Page 58 of This Dark Descent
“What the hells are you doing?” she demanded as Quinn lifted her hand, placing the other on her hip. They were standing incredibly close together.
Quinn grinned. “Leading.”
The music swelled, and the dance ignited. Quinn knew her steps well.Mikira was a passable dancer, but Quinn moved as if the music carried her every step. Mikira allowed herself to be drawn along with her even as part of her mind screamed that this was absurd. She didn’t know this girl, and the unease in her stomach warned that something was wrong.
The dance quickened, and Mikira became very aware of her fingers clasped in Quinn’s, of the girl’s hand at her waist. She looked up and nearly started to find Quinn watching her intently. There was something disquieting about her hazel eyes.
“What do you want from me?” she demanded as they turned about the room.
“I thought that was rather obvious.” Quinn glanced at their clasped hands.
Mikira’s frustration redoubled. “I’ve had enough of veiled meanings for one night. Either answer my question, or I’m done with this dance.”
“There’s that fire.” Quinn grinned and guided Mikira through a turn. When they came back together, she added, “Very well, since you’re intent on being so boringly direct, I want an alliance.”
Mikira stiffened. “Did Damien send you?”
Quinn rolled her eyes. “No one sends me anywhere, least of all a spoiled noble brat.”
“He’s not like that.”
“And a desert lizard doesn’t spew magma,” Quinn said sardonically. “He’s dangerous, violent, and self-obsessed. Just ask Fen and Cardix Ridoux.”
“Who?”
The girl watched her carefully, and Mikira couldn’t shake the feeling that’d been some sort of test.
“Are you so enamored by your new sponsor that you’ve forgotten who he is?” she asked. “I’d have thought you wanted nothing to do with Veradell’s elite.”
Mikira’s hand tightened on Quinn’s. “You don’t know anything about me.”
The other girl started to respond, then stopped, her lips curving into a wry smile. “Of course not. Forgive me.” She pulled back to twirl Mikira before drawing her close again as the music faded and the dance slowed to an end.
“So what do you say?” Quinn pressed. “Partners?”
Mikira nearly laughed. “You haven’t given me a single reason to trust you. You won’t even take off your mask. Besides, I have no interest in an alliance.”
She pulled away, but Quinn grabbed her wrist. “Mikira—” she began, but then her gaze snagged on something over Mikira’s shoulder, and she let out a low curse. Quinn released her hand and ducked into the crowd.
Mikira watched her go, feeling like she’d missed something.
“Were you talking to someone?” Reid asked as he joined her.
“No one important. Where have you been the entire night?”
“House business,” he replied. “Usually Damien’s job, but since you hogged him all night, I had to deal with it. Are you ready to leave?”
Reid looked nearly as haggard as she felt. She supposed balls full of snobbish nobility and socializing weren’t his cup of tea either. Still, something about what he’d said felt off. He’d said it so quickly, hadn’t met her eye.
He was keeping something from her.
CHAPTER 20
MIKIRA
THE DAY OFthe second race arrived in a blur of nerves and anticipation. Mikira had barely sat still long enough for Ari to braid her hair before they departed, and she’d already worried the edges of it free. It wasn’t just the race eating away at her, but the knowledge that she may have handed Rezek the very thing he needed to destroy Damien.
It’d been days since the ball, and nothing had come of Rezek knowing the truth, but a pit still sat in her stomach. He would not have let her out of the bargain if the ring meant nothing, but it seemed benign, and all she could think about was what would happen if Damien learned what she’d done.
