The Prince: A Wicked Novella

by Jennifer L. Armentrout

  Tanner stared at me like he hadn’t considered that.

  Silence crept into the room. Faye shattered it as she reached over, picking up a photo of a dark-haired fae. “This is my younger cousin. His chosen name is Benji. He’s been missing for a week, and I can assure you that he would not do that to his mother. Not after his father died two years ago, fighting the Queen.”

  My stomach twisted as I focused on his picture.

  “This is his friend Elliot, who went missing about two weeks ago. Benji had told his mother he was going to look for Elliot,” Faye continued. “He disappeared since and we haven’t heard from either Elliot or Benji.”

  “I’m… I’m sorry,” I whispered, lifting my gaze to hers. “Truly, I am.”

  “Then help us,” Faye said quietly. “You will help us find my cousin and these young fae if you feel sorry.”

  “All we want is to know if the Order has any idea what happened to them and if they could possibly keep an eye out for these younglings.” Tanner spoke up as Faye looked away, her throat working. “Kalen has been out there, searching for them with no luck.”

  I jolted at the mention of the fae who’d worked closely with Ivy and Ren. I’d assumed he was with them and Prince Fabian.

  “I can help,” I said after a moment. “Can I have those photographs?”

  Tanner nodded.

  “I can check with the members to see if any of them look familiar.” I wasn’t sure if any of the Order members would fess up if they had anything to do with these fae. They were supposed to, but I was learning in the last two years there was very little consequence for these types of situations. “I can also make sure they keep an eye out for them.”

  Faye handed over the photo of her cousin to Tanner, and he closed the file. Rising from the desk, he walked it over to me. “We appreciate anything the Order can do.”

  Nodding, I took the file and stood, hoping that none of the Order members recognized these young men. If they did, it probably meant they’d met a tragic, unfair ending.

  The meeting was officially over. Faye and Tanner were quiet as they led me out of the office and down an empty wide hall. Upon entering the building, I’d been escorted through the front and not the amazing courtyard, and it looked like they were leading me to the front once more.

  As we neared the cafeteria area, I began to see more fae. Some lingered outside the wide archway, others walked to and fro, in small groups or alone. Most didn’t pay any attention to me. Others looked on in curiosity while some stared with outright distrust as we made our way to the grand, brightly lit lobby that truly reminded me of an upscale hotel.

  “Please contact me directly, whether or not you have any information,” Faye said as we passed several occupied couches and chairs.

  “I will.” I reached into the pocket of my purse, searching for my phone. From here, I was going to have to Uber it back to headquarters over on St. Phillip Street. I glanced over at Faye, and could see the worry etched into her face. The concern tugged at my heart. Lord knew I had this same kind of wretched experience of living through the disappearance of someone you loved and not knowing what happened to them. The desperation was the worst, the need to do everything and anything to find them, but not knowing if what you were doing was right or would even help.

  Faye was experiencing all of that.

  Stopping, I reached over and placed a hand on her arm. The contact surprised her as she swung her head toward me. “I’m sure your cousin is fine.”

  Faye held my gaze. “I hope so. After losing his father….”

  A slight frown pulled at my brow as Faye trailed off. She tilted her head slightly as a hush descended over the lobby and then she turned back to where we came from. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Tanner turn back as well.

  “You should leave now, Brighton,” she whispered.

  An acute shiver danced over my shoulders and the tiny hairs along the nape of my neck rose as I stared down at her dark, bowed head. Don’t turn around. Keep walking. That’s what I kept telling myself. I was done here, and Faye was right, I should leave now.

  But I turned around, because some primal instinct inside me already knew who had arrived. And some insane, disturbed part of me just had to see him.

  The Prince had entered his lobby, dressed very much like he had been Saturday night. Dark pants. Dark thermal. He wasn’t looking at Tanner or Faye or any of the other fae.

  Pale, ancient eyes fixed on mine. He didn’t recognize you. That’s what I kept telling myself as a wave of goosebumps spread along my flesh.

  I took a step back. Wrong move. Oh God, total wrong move.

  The Prince’s eyes narrowed.

  Tanner murmured something in his native language, and the Prince spoke. I didn’t understand a single word he said, but his voice was deep and booming and yet quiet somehow.

  The fae turned to stare at me, because the Prince… the Prince hadn’t taken his eyes off me.

  My heart hammered in my chest as I opened my mouth to say what, I had no idea, because the words turned to ash on the tip of my tongue as the Prince strolled across the lobby, heading straight for me.

  Chapter 9

  My first reaction to seeing him was the realization that there was a good chance I was going to have a massive heart attack. Dead before thirty-one, right here in the grandiose lobby of Hotel Good Fae.

  Which, I guessed, was only a little bit better than dying alone at home, suffocated by stacks of dusty books and piles of handwritten maps.

  My second, and probably the most troubling of reactions, was that rollercoaster dip in my stomach in response to seeing him, followed by an acute wave of shivers that had nothing to do with who he was.

  Goodness, he was just… I couldn’t find the right words other than he did some really stupid things to my hormones.

  Somehow I managed not to go into cardiac arrest or punch myself as he stalked toward me with the graceful prowl of a predator. I was a hundred percent human with absolutely no special abilities, but I could still feel the leashed power rolling off him, filling every nook and cranny of the lobby. It was base survival instinct, I figured, alerting the human mind that they were in the presence of a predator.

  He didn’t recognize you. I repeated that all the way up to the moment he stopped in front of me. He doesn’t know it was you he had his hands on—

  “What are you doing here?” he demanded.

  Throat dry, I blinked once and then twice. “Excuse me?”

  His pupils seemed to constrict in response to my voice. “I asked why you were here, Brighton.”

  Air caught in my throat at the sound of my name. “You know my name?”

  The Prince tilted his head to the side and the look that crossed his face made me think he was questioning my intelligence.

  Okay, that was a stupid question. But in my defense, other than Saturday night, when I was confident that he had no idea that was me, I’d only seen him twice before, both times brief. And we’d never been introduced. Ever. And I couldn’t even be sure that I had seen him in the hospital. That could’ve been a hallucination. Or a weird dream. Like the dream I had Saturday night, when I’d been in his lap and he’d been—

  Oh my God, my eyes widened as I felt heat blast my face. I was so not going to think about that when I was standing in front of him. Because it was weird. Totally weird and stupid, but I swore I could feel the warmth from his hands on my sides and his lips—

  Good God, I really needed to stop thinking.

  Those pupils seemed to constrict even further as he dipped his chin. I drew in a sharp breath. He was closer now and his scent…. Goodness, it reminded me of lazy summer afternoons. Being so close to him again was like standing next to a heater.

  Tanner cleared his throat. “My liege, Ms. Jussier is here on behalf of the Order. She will be helping us with the missing younglings.”

  “Is that so?” he replied wryly.

  My eyes narrowed. “Yes, that is so. Tanner contacted t
he Order and I was sent to handle the meeting and now since it’s over, I’ll be on my way.” I turned from the Prince to Faye, who was currently staring at me like I’d lost my mind. “I’ll be in touch, Faye.”

  I didn’t make it very far.

  Actually, I was only able to turn halfway by the time I felt the Prince’s warm fingers curled around my left wrist. Like before, the contact of his skin against mine was a jolt to the system. It was almost like he was charged with electricity, but I didn’t think that was possible.

  “Do you understand how serious it is that these younglings are missing?” he asked, speaking low enough that I didn’t think anyone else could hear him.

  “Yes.” My gaze skittered over his shoulder. We had an audience, a rather large, curious audience. Unnerved, I tried to pull my hand free and failed. “Of course I know it’s important.”

  “But do you care?” Those odd, striking eyes latched onto mine.

  A shiver danced over my shoulders. “Yes, I care.” Offended that he would even ask that question, I tugged on my arm again, getting nowhere. “Can you let go of me?”

  “Why would you care when the entirety of the Order does not?” He didn’t let go.

  “How do you know they don’t?” I fired back even though he was mostly right.

  “The fact that you’d have to ask that question makes me doubt your intelligence,” he said. “Then again, I already have good enough reasons to doubt that.”

  My mouth dropped open. Literally. “Did you just say that to me?”

  “I am confident that I spoke in your native language and quite clearly.”

  Anger flashed through my system. “You don’t even know me.”

  “Oh, I know you.” His voice dropped even further, eliciting an unwanted, confusing as hell shiver from me. “I know exactly what and who you are.”

  My fingers curled into a fist. “I don’t even know what you’re suggesting.”

  “You know just as well as I do that the Order doesn’t give a damn what may or may not have happened to a few Summer fae.” As he spoke, the space between us seemed to have evaporated. “And you stand before me, claiming that you do while you won’t even admit that the people you work for couldn’t care less.”

  I opened my mouth and then closed it. Damn, he had a point. A good point, but that didn’t mean I was apathetic. “I do care. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have taken this file. I wouldn’t have told Tanner and Faye that I would see what I could find out. If you actually did know who and what I am, whatever the hell that means, you’d know that I wouldn’t lie.”

  Faye’s audible sharp inhale warned me that my voice had risen even though the Prince’s hadn’t, and at least she could hear me.

  I didn’t care. Frustration and irritation had long since replaced the healthy sense of fear. “And seriously, dude, can you let go of my arm?”

  The Prince ignored my request yet again. “You are nothing but lies and façades.”

  My entire body jerked at that comment, striking too close to home for comfort. “Let go of me.”

  He held my gaze as he slowly lifted one finger after another, releasing my wrist. That bitter knot was back in my throat. The Prince had let go and his heavy lashes lowered, shielding his powerful gaze, but I swore I could still feel it. “My apologies,” he murmured. “That was uncalled for.”

  A feather could’ve knocked me over right then. He was apologizing? The Prince? “Yeah, it was.” I swallowed hard, taking a step back from him.

  “Even if it is true,” he added.

  “Wow. Way to ruin an apology,” I muttered. “Not that you probably even know why you just apologized.”

  “I do. It hurt you. Those words.”

  “What? You can smell that, too?”

  Those heavy lashes lifted, and the intensity of his gaze pierced me. Suddenly I thought back to the day I woke up in the hospital, to those eyes. “I can sense many things.”

  Oh.

  Oooh.

  I had the distinct impression that he was talking about earlier, when I was thinking about the dream I had. And boy, didn’t that make me want to crawl up in a hole somewhere. At that moment, I made a mental note to legit not feel anything when I was around him or any other fae.

  One eyebrow, several shades darker than his golden hair, lifted.

  “Wait. Can you guys read minds?” I asked, voice hushed and thinking I didn’t know nearly as much about the fae as I thought I did.

  “We don’t need to.”

  Relief hit me, but it quickly faded when his words cycled back through my head. We don’t need to. Meaning picking up on our emotions probably gave them enough insight on what our thoughts were.

  Nice.

  “Well…” I held the folder closer to my chest. “That’s freaky.”

  His lips twitched.

  “And I need to go.” I started to turn once more, ordering myself not to run out of the lobby like it was on fire. But I stopped, facing him again. “I do care about these younglings. I will find them or I will find out what happened to them.”

  The Prince inclined his head. A moment passed and then he nodded. Thinking this super awkward face to face was now, thankfully, over, I started to turn away again.

  “Brighton?”

  Desperately ignoring how the way he said my name made me think of stormy summer nights, I faced him, even though common sense screamed that I shouldn’t. I just couldn’t help myself. It wasn’t a compulsion. It was apparently really bad self-control. My wry gaze flickered over his face, and I bit back a sigh. He was the strongest, the deadliest of his kind, and that knowledge did nothing to dampen my appreciation of his masculine beauty.

  “The red hair was a nice touch, but I prefer it this way.”

  And then with those parting words, he turned and stalked off, leaving me standing there knowing one thing only.

  The Prince knew it was me Saturday night.

  Chapter 10

  Damn.

  Damn it.

  Damn it all to hell.

  Faye followed me out into the thick, overcast skies. “That was weird.”

  “You think?” Shaken, I pulled out my phone and opened the car service app. Thank Mary Mother of God, Faye hadn’t heard what the Prince had said before he walked off. “Yeah, that was super weird.”

  My heart was still pounding like I’d just done an hour on the treadmill. He knew. Damn it, he knew it had been me. He probably also knew why Tobias had disappeared.

  I dragged my teeth along my bottom lip as I checked out what cars were nearby, resisting the urge to rip off the damn sweater. It was much cooler out here, but I still felt too hot.

  “Brighton?”

  Lifting my chin, I glanced at Faye. She stared at me with some sort of wonder in her eyes. “I don’t think you understand how out of character that was for him.”

  “Oh, trust me, I was on the receiving end of all that weirdness. I understand.”

  She gave a slight shake of her head. “No, you don’t. I’ve never seen him speak to anyone for that length of time.”

  “Really?” I choked out a laugh as I glanced over my shoulder at the door that now looked like a rusted-over scrap of metal. The glamour had settled into place. “He spoke to me for about a minute, two tops.”

  Faye nodded back at me.

  “Seriously?” I lowered my phone. “That’s not very long. Does he not talk?”

  “Not really.”

  “To anyone?”

  “No.” She folded her arms as she stepped in closer to me. “Not even his brother. He’s… well, you know what he’s been through.”

  And I knew what he, under trance, had put others through. But I kept that to myself.

  “He’s not very communicative,” she said.

  He didn’t seem like he peopled very well, but I also kept that to myself and instead let curiosity get the best of me. “Has he been here this whole time? In the city, since the fight with the Queen?”

  “Yes.” Her dark brow
s knitted together. “He actually hasn’t left New Orleans at all, not even to travel to the other large community in Florida with his brother.”

  I thought that was odd, that I hadn’t seen him, and none of the Order had ever mentioned seeing him while on patrol. But I had a feeling the Prince knew how to stay unseen until he wanted to be.

  I wanted to ask her if she knew why he would’ve been at Flux looking for a Winter fae, but asking that question would expose that I had been there.

  Brushing my ponytail over my shoulder, I returned to the app on the phone. I tapped on the nearest car. “I honestly don’t know what to say. It was weird, but it’s over. I need to get to the Order. They’ll have their afternoon meeting soon and that’s the perfect time to see if any of them recognize these guys.”

  “What was he saying to you?” she asked.

  I held onto my phone and the file as I turned to the road, wishing the car would magically appear. “Nothing,” I said. “Nothing that’s important.”

  Faye didn’t respond to that, and she didn’t say anything while she stood out there with me until the car arrived and I climbed in. I doubted that she believed me. When I closed the door and looked out the window, she was already gone.

  “St. Phillips Street?” the driver asked, checking my request in the app.

  “Yes.” My gaze was glued to the rundown brick building as the driver turned around and headed back toward the Canal. “Thank you.”

  Once I could no longer see the building, I fell back in the seat with a sigh. God, what had just happened? Usually no one paid any attention to me on any given day and the Prince, who apparently didn’t speak to anyone, knew it had been me Saturday night and I had a sinking suspicion that he’d somehow known I’d been there and sought me out.

  I ran my hand under my throat, wincing as I placed too much pressure on the skin. The Prince knew what I was up to, but he hadn’t exposed me in front of Tanner and Faye. Did that mean he wouldn’t go to the Order?