My senses stay honed on Fionn and Silene. While I can’t sense their precise location with my magic, I do sense their movements. When they pace in the short repetitive pattern we practiced, my eyes scan the courtyard for Laurel. I find her sitting in a corner near a fire pit, speaking with Admon. I give her a nod, and her eyes tell me she understands. There’s nothing to indicate she’s used an enormous amount of magic, but Silene appears by my side only moments later.

“Excuse me, but would you mind terribly if I danced with my betrothed?” Silene asks my dance partner. “I’ve barely had a moment to speak with him this evening with all the new faces to greet, and I find I miss his company.” She beams, and the female practically falls over herself in her haste to give my hand to Silene.

“Nicely done,” I say low enough for only her to hear. “How did it go?” We twirl into an extravagant dance, all eyes on us, and I give her an exaggerated kiss on the cheek to cement in the party goers’ minds that they did indeed see Silene and me together. She pretends to blush, giving me a shy and demure smile before answering my question.

“Perfectly, actually. The guards Laurel stationed saw the rebels at the right moment. They pursued us just long enough to justify their job but quickly gave up when Fionn surrounded them with weapons. I expect they’ll be reporting to Carex shortly.”

“Well done, fiancé,” I tease. She scoffs but quickly hides the expression by touching her forehead to mine, like we’re whispering sweet confessions to one another.

“Fionn’s the real star of the show. He bent the metal bars of the cells faster than I’ve ever seen, despite his magic being dampened down in the prison. Even the rebels were impressed. They had several metal channelers with them who asked him to teach them at their next meeting.”

“Let’s hope this gains us their trust and that we’ll be able to meet with their leaders soon. I’m eager to provide something useful to Laurel.”

“Something useful, huh? Guess your winks and simpering stares aren’t all that useful to Her Majesty,” Silene goads me.

I stifle a laugh. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I feign. “I simply want to secure our alliance.”

“An alliance that gets you into her bed, you mean. You’re obsessed with her. You can’t keep your eyes off her. We’re going to have to publicly break up if you keep staring at her the way you do.” She gives me a wide smile.