Iris~~
I stiffen at the sound of that voice.
Jay-yeon makes his way through the crowd to reach me, his jacket the same as Jonas's, but black where his is silver and silver where Jonas's is black. His black bangs are swept upward and some strands glow brown in the light hitting them. I only have a moment to try to find Jonas, Erik, even Colton before he reaches me.
"Jay-yeon."
"You look radiant tonight."
"I wish I could say the same about you."
"I need a partner to begin the next dance." Whatever the next dance is, his words mean I wouldn't be stuck with him for the entirety of the song. He holds out his hand. "Please. I can't stay long, and I'd like to dance as much as possible."
Could he really be working with the rebels? Even after he left my orphanage to burn?
"Why can't you stay?"
He pulls his hand back, shoving both into his pockets and shrugs, offering a small smile. "I have things to take care of. Work."
"It's a holiday."
"I run a country, Iris."
"How long would we dance before I get a new partner?"
He tilts his head up as if pondering it. "About a minute I believe. Can you stomach that?"
"No." I walk past him only for a hand to grab me and pull me back. I raise my fist but drop it when I meet Erik's hazel eyes.
The Tresais lets go of me and holds up his hands. "I just wanted to dance."
I snatch his hand, maybe too eagerly. "Please," I say and he guides me out onto the dance floor where we find a spot in the outer ring of two circles of dancers.
The waltz begins, the music staccato, an urgency threaded into the notes. A darkness. The steps are simple enough. A waltz that has us spinning around the circle.
He holds me close. "After the four twirls we switch partners. You're going into the inner circle."
"I know this one."
"The rebels really did prepare you to infiltrate the Society, didn't they? How can I be sure you're not doing it right now?"
You get into the heart of them and then you pierce them.
The thought barrels into me, nearly knocking me off my feet. I wasn't the only one they taught that to. How long has the rebel been hidden in the Society? How close to the center of it have they gotten?
"You met my uncle," I say.
"A charming fellow."
I roll my eyes.
"I saw you dancing with Bently. That must have been pleasant."
"Oh of course."
What was Bently searching for when we spoke? He was after something. Some answer hidden in my words or actions maybe? He can't really believe women go around casting love spells on wealthy men.
Right?
Erik twirls me under his arm four times before I sweep into the inner circle and take the hands of a new partner, a member of the Society I don't believe I've met. He seems older than me and Erik, and we spend the whole minute in silence, and I'm grateful when I sweep back into the outer circle until I find myself clasping the hands of the Theta, Sebastian Blackwood. He's larger than any of the members of the Order with whom I've danced or to whom I've spoken tonight. His build is wider, his chest buffer, his muscles in his arms more prominent.
He merely nods at me, and I nod back. And that's that. We dance in silence, and I'm glad at least that I'm spared the interrogation that's come with my past conversations.
Colton and I assume Vienna waltz by in the inner circle. I only recognize Colton from this distance because I saw him before the ball when I met Jonas for a glass of champagne. The only others present were Riley and his sister, Analiese.
Sebastian twirls me, and we switch partners. This time I take the hands of Jay-yeon. I grimace while he beams.
"It's fate."
"What is it you want?"
"I'm merely trying to deem how receptive you'd be to helping me with something."
"You tried to have me killed by the Society."
His long fingers splay across my back rather than on my hip where Sebastian had his hand. "You should learn the art of moving on."
"If you're asking me to forgive you for the past, it's a no."
He's not going to get forgiveness from me, not when he's part of the reason the people who raised me are dead, and why I watched my home burn. His actions are why I then ended up in a position to be left behind.
He must can read my thoughts in my eyes because he says, "I wouldn't have left you behind." Not like them are the words that go unspoken.
"You would have laughed and left."
"Did you ever think the reason I pushed you was because I wanted you to succeed?"
I snort, now only a few steps away from the twirls. "I can't say it ever crossed my mind. If you wanted me to succeed, you wouldn't have exposed me to the Society."
With that, he sends me into the twirls.
My next partner is a woman probably around my age. She's in the position to lead and like Sebastian only nods and takes hold of me to acknowledge my existence. I keep my eyes from meeting hers, only comfortable with making eye contact with the Order. Is she an Amoris? Was the man I didn't know one? I chill crawls up my spine and over my arms. How many are around me right now?
She twirls me before sending me toward my next partner: August Blackwood, the Delta. I swear this must be one of the Orders favorite dances with so many of them participating.
He gives me a sheepish look, and I assume he must still be uncomfortable with me seeing him come to Arrietty's room.
"Did you . . ."
"You have to be more specific," I say.
"Did you tell Erik?"
So maybe not uncomfortable but worried. "No, I didn't."
He lets out a breath. "Erik's had such a rough go at it these past few years, that if he found out about this, I think he'd snap."
"Didn't they date when they were fourteen?"
"I'm his cousin. It wouldn't matter if they were four when they dated." His suit is made of a patterned black velvet. Along the front pocket of his jacket are black sequins. His mask is all silver. "It wouldn't even matter if he hated her. He'd just see me as taking something that was once his."
I want to ask if he's sure. If Erik would really think like that. But didn't Erik say almost those exact words to me in Nevada? When he realized I didn't want him in the way he wanted me. How far would he go for retribution?
"Why is she a Konkursi? The hours seem awful."
"She enjoys it. Her family wasn't officially a part of the Society. They were only in our circle. Once she became a Konkursi, they became official members."
Even if it weren't for the Amoris, I don't think I could willingly spend so much time below the Estate. It's not the warmest and most welcoming of places.
August grins as if he can read my thoughts like Jay-yeon. "It also helps that the pay is more than you've probably made in your entire life."
We twirl but don't separate as the music draws to its end. As he bows, he says, "Take care of Jonas. I haven't seen him with such light in his eyes in years."
"Aren't you going to warn me away from him?"
"I'd never begrudge my cousin temporary happiness."
Before I can ask what he means by temporary, he walks away. Did Jonas tell him about me possibly going to France? I'm sure he probably did. It seems like the kind of thing he'd share with his Order.