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“Where are you going?”
Dammit.
Maeve turned around slowly, schooling her features into an apologetic smile.
“Back to my chambers,” she replied—technically true. “I think I've had a bit too much wine.” Probably true. “I decided to go to bed early.” A blatant lie.
Nerissa crossed her arms over her chest. “It's funny, you usually sneak into parties, not out.”
“Nerissa…”
“It's about him, isn't it?” Maeve didn't have to ask—she knew exactly who her sister was talking about. “Petra told me you've been bugging them about Vexx ever since he left.”
“He didn't just leave,” she retorted. “He wouldn't have left without telling me.”
He wouldn't have left without me.
“Oh, Maeve… I knew you liked him, but I didn't think it was this bad.”
Maeve froze. “I don't know what you're talking about.”
“You forget who taught you how to lie, little one. I know even your most subtle tells.”
Her heartbeat quickened. If Nerissa had found out about their secret liaison, then someone else could have as well. Celest and Arlo were definitely petty enough to report them, but they were also the kind of people who revelled in scandals. If they'd known then everyone else would know by now. Besides, if anyone had reported Vexx's improper behavior, Maeve would have heard about it. She would have been in trouble too.
“Do you know where he could be?” she asked Nerissa.
Her sister shook her head. “No,” she said. “But Maeve, you have to consider the possibility that he simply grew bored and decided to leave without a word.”
“He's not like that.”
But doubt started to creep into her mind. How well did she really know Vexx, after all? He'd always been so secretive… And he'd seemed distracted when she'd last seen him—concerned, even. Maybe that night, he hadn't made love to her so much as given her a parting gift.
“He's not that type of person,” she said, more to herself than anyone else.
Nerissa offered her a sympathetic look. Clearly, even though they'd been friends, her opinion of Vexx didn't match her younger sister's.
“It doesn't matter,” Maeve sighed. “I'm going to find him, and I'm going to get answers directly from him.”
“Find him?” Nerissa laughed softly. “Where do you think he's hiding? In the gardens, behind a bush?”
“Of course not. I'm not stupid.” She looked down the hall to make sure they were alone, then leaned forward to whisper, “I know a few places in the city where he could have gone.”
She'd start with the places where he liked to take her. A bar might be her best bet at this hour. Or maybe a club, although she hoped he wouldn't be hiding in a club. People there could be rather… tactile. And she couldn't bear seeing him like that with someone else.
She could also search for him in those places he'd only ever talked about. Like his childhood neighborhood. Surely, there were people there who still knew him. She'd have to use public transport to get there. It would be a first for her, but it couldn't be that difficult, right?
Nerissa frowned. “You can’t go into the city. The guards at the gate will never let you pass.”
“Come on, Nerissa,” Maeve said, a mischievous smile stretching her lips. “If anyone can sneak past them, it’s me.”
“This isn’t like sneaking around the palace to go see your mother.” A deep scowl now barred her sister's face. “The city is dangerous, especially in the middle of the night. You could get hurt.”
“I'll be fine.” She bit on her lower lip, hesitating. “This isn't the first time I've left the palace,” she confessed.
Nerissa's eyes widened. “You've left the palace before? On your own?”
“I mean—”
“Have you gone mad?” she gasped, failing to keep her composure. “What if something had happened to you? You went out into the city unprotected and without telling anyone. Don't you understand how irresponsible that is?”
“I wasn't alone. Vexx was with me.”
“He's the one who put you up to this, isn't he?” Nerissa gritted her teeth. “I should have intervened before it went too far, but I thought that having another friend inside the palace would encourage you to stay put.”
“What are you talking about?” Maeve asked with a frown. Then it hit her. “Are you the reason father refused to let me move into the city?”
It had been the one thing she'd always wanted: a home she could call her own, a place where she could escape from Celest and Arlo's bullying, from Auberon's disparaging comments, or from Queen Lucrezia's animosity. It would have been a great opportunity to figure out her place in the world, to make new friends outside of the palace, to perform a bit of charity work… But that dream had been squashed when her father had rejected her request after months of ignoring her. And since he couldn't care less about his youngest child, someone else must have been whispering in his ear…
“I used to think it was your mother who’d asked him to, but she would be happier if all of us ‘rejects’ were out of her sight, wouldn’t she?”
Nerissa’s face fell. “Maeve, you need to understand, it was for your own good. The world out there—” She reached out to cup her sister’s cheek, but Maeve recoiled from her touch and started to back away from her.
“Why— How—” Her hands began to shake. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, threatening to burst. Every breath she took burned a hole through her lungs. She tried to speak again, her voice coming out weak and rasping, “What have I ever done to you to deserve this?”
“I only ever wanted to keep you safe, Mae-bear.”
“Don't call me that!” she yelled. “I'm not a child who needs to be coddled. You know how miserable I feel, cooped up in here. So why in the world would you do this to me?”
“Is there a problem, Your Highness?” KY-L3's artificial voice rang from across the room as he stepped out of the shadows.
“It's nothing,” Nerissa replied with a forced smile. “Only a squabble between sisters.”
Squabble wasn't a strong enough word to describe what was going on here. Her sister—the one person in the universe she'd trusted unconditionally—had betrayed her. How much control had Nerissa exerted over her life? For what reason? And for how long? But while she still had many questions, Maeve held her tongue. She wanted to get this over with as fast as possible, if only because this argument was taking precious time from her search.
“You should head back to the party,” she said bitterly. “People are definitely going to miss you if you disappear for too long.”
Nerissa sighed. Maeve was right and they both knew it. “Come back with me, Maeve.”
“And do what? Sit in a corner, sulking like I’ve been doing all day long?”
“Sorenn will be disappointed. He was so excited to see you again.”
Sorenn… Maeve should have expected her to bring him into this (today was his wedding day after all). It was a manipulative and calculated move on her sister’s part. And it almost worked.
“He’s too engrossed with his new wife to pay attention to my whereabouts.” Maeve turned on her heels and started walking down the corridor. “I’m going to bed,” she lied again, wiping away the tears that were blurring her vision. “We can finish this conversation tomorrow.”
If I ever come back, she thought. At this rate, Nerissa was going to lock her up for good. Not that a locked door had ever stopped the younger princess from climbing down her balcony before.
Vexx was out there, and if she had her way, she would find him and either convince him to come back or run away with him. And after those painful revelations, she was most certainly hoping for the latter.