Page 43 of Hollow Court
I knew all too well the dark secrets that could hide in beautiful places.
SIXTEEN
Davin
The dayssince we left Hagail had been more than enough to remind me why I never shared a room with my cousin.
Her mood continued to decline, and I found myself missing Gallagher’s laid-back nature, or hell, even Galina’s icy stoicism next to Gwyn’s increasingly short temper.
That wasn’t helped by the fact that each night we pretended to go to our separate spaces before one of us would sneak to the other’s room. We had no way of knowing what form in which an attack would come.
In an effort to smooth things over, I had taken the liberty of purchasing her favorite snacks each time we stopped at a village or town.
Unfortunately, even those had limited effects.
Tonight, we again went through the routine of sneaking Gwyn out of the carriage and into the inn—her hood pulled low over her face. I wrapped an arm around her shoulders for show, as well as to force her to walk with a shorter stride.
Honestly, it was a miracle that none of the soldiers suspected us yet. Or if they did, they didn’t let on.
Once we had the keys to our rooms, I usheredGwyn-Lina up the stairs, but didn’t make it five steps before I was followed by the dulcet tones of the innkeeper’s daughter.
“Davin?” She said my name like a question, and my cousin let out a low laugh.
I groaned internally, kicking myself for not choosing a different village to stop at for the night.
“Have fun with that,” Gwyn whispered, the first bit of amusement in days lining her features.
When I turned to face Bess, Iaccidentallystepped on my cousin’s toe. She hissed a curse under her breath, but I covered over the sound with a loud apology.
“I am so sorry, Darling. Did I hurt you? Why don’t you go rest your feet in your room? Yes, the door is just there,” I said, pointing to the second door on the left.
It would be a hell of a lot easier to let Bess down gently without Gwyn’s snickering giving us away.
When I turned back to face the girl, her eyes were still trained on Gwyn’s retreating form. Any hopes I had thatGalina’s presence would deter Bess were dashed when she put a questioning hand on my arm.
“Good evening, Bess,” I began, and she took a confident step forward just as I took one backward. “Could we get a bath sent up for my lady?”
Might as well start laying the groundwork for that announcement.
It didn’t hurt that it would serve as a polite deterrent for the incredibly young girl who had tried to approach me on every single visit I made to her father’s inn.
Bess’s large brown eyes flitted to the door as it closed behind Gwyn, then back to me.
“So it’s true, then? That you brought back a Socairan?” There was a hard edge to her tone, and I internally bristled.
She had practically spat the wordSocairan, using it like a slur. Interesting, though, that the rebels had managed to spread word this far.
“It is indeed,” I assured her. “And I should go make sure she’s settling in.”
“Of course, mi’laird,” she said in a tone that implied the opposite. “I should get back to work.”
I blew out a slow, relieved breath when she walked away, grateful Galina hadn’t actually been here to witness that exchange, lest she hate me even more. Stars knew she would never believe I hadn’t touched the girl.
Then again, Galinacouldn’tactually hate me much more than she already did.
That was a small comfort, at least.
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