Promising Light (61 page)

Vin didn’t ask what he meant. His
face paled, and he stared at Dar. “What? How?”

“I don’t know, really,” Dar said
quietly. “Grace didn’t tell me all the details.”

Vin covered his mouth with his
hands. “How does they know it worked?”

Dar swallowed, glancing around the
small room again. There were about ten men now, half of them
playing cards, the others talking quietly or half-sleeping at the
tables. “I don’t know, but I think she’s right. I think it worked.
She wouldn’t say it unless it did.”

“Where is she now?”

“She’s somewhere here at the
palace,” Dar said. As much as he wanted to be honest with Vin,
maybe hiding the truth of the love potion would protect Grace. Dar
wanted the prince to know about it purely out of selfish reasons,
but he hated to think how William might respond if he truly knew.
“She wanted to go home.”

“What?”

“She helped us,
and she said that’s all she could do. She wanted to be back with
her family.” Dar looked across the room at the door, avoiding Vin’s
eyes.

“But I don’t
understand…”

“Come on, Vin, don’t you think
she’s done enough for us?” Dar crossed his arms. “Let’s just leave
it.”

Vin looked ready to argue, but the
door opened, and a portly man in an apron came in. He held a crate
and he dropped it on the table where Jon sat. The other men got to
their feet, including Vin. “Come on, or you won’t get anything to
eat,” Vin told Dar.

The crate was full of food: chicken
bones, rotten oranges, crusty bread. There was some kind of order
to the grabbing, but Dar couldn’t figure out what it was. Everyone
had food when they went back to their tables, but it was the
bigger, meaner men who had the more edible stuff.

Dar was glad Grace had better
accommodations, even though it was because she’d taken a love
potion. The thought made his stomach twist. He’d never forget the
sound of her voice when she told him she loved him. He only wished
they’d said it to each other earlier.

* * *

Promising Hope
is now
available anywhere ebooks are sold!

About the Author:

Emily Ann Ward is an author living in Salem, Oregon with
her husband and their two cats. Along with writing, she loves to
read and cook. She’s been published in
Pond Ripples E-Zine
and
Literary House
Review
. Her other works
include
Passages (Seven Short
Stories), Beyond Home (Three Short Stories), Finding Fiona,
and
The Protectors
prequels.

Website/Blog:
http://emilyannward.com

Twitter:
http://twitter.com/emilyannw

Facebook:
http://facebook.com/emilyannward1