Leo

I was so done dancing with other females. It was as if custom intentionally kept mates apart. I breathed in the perfume of the dozen or more dance partners that clung to me. Goddess, I needed a bathing tube before I even got near Trinity. The same probably went for her as well. The idea of another man’s scent clinging to her—even passing it to her as innocently as a public dance—made me see red, but even that was better than the vision of a naked consort in her fucking bed.

The final song came to an end and I bowed to my partner. As soon as it was acceptable to leave her, I spun on my heel and searched out my mate. She’d been speaking with someone by the wine table and I’d seen her walking with a guard. A guard who I barely recognized from the ambush the evening of the three sisters’ arrival on Alera. He was whole and healthy, quite an improvement from that night.

He would have to get on his knees and thank Faith for saving his life.

Trinity had been relaxed and smiling at him. Knowing my soft-hearted mate, she wanted to offer her thanks for his bravery. That was all well and good, but I wanted all those smiles, all that attention, on me. Yes, I sounded like a sullen little boy, but where Trinity was concerned, I was greedy. Flaunting what was mine in front of the other males was not something I enjoyed. The dormant males would not understand what they were missing. The mated males had no reason to envy me. The consorts and the rest? They would be made to understand that if they hurt one hair on my mate’s head, I would make them suffer ten-fold before I killed them.

Trinity was a princess, but I didn’t care about politics. I was a soldier, plain and simple. Rich. Poor. None of them mattered to me unless they were willing to stand next to me on the field of battle. Pretty words meant nothing if one wasn’t willing to bleed for them.

I had no doubt Trinity would stand next to me against an entire horde of Hive Soldiers, if I asked. Hell, even more likely, she’d refuse to leave a fight even if I ordered her out of danger. Not as a battle-hardened soldier wanting to fight hand-to-hand like Destiny—she was too tenderhearted for that—but leading, organizing, planning.

She was magnificent. And mine. I had nothing to prove to anyone but her.

My instincts were screaming at me to find her, but I shook the nerves away. I hated large crowds of pretty people. I would have to learn to deal with events like this, I knew, so I could stand at Trinity’s side and be what she needed. I’d seen images of the events that her mother had hosted. Grand balls. Parties. Events that required smiling, dancing and worst of all… sharing Trinity.

She deserved a partner. An ally.

And, when the need arose, her enforcer. Queen Celene’s bloodline was back on the throne, where it belonged. Not officially, since Trinity had refused to take part in an ascension ceremony. But four spires lit the sky.

The days of noble houses battling over the queen’s table scraps were over.

After one pass of the room, and no sight of my mate, my instincts kicked up another notch, from the vague feeling that something wasn’t right to full-out alarm. On the exterior terrace, there was less than a handful of guests milling about. The evening was late and many partygoers, especially the elders, had already gone home to seek their beds. The young and ambitious, or just bored, would stay until the dawn, dancing and drinking.

The consorts in attendance would be busy tonight.

For myself, I only wanted Trinity. I paced the length of the wall, looking down to see if she’d gone toward the gardens. I didn’t think she’d go there with anyone, for she knew the risk to her life. There was luring out the assassin and then there was being stupid. Trinity was anything but stupid.

I knew that the music and laughter would not die until the light of dawn rose over the garden. In the past, I’d been one of the silent protectors on the edges of the room, never anyone of note. But I’d watched them all. Learned who could be trusted and who played foul.

The nobles spoke freely in front of the servants, as if they were nothing more than an inanimate object to be ignored. I knew just how far from the truth that assumption truly was. And I knew exactly who I needed to talk to now.

A dozen royal guard lined the walls, watching everything. Seeing everything.

If they were good at their jobs, they would know where I could find my mate.

I strode to the guard nearest the refreshment table where I’d last seen Trinity with Lord Jax and the guard who’d nearly died in the initial attack. True to form, he looked straight ahead, ignoring me, as if he really were a statue. I had to give my father credit. He had hand-selected every guard watching tonight. I’d told him upon our return from Battleship Karter there had already been an attempt on Trinity’s life. Trapped in that opulent palace, I’d used what resources I could to keep my mate safe. And my father was one of the best resources I had. He’d been a royal guard for decades. Knew every guard by name. Knew their histories. Their families. He’d promised me that every man guarding my mate tonight could be trusted.

“Stop pretending you don’t see me, soldier, and tell me where to find my mate.”

He blinked, hard, his gaze darting to me for the briefest moment before returning his attention to his job. But he did answer me. “The princess was escorted onto the terrace by the guard from Jax’s house ten minutes ago.”

The terrace? I’d already looked out upon the people there. She was not among them. “Are you sure?”

This did get his attention, and he tilted his head up in a challenging manner. “I belong to the queen’s guard, sir. It is my job to be sure.”

Fuck. My heart began to pound out in silent alarm. I grabbed the guard by the shoulder and shook him gently until he looked up at me. “What is the queen’s guard?”

He looked straight ahead at the dancers, once more ignoring my physical presence. “That is a question for your father, my lord.”

“Listen, your job right now is to keep your head down and find my father as quickly as possible. Do not speak of this to anyone else, do you understand me? Bring my father to me on the terrace. Immediately.”

“Yes, my lord.” Thank the goddess he didn’t question me or my order, but took off at once across the room, as if he knew exactly where my father might be. Grateful, I watched him for a second and thanked fate that my father’s hand-selected guard had been paying attention.

Fuck me. I’d failed my mate, because I had been dancing and talking politics like an idiot while Trinity disappeared. Two things I hated.

I never should have left her side. Appearances be damned. She had insisted we act as if nothing was wrong, that if her first public appearance was as a fearful weakling, it would affect her reputation for years to come. Take her power and respect. I’d respected her wishes. Even Prime Nial had agreed with her. He knew a lot more about ruling than I did. So, too, did my mate, with her mother teaching her what she would need to know since she was born.

I’d listened. Considered. Gone against my instincts and allowed Trinity to place herself in danger.

Fuck.

At least she had a guard with her. I would keep faith in knowing he would protect her with his life.

If I found the guard dead? Well, that would change things.

Moving quickly now, I went out to the terrace and responded to the greetings of the few guests, not because I cared, but because I needed information.

“Have you seen the princess? She was escorted onto the terrace by a guard and she owes me a dance.”

The two ladies shook their heads. The two males with them looked at one another for confirmation before the elder of what looked like two brothers turned to me. “We have not seen Her Highness, my lord. Apologies.”

Biting back a growl, I rotated on my heel, looking for something, anything. A flash of blue in the gardens below. A hint of her sweet scent. A glimpse of moonlight on her golden hair in the darkness.

A sparkle of blue on one of the stairs…

I stilled as I caught sight of one pale blue shoe. A female’s shoe with sparkles and gems I’d seen before. On Trinity. I grabbed it up, held it. Why the fuck wasn’t it on Trinity’s foot? If it had fallen off, surely she would have paused to put it back on. It was dainty and had a heel that was pointed and unstable—how females moved in such tools of torture I had no idea—so it would be awkward for her to walk in just one.

Unless… I whipped my head around, frantic. I wanted to shout her name, to make the music stop and everyone to stand still so the space could be searched. She wasn’t here. I knew it. I felt it. She wouldn’t have left a fucking shoe otherwise.

Was the assassin here? Had he made a move at last?

Trinity knew she was not supposed to leave the ballroom unattended. The only reason I had agreed to bring her back to Alera and attempt her mad scheme of acting as bait for the assassin was because she had given me her word she would be careful. Take no unnecessary risks.

The gardens. Would she have been taken that way? Into the maze where it was easy to get lost? No, they would be caught within the shrubbery. They needed an escape, perhaps around the sides of the garden to a vehicle? Or out in the city?

As I headed to the nearest garden entry, I heard commotion. Not from the ballroom, but from a side hallway situated on the lower floor of the palace. The structure was large, with a host of hallways, tunnels and covered drives that led into various areas of the palace. I stormed through the open door and into the hall.

A gathering of well-dressed servants was murmuring together, no merriment or laughter on their faces, despite the music playing behind them and the array of food and beverage scattered throughout the smaller hall. Seemed the nobles weren’t the only ones celebrating the return of the royal family.

“The princess,” I said, stopping hastily in front of them.

“Captain—my lord—apologies, I don’t know how to address you.”

“Leo will do.”

“Yes, my lord… Leo,” he bowed slightly and I shifted on my feet. I didn’t give a fuck about titles or status. I just needed to find my mate. Thankfully, he continued before I had to beat the information from him. “The princess was with another guard. She didn’t say anything beyond a simple greeting, but she looked unhappy.”

An older female spoke. “She was walking strangely, with a large limp, and being pulled along by a very tight grip on her elbow.”

I held the only clue I had in my hand, the sparkling blue shoe, and they stared at it.

Another in the group stepped forward and held out his hand. “After she was gone, we found this by the door.” In his grip was the matching shoe.

I took it from him. My mate was leaving a trail for me to follow, although I didn’t know what she could remove next. “Did she ask for help, or say anything to you as she passed?”

The first man shook his head. “No, my lord.”

“Another guard?” I asked. “You’re sure?”

All of them nodded. There was no doubt among them. But the assassin, Vennix, wasn’t a guard, unless he had used one of the royal uniforms as a disguise to gain entry, to gain Trinity’s trust.

But that would not work either. She’d seen his face in the initial attack. He’d been standing over her, ready to kill her. As much as the thought pained me, I was quite sure that male’s face would be branded in her memory forever. So who had taken her?

“Which way did they go?”

“Farther into the palace, up the grand stairway.”

I looked in that direction. Up those stairs were the hallways that led to the royal family’s private chambers. Why would anyone take Trinity farther inside the palace?

Unless…

I left them and found several guards stationed outside the ballroom. These two I knew by sight. “The princess has been taken.” The words were like acid on my tongue. I’d failed my mate, allowed danger to come to her. “Where is my father?”

My father stepped forward immediately. “I’m right here. I heard the news. What do you need?”

“I need that fucking consort who tried to seduce my mate. And I need him right now.”

My father frowned, clearly confused. Out of all the possible things I could request, a consort was not high on the list.

“The consort? For what purpose?” That voice was deep. Curt. All too fucking familiar. And evil.

I dropped to my knees, rolled across the floor and burst forward, weapon out, before he’d finished the question, and looked up into the eyes of a killer.

Vennix. The assassin was here, and he was inches away from murdering my father.