across my arms.
Jordon avoided my eyes and stared down the length of the corridor. âNot since Damirâs arrest. But itâs best to take precautions.â He tapped his foot against the ground and alternately beat the dagger hilts like he was playing the drums, but in an agitated way. I watched him for a moment before he stopped and smiled shyly. âHenrietta hates it when I do that.â
âI donât mind.â I rubbed at my arms. âHow is Henrietta?â I asked, grateful that heâd mentioned her. It was obvious Iâd made him uncomfortable asking about enemies and I didnât want him to put any walls up between us so soonâlike Iâd already made Marko do.
He shrugged, but his face seemed to redden within a second and his hands balled into fists.
âSheâs engaged.â
âEngaged?â I smiled. âSo whoâs the lucky guy?â
âHeâs a guard, like me. Well, if you can call him a guard. He works at the Colosseum.â The hilt tapping started again. It was clear he didnât think much of this guard his sister was marrying. After about a minute of jiggling around, he stopped.
âCan I get you anything, Miranda? The new chef, Maria, is a good woman. She doesnât mind us sneaking in for a late-night bite.â
I thought of Dina, the chef whoâd helped the horrible, treasonous guard William to kill Pat, a kitchen-hand who had been so kind to me and had ended up saving my life.I still had nightmares about the sickening crack of the death-blow William had delivered to Patâs skull.
âAre you all right? You look pale,â Jordon asked, getting to his feet.
âOh.â I rubbed at my eyes and yawned. âI think Iâll get back to sleep. It feels late. Do you know what time it is?â
âAfter midnight,â he said, before stretching his bulging arms out and folding them behind his head. âOnly five hours to go and I get to sleep in a soft bed.â He winked at me and grinned. âSweet dreams, Miranda.â
âSay hi to Henrietta for me,â I whispered, before slipping back into my room.
I closed the door but, instead of going to bed, headed straight for the dining table. There was no need for me to ask the kitchens for a midnight snack. A delicious assortment of food awaited me, and my empty stomach groaned with excitement. Though the big table was only set for one, which kind of made me feel even lonelier than I already did, it gave me the licence to pig out big-time, without an audience.
There was a plate of cold prawns, already peeled and coated in a parsley dressing, a salad of cherry tomatoes and delicate slices of cucumber. There was a fresh round loaf of bread, which I immediately ripped into, tearing off a chunk and then topping it with a marinated prawn before shoving it into my mouth.
I washed it all down with a long gulp of cool water. After Iâd demolished all of the prawns and had my fill of the deliciously crunchy salad, I sipped on another glass of water and took in my surroundings with a little more appreciation than I had done when Iâd first woken.
There was an ensuite, and to its side there was a bookshelf crammed full of books. Setting the water down,I hurriedly wiped my hands with a white cloth and ran over to the shelf to study each and every spine, caressing them with my fingers, feeling every crease and indentation. I wondered if Marko had brought the books in especially for me, or if theyâd once belonged to Robbie.
A sense of unease washed over me, to be looking at Robbieâs things without his permission or knowledge. But surely Marko would have wanted to rid the room of all things Robbie before he had put me in here?
I closed my eyes and tried to push Robbie from my mind. It was hard to imagine him living another life outside of the castle. Did he live by himself? Or had he now settled down with somebody like Lily, his childhood friend? A