two.
Yes, that was what I wanted.
Oh, to hell with it.
I decided to throw the poor guy a bone.
I struck a pose.
“Well?” I said. “What do you think?”
I turned around so he could eyeball me to his heart’s content. When I returned to face him, I was pleased to find his eyes still moving over me.
“You look—” He had to clear his throat. “Stunning. You’re stunning.”
“You’re not too bad yourself,” I said.
He wore a sharp suit, though the lapels looked a little nineteen eighties, and the color was an odd hue of blue. What was I expecting? Hugo Boss?
I crossed the room and brushed a piece of non-existent lint off his shoulder. I wanted him to catch a full noseful of my perfume. I kept my hand on his chest a little too long and peered into his big beautiful purple eyes.
“You’re very handsome,” I said.
“I am?” he said.
He wasn’t fishing for a compliment. He wasn’t sure what else to say.
“Very,” I said.
His Adam’s apple bounced as he swallowed. Then, unable to say another word, he raised his elbow and led me into the hall, across the landing, and toward the stairs.
“You’ll have to forgive me if I’m not available much tonight,” he said. “I have no idea who my sister invited or how many will turn up. She could have invited the whole town for all I know. Although, they’re not likely to come if she did.”
“Why wouldn’t they come to their lord’s birthday party?” I said, curious.
He looked away, embarrassed.
“They’re not entirely happy with my decision about surrendering,” he said. “Titans are fighters. They would rather go down fighting than wave a white flag.”
“Your decision saved their lives,” I pointed out. “They should be happy with that.”
“Lives filled with honor,” he said. “Not surrender.”
Huh. Surely it was better to live than to die? No matter how much honor you had.
